Please welcome speculative fictioneer Milo James Fowler with his
5 Reasons to Write Short Stories!
It's the writer's dream: snag an agent, sign a book deal with a big publishing house, see our work on the shelf at the airport bookstore. But writing novels takes time. And revisediting them takes a whole lot more. We need something along the way to boost our creative energy and remind us why we started writing those 300-page tomes in the first place: to share our work with readers.
For the past six years, I've been writing and submitting short
stories for publication. No agent is necessary, you can build your audience and
compile publication credits, and you'll get paid for your work. Some novelists
think they can't do short fiction, that their stories are too big. But some of
my favorite authors have done it well: Ray Bradbury, Stephen King, China
Mieville, and Alastair Reynolds. If they can, so can we.
Here are 5 good reasons why you should write short stories:
1. 1. There are so many short fiction venues available
now: magazines, anthologies, online zines, and eReader publications. Check out The Submission Grinder and find the right publication for your
style and genre.
2. 2. Writing and selling short stories is an
excellent way to build a portfolio of your published work and compile
publication credits, proving your work is publishable. Once the rights revert
to you, the stories can be republished elsewhere as reprints, expanding your
audience even further.
3. 3. Pay varies widely from token to pro, but there
are other benefits, such as exposure. Having your story published alongside a
well-known author in a themed anthology will introduce new readers to your
work. And pro-level sales will lead to qualifying membership in
professional writers' associations.
4. 4. Writing short stories forces us to use our words
wisely, to be clear and concise, to focus on conflict and tension, and to be
constantly aware of the story arc. Writing a short story with a specific word
count ensures that we make every word
count.
5. 5. Perhaps the greatest benefit to writing short
fiction is the ability to develop characters from your novels, giving readers
some insight into their backstory—or creating characters that will someday
appear in novels of their own. A few years ago, I wrote 7 stories about Captain Bartholomew Quasar, sold 6 of them to various
publications, and then had a publisher approach me about writing a novel-length
adventure. I've sold other tales with recurring characters—Coyote
Cal & Big Yap (weird westerns), Mercer the Soul Smuggler (urban fantasy), Charlie Madison, Private Investigator (future noir)—and
it's been a blast to learn more about them and their respective worlds with
every story I write.
This is a great time to be a writer. Don't pigeonhole
yourself. Branch out, stretch those wings, and see what you can do.
Write on,
Milo
Note from Tyrean: I highly recommend Milo's fiction! His characters are compelling and his plots have roller coaster twists and turns that keep you on the edge of your seat. My favorite character happens to be Charlie Madison, P.I. (his series starts with Girl of Great Price), but I also enjoy all of Milo's other characters, too.
In addition to Milo's awesome books, I also want to briefly give a shout-out to Laurel Garver for her newest book, Almost There, a poignant tale of love, grief, art, mistakes, and grace. Beautiful writing. Laurel will guest post in August.
