Short Fiction: Famous Stories that aren't good

How to Write a Good Short Story

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Ask any college professor or high school teacher for the best short story. Not their favorite. But the “best.”

The most common answer by far will be “Hills like White Elephants” by Ernest Hemingway.

If you went to high school or college in the US, you were probably forced to read it at some point. And you probably remember your teacher telling you that this is “one of the best” short stories ever written.

But it’s not.

That’s right, I said it. “Hills like White Elephants” is not one of the best short stories out there. It isn’t even good.

How do I know this? If you’ve read it, ask yourself… did you like it?

For those of you who were spared reading this crap, the story is about a conversation between a man and a woman as they sit at a train station in Spain. The woman is pregnant, and the man is trying to convince her to have an abortion.

But the thing is, they never clearly communicate what they’re saying. You, the reader have to figure it out. …