Finnian Burnett is one of those writers who explodes on the scene apparently overnight. A prominent figure in the Canada Writes online community, Burnett is suddenly a keynote speaker at writers’ conferences, a writer in residence, a workshop leader, and well, seemingly everywhere. Of course, like every overnight success, there is, in fact, a long backstory as a writer, in this case, as a practitioner of, and advocate for, flash fiction. Having attended a couple of their panels I can attest their reputation as an inspiring presenter is well deserved.
Burnett’s success mirrors the steady rise in interest in the flash fiction form. Practically, every fiction market I can think of now lists flash as a submission category, and a quick count gives me 360 markets that only accept flash/micro fiction. Burnett stands out not just as a superb practitioner of the form, but as a leading author of the novel-in-flash. Burnett’s The Price of Cookies (also from Off Topic Publishing, 2024) is a series of connected flash pieces that weave a cohesive snapshot of community, demonstrating both the potential of the flash genre and Burnett’s mastery of it.
So, when Redshirts Sometimes Survive was announced, I immediately dropped everything to review it.
In spite of the title, edshirts Sometimes Survive isn’t about Star Trek exactly. No one can doubt Burnett’s passion for Star Trek or the fandom that has grown up around it, but the stories themselves are focused on relationships, family, and community. The common thread here are stories about people surviving intolerable situations, having breakthrough moments, or finding community based on their love of this or that Star Trek series or character. Burnett uses Star Trek to illuminate the lives of the neurodivergent, the queer, the introverted, the body shamed, and anyone at a significant decision point. The stories are about the universal experiences of loneliness and love, of awfulness and wonder, with Star Trek allusions as merely shorthand for the values and priorities we ought to fight for in an increasingly dark era.
One of the major takeaways for me is how multiple iterations of Star Trek have served three generations of pre-teens and teens as the Mr. Roger’s Neighbourhood sequel. Just as Mr. Rogers told every child watching they were “special just the way you are”, Star Trek’s progressivist future told Mr. Rogers alumni, “you’re fine the way you are, it’s society that needs to grow up and accept you for who you are”. Not that Burnett draws that comparison, but one can’t read these stories without realizing Star Trek’s significance in providing both positive role models and an escape from cruel reality. Flash titles like, “When Captain Picard Was My Dad”, “Romulans Stole Our Dad”, “What Would Janeway Do?” “Wesley Crusher Faces His Fears”, and “Don’t Shut Up, Wesley” provide a hint of how individual pieces reflect Star Trek’s role as both substitute parent and alternate reality. Burnett’s flash demonstrates how Star Trek’s values influenced generations of kids to become stronger, kinder, better people.
The exception, of course, is “There Are No Fat People on Star Trek”. This simple flash piece reminds us how Star Trek—and by extension, all mass media—body-shame. Okay, fair enough. Nobody can claim Star Trek is perfect, and it’s essential to acknowledge areas where the series falls down. Full marks to Burnett for holding Trek accountable on this one.
Not all of the stories are about kids and growing up, of course. Adulting gets its fair share of attention here as well. “Ten Forward, 3 a.m.” was every Thursday in my twenties and thirties; and “One Last Frontier” deals with elder care in a way that hit way too close to home for me, both as a carer and as a guy getting older. “The Spock 10-Step Method to Surviving a Narcissist” seems like sound advice for work and intimate relationships (especially step 11), “New Life and New Civilizations” is about finding your crew whatever the basis for your found family, and “Beam Me Up, Cat” is about half the pet owners I know. There wasn’t a single story I couldn’t relate to, even when it wasn’t any part of my own lived experience. These fragments all address themes that are essentially universal, at least for those woke enough to ‘get’ Star Trek. All of which begs the question, why a novel-in-flash? What makes flash collections, linked or not, so special?
The answer is these are standalone pieces. No matter how cohesively they fit together, they need to be digested individually. Whereas novels and short stories build up to some point, flash is only the piece with the point. Burnett packs a wallop in each perfectly crafted story. They are the gut punch that lays you out, forcing you to rethink your life. Or, they are a triumphant moment when things work out, and you excuse yourself to the kitchen so no one will see you crying. I can’t read more than one of these at a time, nor would I want to, when there is so much to reflect on, relate to, or savour.
Redshirts Sometimes Survive is due out from Off Topic Publishing, April 2026; available now for pre-order.
