Eric McKinley @ FlashFiction.Net: The Question at the End of "Stories"
John Edgar Wideman is the writer who has been the most significant influence on my own work. So, as I work through the challenge of writing my own flash pieces, I was struck to come across this piece. Wideman is not known as a "flash" writer, but a novelist, short story writer, and essayist.
This piece is compelling to me and works as a flash on several levels. First, the title, "Stories" is simple, serves as a thematic thread, but doesn't give anything away. The next thing that struck me was the opening. It's a fragment. But it's sparse, compact and effective.
This story is a series of questions leading to a surprising, punchline answer. Much of flash takes on this type of narrative and so it fits within flash tradition/aesthetic. Despite all of the questions, there are no question marks. With so many needed, they would be distracting. Wideman focuses us on the text. On the story within the story.
The sentence upon which everything hinges is "Is the previous question one of them or is it another kind of question, not about the man or the walking or the rain." This sentence informs the reader that there is a larger answer lurking. It is an answer to a larger question.
And then we come to the end. We answer the larger question. This flash piece does not ask a question about a man walking, or a banana, or rain. It is the answer to the question: "Do you love me?"
About the Author
Eric McKinley is a Philadelphian. He is soon to finish an MFA in Fiction at Rosemont College. He writes a story every now and again. His work has appeared or is forthcoming in various print and online journals. Samplings can be found here.
posted on 26 Oct 2009, 12:47 PM
I'm not sure I would have stumbled upon this piece on my own -- so thank you for drawing our attention to this piece. I agree it is interesting. Opening with a fragment -- kind of unusual, but works for this piece -- actually, everything works for this piece, especially the ending -- though I'm not sure I'd agree that it is a punch line answer -- or maybe it just doesn't read like one.
posted on 26 Oct 2009, 11:36 PM
Thanks for reading, Anne. Wideman does a lot of stuff with fragments and description that I used to just flat out steal until I found some semblance of my own voice.