Tag Archives: Short Stories

“Amargura Para Tres Sonámbulos”

Posted on September 28, 2024 by Brian D. Butler

“Bitterness for Three Sleepwalkers” is a 1949 short story by the Colombian writer Gabriel García Márquez. Published when he was just twenty-two years old, it is one of his earliest stories. “Bitterness for Three Sleepwalkers” by Gabriel García Márquez translated … Continue reading →

Posted in Books, South America, Writing | Tagged , , | Leave a comment

Heaven’s Gate

Posted on August 25, 2024 by Brian D. Butler

“A Society of Scoundrels” by Franz Kafka Translated by Michael Hofmann There was once a society of scoundrels, or rather not scoundrels per se, just ordinary, average people. They always stuck together. When one of them had perpetrated some rascally … Continue reading →

Posted in Books, Europe, Writing | Tagged , , | 1 Comment

The Mark on the Wall

Posted on August 17, 2024 by Brian D. Butler

  “The Mark On The Wall” is based on Virginia Woolf’s short story of the same name, which opens with the mysterious line—”Perhaps it was the middle of January in the present year that I first looked up and saw the mark … Continue reading →

Posted in Books, Europe, Film, Writing | Tagged , , | Leave a comment

the danger that carries us like a mother

Posted on July 24, 2024 by Brian D. Butler

Alaska When I think about Alaska what comes to mind are glaciers, mountains, fjords, forests and snow, deserts not so much. But the other day I stumbled upon a story about the discovery of 10,000 year-old obsidian tools in an … Continue reading →

Posted in Museums, Tourism, USA, Writing | Tagged , , , | Leave a comment

The Lottery

Posted on June 27, 2024 by Brian D. Butler

In 1960, five years before her death, Shirley Jackson recorded readings of “The Lottery” and “The Daemon Lover” for an outfit called Folkways Records—the only time we know of that she ever recorded performances of her own work.” Set on … Continue reading →

Posted in Books, USA, Writing | Tagged , , | Leave a comment

For some reason, the word ‘Sunday’ makes his head ache

Posted on July 30, 2023 by Brian D. Butler

Vampire by Robert Coover He sets off one day on an arduous journey to a remote kingdom, wondering, as the weeks pass, about the wisdom of it. Even the purpose. When he launched forth, he was sure he had a … Continue reading →

Posted in USA, Writing | Tagged | 1 Comment

Happy Hemingway Day

Posted on July 21, 2023 by Brian D. Butler

“Cat in the Rain” by Ernest Hemingway There were only two Americans stopping at the hotel. They did not know any of the people they passed on the stairs on their way to and from their room. Their room was on … Continue reading →

Posted in Books, USA, Writing | Tagged , , , | Leave a comment

Writer’s Life

Posted on July 11, 2023 by Brian D. Butler

 

Posted in Art, Books | Tagged , | 1 Comment

A Writer’s Tale

Posted on July 6, 2023 by Brian D. Butler

Way back in 1961 a 14 year-old writer had the audacity to submit an unsolicited short story to Spaceman Magazine. That bold young author was undeterred by the rejection of his work and kept at it. Stephen King has gone … Continue reading →

Posted in Books, USA, Writing | Tagged , , | Leave a comment

A Hunger Artist

Posted on July 3, 2023 by Brian D. Butler

In honor of Franz Kafka’s 140th birthday, here’s his popular short story “A Hunger Artist.” Published just two years before Kafka’s death from tuberculosis in 1924, the story is often viewed as a reflection of his illness and his struggles … Continue reading →

Posted in Books, Europe, Writing | Tagged , , | 1 Comment