'Let each become an exploratory journey'

“There’s a beauty in writing stories—each one is an exploratory journey in search of a reason and a shape. And when you find that reason and that shape, there’s no feeling like it." – T.C. Boyle

 

Born in New York in 1948, Boyle excels at writing short stories, even though he’s also darn good at writing novels, having published 19 of them – his most recent being 2023’s Blue Skies.  His novel World’s End won the coveted PEN/Faulkner Award.  

 

But, it’s his short story list that’s most impressive and continues to grow.  To date, he has more than 150 in print and many more “in process.”   Boyle shares his writing skills at workshops and literary events and also taught English at USC for many years, founding their creative writing program in the process.

 

An advocate of the stream of consciousness style – he says start with a word or phrase and then just see where it might take you.  It’s also a great technique for overcoming writer’s block.  Just pick something and start writing.

 

“I have an idea and a first line – and that suggests the rest of it,” he said.  “I have little concept of what I’m going to say, or where it’s going. I have some idea of how long it’s going to be – but not what will happen or what the themes will be. That’s the intrigue of doing it – it’s a process of discovery. You get to discover what you’re going to say and what it’s going to mean.”