Short Story Collections by Ann Tinkham
I became a writer of short stories by accident. I took a novel-writing class at the Lighthouse Writers’ Workshop and the assignment was to write one short story a week for eight weeks. I was so annoyed with the short story focus, I nearly dropped out of the class. But in surrendering, I quickly discovered my passion for the short form. I love crafting beginnings and endings, writing primarily from one point of view, and setting up a quick dramatic arc. Short stories allow me to do all these things and more.
For the reader, the short form packs a quick and satisfying punch. A story collection is a literary tapas bar that allows you to taste test. And who doesn't love sampling little morsels with bold flavor? I invite you to step inside, settle in, and sample your heart out.
The Era of Lanterns and Bells
In The Era of Lanterns and Bells, a lighthouse is haunted by the memory of lighthouse keepers, a train operator is forever changed by a subway suicide, a journalist befriends a homeless virtuoso, an orca trainer believes she's a whale, an aerialist runs away from the circus, and a Golden Gate Bridge jumper saves lives with fortune cookies. An obese woman is rescued from being a shut-in, a woman discovers that her favorite childhood pond is polluted and cancer-causing, a woman falls in love with a bipolar man in Jamaica, and an arborist writes love letters from trees. These quirky and darkly comic stories entertain while posing essential questions about truth, compassion, and humanity.
Stories I Can't Show My Mother
In Stories I Can't Show My Mother, bat girl receives love voodoo from Needle Man, a woman finagles a direct deposit at a sperm bank, a modern-day Lady Godiva triggers a hot police investigation into a cold case, an astronaut plots to kidnap her former lover's girlfriend, an escort's famous client falls for her, and a woman recovering from a breakup has a mile-high quickie with a stranger. These flirty, playful stories explore sexuality and sensuality, taking you to places your mother never wanted you to discover.
Coming Soon!
Afraid of the Rain
In Afraid of the Rain, a woman's date with a magician redefines magic, an actor becomes his sociopathic role, a young musician plans a senior-living speakeasy, a boy kidnaps a penguin from the zoo, a man risks his marriage for giant pumpkin-growing, a mother's HIV denial causes her to lose the thing she loves most, and a once fearless woman's house detonates in a flood. In these stories, the characters are driven to peril by their passions. Some are exalted, yet others succumb to their obsessions.
