Book Review: From the Indie Side

There was a time when I didn’t know what to do with short stories. Even the term “short story” threw me. Why define a piece of fiction by length, especially in the age of digital publishing? As works of fiction, they evoked feelings of high school where it felt as if the teacher selected the text based more on the attention span of the class than the impact of the writing.

For anyone who might have some of the same reservations, I suggest picking up a copy of “From the Indie Side,” a collection of twelve short stories by independent authors. The theme of the collection is less about genre and more about a feeling. A feeling of freedom of expression and authenticity that “oozes from every page”, as Hugh Howey points out in the foreword.

As refreshing as the stories themselves are the author profiles that follow each piece. In these bios, the author often takes a crack at what the art of short story-telling means to them. I took comfort in the fact that these artists seemed seemed no less ambivalent than I.

Take “The Winter Lands” by Jason Gurley, a piece about a elderly war veteran who shows up at the final open mike night of the local bookstore. He’s published just one short story in his entire life, a tale about a magical land of Snowlings. Still, even with no further external publishing success he has “written of the winter lands for more than sixty years.” As he takes the stage, Gurley describes his final moments with beauty and more than a hint of mystery. In his afterword, Gurley tells us: “Ambiguity is not anathema to the short story.”

Ambiguity also figures heavily in “Made of Stars” by Anne Frasier, a wonderfully told love story between Gabriel, a vampire, and Lila, a waitress. The tale is relayed in seven chapters, alternating between the two lovers and shifting in time. In her note, Frasier tells us that the story began as part of the timed writing party. The looseness of the plot might have put me off were this a novel, but since I knew she was working in a very constrained space, I let the beauty of Frasier’s prose take over.

In “The Man With Two Legs,” Ernie Lindsey takes a conventional view of the short story: “crafting a well-told tale in short amount of space.” And then he does exactly that by creating a world where an amputated leg is a societal norm, then weaving a story of revenge and regime change with a twisted ending.

I read Hugh Howey’s contribution to the collection with great delight. “Mouth Breathers” is a very short story, I would really call it a vingette, about an Earth kid trying to blend in with the Martian middle school population. Clever, well-written, and very short with a big emotional wallop.

My favorite of the book was “Queen Joanna” by Kate Danley. This novella opens on the day of Joanna’s arranged wedding to King Stephen. Using rich detail and a “Game of Thrones”-ish setting, Danley unfolds a mystery about the troubled king who makes no move to consummate his new marriage. We soon find he is being haunted his first wife—and now she is coming after poor Joanna. I won’t tell you the ending, but you’ll love it.

Another reviewer called this book a “gateway drug to the growing number of indie authors.” I agree. The quality of the writing plus the author notes following each story made a great package for very reasonable price.

And maybe a place where you can find explore short stories for yourself.

David Bruns is a speculative fiction writer from Minnesota.

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