Hey, it's NPR's book The Day. I'm Andrew Limbaung. What's the difference between tension and

drama? They're related, sure, and all good stories, at least in my opinion, have to have a little bit of both.

But they are two different things. Author Claire Keegan gets into this while she's talking about

her book

so late in the day stories of women and men. It's a short story collection and one of the

stories actually began as an exercise she did for her creative writing students about this

very thing, you know, the difference between tension and drama. Anyway, she and NPR Scott Simon

get to talking about how her characters,

like all of us, live their lives knowing that time is finite, and one day it'll all come down

to an end, but nobody knows when or where. Whether that counts as tension or drama,

I'm not sure, but the conversation is right after the break.

In the U.S., national security news can feel far away from daily life.

Distant wars, murky conflicts, diplomacy behind closed doors on our new show, sources and methods.

NPR reporters on the ground bring you stories of real people, helping you

understand why distant events matter here at home. Listen to sources and methods on the NPR app or

wherever you get your podcasts. Claire Keegan is one of the most admired writers of our times,

known for stories and novels that can be small and tight yet packed with

light, as well as ominous darkness. Consider the beginning of her new work so late in the day,

stories of women and men. Ms. Keegan? On Friday, July 29th, Dublin got the weather that was forecast.

All morning a brazen sunshine across Marion Square,

reaching on to Cahill's desk where he was stationed by the open window.

A taste of cut grass blew in,

...