cover art "morpheus" by Marty D. Ison Our Mission: SmokeLong Quarterly is dedicated to bringing the best flash fiction to the web on a quarterly basis, whether written by widely published authors, or those new to the craft. The term "smoke-long" comes from the Chinese, who noted that reading a piece of flash takes about the same length of time as smoking a cigarette. All the work we publish is precisely that—about a smoke long. Issue Twenty-Three Letter From the Editor David Aichenbaum Ants Christopher Bundy Earthrise Jon Chopan The World Before This One Thomas Cooper Ghost Bike Lydia Copeland The Sway of Trains Debra A. Daniel Impressionists David Harris Ebenbach Danseuses Nues Terry Ehret The Head Fields Sherrie Flick Shadows Larry Fondation Heroin Girl Stefanie Freele She Doesn't Ask Where He Goes Barry Graham Caved In Kyle Hemmings Chicago World's Fair, 1893 Tania Hershman Coat and Shoes Tai Dong Huai Thirteen W.P. Kinsella Phoenix Dorianne Laux Nearly Free Liane LeMaster Alien Lunch Kuzhali Manickavel The Society for the Preservation of Everything Jeannie Vanasco 216 East Boalt Spencer Wise Potatoes