Twist and turn in short stories
All of us have heard the name of O. Henry. This America-born writer is considered one of the greatest short story writers in English. His real name was William Sidney Porter. But all over the world, the great writer is known by his pen-name O. Henry. The major characteristic of his short stories is unexpected twists and turns at the end. During my teen ages and even later, I have been deeply impressed by the unpredictable twists and turns at the end of his stories.I started reading Frederic Forsyth after entering college. I was spellbound by his 'The Day of the Jackal'. I was so impressed by this great thriller writer that till now, I haven't missed any of his novels (unfortunately, due to his very advanced age, he has almost stopped writing).
But, very few people know that Forsyth have also written some short stories. I read these short stories only 10-12 years ago. These short stories are written in a completely different background and characters (if compared with the short stories of O. Henry). But the short stories of Forsyth have always been very dramatic with unexpected twists and turns.
I feel it is astonishing that when the literature-pundits discuss the twists and turns in short stories, they always mention the short stories of O. Henry. Although Forsyth is immensely popular as thriller novel writer, his short stories with dramatic and unimaginable twists and turns at the end, are not mentioned.
(Finally, I always try to give twists and turns in my writings impressed by these two greats, but I always fail miserably due to my pathetic writing prowess.)
