My Two Favorite Short Story Writers:

There are two writers of short stories that I like better than anyone else. While Fante may have been Bukowski's god, Palniuk had a goddess, Amy Hempel. If you haven't yet discovered Amy Hempel, you are in for a real treat. Below is an excerpt from one of her short stories, entitled In a Tub:

My heart — I thought it stopped. So I got in my car and headed for God. I passed two churches with cars parked in front. Then I stopped at the third because no one else had.
     It was early afternoon, the middle of the week. I chose a pew in the center of the rows. Episcopal or Methodist, it didn’t make any difference. It was as quiet as a church.
     I thought about the feeling of the long missed beat, and the tumble of the next ones as they rushed to fill the space. I sat there — in the high brace of quiet and stained glass — and I listened.

The other writer that I really like is Tobias Wolff. His short story entitled Bullet in the Brain is probably the best short story I have ever read. It goes from trivial inconveniences to the meaning of life in about three pages. You can read the entire story online here. Enjoy.