Writers Talk Short Fiction with Ben Williams at the CTBF
Ben Williams, editor of BOOK SA, led a panel discussion at the Cape Town Book Fair about the reading and writing of short stories between local authors and BOOK SA members Henrietta Rose-Inne (Homing), Arja Salafranca (The Thin Line), Sarah Lotz and Meg Vandermerwe (This Place I Call Home). Noticeably absent from the panel was Louis Greenberg, editor of the collection Home Away, who was unable to attend this year’s fair.
Topics on discussion included the move to digital publishing and the craft of short story writing. The panel also discussed the development of distinct genres within short story writing, Lotz having just written one for a zombie erotica anthology. Anthologies like The Bed Book of Short Stories and Home Away were contrasted to collections by a single author like those of Rose-Innes, Salafranca, and Vandermerwe. Rose-Innes spoke on the commissioning and publication of short stories, noting that anthologies are often created from “a small pool of writers.”
Williams also addressed the topic of flash fiction, short fiction’s even briefer cousin, and the general shortening of written pieces, including news stories, and asked of the authors, “How short can you go?”. Lotz responded by mentioning the 6 word crime novels commissioned by Mike Nicol and published on Crime Beat where each word had to be carefully considered.
Quote of the hour: “For me the short story is all about the idea, and its usually an idea that I can’t extend to a whole novel” – Sarah Lotz
Book details
- Home Away edited by Louis Greenberg
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EAN: 9781770220720
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- Homing by Henrietta Rose-Innes
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EAN: 9781415201343
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- The Thin Line by Arja Salafranca
EAN: 9781920397081
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- The Bed Book of Short Stories edited by Joanne Hichens
EAN: 9781920397319
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- Tooth and Nailed by Sarah Lotz
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EAN: 9780143026341
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- This Place I Call Home by Meg Vandermerwe
EAN: 9781920397029
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