EP 36: Writing Short Stories (1) - "Ode to Odessa" by Fortunus Games

PODCAST TWITTER: https://twitter.com/nuts_writing

PODCAST INSTAGRAM: https://www.instagram.com/nutsboltswriting.podcast/

Listen to our podcast on Anchor (links to Spotify, Apple Podcasts, etc.): https://anchor.fm/fortunus-games

Today, Tete and Fortunus talk about Fortunus' unpublished short story, "Ode to Odessa," where Sam explores what his parents' lives may have been like back in Odessa, before they immigrated to the US.

Tete and Fortunus talk about the following themes: 

• How Tete and Fortunus have chosen to write their short stories;
• What approaches differ between writing a longer work versus a short story (around 2000 words or so);
• How "Ode to Odessa" challenges certain tropes present in immigrant fiction and seeks to problematize the often xenophobic/Orientalist assumptions present in such narratives;
• How "Ode to Odessa" shows Sam's voice as an emerging writer;
• How "Ode to Odessa" explores Sam's complex feelings about his parents. On one hand, as we know, they have some conflicts due to Sam wanting to be an actor, while they want him to be a lawyer. Nevertheless, despite arguments arising from this, they are very close and love one another.

Artwork in thumbnail is by Fortunus Games and features young Lev and Raisa (Sam's parents) in the Odessa Opera Theatre.