掌編

1. Origins, structure, and basic meaning

• Structure: 掌編 (しょうへん) is a very short story or prose work. It appears as one work created and several works published together.
• Basic usage: A traveler writes a compact story about an encounter; a magazine prints three such works at its end.

2. Common pitfalls and similar expressions

• Single work authored and multiple works collected in a magazine
  • 掌編を書いた describes creation, while 三つの掌編 counts separate works. The term emphasizes a length even shorter than an ordinary short story.