What's your advice for someone getting into writing short stories?

lotus7 · Oct 28, 2011

So obviously writing short story fiction is much different from writing a novel. I'm a writer of urban fantasy and paranormal romance and so far have been working only on novels. But I've always being interested in writing some short stories in my genre. Any tips, advice?

Thanks!

Jamesaritchie · Oct 28, 2011

1. Read a thousand short stories.

2. Write one for every ten read.

3. Do not take months to read a short story, or months to write on.

4. Follow Heinlein's Rules to the letter. Here's why: http://www.sfwriter.com/ow05.htm

Maryn · Oct 28, 2011

Good advice from James.

I also recommend reading at least two recent issues of any magazine or market before you submit to them. My understanding is that it's the norm for most of them, especially those which pay more than a token, to receive a great many submissions which are not remotely suitable for the publication.

Maryn, who still writes shorts

Shadow_Ferret · Oct 28, 2011

Don't quit your day job.

RobJ · Oct 28, 2011

I agree that you should read a lot of short stories. Even though you wish to write them in your particular genre, I think you'll gain a great deal from reading broadly outside of your genre, too. Soak up as many as you can get your hands on for now.

Chris P · Oct 28, 2011

Echoing Jame's suggestions. (Writing one for every 10 read is cool, and something I'd have to push myself to do)

I would add getting an account on Duotrope to find markets once you are ready to sub. A good suggestion is that when one story gets rejected, you get it sent back out right away and don't revise unless an editor asks or it's been turned down half a dozen or so times.

blacbird · Oct 28, 2011

Go into real estate, insurance sales, or car theft.

caw

Polenth · Oct 29, 2011

Other than reading shorts... for romance shorts, there appear to be quite a few epublishers who do anthologies. So as well as looking at Duotrope for magazines, I'd suggest checking out some of the romance publishers for any themes you might fit into (Duotrope lists some anthologies, but not all of them).

Deizelcore · Oct 29, 2011

Kurt Vonnegut listed these eight rules:

1.Use the time of a total stranger in such a way that he or she will not feel the time was wasted.

2.Give the reader at least one character he or she can root for.

3.Every character should want something, even if it is only a glass of water.

4.Every sentence must do one of two things—reveal character or advance the action.

5.Start as close to the end as possible.

6.Be a Sadist. No matter how sweet and innocent your leading characters, make awful things happen to them—in order that the reader may see what they are made of.

7.Write to please just one person. If you open a window and make love to the world, so to speak, your story will get pneumonia.

8.Give your readers as much information as possible as soon as possible. To hell with suspense. Readers should have such complete understanding of what is going on, where and why, that they could finish the story themselves, should cockroaches eat the last few pages.

Also, I recommend you use the ass-in-chair-until-you're-done method for greater productivity.

Jamesaritchie · Oct 29, 2011

Deizelcore said:
Kurt Vonnegut listed these eight rules:

Also, I recommend you use the ass-in-chair-until-you're-done method for greater productivity.

I've always liked Vonnegut's advice, but I hate Rule 8. If I can finish a story myself, why read the story?

MJNL · Oct 29, 2011

I've always read number 8 to really mean: Make sure the ending is logical. If it's a natural conclusion to what's come before, than anyone thinking about it hard enough could conceivably reach the same-or-similar ending on their own.

Deizelcore · Oct 29, 2011

MJNL said:
I've always read number 8 to really mean: Make sure the ending is logical. If it's a natural conclusion to what's come before, than anyone thinking about it hard enough could conceivably reach the same-or-similar ending on their own.

Seconded.

The MG Renegade · Nov 2, 2011

Absolutely amazing advice. Definintely putting it to to good use.

AlwaysJuly · Nov 3, 2011

Love the advice in this thread. I'm going to have to try the "Read 1000 short stories, write one for every 10 read" -- I already try to follow Heinlein's rules, but I like that.

If you like writing flash fiction, I recommend subscribing to Daily Science Fiction and Everyday Fiction -- stories come to your email every day. I fit two stories in every day by reading those in the morning while I brush my teeth etc. Handy way to fit some prose into your day. I ended up writing a story that sold to DSF, inspired by another story they'd published, which I thought was nifty.

Jamesaritchie · Nov 3, 2011

MJNL said:
I've always read number 8 to really mean: Make sure the ending is logical. If it's a natural conclusion to what's come before, than anyone thinking about it hard enough could conceivably reach the same-or-similar ending on their own.

I take it this way, too, but I still think it's bad advice. I like stories that don't end the way I think they're going to end, ones that surprise me with an ending I didn't see coming.

I like an ending that's logical, that fits the story, but that isn't the same one I come up with when trying to extrapolate ahead. It's logical and fits only after I reach it, not in any way predictable beforehand.

But other than Harrison Bergeron, I've never really been a fan of Vonnegut's short stories, anyway, and even Harrison Bergeron was more of a morality play than a short story.

CACTUSWENDY · Nov 3, 2011

In the horror syw area in May of 2008 we did 100 word flash stories. They were fun and held some real lessons. Go to forum jump, horror syw...page 51....that should put you in the middle of them.

The rules were 100 words which included the title. It teaches you how to use each word to the fullest. There are some fun reads in there.

Chris P · Nov 3, 2011

MJNL said:
I've always read number 8 to really mean: Make sure the ending is logical. If it's a natural conclusion to what's come before, than anyone thinking about it hard enough could conceivably reach the same-or-similar ending on their own.

I agree with this interpretation too, but I think perhaps old Kurt was playing on the idea of "could," but that doesn't mean you should end the story the way you want the reader to should he or she take a shot at it. Some of the most rewarding stories are those that make me say "Wow, I didn't see that coming, but it sure makes sense."

astonwest · Nov 4, 2011

Like with any writing rules, one uses them until improving to the point of knowing when they can break them...

lotus7 · Nov 10, 2011

Thank you for all the great advice. I will definitely look into the magazines and websites you have mentioned.

The Lonely One · Nov 10, 2011

Go back in time a handful decades, when short fiction was still relevant.

No, but in all seriousness, I almost exclusively write short fiction as of now. I also think it's a very legitimate art form, as much so as the novel and tougher to write.

You may think, it's going to be easy. It's shorter, right? Nope. You have to do all the work in a much shorter space meaning you have to know what's important to keep and what details are bogging down your pacing. An ill-paced short story is going to be put down most likely.

The words have to count, there aren't any to spare.

I use duotrope.com to find markets after I've done some editing.

Also read short fiction. It's so vastly different in approach IMO from novels that you have to really have read a bit of it to grasp the intricacies.

Bradbury and Vonnegut are brilliant short story writers. Also if you're looking for those writing when short stories could get you a living, those who made the short a legend in a legendary era, try Hemingway and Fitzgerald, Anderson, among others.

There are so many, but also you should see if some of your favorite authors have written short stories. Likely at least one of them has some notable short publications.

zanzjan · Nov 11, 2011

lotus7 said:
Any tips, advice?

1. Let yourself have fun with it.
2. Accept that how you write them (or anything, really) may not be the same way that anyone else writes them, or at the same speed or frequency as anyone else writes them, and that except for a few extreme cases that's perfectly okay.
3. Don't let a rejection keep you from reaching for the next potential acceptance. Likewise, don't let an acceptance keep you from being able to handle the next rejection.
4. A good beta-reader is worth their weight in gold, so if you can find one, do whatever you have to to make sure they stay happy with you.

Good luck!

George · Nov 12, 2011

Short stories are super fun in that the whole word count dilemma isn't really present. They are also over and done with quicker, so that stress of what to do next isn't usually there. Write a bunch of stories, and maybe one day, you can present them to an agent as a collection. In other words, relax. That's the best way to go.

Try to embellish your surroundings and people around you. Tap into your fantasies and read about superstitions around the world.

Old Hack · Nov 12, 2011

It is very unlikely that you'll find a good agent interested in selling your collection of short fiction. Apart from that one problem, the advice in this thread is good.

zerosystem · Nov 12, 2011

1. Get to the point quickly
2. No info dumps
3. Figure out your characters' quirks before writing anything
4. Know who you're querying to. Writing seven thousand words for a magazine or site that only wants four thousand is a losing cause.

The Lonely One · Nov 13, 2011

Old Hack said:
It is very unlikely that you'll find a good agent interested in selling your collection of short fiction. Apart from that one problem, the advice in this thread is good.

Yeah it's probably much better to submit individual stories to individual markets.

Maybe after you publish a novel or two talk to the agent about a short story collection.

Seems short fiction doesn't sell the way it used to, plus I would think a publisher wants to see you do something longer to prove your worth first. From what I've heard publishers are shy to take on a new client based solely on short fiction.

What's your advice for someone getting into writing short stories?

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