We Didn’t by Stuart Dybek Short Story Analysis
“We Didn’t” is a short story by American writer Stuart Dybek, included in The Best American Short Stories 1994. A man addresses his first love. With the insight that comes from middle-age, the narrator feels sad about the tragicomic incident that that led to their breakup.
The Falls by George Saunders Short Story Analysis
“The Falls” (1996) is a short story by American writer George Saunders. Two men walk along a river and face a moral dilemma. Should one risk one’s own life in the hope of saving two drowning girls?
A Father To Be by Saul Bellow Short Story Analysis
Are you thinking of writing a story about a kid who leaves the house and rides the bus to school, all the while observing other passengers and gazing out the window? Or a story about a woman who buys frozen pizza at the supermarket, complains about the roast beef then observes characters in the car park before peacing out to the radio? A parking warden who eats a sandwich in the town square before seeing shapes in the clouds? If these quiet stories are your jam, Saul Bellow wrote the mentor text for you.
Girls And Women Having Fun In Art and Illustration
Although Bertha Young was thirty she still had moments like this when she wanted to run instead of walk, to take dancing steps on and off the pavement, to bowl a hoop, to throw something up in the air and catch it again, or to stand still and laugh at – nothing – at nothing, […]
Kissing In Art And Illustration
And it seemed to her that kisses, voices, tinkling spoons, laughter, the smell of crushed grass were somehow inside her. Katherine Mansfield A kiss on the forehead-erases misery.I kiss your forehead. A kiss on the eyes-lifts sleeplessness. I kiss your eyes. A kiss on the lips-is a drink of water. I kiss your lips. A…
Using Artificial Intelligence To Make Art: Wombo and Deep Dream Generator
Artificial intelligence will eventually replace us all… maybe. But not yet. However, AI software can help produce some pretty amazing artworks already.
The Blue Devils of Blue River Avenue by Poe Ballantine
“The Blue Devils of Blue River Avenue by Poe Ballantine is included in The Best American Short Stories 1998. It kick started the author’s career, leading to a book contract. (Poe Ballantine is a great penname, don’t you think?) Australia’s Richard Fidler interviewed Poe in 2014 when he was here in Australia for the Byron…
Miracle Polish by Steven Millhauser Short Story Analysis
“Miracle Polish” is a (possibly) fabulist short story by American author Steven Millhauser, published in the print edition of the November 14, 2011, issue of The New Yorker. More recently, Stuart Dybek joined Deborah Treisman on The New Yorker podcast to read and discuss this story. This short story is a great example of: An…
Body Language by Diane Schoemperlen Short Story Analysis
Body Language is a short story by Canadian writer Diane Schoemperlen. You can find it collected in The Best American Short Stories 1998. The story comes ‘illustrated’ with anatomical drawings: of the head and larynx, the eyeball and nose cavity, the ribcage, musculature of the arm, a sperm, a brain. This story is an example…
Fences, Gates and Walls in Art and Storytelling
Fences in art and illustration have various uses, some composition related, some symbolic.
Germans At Meat by Katherine Mansfield Short Story Analysis
“Germans At Meat” (1910) is a short story by Katherine Mansfield, and opens her first collection (a series of journalistic travelogues). The collection is called In A German Pension. Mansfield later regretted these stories and did not want to republish them in 1920, three years before she died. She considered them ‘immature’ and ‘a lie’.…