I believe that the short story is as different a form from the novel as poetry is, and the best stories seem to me to be perhaps closer in spirit to poetry than to novels.

Wolff argues that the short story is not merely a compressed novel but a distinct literary form with its own aims and methods. By likening the story/novel difference to the poetry/prose divide, he emphasizes intensity, selection, and formal pressure: short stories often rely on implication, resonance, and carefully controlled language rather than the expansive architecture and accumulation typical of novels. His claim that the best stories are “closer in spirit to poetry” highlights how exemplary short fiction can work through compression, image, rhythm, and suggestiveness—achieving a concentrated emotional or moral charge that lingers beyond what is explicitly stated.