Author: Matthew Groff

  • Short Story Review: “So Late in the Day,” by Claire Keegan

    (The short story “So Late in the Day,” by Claire Keegan appeared in the February 28th, 2022 issue of The New Yorker.)

    (And there are SPOILERS!)

    Character study, as a short story format, is one of those “classic” forms that’s taught in school; an analysis or portrayal in literature of the traits of character of an individual – so says Merriam-Webster. I find this form is used in the absence of a plot, as the “climax” of these stories usually is when the reader discovers the reason why the character behaves the way they did in the story.

    That’s what “So Late in the Day” basically is. We meet Cathal at his desk on July 29th, which is a wonderfully perfect weather day. He clearly is avoiding people, and even his boss suggest that he head home early, but Cathal prefers to finish out his day, per normal. After work he takes a bus home, and then the story starts to unfold his romance with Sabine. As this relationship is shared with us, we begin to see the faults in his character. When they decide to get married, and Sabine moves in with Cathal, we see his misogyny on display, which is also registered by Sabine. Then the reveal comes, and it turns out that July 29th was to have been their wedding day, which now has clearly been called off.

    Keegan’s writing is fine, and engaging. I found the character believable, and could see why they were attracted to each other, but the story still left me with the feeling that something was missing. I felt like the story wasn’t clear on what its intentions were for the reader. As a character study, it fit the mold – dude’s a misogynist, hence why his girl leaves. But, what are we supposed to feel about that? I don’t think the intention was to feel sorry for Cathal. He is upset with the situation he is in, but I don’t think he learned his lesson, which implies that this behavior will repeat. That’s unsatisfying. But, with Cathal being the focus, I feel that the intention was that Cathal should understand his responsibility in creating the situation that he is in, but I didn’t find that through line in the story. What I found was that Cathal wasn’t a good guy, but he wasn’t a bad one either. It was ambiguity, and that’s a tough one to end on for a character study.

    (Say, don’t forget to like this post, or share it, or leave a comment. I got bills to pay, you know.)

  • Going to a Candy Store

    It’s been a busy day, but I’m making the time to take the kid to a candy store in the Lower East Side.

  • President’s Day

    What am I doing on this holiday? Why, doing laundry, and then taking the kid to the park for a very long time!

    I got up like normal, and actually went to the gym. As I was running on the tredmill, I kept thinking that my mind would clear and I would start think about important things. Like, what to do with the kid this week as she is off from school for Winter Break. Or, I could have thought about what I should make for dinner tonight. Or, I could have thought about what to blog. OR, I could have spent some time working out the end of the story that I am working on.

    What I ended up doing was just listening to music, and think about how cool it was to roll the windows down in my car, and play mu music really loud as I went down the highway. That’s what was on my mind, just driving and listening to music.

    (I think I can do better, when it comes to a blog. I might be back later…)

  • ODDS and Ends: NYTimes Killed WORDLE, War, and Crypto Value

    (Say it ain’t so…)

    Yup, @nytimes killed WORDLE. They took something fun, monkied with it, and now it’s not fun. WORDLE has become more difficult, not hard or impossible, just a little more difficult, to the point where now sometimes you lose. There is a good chance that you might not get the word in six tries. Just like how you might not be able to fully fill out the Times’ crossword puzzle, or become a Queen Bee on their Spelling Bee game. (I play both semi regularly, and I keep struggling for perfection, but may never attain it at those games.) WORDLE was the opposite of that. It was challenging enough to make you think, but not so hard that you couldn’t succeed. WORDLE was easy, and for most of us out there, it gave us an easy win at the start of the day. And the sociability of it, to share your box of colors, but not the letters, kind’a gave an insight on your thought process without divulging that you use the same words over and over and over again. Now, seeing everyone get it on the fifth or sixth try isn’t encouraging, or even envy creating, it just shows that we are frustrated. Read the room @nytimes, we liked our easy win.

    I have been avoiding talking about Ukraine and Russia and all of that going on. Sadly, I don’t feel good about it. I am not an expert, clearly, but it just feels like everything is leading to a war. Maybe it won’t turn into a world war, but it just feels like a war will happen. The reason I feel this way is sadly because it feels like a pattern humans keep repeating; Disease, Limited Resources, War. That and it’s been over eighty years since a world war, and well, most of the people who lived through that are gone, so no one remembers how bad this stuff can be. Just makes me nervous.

    My crypto currency has lost 37.45% of its value since I purchased it in October 2021. That means I have lost $12.92.

  • Don’t Be a Chicken Shit

    Writer’s groups got brought up again.

    I have a great wife, and she was asking how my writing was going. I said the blog was fine, that I had submitted a story to five different publications, and writing at the library was paying off, as I was getting close to finishing a first draft on a new story. Also, I was finally making time to read again, which was making me feel better about everything.

    Then she asked me about if I had thought anymore about joining a writer’s group. I answered her honestly; I don’t want to.

    I know where she’s coming from, and it is very logical. All of our friends who are professional writers belong to, or run, writer’s groups. They all speak highly about it, and say it has helped them not only with their writing, but also with navigating the business. That and they have made some really good friends in these groups, as well.

    But I still don’t want to.

    Am I being illogical and stubborn? Most likely, yes.

    I am torn between two different thoughts, though.

    The first is that I no longer want to do things for my career that make me feel uncomfortable. See, when I got to New York, I went to everything – opening nights, parties, rehearsals, talks, feedbacks, open classes, and none of it ever helped me. What worked for me, was working hard when I got the job. But if I were to do this, join a group, then that means that I have to put myself out there. I might just be a little chicken shit about that.

    The second thought is that what I am presently doing isn’t working. Right now, I am an unpublished writer who posts a daily blog that if I am really REALLY lucky, four people will read. Come July, I have been doing this for two years, and… not much has really changed. BUT, I feel good about myself, and that’s worth something.

    So, I’m torn. Not sure what to do.

    I prefer the idea of just putting my head down and working hard. But the other one is putting myself out there.

    Balance. I have to find a balance between the two.

    Yuck