Novel-as-short-story exercise?

Penguin Queen · Jul 1, 2007

Have you ever done this?

I'm plotting a mystery novel at the moment, the idea for which I conceived (as it were) a couple of years ago. I scribbled copious notes, which I am now in the process of transcribing onto PC, because I had a flash of inspiration about my narrator / "heroine" recently and want to get on with it.

For no good reason, I'm thinking that, in order to pull all the threads together & to give me a better understanding of who does what when, where and why; and to see what are the most important bits of the plot, it might be a good idea & exercise to use a scaled-down plot and write the thing as a short story of, say, 5000 words.

Has anybody tried to do this, and did it work?

Sean D. Schaffer · Jul 1, 2007

Penguin Queen said:
Have you ever done this?

I'm plotting a mystery novel at the moment, the idea for which I conceived (as it were) a couple of years ago. I scribbled copious notes, which I am now in the process of transcribing onto PC, because I had a flash of inspiration about my narrator / "heroine" recently and want to get on with it.

For no good reason, I'm thinking that, in order to pull all the threads together & to give me a better understanding of who does what when, where and why; and to see what are the most important bits of the plot, it might be a good idea & exercise to use a scaled-down plot and write the thing as a short story of, say, 5000 words.

Has anybody tried to do this, and did it work?

This never worked for me personally, but I can think of a few famous authors (Gordon R. Dickson; A. E. van Vogt; Ray Bradbury; Anne McCaffrey) who did write a short or series of shorts and eventually re-worked them for novels.

I guess what matters is how you put the whole thing together. My problem was, as several critters told me over the years, that I wrote a chapter as though it were a short story. That, I think, was my biggest mistake.

ChaosTitan · Jul 1, 2007

I haven't tried it myself, Penguin Queen, but I love the timing of your post. Just a few hours ago, I suggested this very exercise to a close friend who was having trouble with her writing.

katiemac · Jul 1, 2007

Scaling down the plot -- kind of like these?

ChaosTitan · Jul 1, 2007

Hah! I love that site.

Penguin Queen · Jul 1, 2007

katiemac said:
Scaling down the plot -- kind of like these?

Yeah, pretty much.

@ChaosTitan - let me know how your friend got on?
I am warming to the idea tho the more I think about it. I'm also thinking I shoudl turn it into a radio play, partly to concentrate my mind, partly to work on my dialogue & partly because it might earn me some money.

Edit:

OMG, that site is completely brilliant!!

The Two Towers
By J. R. R. Tolkien
Ultra-Condensed by David J. Parker and Samuel Stoddard

(Gandalf frees THEODEN and overthrows SARUMAN. A bunch of IRRELEVANT stuff happens. Then the PLOT starts up again.)

THE END

:ROFL:

NiennaC · Jul 1, 2007

katiemac said:
Scaling down the plot -- kind of like these?

I couldn't stop laughing. Ha! That's great.

Huckleberry Finn
(Goes rafting. Goes home.)

The end. Blah. That's hilarious.

Danger Jane · Jul 1, 2007

An old man catches a fish that's too big for his boat. The fish gets eaten by sharks. Then he goes home and DIES.

but...but...it never said he died?!?!

Anyway, I've done this as an exercise just to get my themes clear and think about what really drives my characters. I prefer to do it as flash fiction so I have to be really choosy about what themes I let come through, and it helps focus my novel. I haven't really gone the other way unless it's a short story that I've realized has a lot more to it and then I use it as a scene in the larger work.

althrasher · Jul 1, 2007

The Catcher in the Rye:
Holden Caulfield

Angst angst angst swear curse swear crazy crazy angst swear curse, society sucks, and I'm a stupid jerk.

THE END

ROTFLMAO. This site warms my soul.

Stijn Hommes · Jul 2, 2007

Yes, it can be a good excersize if your plot or at least part of it would make a good short story. Some plots just make bad shorts.

AllieB · Jul 2, 2007

Actually, I think it's a prettty good idea. If you can't get the major plotline down in 5000 words, it'll at least show you where you need to fix/add/change.

The_Grand_Duchess · Jul 2, 2007

A Handmaid's Tale

Offred
I've got a name, but I won't ever tell it to you.

Commander
I get to do Offred once a month, but I'd rather play Scrabble with her instead.

Nick
I don't even get to play Scrabble with her. That sucks.

Ofglen
(dies)

Ofglen
Ofglen is dead.

(There is a good speculative fiction story going until the END, which is INANE and LITERARY, because it is ILLEGAL for a work of LITERATURE to have CLOSURE.)

THE END

I had to read that book for English class in the 11th grade. That is exactly what I thought of it.

job · Jul 2, 2007

Whatever works for you as an exercise, you should do.
You're the one who knows best what works for you.

That said --
I am constitutionally disinclined to write anything that's not intended for publcation.
When I construct Writing Exercises for others,
the exercises rework or improve a scene in the WIP.

So if somebody came to me and said --
"I have an idea for the plot of this new novel and I want to play with it a bit,"
I would say --
"Pick a scene out of the plotline, one that you are able to visualize clearly. Write that scene."

Visualizing, writing and polishing a scene will give you an introduction to your characters and get you to work;
it will be practice in writing a novel, rather than practice in writing a short story;
the scene itself could end up in the final ms;
and you will not be trying to distort and compress your plot,
(as Nora Roberts so famously put it,)
in the manner of one dancing Swan Lake in a phonebooth.

Penguin Queen · Jul 2, 2007

job said:
(as Nora Roberts so famously put it,)
in the manner of one stuffing Swan Lake into a phonebooth.

I love that!

What a grand expression.

I'm normally completely with you in not writing anything thats not intended for publication (not least becasue I make half my money from writing (albeit nonfiction), & am disinclined to do it for nothing). I'm also by and large disinclined to do exercise of any sort, really (except my norming run), but have in the past found them to be of use, occasionally. (I once, in order to get to know a character, rewrote the 'proper' scene (with a 1st person narrator) from that other character's POV, bceause I couldnt think of another way to work out what she was thinking.)

I'm not sure why in this case the phonebooth scenario

occurred to me (other than sheer procrastination, I mean) - I think probably because Ive been dancing around with this idea for three years or so, and will need to put it on ice a but longer before I actually get around to writing it, and I will need something solid for then.
And partly I guess because I'm planning to write it in German, & I havent written a word of fiction in German in about 15 years, so I think a short story would be good as a toe in the water.

All of which is pure and unadulterated thinking-out-loud, and no earthly reason to post it all on a public messageboard, and my apologies for boring you all senseless with this.
But now that Ive thought it throgh by typing it all out, I might as well go ahead an post it.

At least youve had the condensed masterworks further up to entertain you.

If youve read this far, you deserve a rep point, so you do.

job · Jul 2, 2007

To paraphrase the whole quotation --

If single-title romances are Swan Lake. Category is performing Swan Lake in a phone booth.

>>>(I once, in order to get to know a character, rewrote the 'proper' scene (with a 1st person narrator) from that other character's POV, bceause I couldnt think of another way to work out what she was thinking.) <<<<

A great exercise. I write 3rd person limited, but I frequently run through a scene in 1st person to gain greater insight.
In fact, the June Exercise was to write a short section of the WIP in 1st, 2nd, 3rd, and O.N. Got some interesting results out of it and most folks found it useful.

>>> I'm planning to write it in German, & I havent written a word of fiction in German in about 15 years,<<<<

Then anything that gets you working in German again is right. You'll know what works best for you.

JoNightshade · Jul 2, 2007

Someone should start another thread for people to condense their novels into book-a-minute form.

ChaosTitan · Jul 2, 2007

That sounds like fun.

Are you volunteering, Jo?

JoNightshade · Jul 2, 2007

Oh, fine. ::Mumble grumble:: Here I go.

katiemac · Jul 2, 2007

Glad I could provide a template for fun.

Novel-as-short-story exercise?

Penguin Queen

Break the rules.

Sean D. Schaffer

ChaosTitan

Around

katiemac

Five by Five

ChaosTitan

Around

Penguin Queen

Break the rules.

NiennaC

Danger Jane

althrasher

Prodigal Muser

Stijn Hommes

Know what you write...

AllieB

The_Grand_Duchess

I record everything.

job

In the end, it's just you and the manuscript

Penguin Queen

Break the rules.

job

In the end, it's just you and the manuscript

JoNightshade

has finally arrived

ChaosTitan

Around

JoNightshade

has finally arrived

katiemac

Five by Five