Literary Fiction | Short Stories | Stage Plays
Can You Find Goodness in Everyone, Even When They Behave Badly?
James English’s short stories have appeared in New Delta Review, Hayden’s Ferry Review, Writers’ Forum, Hobart, Sonora Review, The Stockholm Review of Literature, Post Road, and The Baltimore Review, among others. The Nebraska Review nominated him for a Pushcart Prize.
His short plays have been read at venues in Newburyport, MA, Independence, KS, and Aylsham, UK. The Radio Theatre Project, St. Petersburg, FL, produced his short play “Saint Rita.” It can be heard on SoundCloud.
He has written a memoir about conducting Quaker Meeting among minimum, medium, and maximum security inmates at the Adult Correctional Institutions in Cranston, R.I.
He lives in Providence with his wife. They have three children.
What got you into writing?
A college professor published one of my stories in the school literary journal. I was flattered and thought: Maybe I can do this. For much of my life, I couldn’t do it. My talents were modest and I had to make a living.
What are you working on now?
I recently completed two works: a memoir about conducting Quaker Meeting with inmates at the Rhode Island state prison and a novel about a young woman pursuing her father’s murderer during the Great Depression.
What do you draw inspiration from?
Inspiration surrounds me: in music, film, theatre, visual arts, literature. All the talented writers in the world, past and present, inspire me on a continual basis. How did Jane Austen and Charles Dickens do it? How do Anne Tyler and Colson Whitehead do it?
Who are some of your favorite authors?
So many choices! My tastes range from old to new and fiction to non-fiction. I enjoyed The Great Gatsby, The Reader (Bernard Schlink) and The Round House. The Warmth of Other Suns (Isabel Wilkerson) and Just Mercy (Bryan Stevenson) inspired me. Recently, I read Demon Copperhead and All Fours. Both novels are brilliant.
Are you an outliner or a seat-of-the-pants writer?
I used to be seat-of-the-pants. After writing a terrible novel with little plot and no plan, I got twisted into a pretzel. Today, I might be a 60% outliner, but that could change.
What’s the most important skill in writing?
A thick skin. Then, in no particular order: discipline, an openness to different styles and formats, a love of language, imagination, and persistence.
What are some of the challenges facing writers today?
The difficulty in making a livable wage, AI, the sheer number of writers, competition from other art forms, video games, short attention spans, TV, and streaming services.