“Flick … writes with prose so clear and sharp she carves the breath out of the reader.” –Kathryn McMahon Split-Lip Magazine
“Flick’s writing is fresh and decisive…” –Jo Varnish Necessary Fiction
“Flick is a master of creating big scenes in small, often quiet spaces and allowing her characters a full range of motion to demonstrate their passions, their fears, their desperate need to find community.” –Angela Mitchell Black Fox Literary Magazine
“While the 40 stories rushing by Thank Your Lucky Stars have an enchanting wall-of-sound effect, I appreciated the contrast created by the full-bodied stories, each one a gem.” –John Allison Pittsburgh Quarterly
“This collection is a mix of both short and longer works. They are bittersweet and disquieting; others turn dark and creepy faster than you can say, ‘Flannery O’Connor.’ Mostly, they explore the darkest, most alone corners of our souls.” –Jodi DiPerna Pittsburgh Current
“Flick’s metaphors persist through her stories, bringing a dash of humor to some dark situations.” –Cheyenne Heckerman, Anomaly
“Sherrie Flick may very well be the Shakespeare of the shorty.” –Kristopher Collins Pittsburgh Magazine
“Flick’s work is adamant. It points to having the strength and stupidity to ignore advice. To see your own and someone else’s beauty. And then to get in your car, slam the door, and drive toward something else, or just away.” –Erin Lewenauer, Rain Taxi
“Flick’s stories are endlessly quotable.” –Kelly Sauvage Angel, New Pages
“…the stories pile up like a crazy quilt, exquisitely stitched.” –John Allision, Pittsburgh Quarterly
“The short short stories in this masterful collection will resonate with readers long after they’ve finished the book.” –Casey Pycior, Necessary Fiction
“Sherrie Flick, author of Whiskey, Etc. is a virtuoso of this genre” –Nancy McCabe, Ploughshares
“Reading Whiskey, Etc. it feels as if the author is sitting next to you whispering stories in your ear, as though the two of you, attending a loud party, had made a corner of the room your own private island.” –Kristofer Collins, Pittsburgh Magazine
A New Pages editor’s pick
“Whiskey, Etc. is a sharp-edged, intelligent, brilliantly written collection of short shorts by a writer at the very top of her game.” –Kathy Fish
“…deliciously intoxicating.” –Kim Chinquee
“As if dining on small plates of delicious food, doubters of brevity’s value will leave Whiskey, Etc. feeling pleasantly full.” –Fred Shaw, Pittsburgh City Paper
“Flick is an expert at finding the unnerving, the unusual, the exceptional in life’s regularities.” –JoAnna Novak, DIAGRAM
“We trust Flick’s voice to bring us the news, for better or worse, but always the truth, like it or not. And like it we do.” –Robert Shapard & James Thomas
“…quirky characters in swift, bold gestures.” –Pittsburgh Post-Gazette
“Sherrie Flick is one of the best and more prolific short writers publishing today.” –Michael Czyzniejewski, Story366
Canoe: a short (short) story from Sherrie Flick’s new book, Whiskey, Etc., Next Pittsburgh
We know many fans eagerly awaiting the March release of Sherrie Flick’s new book of short (short) stories, Whiskey, Etc. At NEXTpittsburgh, we’ve been enjoying the smart collection since it arrived in the mail recently. (Don’t tell Sherrie but we got our copy a day before she got hers.) But hey, we’ll happily share. Starting with this very short, memorable story called Canoe that shows the deft hand of this talented Pittsburgh author who, with tight focus and vivid description, evokes a whole world in just a few hundred words. Try that sometime. Better yet, read this story. Read More >
Sherrie Flick Recalls Something of her Bakery Days at Ceres Bakery by Clara Silverstein, Boston Globe
In the 29 years since Penelope Brewster gave up being a metalsmith to open Ceres Bakery, she has fed an entire generation of townspeople her signature whole wheat baguettes, rhubarb-raspberry tarts, and enough coffee to fill Lake Winnipesaukee. Regulars wait outside for the doors to open each morning, and “lounge dwellers’’ come in each day for lunch. Local artists display their work on the orange-red walls of the dining room. Read More >
Reconsidering Happiness, City Paper
Sherrie Flick has made her bones nationally writing short, concise pieces of flash fiction, including the 2004 chapbook I Call This Flirting. She’s also been an instrumental part of the Pittsburgh literary scene, as artistic director of the popular monthly Gist Street Reading Series, which draws national and local talent. Read More >
Last Call: Tara Masih on Sherrie Flick’ Reconsidering Happiness, Gently Read Literature
I admire women writers who tell it like it is, don’t prettify their female characters, don’t apologize for their actions. Sherrie Flick’s Reconsidering Happiness is a dead-on exploration of women’s issues in recent decades (and men’s, peripherally), in regards to relationships with themselves and others. Read More >
As if Each Word is Worth $1,000, Flash Fiction Chronicles
There is no exact price one can put on words when we consider what words teach us, how they inspire us, where they take us, but writers selecting those words must always weigh their value—how much bang for the buck does each word give—before sending them off as a story, especially a piece of flash fiction. Words are precious in any work of fiction. They are the stuff that create mood, reveal character, offer tension, but in flash, each word must be absolutely worth the space it uses. If it does not serve a very specific function, then it must be reconsidered for one that does. Read More >
Reconsidering Happiness, by Christopher Zoukis, kansascity.com
Flick’s narrative descriptions of Nebraska are dazzling, as are her portrayals of food and working in a bakery. . . . Reconsidering Happiness is a thoughtful work for thoughtful readers, who enjoy fine literature.