Happy Accidents

Not long ago, I became fascinated with alien abductions. You see them on TV in various mediums, from creepy shows like The Twilight Zone to wacky shows like Resident Alien. I was struck with the inspiration to write a story about an alien abduction, partly because it was intriguing, and partly to de-rust my writing gears. Thus, the flash fiction "Not Heartless" was born. It follows an alien who realizes the terror she inflicts on the humans she abducts, and has a change of heart even though her species don't have hearts. There was so much worldbuilding I wanted to weave in, but flash fiction is supposed to be bite-sized. It took effort to stay focused on what I wanted to really showcase.

I sent the story to 365tomorrows, and then went down the rabbit hole that is writing haiku. After a time, I heard nothing back, so I assumed that the story had been rejected. That's when an intriguing idea came to me...what if I rewrote the story as a haibun?

Haibun is an art form that combines a passage of prose with one or more haiku. The prose is meant to compliment or explain the background of a haiku. It's really not much different from flash fiction. So, I decided to rewrite "Not Heartless". To accomplish this, I stripped the story to its pure essence and rewrote it word-by-word. I removed a whole character, re-imagined the setting and the alien, and focused exclusively on the feelings of the characters. This was even more challenging because haibun are so short. I molded it over and over like clay until it was just the way I wanted it. I sent the haibun to Scifaikuest and crossed my fingers.

A few days later, I got an acceptance email. I'm humbled to say that the editor was thrilled by the haibun and was excited to have it appear in the August 2026 issue. I felt that I had really grown as an author, taking a risk with a new form and also taking the time to rewrite a story into something different...dare I say even better than the original.

And here is where the story would end...but the universe has a way of pitching you a foul-ball from the twenty-yard-line that bounces off the rim of the basket. Yes, that was a muddled sports analogy, and it's how I felt when I looked up 365tomorrows to share my old stories on my Facebook page. I found the original "Not Heartless", alive and well on their website! I had expected to receive a brief "notice of publication" before the story went live, and checking my email confirmed no such message had appeared.

I don't know what went wrong, but this was not a pickle I wanted to be in. I was terrified that I was going to get into trouble with Scifaikuest, but I wrote to the editor and she graciously understood that these things happen. They are both technically different works even though they both follow the same general story, so there is no conflict. The haibun is still on track for August 2026, though we are deciding on a different title.

And thus, I set out to have one published piece, and ended up with two. I feel like a parent who was expecting a child and was given twins on the delivery date. For now, I hope you enjoy "Not Heartless". You can find it HERE. Its sibling will meet you in the near-future.

Until next time!