Lisa Nikolidakis, Fall 2014 Orlando Flash Fiction Winner
“The Spinning Field” brings the reader immediately and viscerally into the world of the alien among us – the outsider, the immigrant, the ostracized. For its pitch-perfect voice, succinct yet compelling details, and total honesty (even when it ain’t pretty), “The Spinning Field” has the mark of a writer to watch!”
—Kristen Wolf, Fall 2014 Orlando Flash Fiction Finalist Judge
Congratulations to Lisa Nikolidakis on the selection of her flash fiction story, “The Spinning Field” for the Fall 2014 Orlando Short Fiction Prize! “The Spinning Field” will be published in Issue No. 17 of the Los Angeles Review.
We asked Lisa to talk about her story and to tell us what publication means to her. She replied:
Everyone has felt like an outsider, but the injustice of it burns especially bright in teenagers who often feel cast out in multiple ways at once. I wanted to grab that moment when you think of the perfect comeback to an insult—or, in this case, the perfect transmogrification—and really let it empower the narrator.
A writer’s life can be fraught with self-doubt. It’s always a joy to receive an acceptance email. It means that someone other than me thinks I’m doing something right.
Lisa Nikolidakis received her PhD in Creative Writing from Florida State University, and her work has appeared in The Rumpus, [PANK], Hobart, Chautauqua Review, Necessary Fiction, Harpur Palate, and elsewhere. She recently finished her first memoir and currently teaches writing in the Midwest.
