Since it's Easter and some of us may well be busier whilst others like me, may have a little more time on my hands here's a shortish story I thought may be nice for us to read. It's only 7 pages long, so shouldn't take long to read and is about a married woman who goes back home to help care for her injured father.

Something at our ages, we should all be able to relate too in different ways.

A Soldiers Joy

It looks good, I've printed it out to read later.

I have read it and will post my thoughts in the morning

Wow, well I can't say I knew what I was expecting from this story, but from reading the burb about it, it wasn't THAT.

Ah life and all it's greyness of areas and times eh? Shades of grey. some near black and white - plain and simple thoughts with straightforward things to do and achieve. Then there's the palest of greys. Neither one thing nor the other and no right or wrong things to do.

Did Nana regret marrying her much husband of her parents age? or was it simply denial of his real age until the sight of her ageing father in his incapacity that brought home the realization loud and clear?

What happens when you marry, then over a period of time things begin to slide? Either that, or your own wants and needs begin to change and wander in a different direction from when you first got together?
do you act upon the opportunity of frivolity and flight of fancy? never one to say "If only I had...." or do you behave impeccably and live forever not knowing?

Flirting with the idea of what could have been does not change what is.....

Odd coincidence, the dreams that opened the story. It was brought out that she and Pete didn't use protection. That coupled with her husband, Dr. Shock's, dream of the pregnant Helen makes me wonder if Nana was pregnant by Pete at the end. The happiness that Pete's children gave Nana's parents, Nana's seemingly feelings of regret at not having children with her husband seem a possible lead in to that event.

Nana and her husband must have made a conscious decision not to have children, we know he had two sons by a previous marriage. That could prove interesting.

The husband is nothing but a philanderer to say the least. bragging about who he's had sex with, obviously bedding the "best friend" all during the marriage, and goodness know who else on the side. He is lucky to have Nana, and it would serve him right if she is pregnant by Pete. Poetic justice somehow. Sorta. Hah.

I really enjoyed the story, and would look for more by that author, it left me wanting to know 'what happened then'.
Oh, btw, do you know the significance of the title? I don't get it.

Maybe it was all just a case of wishful thinking? Maybe she just desired to be desired and fell in love with thie idea of being pregnant? It all kind of left it up in the iar really. I felt like you, the story didn't really finish there.

If I were marking it as a school essay or something I would mark them down for it I'm sorry to say. Any good story should have a beginning, a middle and and end and either leave complete, or leave cliff edged. I wanted more, but doubt I could be bothered to search them out. I would always be thinking is this the way all their stories are going to end? Muddled and incomplete?

The Soldiers Joy to em signified that she had done nothing but 'soldier' on throughout her life and now a new 'Joy' was beginning. Although it made a fleeting mention of earlier war it did not focus on that. The story and it;s meaning was actually quite subtle really. Well, that's my take on the title anyway

Re the title, that could be, I just don't know. It's a good explanation.

She was at a crossroad in her life it seemed to me and had to go one way or the other. It was obvious Pete wasn't going to be part of her life though, that was for certain.

I've noticed a lot of short stories are constructed as this one, just an episode in a person or families life. No real ending, just a stop. I looked on Amazon, and she has tons of short story collections advertised there. Seems to be her specialty.

Okay, I'm probably going to be rahter unpopular here but to me, writers of short stories only do so because they don't quite have what it takes to write an actual novel.

Of course that doesn't go for every short story. Some are very much accomplised writers of novels in their own right and have been for many years.
What I don't like though is people who write purely short stories and don't actually think them through.

It's one thing to have an air of mystery at the ending of your story, quite another to leave it at a maddening point where the story is either quite rushed and does not fit in with the rest of the story, or is an unfitting ending because the author has 'run out of ideas' or does not have the required skills yet to give a great story an equally deserving ending.

Stories like that drive me to distraction!
Give me a really good story by a really good accomplished writer anytime.

for me it's quality rather than quantity. That's what'll make me go back time and time again to search for more.

I think that can go either way Issi. Perhaps, on the other hand, someone that writes a whole, sprawling novel is unable to be concise and come to the point. Too wordy as all my teachers used to tell me when I'd turn in an essay. lol

For example, I can imagine writing short stories, but to write a whole novel, I don't know if I could. But if you think about it, a great many novels actually consist of vignettes, or short stories that have no conclusion, as A Soldier's Joy lacked. More vignettes could be written about that character, then the husband, Pete, even her parents, then loosely string them together, and viola!, a novel.

I agree, there are all sorts of short stories, some telling the entire story in only a few pages, beginning, middle and end as you say, and that takes a certain talent. I suppose, in the end, the types and varieties of short stories are as varied as the authors that write them.

Agreed Katherine

Variety is the spice of life indeed and what is one persons choice is another's 'never go near' People who do not give other things a chance annoy me a little. Life's too short, I know but it's like toilet paper being hung the wrong way round to me One of life's irritants.

I may have been a little snappy yesterday Regardless of pain it's no excuse. There is indeed good and bad on both sides you are quite right

We should get together Katherine! I can write this novel of mine and you coudl write your short story and between the two of us we may well come up with a very decent and saleable book!

The only thing that gets me is when some publisher's print out books that are pure drivel. When your 13 year old writes essays for school with much better content and believability than some of the published and earning masses of money books that are out there. I guess that's what made me wonder if publishers actually have readers still? and if so, what age are they and what is their experience?

It may just be me, but some of the stuff on books shelves these days would NEVER have gone to print 20 years ago! standards seem to be slipping quite a lot, but I've noticed it more with certain publishers. One being 'Hodder' in particular whilst others like 'Corgi' 'Headline' and 'Orion' are upping their content quite a lot! Most of the books that are spread out across different genres seem to be from those publishers mainly these days.