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The Shock Value of Short Stories

I came across an article titled ““Can Short Stories Still Shock?”, a title which, frankly, surprised me. There are SO MANY wonderful short stories in such a variety of anthologies, I can’t even believe that’s a question. You don’t believe that short stories have power? Take a hint from Flannery O’ Conner. Okay, she’s been dead a while now, but she’s not wrong, even when we’re talking about the current literary scene.

The author of the article was really talking about “realist” literary fiction. I don’t read huge quantities of that, but I can certainly find stories there that have the ability to shock. And I really love to read them, because I can pick them up and put them back down without feeling like I need just one more chapter. You read a lot of short stories of all kinds in high school and college, because they’re required reading, and I read huge numbers of short story anthologies as a middle schooler.

Anyone remember those Alfred Hitchcock anthologies, like Monster Museum? My first exposure to Stephen King was in an anthology, Skeleton Crew. Now, granted, most of these weren’t necessarily realistic, but it’s possible that is because reality isn’t all that exciting. As Walter Mitty might say, who wants to escape to reality?

The author also complained that there’s nothing new out there– the plots are all tired and the tropes overused. Now, there are a lot of familiar plots and tropes out there used in unimaginative ways. I can’t deny that. But familiar plot elements and tropes don’t guarantee that you will be reading a predictable story. In an interview about her story “Abomination Rises on Filthy Wings”, Rachel Swirsky actually talks about her motivation in writing the story to disrupt a very disturbing trope in the horror genre.

So, a list of short stories that shocked me.

The Most Dangerous Game by Richard Connell

The Lottery by Shirley Jackson

The Specialist’s Hat  by Kelly Link

The Veldt by Ray Bradbury

An Abomination Rises on Filthy Wings by Rachel Swirsky (this is a really difficult and extreme read, fair warning).

The Wind in the Rose-Bush by Mary E. Wilkins Freeman

Harlequin Valentine (I first experienced this as a graphic novel, and it was a real shocker: this is an audio version) by Neil Gaiman

The Kugelmass Episode by Woody Allen

The Hall of New Faces by Kit Reed

The short story still has a lot of life left in it, and you’ll find that many short stories today will give you enough of a kick to jumpstart your brain and get your circuits going.

Posted on January 19, 2016 by , 2 comments

Book Review: Aberrations of Reality by Aaron J. French


Aberrations of Reality by Aaron J. French
Crowded Quarantine Publications, 201
ISBN-13: 978-0992883850
Available: Hardcover, paperback, Kindle edition

 

I love a good novel as much as anyone, but there is no greater way to get to know a writer than to read a collection of short fiction. A good short story collection will have stories that vary in length, tone and style, and can inform a reader about a writer’s potential range more than a single novel. Having read it, I can say that this is a well-written collection of razor sharp horror fiction.

 

French has a strong sense of what makes the weird tale work. His stories, while clearly influenced by early weird tale writers like Arthur Machen, Algernon Blackwood, and Lovecraft, mine that vibe, while still feeling modern. There is subtle humor at times, and some stories take  on a nearly mystical feeling.  My three favorites in the collection were “Graffiti Ghosts,”, the creepy tale “When Clown Face Speaks,” and the thoughtful “The Four Transitions of the Soul Upon Death by David P. Reichmann,” but every story was excellent. Reality is always in question during this collection, but the quality never is. Every library serious about intelligent high brow horror must get this book. Highly recommended for adult readers of horror fiction and weird tales.
 
 

Reviewed by David Agranoff
 

Posted on January 14, 2016 by , Reply

Book Review: Seize the Night: New Tales of Vampiric Terror edited by Christopher Golden

Seize the Night: New Tales of Vampiric Terror edited by Christopher Golden

544 pages

Gallery Books 2015

ISBN-10: 1476783098

ISBN-13: 978-1476783093

 

When this reviewer first heard of a vampire anthology, expectations were tempered, to say the least. Vampires haven’t had teeth in years, so why would this collection be any different? Two words– Christopher Golden. In the anthologies Golden has edited, he has chosen fresh material with strong writing that overcomes the tired tropes of the horror genre. Previous themed anthologies he has edited, such as Monsters’ Corner, The New Dead, and 21st Century Dead have broken the confines of the expected, and Seize the Night bucks the trend of unimaginative stories about toothless, romantic,vampires. Golden challenged the writers within the pages to put their fangs to the sharpening stone and bite down into some serious flesh.

They responded.

What burns between the covers is a reason to care about the creatures of the night once again, a feat not easy to accomplish.  Nearly all of the tales here work here in establishing a sense of dread and fear, .Highlights include “Something Lost, Something Gained”, in which Seanan McGuire spins an eerie tale about a young girl in a storm. Her writing is swift and smooth. Kelley Armstrong’s “We Are All Monsters Here” envelops the reader in a claustrophobic event that puts the frights in human form. Leigh Perry’s “Direct Report” is a fascinating, chilling tale of a woman who awakens to a new personal world full of pain and despair, until she makes a discovery that turns the tables. Gary Braunbecks “Papercuts” is outstanding; it has to be the most unusual vampire tale in years, and it succeeds on all levels. Set in a bookstore, this is an imaginative story with very effective characterization. Finally, Rio Youers has a pair of stories that end the anthology in style, In all, Seize the Night has achieved the vision Golden imagined. Here’s to hoping that more writers will be inspired to put fear and dread back into the vampire genre, like those who accepted the challenge put forth here. Recommended for adult readers of vampire horror.

Reviewed by David Simms

 

Posted on January 7, 2016 by , Reply
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