I've been asking myself that a lot since returning home to Washington last summer. My first book, Siblings and Other Disappointments, is my most characteristically Pacific Northwest. It's hard to imagine my characters' stories being lived in other small towns, near other mountains and rivers, across other agriculturally dependent landscapes. But perhaps that is what every… Continue reading What is PNW Literature?
Tag: short stories
Kill My Darlings
Today I sent my editor the latest rewrite of my story collection Siblings. This round was a strenuous three-week process, part of which I was thankfully able to focus on while visiting home (I turned my vacation into a working vacation and made good use of being back in the PNW to work on my PNW stories).… Continue reading Kill My Darlings
Waiting for the Universe to Show up, Part II
Two months back, I wrote about my friend's concept of waiting for the universe to show up, the idea that when we want something we must work our hardest to meet the universe in the middle (or sometimes try extra hard to meet the universe at its doorstep). He visited last weekend and we celebrated… Continue reading Waiting for the Universe to Show up, Part II
Book Report: Ann Beattie’s The Burning House
Ann Beattie's The Burning House is a short story collection that came into my life as a battered paperback I picked up in a moment of sidewalk good fortune. Call it a gift from the universe that this restrained yet extraordinary collection should appear in my life during Short Story Month. I've been wanting to read Ann… Continue reading Book Report: Ann Beattie’s The Burning House
On Descending Into Madness, or Editing a Short Story Collection
I've spent the month of March editing, tweaking, rearranging, and rewriting a story collection of mine that has been in the works for a few years now, Siblings and Other Stories. Editing a story collection is an entirely different beast from my experiences editing a novel. In order for it to be successful, you have… Continue reading On Descending Into Madness, or Editing a Short Story Collection
