Support Our Troops by Robyn Bradley



About Robyn Bradley:
I’m a Copy Bitch by day and Novelist Ninja by night. I've wanted to be a writer ever since I was nine years old and I wrote a short story for Mrs. Shea's fourth grade class, a short story that I loved writing and sharing with my classmates. Storytelling is as old as time, but that was my first experience -- that I can remember -- as a true storyteller. I was hooked after that.

Why she thinks the short story form should - and will - make a comeback:
I think e-readers will transform the Art of the American Short Story. Fewer and fewer print publications issue short fiction. When was the last time you could read one short story, without buying a whole anthology or a whole magazine? With e-readers, you can buy one and only one short story. And then there's the form itself. Short stories are immensely satisfying. You can read them in one sitting, which is perfect on so many different levels. You can experience so much in such compact space, and all the while marvel at how the author accomplished this enormous feat. They’re great learning tools — for kids, for adults, for students, for everyone, really. I think the right short story can actually help reluctant readers discover the joy of reading. A reluctant reader is liable to take one look at the size of a novel like Great Expectations and his or her stomach will turn. But a 10-page short story? Okay, the person might say. I can give that a try.

Summary of "Support Our Troops":
When Koty's husband volunteers her to visit Jamie, a quadruple amputee who lost his limbs while serving in Iraq, neither Koty nor Jamie is happy. Jamie resents being "babysat" every day. Koty resents her lot in life: almost 30, mother of four, married to an abusive alcoholic. But in one pivotal moment that brings Koty and Jamie together in a sexually-charged situation, all that changes.

Buy now:

Support Our Troops on Amazon

Support Our Troops on B&N

Comments

  1. Writer BugFebruary 16, 2011 at 12:28 PM

    That's a really good point about e-readers making it possible to buy short stories as a one-off, instead of having to buy a whole anthology. I hope you're right about the medium helping the short story make a comeback!

    ReplyDelete
  2. Alain GomezFebruary 16, 2011 at 3:05 PM

    I agree. It's like being able to watch one episode of a really good TV show vs. having to get the whole season.

    ReplyDelete
  3. Idiot CookFebruary 19, 2011 at 3:28 AM

    @Writer Bug and Alain -- glad these thoughts resonated with you. Here's to the indie writer revolution! :)

    ReplyDelete

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