Kicking off Short Story Month, Ellen P. Campbell on "Stranger" by Steven Schwartz. #StoriesWeLove "Schwartz has compared writing a short story to building a ship in a bottle, 'a crafted work of exactitude.' 'Stranger' exemplifies that exacting craft." bit.ly/3vWWueW

"Would that person write this way or speak this way? Maybe not. Or maybe. But I’ll do what I want." Danielle LaVaque-Manty & Holly Goddard Jones talk fabulism vs. realism, teaching & learning from students & Jones's new collection, ANTIPODES. U of Iowa Press bit.ly/3kwlNPH

"Wang’s understated wit and distinctive tone is undeniable, conjuring up connections to Kafka’s logic-riddled restraint, Camus’s detachment, and Lu Xun’s dark humor." Andrew Felsher on Wang Xiaobo’s “The Golden Age.” #ShortStoryMonth bit.ly/3FcBpBo

"Bender excels at leaning into these unknowns and unknowables." Kent Kosack on the complexities of motivation and action in Aimee Bender's "Off." #StoriesWeLove #ShortStoryMonth bit.ly/3LOWJ2k

"All of this raises the question of what really is an 'essential' scene? I don’t think it is as clear cut as the writing manuals might suggest." @TheFreeMFA questions a key principle of conventional craft wisdom. bit.ly/39416rU

"Short stories are, for me, a place to experiment, to try new forms and explore new voices." #ShortStoryMonth continues! In this interview, Shann Ray and Jess Walter discuss Walter's latest collection, THE ANGEL OF ROME, out next month from Harper Books. bit.ly/37zKA2o

"What Dobozy shows through the ruthlessness of Lázló’s journey is the incredible power of stories, for good and ill." Lee Thomas on Tamas Dobozy’s story “The Restoration of the Villa Where Tibor Kálmán Once Lived.” #StoriesWeLove #ShortStoryMonth bit.ly/3N2HL96

"The shorter a story is, the more vulnerable I feel as a writer." @woodardwriter and Michelle Ross talk microfiction vs. short stories, how to organize a book of 57 stories, and Ross's new collection, THEY KEPT RUNNING, out now from UNT Press. bit.ly/3wqCVf2

"I’m very aware of the nuance of how quickly queer history can change under your feet." @EmilyNagin talks with @LydiaConklin about their debut collection, RAINBOW RAINBOW, out this month from Catapult. #ShortStoryMonth bit.ly/3wxugHI

I loved speaking with @EmilyNagin for FictionWritersReview about 🌈Rainbow Rainbow🌈! What perfect, insightful questions!!!! fictionwritersreview.com/interview/limi…

"Maybe you’re worried because you want your students to love this story as much as you love this story." @barrettbowlin on Deesha Philyaw's "Eula" as a sales pitch for "why it's so good and important and essential to read short stories overall." bit.ly/3PtEG3K

“Today’s different, though. You’re talking with your students about lust and pleasure & the secrets we hide from God & ourselves, and you’re not sure how they might respond to all this.” Oh, Barrett! 😭 Thank you! For so tenderly teaching my stories and for reflecting on it here

"It is up to the reader to uncover the seven-eighths beneath the surface." George McCormick & Chris Warren discuss Hemingway's connection to Yellowstone High Country, fiction vs. biography & the short story he wishes Hemingway had written. bit.ly/3llYQ22

"There’s a kind of rhyming lyricism to Chaon’s horror..." Shawn Mitchell on the "parental nightmare fuel" of Dan Chaon (@danchaon.bsky.social)'s "The Bees." #StoriesWeLove #ShortStoryMonth bit.ly/3MEbi9b

"I know if I overthink it too much, I’m going to ruin it." Eric McDowell and @barrettbowlin talk small presses, the fiction of shitty jobs, and Bowlin's debut collection, GHOSTS CAUGHT ON FILM, winner of the Bridge Eight Press Fiction Prize. bit.ly/3wNDsbh

"Why did I keep turning pages when it was so hard?" Amber @WheelerBacon on learning to read Beckett's "The Expelled." #StoriesWeLove #ShortStoryMonth bit.ly/3NwVEMW

"Upon finishing, one may find oneself wanting to immediately reread the book again in its entirety." Rachel León reviews Morgan Talty's debut collection, NIGHT OF THE LIVING REZ, out this summer from @Tin_House. #ShortStoryMonth bit.ly/3wYCzOd

Thanks to everyone—writers and readers—who helped make this such a memorable #ShortStoryMonth! Here’s to happy reading ahead! bit.ly/3zaA8d9