This is the writer's voice, new fiction from The New Yorker.

I'm Deborah Treasman, fiction editor at The New Yorker.

On this episode of The Writer's Voice, we'll hear Suvankham Tamavonkza read her story, Good Looking, from the March 1st 2021 issue of the magazine.

Tamavonkza has published four volumes of poetry and the story collection How to

Pronounce Knife, which won the 2020 Scotia Bank Killer Prize.

Now here's Suvankham Tamavongsa.

Good looking.

Dad thought himself a good looking man.

He was fit if you like that sort of thing.

He was 38 years old and worked at the gym four days a week for eight hours.

He was an instructor for a few exercise classes and filled in when others couldn't make their shifts.

He didn't wear a wedding ring. He said this was good for business. His boss agreed and

encouraged the other male instructors not to wear a ring,

if they had one, a wife, that is.

Dad was encouraged to flirt with women at the gym,

harmless flirting, talking and smiling and being friendly, being nice.

Leave the rest up to the imagination, mislead, and then apologize.

Exercise, good health, these things don't sell gym memberships, dad said.

If there were female instructors, dad never mentioned them. For mom's sake, I think,

and her feelings. He didn't want her to get any ideas as she had enough of them already.

According to the gym's computer charts and data, most of the members were women, and women were more likely to bring in their friends too.

Men were the worst clients. They took advantage of the free classes. They came alone and they didn't clean the equipment when they were done.

...