So, I’m running this advanced fiction workshop and it’s all like woah. One thing I like to do in a classroom setting like this is meet individually with every student after they workshop. I remember very vividly going to see Tom Bailey and Gary Fincke in undergrad and how reassuring and empowering it was to know that writers I really respected were taking my work seriously (not that the students necessarily respect me in the same way I outright worshiped Tom and Gary). In my conferences, I always bring a marked up copy of their manuscript along with a one page note with strengths and prescription. But there’s also, usually, a note at the end with some writers and journals to read, and maybe even a few places to begin submitting to. At AWP, Amy Hempel said one of her favorite parts of running a workshop is putting an emerging writer with a published one, giving a young writer the book they absolutely have to read right this second. It’s one of my favorite parts of the job too, and I’ve kept track of what I’ve recommended so far.
Keep in mind, we read a lot of stuff in class. So I rarely touch on writers we’ve discussed ad nauseam like George Saunders or Lorrie Moore or Gary Shteyngart or Amelia Gray. Also, it’s only halfway through the semester. So there’s still a lot of time. Basically, what I’m trying to convey here, is this isn’t a list of the best writers for undergrads. It’s merely the group that this particular class needed to read at this particular moment. When there’s something lacking in student work that is absolutely nailed in a story collection or novel, students need to see that–in fact, there are a few writers on here I respect without actually enjoying their work. So, without further hand-wringing, here’s what I’ve recommended so far this semester.
Writers
Andre Dubus (5)
Ray Carver (4)
Wells Tower (4)
Alissa Nutting (2)
xTx (2)
Bobbie Ann Mason (2)
Emma Straub (2)
Sean Ennis (2)
Stewart O’ Nan (2)
Adam Levin
Michael Chabon
Trey Ellis
Tobias Wolff
Matt Bell
Don Lee
Ethel Rohan
Tina May Hall
Jayne Anne Phillips
Bret Easton Ellis
Jay McInerney
Douglas Coupland
Martin Amis
Cormac McCarthy
Joshua Ferris
A.M. Homes
Rick Moody
Jonathan Lethem
James Alan McPherson
Joyce Carol Oates
Deborah Eisenberg
Cathy Day
Richard Russo
Blake Butler
Miranda July
Aleksandar Hemon
Shane Jones
Jeanette Winterson
Philip Roth
Deborah Willis
ZZ Packer
Journals
The Fourth River (4)
Flatmancrooked (4)
FRiGG (2)
PANK (2)
Bluestem Magazine (2)
Weave (2)
The Emprise Review (2)
Metazen (2)
Hot Metal Bridge
Annalemma
Barrelhouse
Dark Sky
Fairy Tale Review
The Good Men Project
Wigleaf
elimae
Comics
Fables
Filed under: The University, Writers Tagged: A.M. Homes, Adam Levin, Advanced Fiction Workshop, Aleksandar Hemon, Alissa Nutting, Amelia Gray, Andre Dubus, Annalemma, AWP, Barrelhouse, Blake Butler, Bluestem Magazine, Bobbie Ann Mason, Bret Easton Ellis, Cathy Day, Cormac McCarthy, Dark Sky, Deborah Eisenberg, Deborah Willis, Don Lee, Douglas Coupland, elimae, Emma Straub, Ethel Rohan, Fables, Fairy Tale Review, Flatmancrooked, FRiGG, Gary Fincke, Gary Shteyngart, George Saunders, Hot Metal Bridge, James Alan McPherson, Jay McInerney, Jayne Anne Phillips, Jeanette Winterson, Jonathan Lethem, Joshua Ferris, Joyce Carol Oates, Lorrie Moore, Martin Amis, Matt Bell, Metazen, Michael Chabon, Miranda July, PANK, Philip Roth, Raymond Carver, Richard Russo, Rick Moody, Sean Ennis, Shane Jones, Stewart O' Nan, The Emprise Review, The Fourth River, The Good Men Project, Tina May Hall, Tobias Wolff, Tom Bailey, Trey Ellis, University of Pittsburgh, Weave, Wells Tower, Wigleaf, xTx, ZZ Packer
