The Art of Brevity: Crafting the Very Short Story

by Grant Faulkner, Megan Giddings (Foreword by)

Overview

With increased compression, every word, every sentence matters more. A writer must learn how to form narratives around caesuras and crevices instead of strings of connections, to move a story through the symbolic weight of images, to master the power of suggestion.

With elegant prose, deep readings of other writers, and scaffolded writing exercises, The Art of Brevity takes the reader on a lyrical exploration of compact storytelling, guiding readers to heighten their awareness of not only what appears on the page but also what doesn't.

Product Details

ISBN-13:	9780826364739
Publisher:	University of New Mexico Press
Publication date:	02/15/2023
Pages:	184
Product dimensions:	5.70(w) x 10.30(h) x 0.60(d)

About the Author

Grant Faulkner is the cofounder of 100 Word Story, the cofounder of the Flash Fiction Institute, and the cohost of the podcast Memoir Nation. He is the author of several books, including The Art of Brevity: Crafting the Very Short Story (UNM Press) and All the Comfort Sin Can Provide.

Table of Contents

Foreword
Megan Giddings
Acknowledgments
Introduction. Going Long. Going Short.

Chapter 1. Thirteen Ways of Looking at Flash Fiction
Chapter 2. The Freedom of Constraints
Chapter 3. Telling a Story in Fragments
Chapter 4. The Erotics of Brevity
Chapter 5. Context: How Much Is Enough?
Chapter 6. The Fullness of Omission
Chapter 7. White Spaces
Chapter 8. Plotting in Miniature (and with a Slant)
Chapter 9. Writing Characters in Fleeting Profile
Chapter 10. Writing for the Essence
Chapter 11. The Sounds of Silence
Chapter 12. Found Objects, Found Stories
Chapter 13. Story as Collage
Chapter 14. Going Small to Go Big: The Art of Expansion
Chapter 15. Going Small to Go Small
Chapter 16. The Poetics of Brevity
Chapter 17. Is It Poetry or Prose?
Chapter 18. How Short Can You Go?
Chapter 19. The Mot Juste
Chapter 20. The Sentence
Chapter 21. The Paragraph
Chapter 22. The Title
Chapter 23. The "Flash Novel" and the Novella
Chapter 24. Endings

Postscript
One More Postscript
Flashings: Quotes on Writing Short
Appendix. Gleanings from The Art of Brevity

Editorial Reviews

Absolutely essential reading on the power and craft of very short stories. Worth it for the brilliant analysis of narrative and poetics, worth it for Faulkner's playfulness and obvious joy on the page, worth it for the string of fascinating quotations at the end. A generous book, packed full, it is bound to be a classic.—Deb Olin Unferth, author of Revolution: The Year I Fell in Love and Went to Join the War

Grant Faulkner, one of our finest practitioners of the very short story, gifts us with this creative, dynamic craft book. The Art of Brevity is absorbing, whimsical, and filled with the eclectic wisdom of writers, artists, and musicians who have created with an aesthetic of brevity and omission. But finally, it is Faulkner's unique, personal view on the subject of condensing short prose—as he telescopes into the fascinating 'cracks and crevices' of brevity—that makes this book a must-have for every writer's shelf.—Tara Lynn Masih, editor of The Rose Metal Press Field Guide to Writing Flash Fiction: Tips from Editors, Teachers, and Writers in the Field

Grant Faulkner, one of our finest practitioners of the very short story, gifts us with this creative, dynamic craft book. The Art of Brevity is absorbing, whimsical, and filled with the eclectic wisdom of writers, artists, and musicians who have created with an aesthetic of brevity and omission. But finally, it is Faulkner's unique, personal view on the subject of condensing short prose—as he telescopes into the fascinating 'cracks and crevices' of brevity—that makes this book a must-have for every writer's shelf.—Tara Lynn Masih, editor of The Rose Metal Press Field Guide to Writing Flash Fiction: Tips from Editors, Teachers, and Writers in the Field

What a what wonderful book for writers and readers of short stories! Part craft, part meditation on form, it's entirely delightful, practical, and will leave any reader with a deeper appreciation of flash fiction.—Amber Sparks, author of And I Do Not Forgive You: Stories and Other Revenges

In this manic world of noise and delirium, our ability to comprehend reality bends toward chaos. In brief cracks of lucidity, we scramble, hungry to purchase happiness or at least consciousness. This text is a mighty testament to the zeitgeist, an important recognition of flash as art, and a needle into our self-awareness, reflection, and clarity.—Venita Blackburn, author of How to Wrestle a Girl: Stories

From the Publisher