Ever wonder why aliens don't visit Earth? Or what coffee a demon likes to drink? Or how bureaucracy could really screw up a grand space adventure? A Flash in the Pan? is a collection of speculative flash fiction and short stories that answers these questions and more. The collection includes the following speculative fiction stories: Flash fiction - Shipwrecked (500 words) - The Gloriously Cunning Plan (500 words) - Make Mine a Macchiato (500 words) - Striking Twice (500 words) - In the Service of the Public (500 words) - The Devil Wears Ugly Shapeless Garments Covered in Dog Hair (500 words) - The Regersek Zone (500 words) - Authentic Empathy (500 words) - Narration Blues (500 words) - Indistinguishable from Science (500 words) The "50 worders" - Beware Antipodean Shores (50 words) - Hindsight is a Bitch (50 words) Short stories - Where Everybody Knows Your Name (3,200 words) - Wefting the Warp (4,300 words) - Showdown (5,100 words)