THE NEW ZEALAND SHORT
STORY Sir,-T. V. Hindmarsh’s letter met with my Whole-hearted approbation. I, too, had always thought a plot a definite necessity in a short story. In fact, in my opinion, the plot’s the thing-though of course one needs to be able to present the plot in a polished style, and round it off properly. However, I would prefer the plot to the style, if one had to be missing. Contrary to some heavy readers, I enjoy short stories and have read a great many, both good and bad.. Sometimes, after having read one, I have sat back and thought, "If only I could write like that! If only I could think of a marvellous plot like that, present it like that, and so hold my reader’s interest. to the very end!" and then sighed, knowing I could not. But I have never felt like that about the stuff T. V. Hindmarsh criticises. I usually wade through it ("wade" is the word) thinking, "Well, there must be something more in this further on, or it would never have been printed, " and at the finish said to myself in amazement, "Well, how did it get printed? Is that person a personal friend of the Editor so that he did not like to turn him down, or what?" The only point at which I differ -from the previous writer is that I think that even the literary style he mentions is not always sufficiently polished to justify
publication! —
SHORT STORY
READER
(Taranaki).
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https://paperspast.natlib.govt.nz/periodicals/NZLIST19450406.2.13.8
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New Zealand Listener, Volume 12, Issue 302, 6 April 1945, Page 5
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252THE NEW ZEALAND SHORT New Zealand Listener, Volume 12, Issue 302, 6 April 1945, Page 5
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Copyright in the work University Entrance by Janet Frame (credited as J.F., 22 March 1946, page 18), is owned by the Janet Frame Literary Trust. The National Library has been granted permission to digitise this article and make it available online as part of this digitised version of the New Zealand Listener. You can search, browse, and print this article for research and personal study only. Permission must be obtained from the Janet Frame Literary Trust for any other use.
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