178: “A Small Good Thing” by Raymond Carver

178: “A Small Good Thing” by Raymond Carver

June 15, 2026 · 30 min

About this episode

The episode discusses the themes and techniques in Raymond Carver's short story 'A Small Good Thing'.

Interested in our novel mentorship program or have any other questions? Email us at napleswritersworkshop@gmail.com If you enjoyed this episode, consider joining our Patreon. Your support helps us keep the show running. Find out more at http://www.patreon.com/whyisthisgoodpodcast You can also subscribe to our monthly newsletter at http://www.napleswritersworkshop.com In this episode, we discuss “A Small Good Thing” by Raymond Carver . What can we learn from this masterful short story? How does a writer deliberately make a reader like or dislike a character? Can we deepen a character without exploring the character’s past? How does fiction employ empathy? How can we depict a character’s emotions by showing them in action?

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