As readers and writers we frequently wonder how individual stories begin, and is not often that we are provided an answer. In the spring issue of American Short Fiction, we published a strange, hilarious, and heartbreaking story by Jennifer Tseng called “The Window.” In the story, the narrator—a young lesbian who works as an editor for a travel agency—watches through the window across from her office desk. The figure of a distant woman captivates her and begins to embody her desires for romantic love and sexual fulfillment, as well as a growing need for independence from her adoring, traditional Chinese father who raised her. It is a story about beginnings and endings, and it’s both eccentric and deeply moving. To celebrate the final days of Short Story Month, we asked Tseng to talk about the seed for this story and to provide writing prompts that will inspire us through the other (lesser) eleven months of the year.
Two of my favorite writing games are collaboration and asking what if. My sister Amanda is a visual artist with whom I often collaborate. In the case of “The Window,” our collaboration was accidental. Living in different cities, we often send each other snapshots of our daily lives. She sent me a photo of a street cat she’d noticed on her walk to and from work. She kept seeing the same cat, taking pictures of it and sending them to me. We grew attached to the cat. After it disappeared, we guessed at and even worried about its fate. We wondered what the cat’s story was. One particular photo of a dumpster compelled me. That is what got me started. From there, I began to ask questions: How did this image come to be? What’s the story behind it? Then I asked the question I always ask when I’m beginning a story: If you could write about anything, what would you write about? This led me to the realm of the what if. Three questions came to mind:
1. What if I was a lesbian?
2. What if I’d taken my father up on his offer to live with him?
3. What if he’d lived long enough to text me?
When a glimpse of the world through my sister’s eyes met my own desires on the page, “The Window” was born. Her photo activated something in me; I couldn’t have written the story without it. And yet, there’s also a way in which the photo has no discernible relationship to the story. Now when I look at it, I’m amazed. But that’s just a pile of X! How did my story come from that?! The real answer is: I don’t know. This is why I write—to experience that alchemy, that mysterious process of making something out of something else, to join my desires and questions to the world, as seen through someone else’s eyes.
Story Prompts
—If you could write about anything, what would it be?
—What’s a question someone asked you that you said “yes” or “no” to, the outcome of which changed your life? What if you’d given the opposite answer? Tell that story.
—What if there was someone in the world who was a lot like you but whose sexual preference was different than yours? What’s their story?
—Find a picture that makes your heart beat faster. What if you were the person who’d taken/made this picture? What might your story be? OR Write a story in which this image plays an important role.
—Who are some artists/writers you know whose work you admire? Ask one or more of them to collaborate with you. Ask them to send you something to respond to.
—Write a story in which a deceased loved one is alive.
—Write a story in which someone alive is dead.
Jennifer Tseng is an award-winning poet and fiction writer. Her story, “The Window,” was published in the Spring 2018 issue of American Short Fiction. She teaches writing for the Fine Arts Work Center and is a part-time circulation assistant at the Brookline Public Library. This spring, Tseng was the Distinguished Visiting Writer at Oregon State University-Cascades.