Table for Two
A Towles collection of short stories, mostly set in New York.
Where Table for Two comes up1 episode or test
- 1Notice a small momentOld man recording at Carnegie Hall
- 2Ask what ifWhat might this little moment be about?
- 3Follow the fantasyHe imagined telling security
- 4Write the storyThe Bootlegger grew from that
From Towles on Table for Two
What was said about Table for Two
Most of Table for Two's stories grew from one small real moment. Five of the six stories in the collection began with Towles noticing a very small thing and asking what it might be about.
He describes the method as taking "this little moment that you witness" and asking what if.
'The Bootlegger' turns a real annoyance into a story of what he didn't do. At Carnegie Hall, Towles sat next to an old man recording the concert and was driven mad by it. The first page of the story is what happened; the rest is what he did not do.
Instead of listening to the music he had paid for, he fantasized about telling security, and that fantasy became the story.
The Mindset Behind An Unforgettable Novel (Amor Towles Interview)
Five of its six stories began as one small real moment. 'The Bootlegger' came from Towles sitting next to a man recording a Carnegie Hall concert, where page one is what happened and the rest is what he did not do.
Most of Table for Two's stories grew from one small real moment. Five of the six stories in the collection began with Towles noticing a very small thing and asking what it might be about.
He describes the method as taking "this little moment that you witness" and asking what if.
'The Bootlegger' turns a real annoyance into a story of what he didn't do. At Carnegie Hall, Towles sat next to an old man recording the concert and was driven mad by it. The first page of the story is what happened; the rest is what he did not do.
Instead of listening to the music he had paid for, he fantasized about telling security, and that fantasy became the story.
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