Writer Spotlight: Beth Goder
Welcome to the 19th installment of Writer Spotlight. This week’s focus is Beth Goder. I’ve reviewed 14 of Goder’s pieces, all of them individually on Inkfoundry’s “Get WYSR” feed. (In case you didn’t know, Inkfoundry is a wonderful and free resource that aggregates short fiction and poetry pieces!)
Recurring Themes:
Importance of documentation / archives
Comedic tone
Gorgeous metaphorical language & style
Trope / expectation subversion
Non-human POVs
Day One - May 21
“Arachnomorphosis” | WYSR Review
Olivia turns into a spider every night, and it’s starting to become a real issue.
"Miles To Go Before I Sleep” | WYSR Review
Zoey has lived her entire life in the grip of anxiety, and her supply of kazoos are running out.
The Pairing: (Spoilers)
These two both have my heart. That’s what they have in common. I LOVE THEM. Oh. Also, they’re both about anxiety and living in the grip of something that makes you feel like you’re not in control. There also seems to be a theme about guilt in both, though more in “Arachnomorphosis.”
Individually:
"Arachnomorphosis” has themes of body transformation / body horror, and spiders, but somehow with a very gentle tone and style that really drew me in. Guilt and shame over the body seem to be another theme, along with perhaps a representation of body dysmorphia. Specifically the guilt seems to be centered on the concept of having done something wrong to deserve the transformation, though Olivia has no idea what that ‘something wrong’ is.
"Miles To Go Before I Sleep” has themes of death and anxiety couched in beautifully surreal descriptions and bizarre details. There’s OCD representation, agoraphobia, and chemophobia.
Day Two - May 22
3. "The House That Leapt Into Forever" | WYSR Review
The house loves all six of his rooms. Including the one with Doom-Has-Come in it.
4. “Murder or a Duck” | WYSR Review
Mrs. Whitman has searched in so many timelines for Mr. Whitman, she can’t remember all the details she needs.
The Pairing: (Spoilers)
These two stories are pretty different - though I loved the endings for both.
Individually:
“The House That Leapt Into Forever” has elements of horror, but it isn’t revealed until the end. I liked the twist! Doom-Has-Come seems to be some sort of spiny legged creature, which did remind me of “Arachnomorphosis.” Also, if you’re new here, I freaking love me a non-human POV.
“Murder or a Duck” was hilarious. This one was about different timelines, a search for a loved one, and two ladies sniping it out over tea. I especially enjoyed Goder’s comedic style in this.
Day Three - May 23
5. “An Expression of Silence” | WYSR Review
Riley makes first contact with an alien presence named Yyfal.
6. “The Restaurant of Object Permanence” | WYSR Review
Kazia is invited to dine at a restaurant where you can eat concepts and objects.
The Pairing: (Spoilers)
These two stories both have people eating as a primary/iconic scene.
Individually:
“An Expression of Silence” This story was GORGEOUS. What a beautiful first contact tale (which reminded me of “The House That Leapt” because of the alien/first contact, though Yyfal isn’t intent on eating humans.) Interestingly enough, actually, in “The House That Leapt” the house is decidedly not nearly afraid enough, whereas Riley’s coworker is very much afraid of Yyfal. The themes in this seem centered around understanding something foreign or alien to oneself. This actually reminded me of “Arachnomorphosis” in that Olivia needs to learn how to understand her spider self.
“The Restaurant of Object Permanence” had themes of the importance of history and archives, and a yearning to learn what has been forgotten. Kazia reminds me of Mrs. Whitman in “Murder or a Duck” in some ways, as Mrs. Whitman was all about writing things down as well. There is also quite a bit of symbolism in the various objects presented for eating.
Day Four - May 24
7. “Candide; Life-” | WYSR Review
Seva loves music, and she’s been experimenting with emotion capture too.
8. “How To Say I Love You With Wikipedia” | WYSR Review
Rocky wants to be most efficient. It is important to be efficient because their crew is the best crew.
The Pairing: (Spoilers)
These two stories were pretty different.
Individually:
“Candide; Life-” I think I’m becoming a Goder Superfan. I loved this one! It had themes of the creation of art, plagiarism, misogyny, and philosophical questions like where our worth comes from as artists. I noticed a slight recurring theme here of an artist / creator POV since Olivia in “Arachnomorphosis” runs a magazine.
“How To Say I Love You With Wikipedia” is a story that echoed the importance of documentation/archives, as in “Object Permanence” and “Murder or a Duck.” It was another non-human POV as well as in “The House That Leapt” and, now that I think about it, “Arachnomorphosis.”
Day Five - May 25
9. “The Appliance Crisis” | WYSR Review
The magical toaster is going to ruin her life!
10. “History in Pieces” | WYSR Review
Cassandra and the crew explore a strange world where someone is documenting them.
The Pairing: (Spoilers)
These two stories both mention travel to another world.
Individually:
“The Appliance Crisis” is another comedic story from Goder, reminding me of “Murder or a Duck,” especially with the bizarre details. It also has a romance theme. I’ve come to realize that a prose tool Goder uses in many of her stories is a list of something, whether it be bizarre or beautiful or a mixture of the two, and this creates an emotion in the reader from the longer sentence and the list format.
“History in Pieces” This one has a definite theme around the importance of documentation / archives, echoing “Murder or a Duck,” “How to Say I Love You,” and “Object Permanence.” I also noticed the idea of emotion capture as in “Candide; Life-,” and the eating of strange things that aren’t food as in “Object Permanence.” Archivist Tan and the other archivists reminded me of Yyfal in “An Expression of Silence” because of how he seems to be able to sense things throughout the world to record them.
Day Six - May 26
11. “Please Properly Cage Your Words”| WYSR Review
Jane is afraid of the un-room on the lower floor.
12. “Fairy-Tale Ending” | WYSR Review
Immer lowers her hair to the Earth and captures things in it.
The Pairing: (Spoilers)
Both these stories are about a woman character subverting a story’s expectations!
Individually:
“Please Properly Cage Your Words” This is a metafictional story with meta humor and lots of fascinating formatting to illustrate the theme about words and sentence structure. The special formatting reminded me of “History in Pieces.” Oh, and also the house as a character is something that reminded me of “The House That Leapt.”
“Fairy-Tale Ending” A refreshing take on Rapunzel, where the woman decides what she does. This one has gorgeous metaphorical language, as I’ve noted in many stories above. Also, I noticed the list function that Goder has used elsewhere employed here, to beautiful effect.
Day Seven - May 27
13. “Sunflower Loop” | WYSR Review
When bicycling through space, the protagonist keeps seeing a giant sunflower.
14. “Labyrinth” | WYSR Review
Devyn loses her bracelet in a labyrinthine house.
The Pairing: (Spoilers)
The MCs in both these stories have a driving desire to understand / explore something that intrigues them, similar to “Expression of Silence,” “Object Permanence,” “How to Say I Love You,” and “Cage Your Words,” a theme I am only now realizing.
Individually:
“Sunflower Loop” has a theme about a woman subverting expectations or strictures placed, which definitely echoes “Fairy-Tale Ending,” “Cage Your Words,” and now that I think about it, also “Murder or a Duck,” and “Miles to Go.” There is also a little explanation/allusion to the Greek mythology of Clytie and Leucuthoe.
“Labyrinth” The house as a character here echoes “The House That Leapt” and “Cage Your Words.” The importance of documentation returns as a main theme here as well. The phrase “she doesn’t yet realize that places can be haunted by their own history” is one that reminded me of “Object Permanence,” when the MC there refused to eat the objects of her past.
Emmie’s Personal Favorite: Miles to Go Before I Sleep
Summary!
If I were to summarize Goder's style in one sentence, I would say she utilizes gorgeous metaphorical language and comedy, and her themes often expound on the importance of documentation/history while subverting tropes.
Interview Questions
What are the themes you tend to return to the most in your work overall? Why do think that is?
Goder: I'm always writing about archives and archivists, because I've worked in the archives field for many years. Other themes that come up frequently in my work: miscommunication, kindness always wins (and kindness as an act of rebellion), the duplicitous nature of time.
When I start writing a story, I need to understand what it's about—its heart. Sometimes, the theme surprises me. I've had the experience where things shift as I'm writing, and the true theme is revealed to me when I get further into the story.
2. What is one of the characters in your short stories/flash pieces that you relate to the most, and why?
Goder: To write a character, I find that I need to have empathy for them and a basic understanding of who they are, so in that sense, I relate to all of my characters, even the ones who are different from me, because it's through relating to them that I'm able to write them. For me, it's about understanding why my characters are acting in a certain way, their motivations, and how they feel.
In this set of stories, I relate most to the protagonists from "Arachnomorphosis" and "Miles To Go Before I Sleep," because these characters are the most like me. Both of these stories have similar themes, as well.
3. How Has Your Writing Evolved Since You Began?
Goder: Typically for me a story builds off some activity or place of interest that catches my attention. Daffodil Ghosts comes from the daffodils that dot the rural landscape each spring marking where a homestead once stood; Diamond Tear coalesced around the vast frozen nitrogen plain of Sputnik Planitia on Pluto, to which I added ice boating; Reenactment was built on the idea of a superpower that left its possessor fatally wounded whenever it was exercised.
4. Do you tend to start writing a story idea out of a particular element, like character, setting, or point of view?
Goder: I find that story ideas can come from anywhere, even the most mundane of places. (Once I saw a pineapple on the side of the road and wondered how it got there. This pineapple ended up in one of my stories, "In the Form of a Question.")
For me, the first germ of a story often starts with a strange idea or image. I'll take one small thing, then build on it. If the prose begins writing itself in my head, then I know the story is one I'll write—it's like the words create this pressure build-up, like water pushing against a dam. This happened with "Arachnomorphosis." I was in San Francisco for my brother-in-law's wedding, and I had this weird idea about a woman turning into a spider. The story started writing itself, so I had to follow it.
5. What short fiction author do you look up to? Why?
Goder: I look up to so many short fiction authors, past and present. Every story I read has an impact on me; we are all in conversation with each other. There are too many people to list here, so I'll pick a couple—Kelly Link, Violet Allen, Ursula Le Guin, Samantha Mills, Amanda Helms, Thomas Ha, John Wiswell. Honestly, I could be writing this list all day if I don't stop now.
I want to talk specifically about Shirley Jackson. I read Shirley Jackson: A Rather Haunted Life by Ruth Franklin, which describes how Jackson wrote "The Lottery." Jackson had the idea while shopping with her children, came home, plopped them safely into their play area, and then wrote the first draft of one of the most iconic stories in American history in two hours, while still minding her kids. That's inspiring on many levels.
6. Do you have any piece, listed here or otherwise, that you would like to promote?
Goder: A new flash fiction piece, "Photographs I Have Been Trapped In," will be out from Small Wonders soon.
There are several more of my stories coming out soon, including a YA cozy horror bowling story and the one with the POV of a bridge. The best way to keep up with my new stories is to sign up for my newsletter, which anyone can do at my website, https://bethgoder.com/