ARCHIVE FOR Jenn Scheck-Kahn

Between the covers of a literary magazine which has, at the very most, a circulation of a few thousand, a writer earns a first writing credit. Beyond mom and dad, adoring friends, a nosy aunt, a devoted yet literature--adverse sibling, a fiction writer’s first audience is comprised of--not  exactly the readers and subscribers of the literary magazine who come later--but an editor who mined the short story from the slush pile of submissions by way of her staff, read it, then read it again, then read it a third time, and with each read became more convinced that …

Every few weeks, a member of the Grub community recommends a book they find helpful or inspirational from a craft perspective. This week, instructor Jenn Scheck-Kahn recommends one of her favorite short stories. 

It’s embarrassing how many times in my teaching life I’ve hauled out “Samuel,” by Grace Paley for students to discuss. Part of what makes it a tantalizing text is its size – roughly 1,100 plainspoken words – that, in classic Paley style, draws its reader in with ordinary daily doings – a subway ride in NY – and then crushes your heart with a tragedy, a perfectly …