I've been told that the best way to think of short story sized ideas is to read more short stories and this year I've got more into them, and this is a small list of my favourite writers/stories (also because we were talking about this last week):
1. Seasons of Glass and Iron: https://uncannymagazine.com/article/seasons-glass-iron/
Amal El-Mohtar has prose I would simultaneously kill AND cut my right arm for. Gorgeous fairy tale mish-mash but also deeply feminist and deals with themes of abuse. f/f
2. Waiting on a Bright Moon: https://www.tor.com/2017/07/12/waiting- ... ight-moon/
This story is in second person present tense and yet somehow works. It is SO GOOD. f/f content warnings for a graphic execution method?
JY Yang also wrote the Tensorate novella series which has really excellent Asian-inspired world building featuring non-binary characters.
3. The Starship and the Temple Cat: http://www.beneath-ceaseless-skies.com/ ... emple-cat/
A short by Yoon Ha Lee set in the world of his critically acclaimed Ninefox Gambit series (which is on my TBR and I need to read ASAP
4. Ken Liu's Paper Mengerie: https://io9.gizmodo.com/read-ken-lius-a ... la-5958919
Has won Nebula, Hugo and Locus awards. It deals with fairly familar generation gap themes in work by 2nd generation diaspora but does it in a fresh way? Tissues may be required while reading.
He's also released a short story anthology under the same title that I've been really enjoying.
5. Mary Robinette Kowal: Worshipful Society of Glovers https://uncannymagazine.com/article/wor ... y-glovers/
and Lady Astronaut of Mars https://www.tor.com/2013/09/11/the-lady ... t-of-mars/
She's written two novel sized prequels (Calculating Stars and The Fate Sky) to Lady Astronaut of Mars which are character driven hard sci-fi and alternate history that are feminist inclusionary and also deal with mental health issues. The concept is what if a mete
or struck the US in the 1950s necessitating a rapid expansion of the space program to set up a colony on Mars before.
6. Alyssa Wong's Hungry Daughters of Starving Mothers: https://www.crashwong.net/hungry-daughters
Alyssa Wong writes SUCH good horror shorts
7. Jiak Liu Lan by Yap Xiong http://arsenika.ink/fiction/jiak-liu-lian/
Very Malaysian. Full of durian love which I HIGHLY relate to LOL
9. Zen Cho's If you don't succeed try, try again. https://www.barnesandnoble.com/blog/sci ... y-zen-cho/
Novelette about an imugi trying to become a dragon. Hilarious and heartwarming. So cute! I believe she also has a short story anthology out that I want to try and a few novels.
10. Fonda Lee's Welcome to the Legion of Six https://theovercast.libsyn.com/overcast ... -fonda-lee is a short story about hilarious superheroes in a podcast format
Also for those of you who like podcasts, Uncanny Magazine have got a great short story podcast where they'll read out a feature short story, a poem and do an author interview once a month.