Where to Start with Alissa Nutting
For readers new to Alissa Nutting's sharp, satirical style, the best entry point depends on your tolerance for dark themes. If you enjoy futuristic tech satire and absurd relationship dynamics, start with Made for Love (2017). It is highly engaging, deeply funny, and serves as an excellent introduction to her voice without being as intensely polarizing as her debut novel. If you prefer a raw, boundary-pushing, and deeply uncomfortable critique of societal double standards, you can jump straight into the controversial Tampa (2013).
Standalone Novels
Alissa Nutting has published two standalone novels, each exploring themes of obsession, power, and modern relationships through a dark, satirical lens:
- Tampa (2013): A provocative, explicit, and dark satire written from the perspective of a female middle-school teacher who is a sexual predator. The novel critiques societal double standards regarding female offenders and was inspired by real-life cases.
- Made for Love (2017): A sci-fi satirical comedy about a woman fleeing her tech-billionaire husband, who has secretly implanted a brain chip in her head to monitor her every move.
The Ecco "Art of the Story" Series
Nutting's debut work was actually the short story collection Unclean Jobs for Women and Girls, which originally won the Starcherone Prize for Innovative Fiction and was published in 2010. In 2018, the collection was reissued in a deluxe paperback edition by Ecco as part of their curated "Art of the Story" series.
It is important to note that while Ecco's series compiles work from many classic and contemporary authors (including Tobias Wolff, Katherine Mansfield, and Anton Chekhov), Nutting's sole contribution to this list is the reissue of her own debut collection. Her surreal stories inside follow women working in bizarre, fantastical roles, highlighting the absurdity of gender expectations.
Anthologies and Short Fiction Contributions
For readers who want to explore Nutting's shorter works, she has contributed stories and essays to several notable anthologies:
- My Mother She Killed Me, My Father He Ate Me (2010): A collection of modern fairy tale retellings.
- The Best Bizarro Fiction of the Decade (2012): Featuring surreal, avant-garde short stories.
- Monsters of Literary Sightings (2012): An anthology exploring monster-themed literature.
- Come Here Often?: 53 Writers Raise a Glass to Their Favorite Bar (2014): A collection of non-fiction essays about bars.
- Eat Joy (2019): A compilation of stories and recipes exploring comfort food through times of grief or transition.
Television Adaptations & Screenwriting
In addition to her books, Alissa Nutting has successfully transitioned into television writing. If you love her literary style, you may want to check out her screen projects:
- Made for Love (HBO Max Series, 2021-2022): Nutting co-created and wrote this television adaptation of her own novel, which ran for two seasons.
- Teenage Euthanasia (Adult Swim, 2021-present): An animated dark comedy series co-created by Nutting and Alyson Levy, set in a futuristic, swampy Florida.