I found a book of Short Stories by Elmore Leonard at one of the local dollar stores (each item sells for $1). I was thrilled to find a book by an author I love. And I was horrified that the book was actually selling for one buck. I had that awful thought that if it is only selling for a buck, maybe its only worth a buck. Wrong.
I started reading it not knowing it was short stories. I just wanted to read his writing so I could analyze it. The short stories were a bonus.
I’ve been thinking about short stories lately. They are hard to write and hard to find a publishing home in book form but they are a great way to experiment with the craft and a reasonable way to begin to get published online. So short stories as a tool – that’s what I was thinking.
I’m half way through the book now. If you don’t know Elmore Leonard, you probably don’t like the strong male voice with a nod to the western or harder class of people. My favorite story so far is “Hanging Out at the Buena Vista.” Its a scene, more than a story between two senior citizens on a first, flirtatious meeting. But it’s not flirty as in a romance novel. It’s flirty in the Elmore Leonard style. A little more grit. A lot left unsaid but somehow all the cards are on the table. These two people in the scene aren’t like any one I know but I like them.
Somehow he boils people down to the very basic stuff and still makes ‘em interesting.
