Posts Tagged ‘short stories’
Learning the craft of short stories
While I’m not a fan of Zoom-work, or Zoom-school, I do have to admit I am a big fan of Zoom writing craft classes. I have been taking them recently, and I am pleased to join in on classes I wouldn’t otherwise be able to join. When you’re a writer, craft classes always provide new…
Read MoreNovels turned short stories
“Lots of short stories are actually the first chapters of novels.” —Pat Barker A nice observation on short stories by a contemporary British novelist. It says something about the lure of short stories, that readers are often left wanting more. Even a short story leaves readers invested in their characters, and sometimes wanting to follow…
Read MoreCatherine McNamara’s reading of The Cartography of Others in Rome
Earlier this week, I went to the Otherwise bookstore in Rome to see Italy-based Australian author Catherine McNamara read from her new short story collection entitled The Cartography of Others. I met Catherine some years ago, and I’ve already blogged about her work. You can see my earlier post about her last collection, Pelt and Other…
Read MoreAlice Munro on small town stories
“The writers of the American South were the first writers who really moved me because they showed me that you could write about small towns, rural people, and that kind of life I knew very well.” Alice Munro I like this quote from short story writer Alice Munro. And if anyone knows how to tell…
Read MoreBook Review: Queen Idia’s Africa – short stories
I enjoyed this collection of short stories. These connected stories all imagine a contemporary society in which Africa has developed as a wealthy continent, and is working to finance the development efforts in the lesser developed regions of Western Europe and America. This overseas development aid is largely intended to stop the flow of desperate…
Read MoreHappy National Short Story Week 2016!
It’s that time of year again, National Short Story Week 2016 – running 14-20 November! Short story readers and writers like me always appreciate efforts to concentrate much-needed attention on the short story. That’s one of the reasons I always look forward to this week. And I often tend to set aside short story collections…
Read MoreBook Review: Fall of Poppies
This series of short stories set during World War I, Fall of Poppies: Stories of Love and the Great War was bound to be right up my alley. I love short stories and I love historical fiction, and I have a particular weakness for stories set during this time period, an era of marked upheaval as…
Read MoreCoca Cola, chocolate bar … and a short story?
Viva la France! If we hadn’t reach that conclusion alone in these weeks after the events of Paris last month, we would have arrived there by the admirable appreciation of culture and literature in that country. France – and specifically the pretty, southeastern mountain city of Grenoble – is the first city ever to offer…
Read MoreIt’s National Short Story Week 2015!
It’s that time of year again. 16-22 November this year marks National Short Story Week. Readers, writers and listeners of short stories are asked to focus attention on this important literary form. Take a look at the whole range of events and resources here. For those of us who love short stories, we often have…
Read MoreLast chance to submit for the Writers Abroad anthology
I’ve already posted about the call for submissions for expat writers or former expat writers. The Writers Abroad anthology, Kaleidoscope, is accepting works of short fiction, flash fiction and poetry. But the deadline is looming for submissions. You have until Monday, 15 June to submit your work. So writers, get polishing work you’ve already done, or…
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