Gabrielle’s Kindle Notes & Highlights

The Storied Life of A.J. Fikry, by Gabrielle Zevin

If you’re stuck, reading helps: “The Beauties” by Anton Chekhov, “The Doll’s House” by Katherine Mansfield, “A Perfect Day for Bananafish” by J. D. Salinger, “Brownies” or “Drinking Coffee Elsewhere” both by ZZ Packer, “In the Cemetery Where Al Jolson Is Buried” by Amy Hempel, “Fat” by Raymond Carver, “Indian Camp” by Ernest Hemingway.

These stories are some of my favorites. For collections, I would add, Bobcat, by Rebecca Lee, Love Stories in this Town, by Amanda Eyre Ward, Exhalation, by Ted Chiang, and a dozen other collections that I'm forgetting. I enjoy reading short stories, but I never write them. As a writer, I think I am more suited to the canvas of a novel. I do sometimes read to "unstick" myself when I'm writing. It is useful to see how other writers have solved problems.

Diana and 18 other people liked this

24 Jun 22 · Flag

Patty

As a reader, I sometimes want to write. Sometimes I think I could do a better job than this. Sometimes, I think of a different ending or place I want the story to go.

25 Jun 22 · Flag

Jill

I am currently putting the finishing touches on my first novel. I feel that as a writer, my writing got better when I broke out of my comfort zone and started reading a wider variety of genres and wri…

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