Short Stories and Stream of Consciousness Thoughts

I read this article tonight. Here is the article link:

https://examples.yourdictionary.com/examples-of-short-stories.html

It provides a great list of the best short stories to read. The stories are listed in two categories. The first category is for children and the second is for adults. I have read almost all of the children category stories but sadly, only a handful of the adult short stories shared in the article.

Along with this article, I’ve been thinking about some recent discussions I’ve had with friends online here and also at work. One discussion was on the book The Clan of the Cave Bear. This is a very large and dense book by Jean Auel and was written during the 1980s. The story is about a Cromagnon women in ancient times who is raised in a Neanderthal tribe. She is very light-skinned with blond hair and blue eyes. She has an athletic build and learns to become a skilled hunter with a slingshot. But she is considered to be terribly ugly by the other members of the tribe who much prefer the Neanderthal appearance. This story is interesting to me because it taught me early on in life that public opinion of beauty and appearance and racial views is fluid and adaptable, given to change with influencer trends. The story, at its heart, boils down to the “Ugly Ducking” story.

Another recent discussion I had at work centered on the movie The Lion King. We discussed the parts of the story and speculation from articles I read that The Lion King is a modern-day adaptation of Shakespeare’s Hamlet. This really got me pondering other Shakespearean plays such as Macbeth and how you could make a modern-day version of that great play.

“Life’s but a walking shadow, a poor player
That struts and frets his hour upon the stage,
And then is heard no more. It is a tale
Told by an idiot, full of sound and fury,
Signifying nothing.”

The Sound and the Fury by William Faulkner……perhaps someone’s already had these ideas. There’s a specific passage in the Bible from the Book of Job that mentions these exact words….the sound and the fury. Also, one of the characters in the book by Faulkner is also called Uncle Job which I find interesting.

This got me thinking about stories and patterns of stories and whether a lot of the stories we have are similar to each other or old stories adapted to contemporary culture of the time.

Interesting and random stream of consciousness thoughts late at night….

As a side note, I guess my favorite short story for children would probably be the book titled You Are Special by Max Lucado. I also love many of the stories of Dr. Seuss or Shel Silverstein.

As for adult short stories……that’s much harder to consider. I suppose you could consider The Highwayman by Alfred Noyes a bit of a story although written as a narrative poem. I like that one as well as The Speckled Band by Sir Arthur Conan Doyle, Boule de Suif by Guy de Maupassant, Moderato Cantabile by Marguerite Duras and several of the short stories of Edgar Allen Poe or Stephen King.

Do you have any short stories that you recommend? What about children’s short stories verses adult short stories? Which are your favorites in each category? Please comment below. I’d like to hear your recommendations for good short stories to read 🙂

If you’ve managed to read this far into the post, thanks so much for reading these late night ramblings!

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Author: J. Speer

I like to write. I have 5 books currently on Amazon, mostly fiction. I try to write positive and uplifting children's stories, expressive poetry for women, and interesting articles about personal growth, alternative medicine, and spirituality. My stories are often about diverse people but with human connection in mind through inner perspective. I love my characters especially the ones from my first book, Searching for Fire. I moved recently to Vermont. I live in the North Country region near Lake Willoughby, one of the most beautiful places I have ever seen. My heart will always be with Kansas but I love travel and meeting new people with diverse perspectives on life. I have found Vermonters to have many admirable qualities like stoicism and a love and stewardship of nature. My hobbies are writing, gardening, outdoor activities like kayaking, fishing, and hiking. I am an amateur herbalist. Many years ago, an alternative medicine doctor cured me of a respiratory illness by teaching me about vitamins and for that, I owe her a debt of gratitude. I recently bought a Jeep Wrangler that fits my personality and love for adventure. Associated with the military in my younger years, I have lived in Israel, Germany, and Virginia as well - all of which I loved in different ways. I thoroughly believe in the military spouse phrase, "bloom where you are planted" and endeavor to carry a positive optimism wherever I roam. Most days are good but admittedly I get down sometimes. I am prone to sadness or severe cynicism at times, so I turn to music as my consolation and source of expression or inspiration. My favorite songs currently are "How Deep is Your Love" by the Beegees, "La Vie en Rose", "A Million Dreams" or maybe Karen Carpenter singing "Close to You" or Elton John singing "Your Song." I also like "Nothing's Gonna Stop Us" by Starship or "I'll Stand by You" by The Pretenders. "Faithfully" by Journey always reminds me of rollerskating with friends in the 1980s. My favorite quotes are from the Velveteen Rabbit, Steve Jobs, and this one..."To the caterpillar it was the end of the world, but to the butterfly it was merely a beautiful beginning." Or there is the quote from Peter Pan teaching Wendy..."What if I fall? But, oh my darling, what if you fly?" I also believe in being a pearl - graceful on the outside but full of grit and gratitude on the inside. My favorite women of the Bible are Ruth, Hannah, and Hagar. Thanks for stopping by my blog. Cheers, friend.

15 thoughts on “Short Stories and Stream of Consciousness Thoughts”

  1. Does David Sedaris count as a short story author? He’s one of my faves and is a bit more modern. Poe always comes to mind for me when talking short stories and Roald Dahl too for kids.

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    Reply

      1. Oh yeah those ones are classic! haha i wish I knew of some female authors of short stories but I cant think of any.

        Like

      3. Hmm could Frankenstein be considered a short story? If so thats a pretty famous one for a young woman. Very interesting!!

        Like

      8. I went a long, long time ago around 2001. Thanks for the tip. Maybe I can write something interesting about it. Unfortunately, I didn’t take a lot of pictures back then when I was younger. Didn’t have a smartphone. I only have a handful of pics now from my 20s. Wish I woulda taken more photos to keep. Anyway, look up Burg Frankenstein on Google and you’ll see the story of the nobleman that lived there. There is another classic story about a castle in Germany, or a portion of the story is anyway. The book was called The Monk. I can’t remember the name of the castle in the book but I remember reading it there in Germany for a book club and the members said you can go visit the castle there too. It was a gothic horror story.

        Liked by 1 person

      9. Oh yeah gotcha on the pictures thing. Even with smartphones Im terrible when it comes to remembering to take em. What a cool experience tho! I will look into those stories, I’m a big horror fan! Thanks for all your knowledge and answers!!

        Liked by 1 person

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