In Episode 303, members of the community met to learn from the short story, An Occurrence at Owl Creek Bridge by Ambrose Bierce. Bierce is one of the few American fiction writers who fought in the Civil War who’s work we still have. After the war, he became a journalist and is consider the father of True Crime stories and of Psychological Horror.
You can listen to the podcast episode in the following places:
To listen on Spotify, click here.
To listen on iTunes, click here.
To listen on Google Podcasts, click here.
To listen on Amazon Music, click here.
To watch the group on YouTube, click here.
Writing Craft Tips and Tricks to take away from the story:
- Utilize Trick Endings and Unreliable Narration to Challenge the Reader – The story effectively uses an unreliable narrator, the vehicle character, Payton Farquhar, to relay events that are not literally occurring, based on the desperation of his final moments; and the trick ending of the short story hits really hard.
- Manipulate Reader Sympathy by Controlling Character Revelation – Writers can strategically manage the reader’s emotional connection to a character. The story initially sets up Payton Farquhar to garner reader sympathy; he is described as a family man, and the first section aims to make him seem like “no vulgar assassin.” However, the author then reveals unlikable details (he is a slave owner, a politician, and a secessionist who did not fight in the war), which are likely intended to make the reader dislike him.
- Enhance Intimacy and Intensity by Shifting to Third-Person Close POV and Leading with Senses – The story skillfully transitions from a highly detailed, non-biased, omniscient opening to an intense third-person close point of view (POV). This shift begins once the narrative enters the character’s interiority, such as his thoughts about the water or his wife. n the highly dramatic third section, the writer successfully focuses solely on Payton’s perspective, using his senses first to describe events, rather than leading with objective facts. This focus on how Payton perceives the world—like seeing the soldiers’ movements as “grotesque and horrible” or recognizing a “cannonball” only after the immediate splash and sensation—draws the reader intimately into his experience.