Flash Fiction and Less vs. Fewer

Before I launch into my next grammar tirade, let me tout how cool my latest example is. Hint Fiction, An Anthology of Stories in 25 Words or Fewer by editor Robert Swartwood is a book of flash fiction, and if you've never tried to write a story this short before, try it. You'll find it's hard as hell. With so few words, every word has to count. Here's a beautiful example from page 85 of Hint Fiction by contributor Jason Jordan:

Take It Off

Without her knowing, Mark

posted the video. A million views meant he

had to show it to her before someone else did.

Intense stuff. Truly. So much packed into so few words.

Alright, now, having gotten my literary fix for the moment, on to the grammatical point. Note how Swartwood uses the word "fewer" in the title of the book. If you go to the grocery store, you'll notice the sign for the express lane says, "15 Items or Less." Well, sorry, Kroger, Meijer, and Mom-and-Pop Mart, but that's just plain wrong. Grammatically, it should read, "15 Items or Fewer."

The rule behind this is simple. It deals with count and noncount nouns. If a noun can be counted, you can put a number in front of it. Therefore, I can say "1 item," "2 items," "3 items," etc. If a noun is countable, the adjective that goes in front of it or modifies it is "fewer." More examples include "fewer beds," "fewer people," or "fewer headaches." I can count beds, people, and headaches, so I use "fewer" as my modifier.

In contrast, "less" is used for nouns that can't be counted. These nouns are often called "mass nouns" because the components of the noun are too small to be separated individually or the noun can't be divided at all. Mass nouns include liquids, metals, feelings, languages, and educational disciplines among other areas. Here is a short list of some mass nouns:

wood

cloth

ice
plastic
wool
steel
aluminum
metal
glass
leather
porcelain
hair
dust
air
oxygen
water
milk
wine
beer
cake
sugar
rice
meat
cheese
flour
reading
boating
smoking
dancing
soccer
hockey
weather
heat
sunshine
electricity
biology
history
mathematics
economics
poetry
Chinese
Spanish
English
luggage
equipment
furniture
experience
applause
photography
traffic
harm
publicity
homework
advice

A good example for using "less" with a mass noun comes from The Joy of Less by Francine Jay.
 

Chapter 3 of this book is titled, "Less Stuff = Less Stress." "Stuff" and "stress" are both mass nouns. They cannot be counted or divided. Therefore, I'd never say "fewer stuff" or "fewer stress." I need to use "less."
 
Hope this helps with your own editing! And now, for my own attempt at flash fiction in 25 words or less.
 

Her Biggest Fear

 

Her blog became wildly popular.

Online fame befell her until

a fellow grammarian commented on

the thirteen grammatical mistakes strewn

throughout her work.

 

Send me yours if you write one!