Why Is This Good?

If you enjoyed this episode, consider joining our Patreon. Your support helps us keep the show running. Find out more at http://www.patreon.com/whyisthisgoodpodcast In this episode, we discuss “The Babysitter” by Robert Coover.  What lessons can we take from such a unique piece that takes so many chances and nevertheless succeeds wildly? For daily writing tips, […]

If you enjoyed this episode, consider joining our Patreon. Your support helps us keep the show running. Find out more at http://www.patreon.com/whyisthisgoodpodcast In this episode, we discuss “Closer” by Greg Egan.  What can we learn about writing fiction in general from a “Hard” Science Fiction story?  How can philosophical questions influence our fiction? Find Egan’s […]

If you enjoyed this episode, consider joining our Patreon. Your support helps us keep the show running. Find out more at http://www.patreon.com/whyisthisgoodpodcast In this episode, we discuss “Girls, At Play” by Celeste Ng.  What lessons can we draw from a story with such a startling premise?  Is there more to learn about perspective and point […]

If you enjoyed this episode, consider joining our Patreon. Your support helps us keep the show running. Find out more at http://www.patreon.com/whyisthisgoodpodcast In this episode, we discuss “Only Tourists Remember the Alamo” by Alicia D. Ortega.  How can a specific, real-life setting influence a story?  How does a non-linear structure that allows you to quickly […]

If you enjoyed this episode, consider joining our Patreon. Your support helps us keep the show running. Find out more at http://www.patreon.com/whyisthisgoodpodcast In this episode, we discuss “Victory Lap” by George Saunders.  What can we learn about writing character and stream of consciousness and point of view from a master of characterization and perspective. For […]

If you enjoyed this episode, consider joining our Patreon. Your support helps us keep the show running. Find out more at http://www.patreon.com/whyisthisgoodpodcast In this episode, we discuss “How to Become a Writer” by Lorrie Moore.  What lessons can we learn about fiction, about being a writer, and the craft of point of view from Moore’s […]

If you enjoyed this episode, consider joining our Patreon. Your support helps us keep the show running. Find out more at http://www.patreon.com/whyisthisgoodpodcast In this episode, we discuss “When They Came to Us” by Debbie Urbanski.  What can we learn about fiction by looking at a story about aliens? We also briefly discuss Nathan W. Pyle’s […]

If you enjoyed this episode, consider joining our Patreon. Your support helps us keep the show running. Find out more at http://www.patreon.com/whyisthisgoodpodcast In this episode, we discuss “Voices” by Alice Munro.  We find lessons about the pace of description and how the struggle of remembering can create drama in a memoir, among other things. Here […]

If you enjoyed this episode, consider joining our Patreon. Your support helps us keep the show running. Find out more at http://www.patreon.com/whyisthisgoodpodcast In this episode, we  discuss “Now We Are Five” by David Sedaris.  What can we learn about writing fiction by examining memoir? For daily writing tips, industry news, and great short fiction, join […]

If you enjoyed this episode, consider joining our Patreon. Your support helps us keep the show running. Find out more at http://www.patreon.com/whyisthisgoodpodcast In this episode of Why Is This Good, we discuss Raymond Carver’s story, “What We Talk About When We Talk About Love.”  We explore what we can learn about dialogue, among other lessons. […]