Course Description

Seeming to explode like lightning onto the literary scene, short-short fiction, or "sudden" fiction, has received much attention in recent years.  It is a form with roots in classical literature (e.g., myth, parable, fable); however, twentieth-century writers have embraced and revitalized the form.  We will explore the ways in which writers view and respond to the world in short-short fiction; at the same time, you will be creating your own fiction! By the time you finish this class, you will have many short pieces of writing (exercises), at least two complete stories, and a collection of responses to the readings.

Texts

Sudden Fiction International: 60 Short-Short Stories (Ed. Shapard and Thomas)
What If?: Fiction Exercises for Writers, revised edition (Bernays and Painter)

Assignment Information

• Page numbers for readings below refer to Sudden Fiction (SF) or What If? (WI).
• Please bring both books and your notebook to class each day.  After reading the assignment in SF please write a one-page response (no summaries, please--I'm more interested in what you think about what you've read).  I've given you a starting point, but do include your own reactions, questions, etc.
• A suggestion: the questions for the SF readings often relate to a topic discussed in WI, so you might want to read both selections before writing your response.
• "Storystarters" are ideas related to the readings for the day…you do not have to do them, but you
• might find them helpful for getting started on a story.
• Whenever you are assigned a story to write, try to keep it between one and three pages (remember, this is short-short fiction).

Schedule

M 6/15
Introductions!
Discussion of Francis, "Sitting" (handout)

T 6/16
Read (SF):  Böll, "The Laugher" (89-91) and Cortázar, "Don't You Blame Anyone" (45-50)
Respond:  Describe your reaction as a reader to these stories.  Do they have the type of beginning, middle, and ending you are used to?  Why/why not?
Read (WI): 1-6, 10-12
Write:   write five first lines to five different stories (use different techniques)
Storystarter> write a story in which one action (like laughing, struggling with a sweater, dancing in the rain, etc.) plays an important role.
 

W 6/17
*Workshop Group 1: bring story
Read (SF):  Holst, "On Hope" (51-54) and Mrozek, "The Elephant" (98-101)
Respond:  How do these stories make the unbelievable believable?  Do the endings work?
Read (WI):  23-24, 27
Write:   memory exercise on 27
Storystarter> write a story in which an animal plays an important role or write a story in which the unbelievable becomes believable.
 

R 6/18
*Workshop Group 2 bring story
Read (SF):  Xiao-Yi, "The Explosion in the Parlor" (289-290) and Beattie, "Snow" (286-288)
Respond:  What elements give "The Explosion…" the feel of a memory in the making?  How does memory play a role in "Snow"?
Read (WI):  28-29, 53-57
Write:   character exercise on 28 or on 56 (choose one)
Story starter > write a story about when someone took the blame for something he/she did not do or write a story focusing on some kind of weather.
 

F 6/19
*Workshop Group 3: bring story
Read (SF): Kincaid, "Girl" (65-66) and Kaplan, "Love, Your Only Mother" (85-88)
Respond: What parental issues are raised here?
Read (WI):  47-48, 76-77
Write:   gender exercise on 77 or write a story in second-person ("you") from the
perspective of an advice-giver.
Storystarter> write as a traveler who sends back a story on postcards.
 

M 6/22
*Workshop Group 1: bring story
Read (SF): Kawabata, "The Grasshopper and the Bell Cricket" (60-64)
Respond: What role does the first-person narrator play in the story?  How is light an important part of the story?
Read (WI):  83-86, 99-103
Write:  perspective exercise on 86: write the first page of a story from the perspective of one character using "I" (first person), then write it using "he/she" (third person).
Storystarter> choose one of the versions above and develop the whole story.
 

T 6/23
*Workshop Group 2: bring story
Read (SF): Sorrentino, "There's a Man…" (233-236)
Respond: How does the story present conflict? What do you notice about what is said and what is meant?
Read (WI):  117-120
Write:   intensification exercise on 117 (use a story you've already written or write
a new intensified conflict)
Storystarter> write a story in which the dialogue is very positive--the subtext alone reveals the conflict.
 

W 6/24
*Workshop Group 3: bring story
Read (SF): Dinesen, "The Blue Jar" (139-141)
Respond: Describe the quest in the story.  For what is she really searching?
Read (WI):  121-122, 124-126
Write:   quest exercise on 124
Storystarter> write a story about an unusual quest or about a quest that is not successful.
 

R 6/25
*All groups: bring story to revise (again!) during class.  Also, please be prepared to turn in your notebook overnight.
Read (SF): Carey, "The Last Days of the Famous Mime" (240-245)
Respond: How does the format affect the story/storytelling?
Read (WI):  241-242
Write:   revision exercise on 259
Storystarter> Take the last paragraph of a story you've already written and begin a new story with it!  Or, take two characters from two different stories you've written and introduce them in another story.

F 6/26
*All groups: bring story to read.
Revise one story…