Short Story Today
Episodes
Episode 96: A Valentine's Day Micro Fiction Sampler
12 Feb 2023
Contributed by Lukas
We're celebrating Valentine's Day with a micro fiction sampler of love stories. They're not your grandma's love stories, however. ...
Episode #40 - Pamela Painter: "Deck"
08 Feb 2023
Contributed by Lukas
Author Pamela Painter is one of the most respected writers and educators in the world of short fiction. Her workbook "What If? Writing Exercises ...
Episode #39 - Evan Morgan Williams: "A House Call"
01 Feb 2023
Contributed by Lukas
Portland, Oregon author Evan Morgan Williams gives a mini-master class on writing noir literary fiction. It's the genre he's chosen for his ...
Episode #38 - Will Musgrove: Selected Flash Stories
25 Jan 2023
Contributed by Lukas
In his highly original flash fiction, Iowa author Will Musgrove applies his own unique brand of twisted logic to scenes from daily life. Zoo cages bec...
Episode #37 - Melissa Llanes Brownlee: Selected Flash Fiction
18 Jan 2023
Contributed by Lukas
Hawaiian author Melissa Llanes Brownlee explains life on the islands as only an indigenous person who was born and raised there can. In her fiction, H...
Episode #36 - Avitus B. Carle: "That Feeling of Life"
11 Jan 2023
Contributed by Lukas
Author Avitus B. Carle lives and writes just on the edge of Philadelphia. She has built a remarkable body of work, creating some of the most memorable...
Episode #35 - Stephanie Parent: "Deer, Girl"
04 Jan 2023
Contributed by Lukas
Baltimore, MD author Stephanie Parent reveals some of the mysteries of her lived experience as a submissive in a commercial BDSM dungeon while living ...
Episode #34 - Farah Ali: "Bulletproof Bus"
28 Dec 2022
Contributed by Lukas
OUT NOW! Pakistani author Farah Ali lives with her family in Dubai, but her ties to her childhood home of Karachi run deep. It's often the backgr...
Episode #33 - First Annual Holiday Episode!
21 Dec 2022
Contributed by Lukas
We celebrate the holidays with a cavalcade of holiday-themed short stories, written by some of the best contemporary writers in the field. Six profess...
Episode #32 - Cheryl Pappas: "This Violent and Cherished Earth"
14 Dec 2022
Contributed by Lukas
In writing speculative fiction, Massachusetts author Cheryl Pappas sees a responsibility "to acknowledge the strange in everything." The c...
Episode #31 - Elizabeth Trueblood: "Life Partners"
07 Dec 2022
Contributed by Lukas
Wisconsin-born author Elizabeth Trueblood writes stories that sometimes dance around the speculative, and at other times dive headlong into it. She po...
Episode #30 - Steven Ostrowski: "Ensemble of One" and "Even on Good Nights"
30 Nov 2022
Contributed by Lukas
Connecticut author Steven Ostrowski started life as a scrappy city kid from a large family on Staten Island. He developed a love of ice hockey back th...
Episode #29 - Meagan Arthur: "The Telling is Clean"
23 Nov 2022
Contributed by Lukas
Utah-based author Meagan Arthur uses her stories to explore consciousness, and examine the "boundaried way of making meaning that we have inherit...
Episode #28 - Whitney Collins: "Bjorn"
16 Nov 2022
Contributed by Lukas
Kentucky author Whitney Collins spent 20 years writing non-fiction for pay before she decided it was time to take a chance with fiction. With guidance...
Episode #27 - Molly Andrea-Ryan: "Idle Hands"
09 Nov 2022
Contributed by Lukas
As the child of a father in the armed services, Pittsburgh PA author Molly Andrea-Ryan found herself moving frequently to a new town. Looking for a ...
Episode #26 - Claire Polders: "The Men on the Fence"
02 Nov 2022
Contributed by Lukas
Globe-trotting author Claire Polders writes the kind of novels and stories that are only possible from one who possesses a deep understanding of the w...
Episode #25 - Jared Povanda: "Missing Pieces"
26 Oct 2022
Contributed by Lukas
Upstate NY author Jared Povanda reveals his love of fantasy novels, and explains how those books gave him the building blocks to create his own unique...
Episode #24 - Olufunke Grace Bankole: "Niyi and the Tan Stucco House"
19 Oct 2022
Contributed by Lukas
Nigerian-American author Olufunke Grace Bankole shares stories about her life, from serving as an intern with the Supreme Court, to the many impressio...
Episode #23 - Minyoung Lee: "Sing a Song of Sixpence"
12 Oct 2022
Contributed by Lukas
Oakland, CA author Minyoung Lee shares her thoughts about the ways in which the immigrant time capsule effect contributed to her way of seeing the w...
Episode #22 - Julia Strayer: "Empty House"
05 Oct 2022
Contributed by Lukas
We learn from Connecticut author Julia Strayer how the misfits, eccentrics and outsiders she often writes about are, in a way, a reaction to the perso...
Episode #21 - Josh Dale: "A Losing Bet"
28 Sep 2022
Contributed by Lukas
Pennsylvania author Josh Dale explains how creating a small press publishing house became a way to combine his love of books with his pursuit of a car...
Episode #20 - Reena Shah: "Gloria"
21 Sep 2022
Contributed by Lukas
Michener Fellow Reena Shah talks about living as a young woman in Mumbai while learning the classical dance form known as kathak. She took inspiration...
Episode #19 - Sarah Schweitzer: "Love, Loss, Live"
14 Sep 2022
Contributed by Lukas
New Hampshire author Sarah Schweitzer explains how writing fiction was for her a natural extension of the work she had done as a Pulitzer-nominated jo...
Episode #18 - Ahsan Butt: "Window"
07 Sep 2022
Contributed by Lukas
Toronto-born author Ahsan Butt talks about growing up in a Punjabi community in Canada before venturing south to the U.S. He writes movingly about wha...
Episode #17 - Erik Pardos Olsen: "Straight People"
31 Aug 2022
Contributed by Lukas
Danish-born, London-based author Erik Pardos Olsen writes short stories about life in East London. His online collection "Queer as in Weird"...
Episode #16 - Marcela Fuentes: "The Observable World"
24 Aug 2022
Contributed by Lukas
Texas author Marcela Fuentes won a 2022 Pushcart Prize for her short story "The Observable World," published in Ploughshares in their Summer...
Episode #15 - A. Rafael Johnson: "Morrison's Note"
17 Aug 2022
Contributed by Lukas
Minnesota author A. Rafael Johnson tells us how this week's story began life as a birthday gift to a friend in his college creative writing progr...
Episode #14 - Jules Chung: "Posting From a Secret Post-Op Bedside"
10 Aug 2022
Contributed by Lukas
New Jersey author Jules Chung shares a glimpse into her experience of visiting relatives as a teenager in Seoul, South Korea in her reading of her poe...
Episode #13 - Claire Taylor: "Leap Year Mother"
03 Aug 2022
Contributed by Lukas
Maryland author Claire Taylor tells us about her personal journey, where she first earned a psychology degree and then became a licensed massage the...
Episode #12 - Francesca Leader: "The Flaw" and "Waves"
27 Jul 2022
Contributed by Lukas
Virginia author Francesca Leader reveals some of the methodology behind her award-winning translation of the Japanese Iroha poem. She tells us how, wh...
Episode #11 - Amie Souza Reilly: "But when we reach the season's end, sunflowers become a food source for all the wild birds"
20 Jul 2022
Contributed by Lukas
Connecticut author Amie Souza Reilly shares how her childhood experiences while spending summers at her grandparents' home on Lake Champlain in...
Episode #10 - Andrew Bertaina: "Dream Mother"
13 Jul 2022
Contributed by Lukas
Washington, DC author Andrew Bertaina offers a probing and insightful look into his creative process as he describes how he begins working on stories ...
Episode #9 - Kasie Whitener: "Two Trunks"
06 Jul 2022
Contributed by Lukas
South Carolina author Kasie Whitener talks with us about her experiences teaching entrepreneurship, hosting a SC radio show about writing and writers,...
Episode #8 - Arlaina Tibensky: "Masks"
29 Jun 2022
Contributed by Lukas
With her quick wit and vaudeville timing, Arlaina Tibensky brings a breezy humor to the episode this week. She tells us about the joys of being a moth...
Episode #7 - James R. West: "Cadillac"
22 Jun 2022
Contributed by Lukas
Author James R. West has deep roots in the great state of Utah. He gives us a candid account of his early years of life in a Mormon family, and his tr...
Episode #6 - Kerry Langan: "My Name Is Your Name"
15 Jun 2022
Contributed by Lukas
Ohio author Kerry Langan tells Short Story Today about growing up in Buffalo, writing stories from a child's point of view, venturing outside her...
Episode #5 - Scott Laudati: "The First Execution"
08 Jun 2022
Contributed by Lukas
Scott Laudati talks about growing up in an unusual neighborhood in Staten Island, his harrowing experiences working as a dock builder for the City of ...
Episode #4 - Elana Marcus: "Next of Kin"
01 Jun 2022
Contributed by Lukas
South Florida born, New York based author Elana Marcus is our guest on this episode. She tells us about the personal history she drew from in order to...
Episode #3 - Lis Anna-Langston: "The Descent"
25 May 2022
Contributed by Lukas
Lis Anna-Langston tells Short Story Today about some of the colorful characters that populate her stories and novels - and about how the Buddhist teac...
Episode #2 - Corley Longmire: "Because They Can Get Lost"
18 May 2022
Contributed by Lukas
Corley Longmire speaks about growing up in the Southeast, and how her childhood experiences of extreme weather have found their way into her stories. ...
Episode #1 - John Henry Fleming: "Wind and Rain"
11 May 2022
Contributed by Lukas
In this inaugural episode of the all-new Short Story Today podcast, we celebrate John Henry Fleming, author of the novel "The Legend of the Baref...
Episode #18 - Kate Chopin
06 May 2022
Contributed by Lukas
We bring the "Classic" version of Short Story Today to a close with an episode devoted to the American author, Kate Chopin. Her stories of l...
Episode #17 - Bret Harte
29 Apr 2022
Contributed by Lukas
In "A Mother of Five," Bret Harte, one of the true masters of the short story form, composes a heartwarming tale of the wanderings of a litt...
Episode17 - Bret Harte
29 Apr 2022
Contributed by Lukas
Bret Hart, one of the true masters of the short story form, composes a heartwarming tale of the wanderings of a little girl and her family of home-mad...
Episode #16 - H. G. Wells
22 Apr 2022
Contributed by Lukas
In his short story "The Magic Shop," the British titan of science fiction, H. G. Wells conjures up a shape-shifting world inside a mysteriou...
Episode #15 - Sherwood Anderson
15 Apr 2022
Contributed by Lukas
"Death in the Woods" In this masterpiece by American author Sherwood Anderson, the meaning of life (and death) are brought home to a man...
Episode #14 - Virginia Woolf Gets Another Episode - She's a Fan Fave!
08 Apr 2022
Contributed by Lukas
We bring Virginia back again because we can't ever get enough of her. The story this time is "Solid Objects," a whimsical yet surpris...
Episode #13 - Virginia Woolf
01 Apr 2022
Contributed by Lukas
We honor the innovative British author of the Bloomsbury Set this week with a reading of her weird and wonderful short story, "Kew Gardens,"...
Episode #13 - Virginia Woolf
01 Apr 2022
Contributed by Lukas
We honor the innovative British author of the Bloomsbury Set this week with a reading of her weird and wonderful short story, "Kew Gardens,"...
Episode #12 - James Joyce (Special edition: crossover episode with Get Lit Podcast)
24 Mar 2022
Contributed by Lukas
SHORT STORY TODAY and GET LIT, the literary history podcast join forces this week for Reading Ireland Month with crossover episodes devoted to the mig...
Episode #12 - James Joyce (Special edition with Get Lit podcast crossover!)
24 Mar 2022
Contributed by Lukas
SHORT STORY TODAY and GET LIT, the literary history podcast join forces this week for Reading Ireland Month with crossover episodes devoted to the mig...
Episode #11 - Willa Cather
18 Mar 2022
Contributed by Lukas
In this episode, the revered American author Willa Cather transports us to the farmlands of Nebraska in the evocative short story, "The Enchanted...
Episode #10 - D. H. Lawrence
11 Mar 2022
Contributed by Lukas
The divisive and prolific D. H. Lawrence graces SHORT STORY TODAY this week with the humorous “Rawdon’s Roof,” about a man who, for mysterious r...
Episode #9 - E. M. Forster
04 Mar 2022
Contributed by Lukas
E. M. Forster's short story, "The Road From Colonus," examines the life of an old man during his final holiday in Greece - a trip...
Episode #8 - Edith Wharton
25 Feb 2022
Contributed by Lukas
In this episode we have some fun with a ghost story by the redoubtable Edith Wharton. In "Miss Mary Pask," an American painter who is trying...
Episode #7 - F. Scott Fitzgerald (Part 2)
17 Feb 2022
Contributed by Lukas
F. Scott Fitzgerald takes the spotlight this time with "The Curious Case of Benjamin Button" - Part 2. It's a fantastic tale of an un...
Episode #7 - F. Scott Fitzgerald (Part 2)
17 Feb 2022
Contributed by Lukas
F. Scott Fitzgerald takes the spotlight this time with "The Curious Case of Benjamin Button." It's a fantastic tale of an unusual life,...
Episode #6 - F. Scott Fitzgerald (Part 1)
11 Feb 2022
Contributed by Lukas
F. Scott Fitzgerald takes the spotlight this time with "The Curious Case of Benjamin Button." It's a fantastic tale of an unusual life,...
Episode #5 - Dorothy Parker
03 Feb 2022
Contributed by Lukas
The inimitable Dorothy Parker demonstrates, in her short story "Such a Pretty Little Picture," her keen eye for revealing the ennui that can...
Episode #4 - A PRESERVATION EPISODE: Virginia Roderick - Iowa Author
28 Jan 2022
Contributed by Lukas
In this episode, the first in a series entitled THE PRESERVATION EPISODES, a "lost" short story is resurrected, and listeners will discove...
Episode #3 - Charlotte Perkins Gilman: The Yellow Wallpaper (Part 2)
21 Jan 2022
Contributed by Lukas
This week's short story is a classic: "The Yellow Wallpaper" by Charlotte Perkins Gilman. It will be presented in two parts. The conc...
Episode #3 - Charlotte Perkins Gilman: The Yellow Wallpaper (Part 2)
21 Jan 2022
Contributed by Lukas
This week's short story is a classic: "The Yellow Wallpaper" by Charlotte Perkins Gilman. It will be presented in two parts. The conc...
Episode #2 - Charlotte Perkins Gilman: The Yellow Wallpaper (Part I)
21 Jan 2022
Contributed by Lukas
This week's short story is a classic: "The Yellow Wallpaper" by Charlotte Perkins Gilman. It will be presented in two parts. The conc...
Episode #2 - Charlotte Perkins Gilman: The Yellow Wallpaper (Part I)
20 Jan 2022
Contributed by Lukas
This week's short story is a classic: "The Yellow Wallpaper" by Charlotte Perkins Gilman. It will be presented in two parts. The conc...
Episode #1 - Katherine Mansfield
14 Jan 2022
Contributed by Lukas
The first episode of "Short Story Today" features a story by the New Zealand author, Katherine Mansfield, entitled "The Young Girl"...