Category Archives: short stories

February 15, 2013   Rachel   contest, fiction, fun, prizes, Rachel S., short stories  
19

Love stories, in brief.

I’ve written before about my particular love for short, short, short fiction. Their poignancy is sometimes so great that a story half a paragraph long will stick with me all day or longer. I had an entirely different topic planned for today’s blog post, but just before I sat down to write, I took a minute to read some incredibly brief, yet strangely powerful love stories, perfectly appropriate for a post-Valentine’s entertainment. Especially since I just checked, and you guys it’s true, there’s no more chocolate left from the box in the kitchen and I’m feeling a little blue about it already.

Available for your reading pleasure here on the Hairpin, are just four very slight tales of love and romance, ultimately lost, rejected or simply faded away. The strength in these stories is that there is so much, so very much left out of them. There are no character names, sometimes the telling is a very straightforward “this happened and then this happened and then that happened and so there.” But somehow, as readers, we’re able to create an entire narrative arc. We can visualize the lovers, feel their hope, joy, pain, and ultimate loneliness.

It’s not just about writing a barebones plot and not saying much about anything, limiting yourself to a hundred and fifty words or so. Anyone can do that—I’ve tried. There’s a certain space that must be created. A vast emptiness between the lines where the real story lies. A good writer of short fiction can give just the right amount of information and the right type of information so that the story doesn’t feel cheap or lacking, but instead creates the feeling in the reader that they know exactly what the writer meant to be happening in the spaces left blank.

Love stories—particularly those about lost loves—are exponentially more effective when less is told. The emptiness and longing, nostalgia and regret are there simply because they are physically not there on the page. They become haunting instead of merely sad. Their brevity means they can be read over and over again, searching for any more hints of story, clues to what really happened.

I’d be interested in seeing any stories you can come up with in the comments—keeping it under 200 words.* It’s more difficult than you’d think! Otherwise, do you have a similar take on the style, or would you much prefer a long, fleshed out novel instead?

 

*The writer of my favorite story will be showered in cash and prizes! Minus the cash, but there is a DGLM mug in it for the winning, and you’re welcome to fill it wish cash of your own if you like.

 

 

***UPDATE***

This contest is now closed and I am pleased to announce the winner of a DGLM mug is Jan O’Hara! Jan, please email me with your information at rstout@dystel.com and I’ll be in touch!

August 07, 2012   Brenna   Brenna, reading, recommendations, science fiction, short stories  
2

The unusual places we turn to for help

My infinitely wise co-worker Michael Bourret pointed me to this great piece from WBEZ’s radio program This American Life that his client, Joelle Anthony, blogged about recently. (A big thank you to both of them!) There are two really interesting stories here that definitely deserve another post because of their relevance to publishing. The program breaks each story into an act, and in each, as well as the heart-wrenching introductory story in the prologue, we’re introduced to sympathetic characters that turn to unlikely people for help when they’re in trouble.

The first story is about a teenager, Andy, who had problems with his broken family and fitting in at school, so he decided to travel 1,000 miles—alone—to find his favorite author, fantasy novelist Piers Anthony. He impressively found Anthony’s address by piecing together clues from his books, something only a genuine fan could do. When Andy finally arrived at Anthony’s door, though he wasn’t welcomed to live there—as his great imagination led him to believe—he was met with at truly compassionate man who listened to everything the young boy had to say. And even though he didn’t get what he wanted, Andy left the next day feeling, for the first time, the hope that there was a better world out there for him. I wanted to share this tale to once again illustrate the colossal effect a book can have on readers. I’m sure that the very feeling Andy describes at the end of his story is a reason many of us have chosen publishing as a career path—whether as agents, editors or authors.

The second story beautifully re-imagines the plight of poor Gregor Samsa from Kafka’s THE METAMORPHOSIS. Gregor, having famously transformed overnight from a human into an insect, enlists the help of one Dr. Seuss to make Gregor a human again, or at least a healthy bug. I’m going to hold back on giving any more details on this one, as the letters between the two are such a delight to listen to. I will say though, that I really enjoyed the creative way the authors brought these two unlikely comrades together. A recent post of mine was on re-telling classic stories…but what’s really interesting to me is when writers can create a new story from the bones of others. I’m curious if anyone has read any of these types of stories lately. Anything you’d like to recommend?

May 22, 2012   John   digital publishing, fiction, John, opinion, short stories  
6

“Men’s fiction”

As a self-described “men’s fiction” guy, I was intrigued by the announcement this week that Esquire is launching an e-book series aptly titled “Fiction for Men.” A collaboration with e-book publisher Open Road Media, the first volume launches in June with short stories from Aaron Gwyn, Luis Alberto Urrea and Jess Walter. According to the Times, a new volume will follow every few months.

To my mind, any new attempt to showcase fiction is to be commended. But I was struck by the idea that the anthology is partly an attempt to answer the question “what is men’s fiction?” It’s a question I’ve certainly pondered as an agent. Yes, it’s reductionist, but “Women’s fiction” is a pretty well-defined category in publishing—if I have a novel that I think falls under the “women’s fiction” banner, I have a good idea of the editors I would approach for that. But “men’s”? Not so easy to suss out.

Now, I know that part of the reason for the lack of definition is that “men’s fiction” often falls into other pretty well-defined categories—thrillers, suspense, mystery, sci-fi, horror, etc. And then there’s the “literary” tag, which often neatly avoids gender-specific designations, though what makes a book “literary” is an even knottier question. But what do you do with a book that’s about men, mostly likely written by a man, yet doesn’t fit into any of these boxes, and to call it “literary” would be a stretch?

Well, on first glance, Fiction for Men doesn’t really help matters. Yes, they’re showcasing some pretty heavy hitters, but wouldn’t Gwyn, Urrea and Walter fall under the literary banner, rather than “men’s”? On the other hand, in the June/July print issue, Esquire has works by Stephen King and Joe Hill, Lee Child, and Colum McCann—Two horror guys, a suspense writer, and yes, a man of letters (i.e, literary!). Of course, who knows what they’ll actually write, but ostensibly, it seems like Esquire is just as confused as I am. Then again, maybe that’s the point…

Perhaps once Fiction for Men gets going, we’ll have a better idea of what Esquire means by the category. And from there, maybe we’ll see if it has any effect on how publishers define their lists. Meanwhile, I’ll throw the question out there–what does “men’s fiction” mean to you?

October 28, 2011   Rachel   fun, holidays, Rachel S., short stories  
2

And then her head fell off.

Ghost stories and other scary tales have been a part of Halloween long before candy and fake blood were necessary. You don’t need sugar and theatrics to be properly scared if the mood is right and the words themselves are eerie enough to raise your hair without any help. The classic spooky story is short and told in a voice just above a whisper (except when a shout to surprise is necessary, of course). They don’t need to be complicated or detailed in any way—in fact, the simpler they are, the scarier with lots of room for the imagination to run wild and fill up all the left over space.

I remember being petrified of “The Girl with the Green Ribbon,” though for what reason, I couldn’t say. Locally, the tale of the Jersey Devil haunted me far longer than I care to admit, and thinking about it for too long too late at night still gives me chills.

Classic ghost stories stick through the generations and eventually, everyone knows what the outcome of a particular tale will be right from the very first “It was a dark and stormy night.” The scare comes then from the atmosphere, excitement and anticipation rather than from the story itself. Over at The Morning News, readers were asked recently to submit alternate endings to “The Monkey’s Paw” by W.W. Jacobs, which is a story I am sure I read in every English class every year until I graduated high school. It’s not just scary—it’s grotesque. Some of the new endings are equally (if not more) horrifying, while others take a different, more humorous route.

Whatever the change may be, it got me thinking about how difficult it is to write something that’s actually scary as opposed to campy and overdone. While Halloween often is all about camp, there’s nothing scarier than the quiet, creeping suspense that a good ghost story can offer. Goosebumps, bated breath and a look over the shoulder are the hallmarks of a true spooky tale. What are your favorites? What is it about them that makes them so scary?

April 29, 2011   Rachel   news, opinion, Rachel S., short stories  
4

Once upon a time in a land far, far away…

It’s hard today to find anything newsworthy to read bout besides the royal wedding over there in England, and while all the pomp and circumstance is enjoyable, I don’t fully understand the huge draw the ceremony has for anyone who has no personal relationship to the UK. That doesn’t mean that I didn’t watch the horribly cheesy, not quite so-bad-it’s-good Lifetime original movie, William and Kate last weekend. I mean. Um. I didn’t say that.

Regardless, I suppose that there is something to the appeal, whether or not these particular nuptials have any effect on my life. It’s the idea of princes and princesses. Despite that in reality modern monarchies are nothing like we read in fairy tales, the charming princess and dashing prince living in a palace in the middle of a valley with a drawbridge and courtiers fresh returned from battling dragons is the image that comes to mind. Especially in America, where there has never been a king, queen or anything of the sort ruling on domestic land, this idea is prevalent. And the allure doesn’t elude me, either!

Despite their non-importance in “serious” literary debate (they are specifically banned for entry for the National Book Awards, e.g.), I will always enjoy a good fairy tale. I had mentioned in a previous post the book, My Mother She Killed Me, My Father He Ate Me, which is a modern retelling of fairy tales and a book of short stories that I read voraciously. There’s just something about the ethereal tone that always surrounds a fairy tale (I wish I could describe in words the voice that automatically plays in my head as I imagine them being read aloud—but probably you know it, or have one of your own, anyway) that makes it ever-appealing. Surely there is literary merit in the telling of a fairy tale just as there is in the creation of any story, but I’m not qualified to judge. It does have something to do with the fact that the sources of inspiration are, by definition, unoriginal—I would think, however, that the retelling itself would be proof enough of creativity and talent.

Loosely based on, or completely authentic, what are some of your favorite fairy tales? (I know the ones of my own that I’ve started to write (and abandoned, of course) nearly always have to do with princesses, but generally the fairy tale of inspiration is merely a backdrop to the story I want to tell.) Is there any serious writing to be found here?

Most importantly, who wore the best hat to see William and Kate tie the knot?

February 24, 2011   Jessica   fun, Jessica, marketing/publicity, opinion, short stories  
7

Trailers and tap dancing

I admit that I harbored some skepticism toward the whole book trailer endeavor.  For a long while, I thought there was something slightly unseemly about book trailers, or at the very least, unnatural.  To paraphrase Martin Mull, or maybe Steve Martin, shooting trailers for books seemed to make about as much sense as dancing about architecture.  But I have since changed my mind (and next week I’ll tap dance the buildings of Frank Gehry—stay tuned.) Instrumental in helping me overcome my kneejerk suspicion of the book trailer has been the Evanston Public Library in Illinois, which posts a Book Trailer of the Week on their website. I did, however, wonder how authors and auteurs might overcome the challenge of the short story collection.  I’m pleased to report that one of my own clients, novelist and short story writer Valerie Trueblood, managed beautifully in her trailer for latest book, Marry Or Burn.

Likewise TC Boyle’s elegant, nearly wordless trailer for Wild Child is disturbingly effective.

That TC: he’s a prolific one. I keep meaning to read more of his work; now I suspect that the feral boy with the mud spattered teeth will haunt me until I do.

Although Jim pondered some related questions in a post this past summer, what do you think of the trailer trend? Do you watch them, and if so where? Have you trailers to recommend?

February 11, 2011   Rachel   fun, Rachel S., reading, short stories  
3

Once upon a time there was a princess the end.

If I had my way, there would be a lot of days that I would wake up, get dressed (I realize that it’s a bit weird that I can’t actually be comfortable unless I change out of pajamas into real clothes in the morning) and spend a few hours doing nothing but reading a great long book before I start having an actual day. Obviously, this is entirely unique and you have probably never felt this way yourself, nor have you heard or read of anyone else wanting to do the same thing. Kidding aside, only in a perfect world is this life of absolute leisure a possibility. I still like to read a little mornings, but it’s a bit frustrating getting through less than 30 pages in a sitting every time I open a novel.

And thus, I present to you the wonder of the short story.

Of course, short stories are an art unto themselves. It’s not necessarily any easier to write a really good short story than it is to write an even mediocre full-length book. There’s far less time to develop characters, background and plot, yet the effect should, in the end, be similar. Or not. Sometimes, a short story is wonderful because of all it leaves out, while still managing to maintain the feeling of a complete narrative. I have a vast collection of short story anthologies that are perfect for those times when there’s only maybe 20 minutes to sit down and really read. I can read a whole story in that time, without feeling rushed or wasting precious time flipping back through the pages of a novel to get an idea of where I left off.

The first book of short stories I bought was a few years ago, during a particularly wonderful day spent in the café at the Border’s near my home town. As I’m wont to do, I amassed a huge pile of books—for these purposes, it’s always cookbooks, philosophy, social science-y books, literary criticism, and various types of prose that’s easy to flip through without much concentration. This time, however, I also picked up a massive book of short stories, essays and short non-fiction, solely for it’s title: The Paris Review Book: of Heartbreak, Madness, Sex, Love, Betrayal, Outsiders, Intoxication, War, Whimsy, Horrors, God, Death, Dinner, Baseball, … and Everything Else in the World Since 1953. Come on, how could you not?

In any case, thus began my love for brief passages of narration—whether it be fiction, essay or otherwise, I love anthologies. The Best American Series (both Short Stories and Non-Required Reading) hold steady and I recently read a collection of re-worked fairytales called My Mother She Killed me, My Father He Ate Me (I tell you, I’m a sucker for titles). I’m a fan also of collected stories by a single author—Julian Barnes’ The Lemon Table, for example, is a book I picked up on a whim, never having read anything by the man before. He’s now one of my favorite authors.

I’ll never give up on the novel—perish the thought!—but when I’m in need of a book to throw in my bag for solace or entertainment during a subway ride or stint in a waiting room, it’ll be a collection of short prose for sure.

December 10, 2010   DGLM   author events, contest, favorites, fun, Lauren, reading, short stories  
4

Short stories and glory

by Lauren

Twice this week, I spent my evenings at Symphony Space, soaking in culture at some great literary events. On Monday, I was lucky enough to see Emma Donoghue for the second time—rather than doing a reading, this time she was discussing the fabulous Room with Michael Cunningham. Then on Wednesday, Jim and I went to the Selected Shorts program’s evening with Colum McCann, who I’ve also had the privilege of seeing before. If you feel about Let the Great World Spin and McCann’s work in general as we do, you’ll be happy to hear that the series is actually recorded for radio broadcast, so you can listen to it here. On this particular night, Colum McCann hosted Amy Ryan reading his story “Everything in This Country Must” (from the collection of the same name that first introduced me to one of my favorite writers!), Mary-Louise Parker reading “(She Owns) Every Thing” by Anne Enright, and Michael Cerveris reading Nathan Englander’s “Free Fruit for War Widows.” It was a phenomenal performance all around, and I think I’ll be attending far more of these events in the future. As Jim said, Mary-Louise Parker should read everything.

Tucked into the program I found a flyer for the Selected Shorts Writing Contest, which I thought might be right for some of you. The 2011 Stella Kupferberg Memorial Short Story Prize with guest judge Jennifer Egan will result in a $1000 prize for the winner, whose story will be read as part of a Selected Shorts performance and recorded for possible broadcast. Plus Jennifer Egan saying you’re worthy is no small thing in itself. The deadline is March 1st, and you can read the rules here. Anyone planning to submit? If so, good luck!

November 20, 2009   DGLM   favorites, Rachel, reading, short stories  
9

For the love of short stories

by Rachel

In an interview in today’s Wall Street Journal, Alice Munro talks about why she’s attracted to writing short fiction. “I used to write novels and I didn’t get anywhere,” she says. She then goes on to say that she’s now writing “some halfway in between sort of thing.”

Well, I love those halfway in between sort of things Munro writes. I’ve always been enthusiastic about reading short fiction because the author has to get down to business right away in developing the story, there’s no time to waffle on about unnecessary things and spend pages setting up elaborate scenes. I remember taking a short story class in college and finishing the course being amazed at how much effort actually goes into writing short fiction. So, short story writers are kind of like heroes to me. I always like to keep a collection of short stories on the side while I’m reading a novel–I have to keep my reading options open!

So, having said that, any suggestions for Thanksgiving short story reading?