Short Story Month: Minot, Moody, and Strout Read Cheever at The Center for Fiction on May 31

May is National Short Story Month, and this year (for once) The Story Prize has something planned. Thanks to New York's Center for Fiction, we're going to be co-presenting a reading to celebrate The Stories of John Cheever, a collection you'll find on the shelves of many passionate readers and writers of short fiction.

Why a Cheever reading now? Because he will have been 100 on May 27. John Cheever, the man, has gotten a lot of attention in recent years, with the release of his diaries and a highly-regarded biography by Blake Bailey. In fact, the 92nd Street Y is having an event on May 17 with Bailey, Michael Chabon, and writers and offspring Ben and Susan Cheever. So when The Center for Fiction's Executive Director, Noreen Tomassi, and I discussed having an event there, we decided to put the focus on what is probably Cheever's greatest legacy—his short stories.

(L to R) Susan Minot, Rick Moody, and Elizabeth Strout

On May 31, at 7 p.m., at The Center for Fiction, authors Susan Minot, Rick Moody, and Elizabeth Strout will each read from and discuss a Cheever story. Minot's choice is "The Sorrows of Gin," Moody will read from "The Jewels of the Cabots," and Strout will focus on "The Worm in the Apple"—all interesting selections from among an oeuvre that includes "Goodbye, My Brother," "The Enormous Radio," "The Five-Forty-Eight," "Reunion," and "The Swimmer."

Susan Minot, Rick Moody, and Elizabeth Strout each have New England roots—as did Cheever. And the work of all three has affinities with his. I'm expecting a memorable and fitting tribute to a great writer with a continuing and widespread influence on other writers—a nice way, we hope, to close out a month celebrating the story form.

Is Short Story Month Ending on an Anticlimax?

Another Short Story Month is winding down, and I must confess I that I had hoped to do more to observe it here. There was, however, a lot of activity at the Emerging Writers Network and elsewhere on the Web. Thanks to all brought energy and enthusiasm to Short Story Month this year.

Storied, the social networking site I launched to bring together advocates of the short story is up to 32 members. But not much in the way of discussion has been taking place there, and it's beginning to look like it might be a failed experiment.

During May, this blog has mostly focused on posts about books entered for The Story Prize, and we'll continue to do so. Of course, our focus is on short stories year round. Maybe next year we can add a little more to the conversation in May. I still hope to one day see a Short Story Month that includes more events and readings beyond the blogosphere. As we Mets fans say, wait 'til next year.

Short Story Month: Discuss It At Storied

Dan Wickett has kicked off Short Story Month at the Emerging Writers Network. There, some astute readers are discussing particular stories from upcoming collections. And once again, Steven Seighman has designed a nice logo (above). The American Short Fiction blog, Reading the Short Story, The Short Review, and BookFox, among others, will also be posting frequently on the subject. Our plans for May are to continue to post about books we receive as entries and on other subjects relevant to short fiction. In other words, business as usual.

Beyond the blogging, however, wouldn't it be nice to organize behind this idea further and some day have readings and other real world events for Short Story Month? How about an annual short story festival? What about a short story writers hall of fame?

Well, several months ago, I set up a test site to focus on such ideas and invited a few people to participate. It hasn't exactly caught fire, so I've decided to open it up to anyone who might be interested. The site is called Storied, and for now Ning is hosting (though the fees they'll start charging in July may change this). I'm the administrator by default, but there's plenty of room for people to present their own ideas and start their own discussions. So give it a try. Who knows? Maybe in May 2011 or 2012 we'll be gathering to celebrate Short Story Month with readings, film showings, panel discussions, book signings, and the kind of serious partying that would do any short story writer proud.

The Namesake: Will The Digital Age Favor O. Henry-like Storytelling?

O. Henry: Ripe for a comeback?

On Saturday, I attended a reception for the 2010 PEN/O. Henry Prize Stories, as part of the PEN World Voices Festival. It was kind of like going to an engagement party for an ex-wife you've gotten over. I was series editor of the O. Henry Awards for six years, the 1997-2002 volumes, before Anchor Books abruptly decided to make a change. But it's been a while now, and over the last few years, I've exchanged the occasional friendly email with Laura Furman, the current series editor. I even boxed up my collection of about 20 past O. Henry Awards volumes and shipped it to her. So when Laura sent an invitation to the reception, I gladly accepted.

It was a friendly meeting. The low-key party took place at Idlewood books on West 19th Street. Among the hosts were One Story editor (and Story Prize board member) Hannah Tinti and Tin House editor Rob Spillman. A few of the authors in the 2010 volume were on hand. I also saw A Public Space editor Brigid Hughes (another board member) and past Story Prize finalist and O. Henry Award winner Joan Silber.

One thing that hasn't changed about the O. Henry Awards is the series' ambivalent relationship with its namesake. Someone asked Laura Furman if the stories in the book are like O. Henry's, and she quickly denied any connection beyond the name of the series. I always answered the same way.

Literary fiction branched off from the kind of popular magazine and newspaper fiction that William Sydney Porter (aka O. Henry), published at the turn of the last century as other forms of entertainment appeared. And you're more likely to find his formula of clever plots and surprising twists in television and movie scripts than in stories appearing in one of the prestigious annual literary collections, such as the O. Henry Awards, Best American Short Stories, the Pushcart Prize collection, and New Stories from the South.

Of course, stories written as much for entertainment as for craft are still prevalent in genres such as horror, mystery, and romance, and many of them are excellent. However, popular fiction as a genre unto itself no longer really exists. But here (wait for it) is the twist: The digital age could offer such types of stories a second life. Radio, movies, and TV might have stolen a large part of the audience for popular storytelling, but digital platforms such as the iPad, Kindle, Nook, and Sony Reader have the potential to bring back the crowd pleasing, O. Henry-style story. These devices lend themselves very well to the short form and will be in the hands of a growing readership. So could popular short fiction mount a comeback in the digital age? I'd say, yes. How would that be for a surprise ending?

Note: May is Short Story Month in the blogosphere. This site is all about short stories, and we'll continue to post on our favorite subject throughout the month.