Watch the September 2016 Winning Short Story Reading.
Reading performed by Erynn Brook
The Stage by Rae Niehaus
Get to know the winning writer:
What is your 1pg Short Story about?
“The Stage” mainly focuses on the most extreme potential outcome of mixing boredom and thwarted career ambitions with an easily identifiable scapegoat.
What genres would you say this short story is in?
Commercial fiction? Plain “weird” is probably more appropriate.
How would you describe this story in two words?
Cathartic confession.
What movie have you seen the most in your life?
Disney’s “Sleeping Beauty.”
How long have you been working on this story?
I wrote this in about an hour, I think. Edited it within three hours on a separate day. All in all, probably a total of four hours, give or take.
Do you have an all-time favorite novel?
Haruki Murakami’s “Hard-Boiled Wonderland and the End of the World.”
What motivated you to write this story?
Work-related inter-personal conflicts.
What artist would you love to have dinner with?
Edvard Munch. If I could bring Salvador Dali too, we’d have a right good time.
Apart from writing, what else are you passionate about?
Theorizing. Filmmaking. Game development. Gaming. Reading. Running. Leadership.
What influenced you to enter the 1pg. Short Story contest?
A whim when I received an e-mail reminding me about it.
Any advice or tips you’d like to pass on to other writers?
Everyone has at least one good story in them, so tell it with all you’ve got. You might find you have more after you tell it.
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Director/Producer: Matthew Toffolo http://www.matthewtoffolo.com
Casting Director: Sean Ballantyne
Editor: John Johnson
Novel Writing Festival 