I read a great deal of fairy tales, especially the Oz stories by L. Frank Baum. I also enjoyed Anne of Green Gables and the Little House on the Prairie series. I've recently given all these books a reread, and they really bear up!
Would you say your childhood and teenage reading has had a distinct influence on how you write fiction now, and why?
I think my early reading gave me a healthy respect for character and plot. Literary writing is not just about lyrical passages of description intended to impress the reader with your verbal dexterity. Actually, for me the greater accomplishment in prose is writing that serves character, plot, and setting without calling too much attention to itself.
Pick one of your favourites among your fiction stories or a story which is an interesting example from your fiction. What makes this story one of your favourites or an interesting example of your fiction?
It's hard to pick one story as a favorite. For me my favorite work is whatever I'm working on right at the moment because that's where my energy is most concentrated. For me, writing is about the process.
The end product, the "finished" story is almost like a souvenir or record of that process, the way a Jackson Pollock painting is a souvenir of Pollock's wandering around his canvas dripping paint.
When I stop working on a story, it isn't because it's finished, but rather because I'm finished.
Who is another author whose fiction writing you admire and why?
Dead: E M. Forster because I find his writing so elegant and so wise. Living: J. M. Coetzee for much the same reason. What both these writers have in common is an ability to combine emotion with intellect, plainspoken sentences with sudden bursts of beauty.
How would you summarise one of your short stories in one paragraph?
I've been working on a new story, "The Golden Mushroom," about a gay teenager who thinks he's obsessed with food and then transfers that obsession to a washroom attendant at an expensive restaurant.
How would you describe the appeal of this short story to readers?
Anyone who's experienced the inchoate feelings of desire as a teenager should be able to relate to the protagonist's attempts to figure out who he likes and why.
How would you summarise a scene or sub-section from this short story in one paragraph?
At the end of the story, the main character realizes that he's not going to get anywhere with this washroom attendant. He stuffs himself with food from McDonald's which makes him sick, so he throws up on the side of the road. He has a mint that the attendant gave him, which he was going to save as a love-token, but instead he sucks on it slowly, and imagines that for now, this is how love tastes.
How would you describe the contribution this scene or sub-section makes to the short story?
It brings it to a sense of emotional completion, not by tying up loose ends, but by gesturing toward the future, leaving the reader with an image and a sensory detail that stops rather than ends the action.
Do you aspire to primarily write novels in the future, or are you more interested in writing short stories, and why?
I think I'll always write both, but I'm not sure if I'll do another book of short stories. First, they're very hard to sell. Second, I prefer developing the world of the novel, relaxing into it slowly and having the time and space to explore it in depth.
Do you read many short story anthologies, and why?
I do because I love short fiction.
What lengths of short stories do you usually write, and why?
Usually about 20 pages. Any more than that and I think I'm going on for too long. I think a story ought to be something that can be read in one sitting. However, I'm no good at writing stories under 10 pages. I guess I have too much to say.
Do you submit for many short story competitions, anthologies and magazines, and what are your main motivations for this?
I do. My main motivation is to have my work out there, being read, not simply sitting on the hard drive of my computer.
Author website: www.aaronhamburger.com
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