short stories

Trick or Treat: More Free Audio Short Stories

October 29, 2010 By heather Leave a Comment

So unlike the other free audio short stories I shared with you last month, these free audio short stories are authored by none other than yours truly!

Can you taste the excitement?

Just in time for a Halloween treat, you can download four of my published short stories. And–if you can believe your luck–you don’t even have to smell my feet. How’s that for a good deal?

But wait! There’s more!

Yes, these particular short stories are narrated by one of the foremost emerging voices in America.

Mine.

I selected four of the short stories I’ve had published over the past couple of years, recorded them with my own lovely voice, and made them available on NoiseTrade.

Commercial break: for those of you unfamiliar with NoiseTrade–NoiseTrade is a place to discover great musicians (and, in this case, storytellers). You can download the music (um, short stories) by either (1) paying however much you choose from $1 to $100 or (2) sharing the artist with friends via Facebook, Twitter, or email. Or some combination of both. You can also go back and tip the artist if you’ve listened and think, hey, this is good stuff–this artist needs to be paid some of my hard-earned bucks so they can keep doing what they’re doing. I’ve discovered some of my faves through NoiseTrade–Katie Herzig, Justin Caldwell, Willowfair, for example. And some old faves, like Sandra McCracken, Derek Webb, and Caedmon’s Call also have music up there.

Back to me. Because today, it’s all about me. NoiseTrade was created for musicians. Technically, I am a musician, even if I’m not using NoiseTrade for my music at this time. Potato, potato. NoiseTrade, I take your offerings and bend them according to my will.

A note about the short stories I selected:

"Ash Wednesday" (originally published in Ruminate Magazine): Sarah watches her house sink into the flames, but rather than panic, and old desire to run away takes hold.

A glimpse: "Ash slid down the sky like stars on a midnight stroll. It streaked her arms and pajamas. She turned up her face to it, licked the flakes like raindrops, rubbed them into the skin of her face like moisturizer."

"Dies Irae" (originally published in Generate Magazine): Veronica, an actress and aspiring playwright, contemplates her demise as she takes a job of web coordinator at a lawyer’s office.

A glimpse: "When I met her, I was playing a part at the Addison Water Tower Theater. My biggest gig yet. Or my biggest venue, I should say. I had exactly nine lines in four scenes in an experimental play called Going in Circles. I also had two scenes that I mimed. I painted my face white and everything."

"The Audition" (originally published in Relief Journal): Greta has one last chance at a brilliant performance that will pull her from her suburban existence into the world of "real music"–an audition for the Dallas Symphony Orchestra.

A glimpse: "The right thing to do would be to keep the car running, leave the seat belt strapped, back out of the parking spot, and go home. Make a plan, like Terry said, and settle down. Plenty of things to do, he said, like play for church orchestras or teach music in preschools. Or die in the mire of mediocrity, I added. He didn’t appreciate that comment. He’s tired of living on the fringe of my dreams. Let’s make a new life together, Terry said like life is a Carpenters’ song."

Want to know a secret? This story was inspired by the myth of Eurydice and Orpheus.

"Matt and Marnie, Sittin’ in the Tree, or Something Like That" (originally published in Infuze Magazine): Feeling washed out and less than womanly after her husband left her for another woman, Marnie, mother of three, ventures out on her first date since junior high. This piece comes from my novel, 50 Things to Do Before I Turn 30, which won the 2008 Genesis Award in Women’s Fiction (sponsored by ACFW).

A glimpse: "To be honest, I stink at this chit-chat stuff. I never know what to say, so we mostly drive in silence. I make a few astute comments about his car, like, "So you drive a Toyota," which then infers the follow-up question, "Do you like it?" Astounding conversation, really. Should have been recorded for posterity’s sake."

So that’s that. Do you think it would help if I wrote a jingle?

Filed Under: audio books, short stories, stories, writing

A Few of My Favorite Things

September 27, 2010 By heather 1 Comment

I heart stories. Even more, I heart stories being read to me. Perhaps it conjures up childhood memories of my parents reading to me. Perhaps it connects to my sense of audio learning. My favorite book is Nobody’s Fool by Richard Russo. I heard it via audio book. Sometimes I wonder if I would have loved it so much had I opened a hard back.

Of course, in essence, I read every book to myself. I hear the voices of the characters in my head.

So when I discovered some free podcasts of stories to listen to while I workout, my heart went pitter-patter (which, granted, may have been from the workout, but nevertheless, I’m in love all the same). And, being the generous person I am, I thought I’d share.

My favorites:

The New Yorker fiction podcast: Writers pick a favorite story from the archives of The New Yorker. After reading it, the writer discusses the story with TNY’s editor, Deborah Treisman. I love this part because, come on, it’s fun to eavesdrop on people talking about one of the things I love most–stories. And doesn’t it sound deliciously pretentious to be up on all the authors featured in The New Yorker?

Classic Tales podcast: B.J. Harrison reads short stories and novels by classic authors such as Mark Twain, Charles Dickens, P.G. Wodehouse, F. Scott Fitzgerald, Anton Checkov, and Edith Wharton. (I even finally met Cthulu via this podcast, much to the relief of my horror and fantasy peeps.) It both feels indulgent (ah, for the days before postmodern fiction) and like I’m catching up on authors I should’ve read in high school. Most recently I listened to The Scarlet Pimpernel by Baronness Emmuska Orczy. I might have teared up a little during my run at the end of the story. And B.J. does a great English accent, which makes me long for home. (Granted, I’ve never been to England accept for Heathrow, which I don’t count since I didn’t make it out of the airport, but since most of my heritage is English, I consider it home in some sense. C.f. my afternoon tea habit. Also, the British accent on my GPS.)

Public Radio International’s Selected Shorts podcast: This features live readings by TV, movie, and Broadway actors and actresses (which means a great reading every time). And there’s something about joining with the audience’s laughter. I’ve fallen in love with many a writer in this podcast. Which could be bad because it makes my book list an impossible task. Which makes my husband nervous.

This American Life podcast: Okay, so technically this isn’t strictly short stories. But they are short human interest pieces usually told in story format. You might get stories about some of the people in Haiti, or you might get a piece on people who dream about having superpowers. By the way, which would you choose: the power of flying or of being invisible?

I’ve tried a handful of others (like Paper Radio and Vanity Fair’s podcast of authors reading excerpts of their books), which tend to get deleted over time. But these stick with me through thick and thin (literally, since I listen to them during my workouts).

Enjoy!

(And do share if you have some favorites.)

Filed Under: Classic Tales, podcasts, Public Radio International, short stories, The New Yorker, This American Life

November's Artuality and Glimpses

November 2, 2008 By heather 2 Comments

November’s Artuality will be up on Wednesday. Art has been a shaping force in my life. Through art, I encounter God,
am challenged to think in new ways, and see new perspectives. Art
influences my spirituality, my art, and my life.
Because of this, I started Artuality, a monthly festival celebrating how art shapes us.

This month’s theme is movies. On your blog, tell us about how movies or a movie influenced you artistically or spiritually. Remember, this can be anything from home videos to Oscar-winning flicks.

I’ll have my post up along with Mr. Linky on Wednesday.

For more information about Artuality (along with a short video about the impetus of the festival), see this post.

November’s Glimpses features an interview with David Taylor, former arts pastor at Hope Chapel in Austin, about how he got into the biz of arts pastoring. There will also be a flash fiction piece by yours truly along with some thoughts about implementing arts in your local church.

If you don’t already subscribe to Glimpses, you can do so using the nifty form just to your right (yes, I had to do the "L" thing to determine my right from my left–the thing is, both L’s look correct to me!).

Filed Under: art, artuality, David Taylor, Glimpses, movies, short stories

What's on Your Nightstand–September

September 24, 2008 By heather 8 Comments

You well know I’m always happy to talk books. I missed August’s What’s on Your Nightstand carnival due to some circumstance (I don’t remember what now, but I’m sure it was important). But not to worry! I’m joining up again.

Without further ado, I present my nightstand (and kitchen table and coffee table):

The Best American Short Stories 2007 (The Best American Series (TM))

These days, I’ve been in love with short stories. Perhaps because in my fragmented life, I can finish a complete story in one sitting. Perhaps in the condensed telling of a short story, you can spend days digging for gold (and the time to reread and reread). There’s only been one story I haven’t liked thus far. And let me clarify: it was beautiful. The author was doing something in there very meaningful, and I appreciate that. But it hasn’t been my favorite ever. My two favorites have been one by Richard Russo (you know that’s on my list–I can’t resist any words written by this man) and one titled "Lucy’s School for Girls Raised by Wolves." How can you not immediately turn to that story? It’s wonderfully written and raises great questions about what it means to be human.

The Beauty of God: Theology and the Arts

It seems to me that I’ve mentioned this book before. It’s a slow read. I have to digest each essay before moving to the next (and, let’s be honest, I tend to get distracted by a good novel). This book is a collection of essays from a conference held at Wheaton about theology and the arts. It addresses beauty in relation to the Triune Creator (and his creation), the Fall, and Redemption. Brilliant writing. Makes you think.

The Road of Lost Innocence: The true story of a Cambodian heroine.

I’ll start off with wow and go from there. Wow.

I don’t often read memoirs. In fact, I read them as often as I have wisdom teeth removed. Typically, I feel memoirs aren’t well told. They bore me with "then this happened, then this, then this, and I felt this way about it." Blah, blah, blah. If you can write a memoir well–actual stories and compelling writing–you have my vote. And I’m not going to lie to you. This memoir does that as well. Very little dialogue. Extremely few actual scenes. However, the story draws me in despite that. It’s convicting really. It’s about a woman who was sold into sexual slavery in Cambodia, escaped, and now rescues other girls. This woman went through some of the worst situations, yet she doesn’t run to safety. She gets back in because she loves these girls.

And I complain when my cable goes out.

She doesn’t describe things graphically, which works on two levels. It doesn’t turn the stomach but presents the hard facts for us to do with them what we will. Also, it doesn’t titillate. In fact, at one point, she talks about disdaining so many journalists because they want the juicy graphics but do nothing important with them.

Which brings me back to the above book (The Beauty of God) because in one essay, Jeremy Begbie addresses sentimentalism as not just that what makes us feel good (i.e. Precious Moments) but indulges in hard scenes and tears without moving us to action.
But I digress.

Relief,Volume 2, Issue 3

As I said, I’m apparently addicted to short stories recently. I haven’t delved into this issue yet, and I haven’t read any Relief since their debut issue, so I don’t have much to say about this.

Yet.

So there you have it folks. The books keeping me awake (and keeping me away from my work).