Deal Me In 2014 – A Short Story Reading Challenge

Welcome to The 2014 Short Story Reading Challenge, “Deal Me In 2014!”

What is the goal?

To read 52 short stories in 2014 (that’s only one per week)

What do I need?

1) Access to at least fifty-two short stories
2) A deck of cards
3) Less than an hour of reading time each week

Where do I post about my stories?

1) on your own blog or website if you have one (I will link to your post at the bottom of my weekly post. I currently plan to do my weekly post on Sundays)

2) if you don’t have a blog or website you may comment on my weekly post, sharing thoughts on your own story – or start one at WordPress or blogspot – it’s easy and free to create a basic blog.

How do I pick which stories to read?

(The 52 stories themselves are totally up to you.) Before you get started, come up with a roster of fifty-two stories (you can use any source) and assign each one to a playing card in a standard deck of cards. It can be fun to use different suits for different types of stories, but that is optional. Each “week,” (if you’re like me, you may occasionally fall a story or two behind) you draw a card at random from your deck and that is the story you will read.

How do I sign up?

Leave a comment below (or at my other post where I announced my story list) with your URL and I will link you.

What is the purpose?

To have FUN and to be exposed to new authors and stories. Isn’t that enough? 🙂

Some short story resources:
Links:
Classic Horror Stories:
AmericanLiterature.com short story of the day
EastoftheWeb’s short story of the day:
The Library of America’s short story of the week archive:

Also

These links alone would provide you with enough FREE short stories to do this project for years, and there are MANY other sites if you look around a bit. There’s even a short stories app for the iPhone (also free).

Also, a resource link: The Mookse and the Gripes book blog has posted a page aggregating all of this year’s (and each year back through 2009) stories posted at The New Yorker, with links to the stories. Some of them involve a New Yorker members-only paywall, but the majority are free for all. There are some big, big names represented and lots of good stories.

http://mookseandgripes.com/reviews/the-new-yorker-fiction-forum/

Definitely a fun challenge to undertake. “Ye-ah, definitely.”

Participants and their Lists:

Me (Jay @ Bibliophilopolis) https://bibliophilica.wordpress.com/2013/12/24/my-2014-short-story-reading-challenge/

Dale @ Mirror with Clouds http://mirrorwithclouds.wordpress.com/short-stories-deal-me-in/2014-2/

Candiss ( @ Read the gamut) http://readthegamut.wordpress.com/2014/01/01/deal-me-in-2014-a-short-story-reading-challenge/

mannomoi (@dilletante artiste) http://dilettanteartiste.wordpress.com/2014/01/02/challenges-2014-back-to-the-classics-deal-me-in-short-stories/

“Returning Reader” @ Returning Reader http://returningreader.wordpress.com/2013/12/31/deal-me-in-short-story-reading-challenge-2014/

Hanne (@ Reading on Cloud 9) http://readingoncloud9.wordpress.com/2014/01/04/2014-challenge-dealmein/

Katherine (@ The Writerly Reader) http://katenread.wordpress.com/2014/01/04/deal-me-in-week-1-oh-whistle-and-ill-come-to-you-my-lad/

Hanna (@ The Book Exchange) http://thebigbookexchange.wordpress.com/2014/02/01/hanna-deal-me-in-2014-a-short-story-reading-challenge/

Kubi (@ The Book Exchange) http://thebigbookexchange.wordpress.com/2014/02/01/kubi-deal-me-in-2014-a-short-story-reading-challenge/

James (@ ready when you are ) http://readywhenyouarecb.blogspot.in/2014/01/deal-me-in.html

Susan (@ Avid Series Reader ) http://avidseriesreader.blogspot.com/2014/01/2014-deal-me-in-short-story-challenge.html

Gautami @ http://readbookswritepoetry.blogspot.in/ (no list)

Jeri @ TBD

Julie (@ books are portable magic) http://booksareportablemagic.blogspot.com/ list to follow?