Browsing CategoryShort Stories

CBC Books’ List of 12 Amazing Canadian Short Story Collections

I don’t have time to write anything profound, but this crazy thing happened last month. CBC Books included The Best Place on Earth on their list of 12 Amazing Canadian Short Story Collections, alongside some of my favourite short story collections, and … you know, a Nobel prize winner, a Giller prize winner, and Margaret Atwood. I am still blown away by this.    

A Holiday Story in Stylist Magazine

Stylist Magazine, based in the UK, asked me to write them a Christmas story. I had four days, and I was flying across the world on the day it was due. But of course I said yes. Because apparently I work well under pressure, and because it seemed like an opportunity not to be missed. I’m in great company, too. Authors Fay Weldon, Naomi Wood, Kate Griffin, Chibundu Onuzo and Jenny Colgan all contributed a story. And Stylist has a good track record with publishing short fiction: for their summer issue they had exclusive short stories by (wait for it)…

The Best Place on Earth Longlisted for The Frank O’Connor International Short Story Award!

The other day I woke up to people congratulating me on Twitter. Turns out The Best Place on Earth was long listed for the The Frank O’Connor International Short Story Award! It is a long longlist (as Emma Donoghue, who is also listed, tweeted, “Such a long list that it’s more like a party!”) but it is exciting nevertheless. I’m one of ten Canadians on the list, and this year, the only Israeli. Other writers on the longlist include my literary crush Junot Diaz, Joyce Carol Oates, and my dear friend Nancy Jo Cullen, whose book of short stories, Canary, is launching next week.…

More Reviews!

It’s been a surreal and wonderful experience, reading reviews of The Best Place on Earth. After spending all this time writing in my room, in front of a screen, to an imaginary audience, having people read the book and write about it, is kind of extraordinary. Two recent reviews really moved me with their generous and attentive reading of the book and their thoughtful observations. Sharon Chisvin wrote a great review for the Winnipeg Free Press, calling the book “brutally honest,” “smart, sad and sincere,” describing the characters as “achingly human and almost flawlessly fashioned,” and quoting from segments of the…

Story Published in Prairie Fire

Prairie Fire! I’m in it! My story, ‘The Poets in the Kitchen Window’ (from my      upcoming collection, The Best Place on Earth), takes place in Ramat Gan during the 91’ Gulf War, when Israel was under missile attack. I was seventeen back then, in my last year of high school. It was a scary and interesting and surreal time. There are other good reasons to read this issue: my good friend Nancy Jo Cullen, winner of awards and writer of fine poetry and prose, whose book of short stories, The Canary (Biblioasis), is coming out this spring, has one…

The Next Big Thing

I’ve been tagged by the illustrious Terri Favro, author of the recently released The Proxy Bride, in The Next Big Thing, a virtual game of literary blog tag. In The Next Big Thing writers answer ten questions about their work-in-progress, and then link their post to five other writers who then tag five more writers (each!) This never-ending chain of literary awesomeness gives writers an opportunity to discuss their upcoming projects and be exposed to new readers. It also gives readers a glimpse into writers’ process while introducing them to new writers. In other words: everyone wins!  Thank you, Terri,…

Two Upcoming Workshops (also: Two Upcoming Publications!)

I teaching two writing workshops this winter. The first one, Creative Writing through Reading, is a part of the University of Guelph‘s brand new Creative Writing Certificate, in which I am extremely honoured to be teaching. It actually takes place in the gorgeous Guelph campus (Greyhound, here I come!) The second one is Introduction to Creative Non-Fiction, which I will be teaching at the University of Toronto School of Continuing Education.  I had so much fun teaching it this summer so I’m looking forward to doing it again. I updated my Workshops and Manuscript Consultation page so you can read more about these exciting opportunities. Hope…

Every Year is the Year of the Short Story

I’ve been meaning to sum up my YoSS year (The Year of the Short Story) for a while, but have been too distracted by travel and writing and edits and life. It’s also possible that I’ve been slightly intimidated by writing anything that may resemble a book review. I admit: it’s a problem. I’m one of those silent members at Goodreads who rate books without ever saying a word about them. My friend, Jay, who is one of their top reviewers, actually threatened to unfriend me if I don’t start reviewing books. I promised to try. So far I’ve done…

Thanksgiving Published in iLit Remix: A Revolution of Text Forms

I am so excited, honoured and proud to be a part of this awesome English textbook. And I know, the words ‘awesome English textbook’ don’t sound quite right… There were definitely no awesome textbooks in my time. This one has graphic narratives and comics and lyric prose and postcard stories and Twitter fiction. I can see high school students actually enjoying their English classes with this one. It’s also an honour to be published along such accomplished authors as Heather O’neill, Kevin Chong and many others that I don’t know but probably should. Click here to read my teeny little…

Celebrating YoSS

YoSS. Not a short for Yossi, but the Year of the Short Story, which lucky for us, is this year, 2011. YoSS is the brainchild of three accomplished short-story writers, Jessica Westhead, Sarah Selecky, and Matthew J. Trafford, who felt it was time for the short story to get some good press. From their website: “Yoss aims to unite fellow writers and readers everywhere in one cause—to bring short fiction the larger audience it deserves.” If there’s ever been a revolution I wanted to take part in is this one. (Okay, there are a couple other revolutions I’d really like…