Definition
A drabble is a complete work of fiction in exactly 100 words. The form originated in UK fandom circles in the 1980s and has since spread across writing communities worldwide. The appeal is the constraint itself: hitting exactly 100 words forces you to make choices you would never make otherwise. You trim, you compress, you rethink entire sentences to gain or lose a single word. The result, when it works, is a tiny story with the density of a diamond.
Why It Matters
Drabbles are one of the best editing exercises you will ever encounter. When you have to land on exactly 100 words, every word choice becomes a puzzle. Should you use 'said' or 'whispered'? Is that adjective earning its spot? The ruthless precision transfers directly to all your other writing. You start seeing filler words everywhere, and you get better at killing them.
Common Mistakes
A drabble is exactly 100 words. Not roughly 100, not 'about' 100. The entire point is the precision. Hyphenated words typically count as one word, and the title is not included in the count.
Even at 100 words, aim for a beginning, a shift, and an ending. Something should change between the first word and the last. A description or a mood piece can be beautiful, but it is not a drabble in the traditional sense.
Compression should feel natural, not strained. If you are reaching for a thesaurus to find a shorter synonym, the sentence probably needs rewriting instead.
Try It Yourself
Write three drabbles on the same theme but from three different perspectives. Pick a small, concrete event - a door closing, a phone ringing, a letter arriving - and tell it from the viewpoint of three different people involved. Each one must be exactly 100 words. Use your word processor's word count tool obsessively.
Hit Your Word Count Target Every Time
Novelium's writing analytics give you a live word count as you draft, making it easy to write and revise your drabbles to that perfect 100-word mark.