MetaFilter posts tagged with ShortStory

the foreign exchange student

dhruva — Mon, 27 Jul 2009 08:26:15 -0800

The foreign exchange student "Some years ago we had a foreign exchange student come to live with us. We found it very difficult to pronounce his name correctly, but he didn’t mind. He told us just to call him 'Eric'." A short story in pictures by Shaun Tan. Previously.

Fifty-Two Stories

backseatpilot — Wed, 08 Jul 2009 06:24:30 -0800

Fifty-Two Stories - one short story per week, for free. (via)

Nebula Best Short Story Nominees 2008

Artw — Thu, 02 Apr 2009 08:29:41 -0800

StarshipSofa has podcasted all of the Nebula Best Short Story Nominees for 2008, following on from podcasting all but one of the 2008 BSFA short story nominees. Previous StarshipSofa.

We Know You Are Out There

aheckler — Sun, 29 Mar 2009 09:33:35 -0800

We made a mistake. That is the simple, undeniable truth of the matter, however painful it might be. The flaw was not in our Observatories, for those machines were as perfect as we could make, and they showed us only the unfiltered light of truth. The flaw was not in the Predictor, for it is a device of pure, infallible logic, turning raw data into meaningful information without the taint of emotion or bias. No, the flaw was within us, the Orchestrators of this disaster, the sentients who thought themselves beyond such failings. We are responsible.

At A Deadly pace

The Whelk — Tue, 10 Feb 2009 14:10:41 -0800

The Invasion From Outer Space: Steven Millhauser gives The New Yorker a short, unsettling sci-fi story.

Flowers For Algernon - The Blog

Asparagirl — Sat, 30 Aug 2008 13:41:08 -0800

Daniel Keys' classic 1959 Science Fiction story "Flowers for Algernon", which takes place in a series of diary entries, has been posted online as a blog. Of course, you'll need to read it backwards, from the earliest entry to the latest, to avoid giving away the ending... [via]

There is in the Soul, a Desire for Not Thinking

timsteil — Wed, 30 Apr 2008 20:20:13 -0800

Being Raymond Carver Often referred to as the American Chekhov, Raymond Carver was a master of the American short story. His work was repurposed into the Robert Altman film Short Cuts. He was the subject of a fascinating radio documentary (Java warning), and remains a tragic genius with dedicated fans. The debate over how big a role his editor, Gordon Lish, played in his work continues. Here's the original draft of one of his most famous stories, "What We Talk About When We Talk About Love", and the correspondence that ensued. A look at the man, and his work.

Write Me Stories

goodnewsfortheinsane — Tue, 15 Apr 2008 11:39:55 -0800

Paulo in London asks musicians to write him a story on an index card. For example, the Polyphonic Spree's Michael Musick and Bryan Wakeland, Arcade Fire's Richard Reed Parry, Jens Lekman, Sufjan Stevens, and the Flaming Lips' Wayne Coyne.

Story time

dersins — Mon, 30 Jul 2007 08:44:13 -0800

You should read these three stories by Amy Hempel. (Oh, and maybe listen to her read, here.) While you're at it, read some of these idiosyncratic but beautifully-written stories by grammarian Gary Lutz.

They'll keep the light on for you

Mr.Encyclopedia — Wed, 27 Jun 2007 15:38:33 -0800

When Sysadmins Ruled the Earth

No Dogs Bark by Juan Rulfo

jason's_planet — Mon, 19 Mar 2007 09:32:38 -0800

“No dogs bark” by Juan Rulfo is the story of a father carrying his son, a mortally wounded bandit, through the mountains to find a doctor. In Spanish and in English translation.

Brokeback Mountain short story

kirkaracha — Mon, 12 Dec 2005 13:05:31 -0800

"...so what we got now is Brokeback Mountain." The New Yorker republishes Anne Proulx's orginal short story. Here's a recent Bookslut interview with the author, and a discussion on turning the short story into a screenplay.

Where I'm Likely To Find It

grapefruitmoon — Tue, 03 May 2005 13:13:59 -0800

Where I'm Likely To Find It is a new short story by Japanese author Haruki Murakami (previously discussed here and here). The story is similar in feel to his latest novel, Kafka on the Shore which was released in English this year.

Million Dollar Baby Short Story

pwb503 — Tue, 18 Jan 2005 00:06:13 -0800

Everyone is talking about Clint Eastwood's new movie, Million Dollar Baby (trailer). What you may not know however is that the movie was based on a short story in a book by the name of Rope Burns: Stories From The Corner by the late F.X. Toole (aka Jerry Boyd). The book by the way was called, "...the best boxing short fiction ever written," by James Ellroy of L.A. Confidential fame. Back in 2000 Toole gave an amazing interview on Fresh Air about spending the last 20 years of his life as a cut man and the last 40 years of writing while trying to overcome his fear of rejection before getting his first book published at age 70.

GUTS

GriffX — Mon, 17 Jan 2005 22:45:55 -0800

Following up on our discussion of a classic Salinger short story, I find myself surprised - nay, shocked - that nobody has posted a link to the classic short story "Guts" by Chuck Palahniuk.

Fiction

semmi — Fri, 06 Aug 2004 11:55:08 -0800

The Shore, a short-story by Richard Ford.

Short Attention Span Fiction

wanderingmind — Thu, 08 Jul 2004 15:40:37 -0800

Anacrusis is a collection of short stories. Very short stories, written under a strict length constraint. It's a perfect way to get your daily dose of weird, funny, thought-provoking fiction.

Blimp Story

tbc — Wed, 21 Apr 2004 15:52:06 -0800

The Horror of Blimps. This is just a short ROTFL funny story about a toy blimp gone bad. Brightened my day, anyway. (Thanks, Ken.)

The Greatest Stories Ever Told (in Esquire)

kirkaracha — Sat, 11 Oct 2003 10:12:00 -0800

The Greatest Stories Ever Told (in Esquire) The magazine picks six candidates to be the best story from its first 70 years. Gay Talese's "Frank Sinatra Has a Cold" was their choice as the best.

muckster — Sat, 08 Sep 2001 09:42:50 -0800

Finally! The New Yorker publishes a short story that's actually worth reading. Tim O'Brien riffs on weight loss and a certain reclusive genius--highly entertaining stuff just right for a sluggish Saturday afternoon. For extra credit: why is so much literary fiction so mind-numbingly dull these days?

fpatrick — Thu, 06 Sep 2001 12:58:36 -0800

An interesting structure (gimmick? excuse?) for short fiction and essays -- The current topic is Aluminum -- "The roll of Alcoa is in the kitchen, in the drawer by the sink. Go get it. Now. Cover your head entirely, using all of the roll just to be safe. Be sure it's loose enough so you can breathe. Leave a tiny slit to see through, about as wide as a line of type on your computer monitor. Lean your head forward, close to the CRT, so you can read these words, a line at a time. Are you ready? Good. Now let's talk about the dangers of exposure to computer monitors. "

ethylene — Thu, 30 Nov 2000 22:01:31 -0800

third times a charm. after three different deadlines, two different formats, and a partidge in a pear tree, i'm still not sure if my entry got through. it's true, writers get no respect