I took a class on writing comic books, and we had to write a complete story using only five comic book pages. Eight thousand words seem roomy compared to that.
The difference between a short story idea and a novel idea is *stickiness*. A novel idea will pull all sorts of things in with it, like a mass of sticky burrs. A short-short idea will be a ball bearing. Inbetween you get varying degrees.
It may be wiser to let an idea have its head and work on something else to be a short story.
I began my writing adventures by delving into penning novels. Condensing a story down for a short was a thorn in my side for many years. Last year, I determined to write shorts. I had to press through that veil of inexperience and doubt that shrouded my thinker. I'm glad I did. It earned me two contracts for sci-fi anthologies, and now I'm writing short adventure stories for boys, aside from my sci-fi novels. The best way to learn the dos and don'ts of short fiction writing is to read it, preferably in the genre you plan to write in most often. Don't let your current limitations intimidate you. You can begin today by experiencing the thrill of penning your first short.
The 1st Act of my 1st Draft is always too long. Mainly because I don't fully understand the characters at that point. I have them mostly nailed down by the 4th Act, though.
There is some good information in this post but I would tend to disagree with the author about their interpretation of short stories. All stories should be entertaining. Some novels are just chewing gun for the eyes. Short stories can have fully developed plots. I think the author needs to read better short fiction. Here are some recommendations:
Johnny Mnemonic by William Gibson available in his Buring Chrome Collection. The Pugilist at Rest by Thom Jones. In the Cemetery Where Al Jolson is Buried by Amy Hempel. In the Garden of the North American Martyrs by Tobias Wolf. "Repent, Harlequin!" Said the Ticktockman by Harlan Ellison. The Lottery by Shirley Jackson.
Writing short stories is an art that will teach you a lot about writing better novels. Everyone should do it at least a few times.
I took a class on writing comic books, and we had to write a complete story using only five comic book pages. Eight thousand words seem roomy compared to that.
The difference between a short story idea and a novel idea is *stickiness*. A novel idea will pull all sorts of things in with it, like a mass of sticky burrs. A short-short idea will be a ball bearing. Inbetween you get varying degrees.
It may be wiser to let an idea have its head and work on something else to be a short story.
I have no idea how to even start writing this short of a story.
I began my writing adventures by delving into penning novels. Condensing a story down for a short was a thorn in my side for many years. Last year, I determined to write shorts. I had to press through that veil of inexperience and doubt that shrouded my thinker. I'm glad I did. It earned me two contracts for sci-fi anthologies, and now I'm writing short adventure stories for boys, aside from my sci-fi novels. The best way to learn the dos and don'ts of short fiction writing is to read it, preferably in the genre you plan to write in most often. Don't let your current limitations intimidate you. You can begin today by experiencing the thrill of penning your first short.
The shortest horror story ever: "Now owned by EA."
I have a short story that I need to rewrite a bit at some point.
The biggest things I need to tighten up are the beginning and ending, both of which are easily argued as being too long.
I could probably trim up the middle a little bit.
The 1st Act of my 1st Draft is always too long. Mainly because I don't fully understand the characters at that point. I have them mostly nailed down by the 4th Act, though.
There is some good information in this post but I would tend to disagree with the author about their interpretation of short stories. All stories should be entertaining. Some novels are just chewing gun for the eyes. Short stories can have fully developed plots. I think the author needs to read better short fiction. Here are some recommendations:
Johnny Mnemonic by William Gibson available in his Buring Chrome Collection. The Pugilist at Rest by Thom Jones. In the Cemetery Where Al Jolson is Buried by Amy Hempel. In the Garden of the North American Martyrs by Tobias Wolf. "Repent, Harlequin!" Said the Ticktockman by Harlan Ellison. The Lottery by Shirley Jackson.