  Short Stories
This week: Cut, Snip, Slash, Stitch 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.
This month:
Cut, Snip, Slash, Stitch
Excellence is a continual effort, and kind of an unending process...but how much is enough? |
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I kind of have trouble letting a story be "done."
This is probably not news to anyone who knows how I am, but I feel like it bears mentioning. I will cut a story to ribbons when I think it could be better - - sometimes leaving behind almost nothing of where it began. Other times, I might spend days swapping between two mild alterations of a sentence trying to differentiate which one sounds better in context. Or weeks on changing an ending that just isn't clicking for me.
Isn't it possible to completely overwork something in this way, though? In my experience, it can be.
This is where it can be useful to have a few really good readers who are willing to take a look-- hopefully, with a little time and practice here in the WdC community, you should be able to find a few such folks. It can be a process, but it's definitely worth the effort. You should really strive to have at least a few fellow writers whose opinions on your work are honest and trustworthy... Even when it means being honest about not liking something, or thinking it could be better.
Additionally: be mentally prepared for the notion that not all of your ideas sound as great outside your head as they do on paper. I'm continually fighting this, I think. A lovely story snippet becomes nothing more compelling than a vignette. A short story becomes more involved and ends up morphing into world building.
It's possible to overwork a story through editing - - most commonly, for me, being the ones where I'm really sure I know the ending but then spend the last few paragraphs trying to fix the problem without considering that I might be making it worse for myself to edit later.
What sort of overworking do you find in your own stories? What steps do you take to try and counteract this habit?
Until next time,
Take care and Write on!
~jay |
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blunderbuss writes:
Hi Jay! Thanks for the newsletter. If it's a novel you are submitting, or even a short story, the covering letter and the 'blurb or summary (whatever the publisher required) is surely the first consideration to draw someone in to your writing? Or have I got that wrong?
Well, this isn't the Novel Newsletter, it's Short Stories... but usually, when you're submitting novels, you're submitting them to potential agents based on a cover letter which includes a synopsis. If an agent is interested in your story based on the synopsis, they'll usually ask to see a full or partial manuscript, and then, if the agent likes it, they'll agree to represent your work to publishing houses. You generally do NOT "blurb" a short story-- that's something which is sort of unique to Writing.Com as a feature which allows the reader to anticipate the contents of an item here on the site. The cover letter for short stories does NOT usually include any description of the story except the title and word count, and is usually so the editor knows who to send the rejection letter to-- or the check! 
Celticeagle/km2007  writes:
I hate that 'stick the landing' thing also. I wonder if they do on purpose and feel the same way as we do as readers. But who would do that to their own work, right? I guess our heads are just in different places.
I'm not quite sure what you're trying to say here-- but endings are difficult, yes, and a poorly executed ending absolutely affects whether or not I consider sending a story "up the ladder" to the editors-in-chief at the publication.
{suser:elfindragon writes:
I'd like to say your "know your market" tip is definitely important but also interesting. In today's market many books are beginning to blur lines between the adult, teen, and even children markets. Take Rick Riorden's books with Percy Jackson for instance. They're meant for the "teen" section, or even slightly younger market; however far more adults are reading them. The same could be said for Harry Potter books. I, myself, have found a variety of books labeled as "teen" or "young readers" which I've enjoyed.
So the questions become not only who am I writing for, but who will read it? Is the story engaging enough for not just one market but two? Or more?
I don't think we can limit ourselves to just one type of reader any longer. People have found new enjoyment in "perusing the bookshelves", as I like to call it. We have to be more adept at catching the reader's eye in the first glance; "opening the story with a bang", as you put it. Nowadays, we have to be far more "flexible" with how we write. (one writer's opinion) 
Again, this isn't the Novels newsletter, so bear with me-- but the advice is meant more generally than that. As an example: I read for a magazine which calls itself "speculative," meaning that we want one or more elements of fantasy, horror, or science fiction in the stories published in the magazine. Despite being very clear about what is desired, many authors simply send in any old thing without even looking! I've read more than one story in our slush which had almost no fantasy in it at all. Read and follow the guidelines for short story publications, is the takeaway here. The type of genre-melding you're talking about is interesting and I'm actually addressing some of this in the Fantasy Newsletter a few weeks from now, but that's not what I mean when I say to 'know thy market.'
{suser:marvinschrebe} writes:
I won't nor can I speak for all editors. However I can speak of my experience as an editor and what I have heard other editors share: namely that writers have 15 seconds or two lines to hook an editor. Opening lines are VERY important!
Yes! Yes, they are. I usually give a story two to three pages to get my attention, since fantasy sometimes runs a bit long and I'm all right with that, but if I"m not invested in it by that point, it's probably getting a "no" from me.
I can't seem to find it but I could have sworn I had a piece of feedback about titles, where someone wanted to talk about how important titles are in getting someone to read your story.
Titles for your story, ultimately, are actually NOT that important, believe it or not! They're important *here,* on WdC, because a good title will attract readers! Ultimately, though, if your story is submitted for publication at a magazine, and an editor loves the story but hates the title, they'll often suggest a change for the better. We don't accept or decline stories based on title alone at the publication where I read-- the story is read for its merits.
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Short Stories: October 15, 2014 Issue [#6602]
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