Writing short is harder than writing long. Everything matters. An entire narrative--a life, a death, a drink, a fling--must be bent into the space of a poem. Beat these 79-word stories by ten of the country's greatest writers and you could win a trip to New York City and a full-paid scholarship to participate in the advanced fiction workshop during Aspen Summer Words in Aspen, Colorado (June 16-21, 2013). 

Entries must be 79 words, in honor of Esquire's seventy-ninth birthday. We're calling these short shorts "Aspens."

All entries due by Sep 1, 2012. Must be submitted electronically at esquiresubmissions.com 
(The contest is currently closed. Stay tuned for details on the 2013 Short Short Fiction Contest.)

What are we looking for, exactly?  Beat this.... 

Contest of skill: No purchase necessary to enter or win. Short Short Fiction Contest. Sponsored by Hearst Communications, Inc., and presented by Aspen Writers’ Foundation, a program of the Aspen Institute. Beginning June 1, 2012, at 12:01 a.m. (ET) through September 1, 2012, at 11:59 p.m. (ET), submit entries at esquiresubmissions.com. Winners will receive a travel stipend up to $500. Must be age of majority and a legal resident of the 50 United States, District of Columbia, or Canada. Void in Puerto Rico, the Province of Quebec, and where prohibited by law. Contest is subject to complete official rules available at esquire.com/fiction-contest.