In this creative/critical article, I draw on my recent creative writing practice research to propose that the short story is a particularly appropriate form for conveying experiences of chronic illness, and to consider what kind of change, revelation or epiphany might be possible in such stories. The state of chronic illness – characterised by perpetual uncertainty and cycles of recovery and relapse – often defies conventions of causality, progression and closure to be found in long-form illness narratives. By contrast, a series of positive characteristics resulting from its brevity mean the short story is equipped to reflect the uncertainties and absence of narrative associated with such experiences. In this paper I pursue my argument with reference to and extracts from my short story ‘Chronic’, which depicts the relationship between an A. I. assistant and a chronically ill protagonist and explores what it might mean to be ‘fixed’
