The future of short fiction?

Nicholas Dames, in Public Books, has some very interesting observations about some recent best-selling collections of short stories, including those by George Saunders, Sam Lipsyte, Karen Russell, and Junot Diaz. After pointing out that short fiction has usually ranked lower than novels on the totem pole of esteem, Dames wonders if American literature is now entering a new phase in which short fiction will gain prominence because of its “elevator-pitch weirdness and intensity.” In other words, he argues that writers are no longer interested in the minimalist short fiction of the past 30 years and, instead, are spinning tales unlike anything readers have encountered before. Particularly new is the emphasis upon a unique narrative voice and tone:

If Gordon Lish’s effect on a generation-plus of writers was to enforce the severities of good technique (correct breathing, no belting), the story now seems to have embraced a pop faith: doesn’t matter how weird the voice, as long as it has style, even a strained, or peculiar, or mimicked style.

Dames further speculates that short fiction might well become the dominant genre in this age of limited attention spans and the small phone screens upon which people read stories. His article is extremely interesting and well worth reading.

PS: Tomorrow I’ll post my review of George Saunders’ Tenth of December.