Abstract

RE: Work is a collection of stories that revolve around the workplace—an environment where we spend a large part of our waking life. Within the stories, characters contend with themselves, their circumstances, their co-workers—work itself even—in workplaces across a fictionalized Alberta. The stories explore themes of tedium, indignity, malaise, and dread. For the protagonists, work is linked with constructions of purpose, safety, and identity. Set in office spaces, bottle depots, cleaning closets, and sound studios, the stories vary wildly in tone, perspective, and form. “Trail Bottle Exchange” draws heavily on elements of social realism. Meanwhile, “Facilitation” and “NOTICE TO TENANT” are grimly absurd. As a collection of short fiction, RE: Work accounts for the wide variety of paid and unpaid employment that people find themselves in.