‘I have come across quite a few such readers who react vehemently to the Saunders worldview. They wonder why he bends the moral situation so far that it almost breaks. But some, like me, may beg to differ…’ JOSE VARGHESE takes us into the intricacies of George Saunders’ ‘Escape from Spiderhead’.
‘The history, landscape and natural rhythms of the Orkney Islands were Brown’s inspiration…’ CAROLA HUTTMANN examines the life and writings of George Mackay Brown.
Join Vicki Heath in conversation with ZOE GILBERT, winner of this year’s prestigious Costa Short Story Award…
ROSEMARY GEMMELL takes a look at the short stories of one of the giants of English literature: ‘D.H. Lawrence has left a profound legacy of stories that explore what it means to be human, fragile, and capable of great love and deep cruelty…’
‘If I told you that a short story collection saved me as a reader and as a writer, would you believe me? Probably not. But it’s true…’ GINA PARSONS finds her writing self through the stories of Robert Shearman.
In a special follow-up post to his shortlisted feature, Stephen Devereux interviews the elusive author Helen Harris, gaining insight into her writing processes, her choice of narrative perspective, and teaching creative writing…
CHRISTINE GENOVESE considers the influence of fairy tales on the short stories of Thomas Hardy: ‘The magic in ‘The Fiddler of the Reels’ is illusory. Hardy does not pull rabbits out of hats. That would upset the balance…’
HAYLEY N. JONES learns some valuable writing lessons from ‘The Lottery’ by Shirley Jackson: ‘Its brilliant subtlety draws me into a world that is both horrifying and horribly like my own…’
JOHN VERLING loses himself in The Essential James Joyce at Christmastime: ‘I’d never thought of Joyce as a page turner, but I read ‘The Dead’ in double quick time, totally taken aback by its depth yet its simplicity…’
ELEANOR FITZSIMONS discusses Oscar Wilde’s ardent storytelling and the stories we never got to read: ‘His own popularity was assured by his eagerness to entertain, to the extent that society hostesses took to including the words ‘to meet Oscar Wilde’ on invitations, in a bid to boost attendance at their gatherings…’
