Jared has learned that he has two primary modes when it comes to writing short story endings: one is to be clever and the other is to be ambiguous. While either can work in a short story, the best endings are often ones that emerge naturally out of the architecture of the story. These are often simple yet at the same time open the story up to wider possibilities and interpretations, both suggesting territory beyond the story, and looking back to the territory of the story. In this session, participants will work to understand the mystery of such good endings by examining how stories build towards their endings; earn them, from the first word. How a good ending is a product of deep knowledge of one’s story. By looking at some of the stories whose endings have most impressed and confounded him over my MFA education, Jared hopes to share his broadening understanding of fiction and help deepen other's craft.

This class will cover two stories that can be accessed and read ahead of time for additional context: "Adams" by George Saunders (https://www.newyorker.com/magazine/2004/08/09/adams) and "Carpe Diem" by Lucia Berlin (https://www.zyzzyva.org/2019/01/01/carpe-diem-by-lucia-berlin-zyzzyva-no-1-spring-issue/). Also, there will be an activity to develop or edit a story, so consider bringing a story idea or a story you're struggling with.

Jared Levy has stories published in several regional and international journals including Jellyfish Review, Passages North, and Cleaver Magazine, for which his short story, 'Waiting for You in Paris,' was nominated for a Pushcart Award. He holds a BA in Philosophy from Bates College and is a recipient of support from the National Endowment for the Humanities, the Lacawac Artists’ Residency, and the Bread Loaf Writers’ Conference. He is a proud member of the Backyard Writers Workshop in Philadelphia, PA, and an MFA candidate at Warren Wilson College.

Wednesdays On the Stoop is a series of free writing programming by Zoom every Wednesday from 4 pm - 5 pm. From accountability co-writing to generative prompts to discussions of exciting forms and authors of all genres, these sessions are designed to be a constant structure--every Wednesday at 4 you can count on Blue Stoop to plug you into your writing energy with an informal and supportive session.