 Short Stories: July 25, 2012 Issue [#5176] |
  Short Stories
This week: Reviewing as a Writing Exercise Edited by: Jay's debut novel is out now!  
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This Short Stories Newsletter is dedicated to readers and writers of short fiction and to those who want to know more about the art of telling big stories in small spaces.
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Reviewing is an intrinsic part of the culture here on WDC: there are tons of editorials on how to do it "right," and tons more on personal reviewing philosophies. Personally, and especially with short stories, I don't always have time to do a full comment on every aspect of the story, and I'm limited to finding some specific aspect which didn't click, or commenting on what I certainly hope the overall theme of the work is. That being said, though, I feel like I try to review when I can, because it's good practice in a lot of ways -- more on this in a moment.
I recently had an offsite conversation with a young aspiring writer who really didn't understand the idea that reviewing the writings of other people is an important exercise. All kinds of excuses erupted-- not an editor, don't feel qualified to comment, not sure what to say, don't know anything about plotting... Those things are all well and good, but how does one propose to learn about these things if one does not start by reading others' works in order to start figuring them out? It's possible to learn quite a lot simply by observation, and even the simplest feedback should start with something you liked-- even if it's just the theme or a specific detail.
I'm not an editor myself, and so I don't presume to impose my grammatical styling on another short story writer unless it's a common mistake, single occurrence, or something that impacts meaning or function. However, at the same time, I've found that reading and reviewing makes it easier for me to pick out things that need more work in my own writing.
Some ideas of things to look for when you're reading other authors' work:
(on Writing.Com and in general-- GoodReads and Amazon book reviews are other worthy exercises, and you can use the Book Review item type here on Writing.Com as well...)
 What were your expectations when starting the piece, and did the story meet, exceed, or change those expectations as you went along? For your own short stories: Do you like to change up a reader's expectations through your storytelling? How do you make your theme unique while still keeping enough literary convention to make your writing enjoyable?
Writing style: does the narrative have a unique voice or voices guiding it throughout? How does this add flavor to the piece? For your own short stories: consider how what you have read influences your own story development and the voices of your characters. Assuming you're not copying word for word, there are bound to be some parallels!
Plot: how does the plot fit with the characters, and how do the characters fit with the plot? Generally, there is a synergy between these two things which moves the story forward. For your own short stories: generally, there are reasons for why we do things in our storytelling; here's a great example of ways you can tighten a story and add meaning-- making sure this synergy is active for your work. As an example: if you're writing a detective noir story with a lot of emphasis on twists, turns, and sketchy characters, your lead needs to be a sketchy character as well-- or at least have reasons to consort with people who are.
More on character: how relatable are the characters in this story? Do you identify with any character in particular? How does this affect your interest in the story? for your own short stories: it's important to find a balance between creating likable characters and compelling conflicts. Basically, some of your characters need to be at cross-purposes to create the best tension. It should be possible to identify with any one of your characters as a human being, but not necessarily all at once! Let characters make mistakes and do the wrong thing for the right reasons...
Sometimes, it's the things we'd like to do better in others' writing that compels and motivates us; other times, it's the things we admire and emulate. In either case, there's a lot to be learned by reading and making notes, here and points beyond. 
Until Next Month,
Take care and Write on!
~j |
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Feedback from last month's issue: "Grammar and Dialect"
MrBugSir  submits the following
"Invalid Item" with this note:
This newsletter has interesting timing, as I just wrote a piece with significant dialects. The dialog in this one was overwhelming with its dialect and I do know better, but since it was relatively short I figured I could get away with it. Besides, when you talk like a space pirate, how could you possibly leave the inflections and curious word choices out? It would just seem implausible.
I think some dialect is absolutely necessary. The most important thing is readability! |
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