Hilma Wolitzer, "Overtime"

It’s December 12. Hilma Wolitzer, author of Today a Woman Went Mad in the Supermarket, suffers neither fool nor broken hanger.

How would you describe your story?

HILMA WOLITZER: A (complicated) love triangle.

When did you write it, and how did the writing process compare to your other work?

HW: I wrote it 50 years ago! My only other work way back then was housework, and as with writing I was always trying to make order out of chaos. Revising a story is something like cleaning out a closet: excessive words and broken hangers all have to go.

What kind of research went into this story?

HW: Absolutely none.

What, to you, makes the short story a special form? What can it do that other kinds of writing can’t?

HW: The short story offers instant gratification, while the novel (reading and writing it) requires more time and patience. The story condenses experience the way a poem does, but (usually) with the added bonuses of characters and plot.

Where should people go to learn more about you and your work?

HW: Libraries and bookstores. My webpage: www.hilmawolitzer.com. And everything I’ve ever publically, and often regretfully, said can probably be found somewhere on the internet.

What’s the best gift you’ve ever been given?

HW: A pencil with an eraser.

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What did you think of today's story? Use the hashtag #ssac2023 on Twitter and Instagram to check in with your fellow advent calendarians.