FELICITY SKELTON had not heard of the Canadian writer Diane Schoemperlen, but bought a copy of her book to read on the plane ‘because it was attractive to look at and not too heavy to carry in my handbag.’
‘Flannery O’Connor is funny and wise, and her writing takes my breath away.’ KATH McKAY recommends O’Connor’s COMPLETE STORIES and the essay collection MYSTERY AND MANNERS.
Must stories be read slowly and deliberately in order to appreciate them fully, as CHARLES E. MAY suggested in a recent post, or can they be skimmed and read quickly as entertainment and still be valued? MIKE SMITH argues that they can.
‘Suddenly, without quite becoming front-page news, the short story has hit the UK headlines.’ PAUL MARCH-RUSSELL discusses plans to reduce the number of short stories broadcast on BBC Radio 4.
ALISON MACLEOD shares her passion for short stories and passes on the advice she wishes she’d received when she first began writing.
‘A good short story cannot be skimmed, read quickly, or adequately summarized’: Professor CHARLES E. MAY argues that short stories need to be approached slowly and deliberately to be fully understood.
This year’s Fish Short Story Prize winner, MARY O’DONNELL considers the value of literary competitions and urges all to take the leap and enter our work.
In the first of a new series of features on topical debates, LOREE WESTRON tackles the issue of redrafting and invites readers to join the discussion…
I don’t regard myself as an academic, a journalist or a non-fiction writer. So reviews may seem a curious form for me to write. But I would argue that there is also something creative about concocting a coherent book review. It’s a statement that is, necessarily, partial and entirely personal and is also an exercise in constructing a ‘voice’ and a point of view for getting across your message.
