OpenFiction - Beginning

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Task Navigation 

Choose a selected story


Find a story by a published writer that you'd like to examine in great depth throughout your work with tOFP materials.

Follow the instructions here for selecting a published writer's story to use with the course materials. While Best American Short Stories is recommended as a source, the story can be selected from any publication or anthology, can be any genre and can be from any time period. Post your selected story name and a few sentences about why you chose it on the discussion forum for this task.  There are also three stories that are openly available in the OpenFiction Project Anthology, two of mine and one by my good friend Thomas McNeely. All three are previously published in literary journals.

Task Discussion


  • Jess Lance said:

    For my story, I've chosen Ray Carver's "Will You Please Be Quiet, Please?", the story for which his first selection of short stories was titled after.

    I chose it for two reasons. First, it is an earlier piece he wrote early in his career, and as aspiring authors ourselves, I think we should sometimes look back at the footsteps of the giants. Second, I was introduced to Ray Carver 4 years ago, and I have read quite a few of his works. He is in my top 3 of authors, and his style -- minimalist and "dirty realist" -- is one I admire and aspire to. When it comes to teaching, he has taught me more than many writing teachers.

    on Aug. 12, 2012, 1:09 a.m.

    Steve Carson said:

    Jess-

    I'm a Ray Carver fan as well, though it's been a while since I've read that one.  I will dig up a copy though, and reread. You make a great point about looking at an author's early works. Thanks for submitting.

    on Aug. 12, 2012, 8:44 a.m. in reply to Jess Lance