Why book publishers love short stories
Short story collections are big business. Thousands of anthologies are in print with many more published each year. A quick look at Amazon shows 29,000 story collections listed. Of those, more than 3,500 are anthologies of stories by a single author.
That may surprise some short story writers, including those who’ve asked me if they have a prayer of ever getting the attention of agents and book publishers.
There’s a robust market for books of stories
We know that avid readers love short stories. Short stories are easy to digest, and can provide a little emotional sparkle or epiphany in one quick take. That’s particularly true in these busy techno multi-tasking, attention-deficit times, with readers seeking the revealing, surprising, twisting, inspiring or ironical dose of feelings that can illuminate the truth about their lives.
That said, most of the large circulation serious short fiction magazines like Smart Set, American Mercury, Colliers, and the Saturday Evening Post are gone now.
But there are still a handful of national magazines like The New Yorker and Esquire publishing short literary work. Just this week Vanity Fair posted a short story excerpted from Look at the Birdie: Unpublished Short Fiction, by Kurt Vonnegut, coming out October 20, 2009 published by Delacorte, an imprint of Random House, Inc.
Literary journals publishing short fiction
Then there are the hundreds of smaller journals listed from A-Z in the NewPages Big List of Literary Magazines. These range from the African American Review, which has published short fiction by writers like Toni Morrison and Ishmael Reed, to ZYZZYVA, the San Francisco based journal founded in 1985 by editor Howard Junker. ZYZZYVA has published 241 first time authors, including F.X. Toole, who at 69 wrote the stories that inspired Oscar-winning film Million Dollar Baby, directed by Clint Eastwood.
For a roundup of a dozen literary journals publishing short fiction, take a look at the November issue of Writer’s Digest Magazine. You’ll find background information and tips to getting published from the editors of McSweeney’s, Chicago Review, Zoetrope: All-Story, and many others.
Book publishers take chances on new writers
Agents and editors search these literary journals and magazines for new authors. And every year publishers take chances on new writers who aren’t particularly famous yet, but end up surprising everyone with a big hit.
For example, Farrar, Straus and Giroux just this year published Everything Ravaged, Everything Burned, a debut collection by Wells Tower, which has been highly praised and is enjoying good sales.
It’s true that agents and publishers hope that the short story writer will also produce that blockbuster novel. And it happens.
Annie Proulx, author of the short story Brokeback Mountain which originally appeared in the collection Close Range: Wyoming Stories, also won the Pulitzer for her novel Shipping News. Richard Ford, who wrote the short story collection A Multitude of Sins, also wrote the novel Independence Day. Michael Chabon, author of the short stories A Model World, wrote the novel The Amazing Adventures of Kavalier and Clay.
Short story collections can sell very well
Sales numbers can be big enough for short stories on their own. There are many successful examples each season.
Just this year, Random House sold around 329,000 copies (according to BookScan, which captures about 70% of all cash register sales) of Elizabeth Strout’s Olive Kitteridge, winner of the 2009 Pulitzer Prize for fiction, for the set of 13 linked short stories about a grief-stricken family set in a small town on the coast of Maine.
That should give every short story writer a boost.
And in the same period, Vintage has sold around 210,000 copies of Unaccustomed Earth, Lahiri Jhumpa’s collection of related stories about the fate of immigrant Bengalis in America, since publication in April.
Remember these inspiring words
So have heart, short story writers everywhere, and remember the wonderfully inspiring words of Howard Junker, the editor of ZYZZYVA, who publishes a great deal of short fiction by new writers:
“Once upon a time in the wilderness of the slush pile, there were many lone voices crying out to be heard. And some were.”
The short story as dress rehearsal
Many writers use short stories as a technique to try out ideas, new narrative styles, and potential rehearsals for a novel. F. Scott Fitzgerald wrote a wonderful short story called Absolution, published in American Mercury in 1924, widely understood to be a portrait of the young Jay Gatsby, prior to growing up and transforming himself into the protagonist of the classic The Great Gatsby, published in 1925.
Isaac Bashevis Singer, winner of the Nobel Prize for Literature, wrote several stories about Jewish refugees of the holocaust in New York City after World War II. Among them, A Wedding in Brownsville and The Cabalist of East Broadway and others appeared originally in the New Yorker, Playboy, and Esquire. These New York stories eventually evolved into his best-selling novel Enemies in 1971, then filmed by Paul Mazursky in a widely acclaimed film starring Ron Silver, Anjelica Houston, and Lena Olin.
Similarly the stunning young author Junot Diaz first published Drown in 1996, a collection of stories about his early youth in the Dominican Republic and then adapting to life in New Jersey, and used the same autobiographical material in his novel The Brief Wondrous Life of Oscar Wao in 2007, which won the Pulitzer Prize in 2008.
In a twist on the syngergistic relationship between short stories and novel, author Tim O’Brien won the National Book Award in 1979 for his Vietnam novel Going After Cacciato, then later published what was a thematic collection of short stories on the same Vietnam experiences, The Things They Carried, in 1990.
Other literary giants like Eudora Welty, J.D. Sallinger, and John Updike have also used short stories as rehearsals and sequels for longer work.
Writers need to answer this question
What all veteran and aspiring new writers need to ask themselves first and foremost, what is the best form for the core idea in question? Is it a finite, self-contained episode in time, a precious gem on its own that needs nothing else around it? Or could it be perfectly readable in one sitting but also the kernel of something that could eventually become longer and more complex, i.e. a novel?
For more details about short story contests, conferences, magazines and journals, take a look at the annual Writers Digest Novel & Short Story Writer’s Market and the online directory Duotrope Digest.
Are you a short story writer?
Tell us about your own short stories and how they fit into your literary plans for the future.
October 13th, 2009 at 1:22 am
Hullo,
I write short stories. I also write novels and poetry. I’m not sure I have a grand plan. I want to write, so I do. I would like to get published, so I’m trying. I recently started sending of queries and approaching agents. I am from the UK but I live in NZ. I have to say, there do not seem to be any UK agents receiving short stories with open arms. I have sent my short story collection tagged onto my sales pitch for one of my novels now. I’ll see where that gets it.
My short stories are diverse in style and subject matter. Each of the three novels I have written are very different, in both content and style.
Britain reads a lot of US fiction, but I don’t believe that the US has the same level of interest in UK fiction, but is this accurate? What are the stats?
Regards,
Rachel
October 13th, 2009 at 2:52 am
It’s lovely to read a blog post with such an optimistic title! As a short story writer (The White Road and Other Stories http://www.thewhiteroadandotherstories.com is published by Salt Modern Fiction) and editor of The Short Review http://www.theshortreview.com, which reviews short story collections and anthologies (new and older, across all “genres”), it warms my heart that someone is emphasizing the positive rather than subscribing to the “poor poor short story” school of thought. We are offered collections almost daily for review for The Short Review, and, as you say, there are thousands of magazines for short story writers to submit to.
For me, I don’t see the short story as a stepping stone to anything: would you ask a poet if they planned to write a screenplay? The short story is its own entity, it can do things no other form can do, when done well. I read over 30 stories a month, and I can assure you that many, many of them, especially the very short “flash fiction” are astonishing in what they achieve in one or two pages.
My short story collection has been surprisingly successful, which came as a shock to me, and now I find I am writing even shorter stories, and also some poetry. Perhaps it is the rebel in me, going the “opposite” way from the direction a literary agent would like to see me move! All I know is that I am loving it, and have no plans to write a novel. Short stories also lend themselves excellent to being adapted into short plays and films, which I have been doing with some of my stories.
More power to the short story writers, and thanks again for your positivity!
October 13th, 2009 at 5:24 am
Oh happy post! I write short fiction — flash fiction (1,000 words or less). I have always loved reading short stories, have enjoyed reading those precious gems that need no more telling. But I also have read short stories that make me want to know more and more and more.
Right now, I’m just writing. Reading and writing. And enjoying the process. And yes, writing short fiction is a way for me to “rehearse” my writing voice, to sit in a chair and try different styles and subject matters. It is hard, but also a very satisfying endeavor.
I do hope to be published. I do hope that my words are loud enough for the person sitting next to the slush pile to hear.
Will I write a novel?
Anything is possible.
And your post does give one hope.
Thanks you!
October 13th, 2009 at 5:50 am
I have a short story series that I am working on. It is young adult fantasy. I started it as a short short but would like to flesh it out. The series will be 5 stories long (3 of the 5 are on paper). I have an idea for a second series using the same characters, perhaps 3 stories long. I also write novels and have 4 ideas in various stages. They span several genres and the first I hope to complete next year.
October 13th, 2009 at 5:52 am
I agree with all that you have written, with one exception – new writers. I would suggest that for new writers short stories are NOT a good way into publishing. In fact, I would suggest that new writers are better off giving away their short stories for free in order to build a following. Then, once they have won the Pulitzer they can publish a best selling collection.
October 13th, 2009 at 5:52 am
This gave me some interesting food for thought.
I’m a novelist and a mother, so in the limited time I get to write each day, I devote all of that time to full length fiction. I now see the value of spending time on short pieces. Thanks for pointing that out.
October 13th, 2009 at 5:55 am
I’ve been following your blog for a few months, and am thrilled to read your thoughts on this, as short stories are an important part of my writing life at the moment. Three months ago I started a short story club on my writing blog in which anyone can suggest an idea for a story when I call for ideas once a month, then I pick one that resonates and write a story in response. It can be an opening line, a concept, a title, whatever. Only members can read the stories (membership is free, I hasten to add) and the person who suggested the winning prompt gets to read the story before everyone else. When they tell me they’ve read it, I send it out to all the members and the cycle begins again the next month. The commitment on the part of the readers is incredibly small; they don’t have to submit ideas if they don’t want to, and the only other one is to read the story for each month (again, no pressure to do even that).
I started the club for several reasons, the principle ones being the realisation that I write my best short stories to prompts (discovered from winning my website design from a short story competition with a prompt) and the need to discover whether I could write creatively to deadlines, with people waiting to read them (good training for an aspiring author, which I was at the time of starting the club). It helps with procrastination, is building a great community of people that enjoy my writing and I plan to collate them all into an anthology in about a year’s time.
Since starting the club I have recently secured a deal for my debut novel with a new small press in America (I am British, living in the UK), so the other advantage is that I am already engaging with people that love my writing, so when the book is released, I’ll be able to tell them first, and they will trust my writing can entertain them already. I’m so excited by the response the club has received so far (almost 60 members) and it has done wonders for my productivity, writing process and self-confidence; it has enabled me to really understand what the creative process is like for me, and grow to trust it, so I would heartily recommend a regular writing commitment to other writers out there. And, of course, I’d love people to come and join in (I’d die and go to heaven if you were one of them Mr Rinzler, but I understand you’re a busy man!)
Short stories also focus particular skills that can also be transferred to novel writing, such as ensuring that every word is powerful, and that the writing is tight. I love it. Hooray for short stories!
October 13th, 2009 at 6:51 am
I used to write short stories… and quite a lot. Now I tend to write more articles instead. But reading this post has sparked a sense of how I miss writing short stories again. Thanks
October 13th, 2009 at 7:00 am
Why you don’t need agents/publishers:
http://www.bostoniamagazine.com/fall09/kirsner/
October 13th, 2009 at 8:15 am
I’ve published a lot of mystery short stories, and they’ve done a lot for my career. For one, I’ve gotten a number of mystery awards and = nominations for short stories. (In fact, I’m nominated for two that will be given at Bouchercon later this week.) Plus I’ve had readers and editors tell me they first encountered my short stories, then hunted up my novels. After publishing a short story in ALFRED HITCHCOCK MYSTERY MAGAZINE, I got an e-mail from an Italian publisher who wanted to read my most recent novel. He’ll be bringing out an Italian translation of that book later this year.
Will I be writing more stories? Absolutely. I’ve got three on my projects list right now.
October 13th, 2009 at 8:50 am
As a lover of short stories, I was amazed when “experts” at writers conferences repeatedly preached that there was no market for short stories. Always a skeptic of conventional wisdom, I wrote them anyway and am very pleased with the sales of my collection of Austen-inspired short stories, “Intimations of Austen” (http://www.amazon.com/Intimations-Austen-Jane-Greensmith/dp/1435718895/ref=gfix-ews-form). The Austen industry churns out so many P&P sequels, prequels, and what-ifs, but I started writing my stories well before most of them hit the street and I’ve been able to tap into a desire to read more than just P&P works by the ever-growing audience of readers who love everything Austen.
Moving on from Austen, ghost stories in particular work well in this format, as do psychological sketches. Daphne du Maurier was the queen of the psycho-thriller short, and so many of the classic writers used the format brilliantly. Glad to hear that the short-story anthology is making a comeback.
October 13th, 2009 at 9:41 am
I have written a few short stories, and a few novels, hoping to have either published. I had thought that the best way into getting an agent would be to have some publishing under my belt (short story publishing, that is). And I was disheartened when I first tried to find suitable magazines for my work, but after this article, I am feeling much better. I just wanted to thank you for the information, I hope it helps me find a place for my work.
October 13th, 2009 at 9:54 am
Very encouraging, thank you. My summer writing project, now extending into the fall, is a short story collection centered on the theme of pagan goddesses. I thought I was writing it for myself just for fun. With your information I ask myself “Why not put it out there?” Frankly I suspect my short fiction is better than my novels.
October 13th, 2009 at 10:14 am
I could not agree more. I set out to write a novella about the Holocaust. By the time I was finished, it was 524 pages (with shrunken font). That made the book a more difficult sell. Eventually, I was published by an Israeli publisher that specializes in Jewish and Holocaust-related books. But even then, my publisher was not pleased with the length of the book.
Authors must also acknowledge that lengthy books are more expensive to print and require higher pricing. Higher-priced books are more difficult to sell. And, fewer readers are willing to tackle lengthy books, further reducing sales potential.
In the end, I decided that my Holocaust tribute would be just as long as necessary. I did not anticipate the book would be published when I wrote it. In fact, I write as a hobby, not as a vocation. So, I was willing to make the novel as long as needed to convey the story. But writers who expect to earn a living from their books should focus on short stories and novells, rather than epic novels that may be difficult to publish and to sell.
Charles Weinblatt
Author, Jacob’s Courage
http://jacobscourage.wordpress.com/
October 13th, 2009 at 12:14 pm
Excellent post- I tend to agree w/ Bubble Cow- for new writers, short stories are best for literary magazines and as blog posts to drum up interest in the writing, which can then drum up sales of debut novels. There are quite a few publishers looking for short story anthologies, as well. Another fantastic attribute of short stories is that they are very easily adapted into film scripts, whereas larger novels have to be heavily cut-down to fit into a 110-page script.
The short story lives!
October 13th, 2009 at 1:32 pm
Though I think the overall outlook for short story writers is quite mixed, I appreciate your glass-half-full take on things. Yes, there is a collection or two each year that sells well. There are also highly-touted collections (such as Charles D’Ambrosio’s “Dead Fish Museum” a few years back–most of the stories published in the New Yorker, nominated for a National Book Award, etc) whose sales are comparable to poetry. But on the other hand, there are lots of places that will publish (if not necessarily pay for) short stories, and there is a loyal if limited audience for them. I myself am particularly drawn to the novel-in-stories format (“Olive Kitteridge” is a recent example), which in a sense allows for the best of both worlds.
October 13th, 2009 at 7:56 pm
I love writing, and the short story is my favorite medium. You can explore concepts that can’t stretch a whole novel, use unique formatting/style/POV that would get annoying in a longer work, and see what you really can accomplish in a small amount of words.
The only thing that is bad about this freedom is, if you’re like me, you stretch the limits of subject and form to the point of making a story homeless. But that doesn’t stop me from writing what I love. The world will wise up one day.
October 14th, 2009 at 5:17 am
What an awesome post!
I started writing short stories–by the advice of certain writers magazines and blogs–as a way to get my foot in the door so I could eventually land a publishing deal for my novel. I say now, with a shameful bow of the head, that I didn’t take it at all seriously when I sat down to write that first short story. It was something I saw only as a stepping stone, inferior to novel-writing, and intended it to be a short-term venture.
Well, as I wrote, that story became as important to me as my novel! I’m happy to say the story was published, and even won Editor’s Choice
. I’ve published several short stories since then, and the thrill of receiving an accepatance letter has not lost its magic.
I now rightfully see short stories as an artform in themselves. It takes skill to pack an entire story–with depth and nuance–into a few pages (or in some cases a few paragraphs).
October 14th, 2009 at 7:17 am
I specialize in writing action-adventures & mysteries especially for tween boys. This lead me to write a short story that was included in “Lay Ups and Long Shots” from Darby Creek publishing. That book became a pick by the Junior Library Guild. Boys’ Life is considering another of my short stories for boys, and one was just accepted by Guideposts Books.
Short stories are a means of increasing name recognition. They also provide an opportunity to write, while we wait for our full-length manuscripts to find publishing homes.
In addition, writing short stories has opened the door for me into the picture book arena.
Max Elliot Anderson
October 14th, 2009 at 7:34 am
Well that’s goo news! I’m not wasting my time, then!
October 14th, 2009 at 7:45 am
I’m a short story writer – with over 100 pieces in print, I especially like writing twist mysteries. I’m delighted to see this optimism for the short story. I think it’s the ideal read for anyone with a scattered schedule or an appreciation for an immediate and satisfying experience. I teach a workshop in short story writing, and I have to say I particularly love teaching the very young who have such vivid imaginations and the not-so-young who have such a wealth of experiences.
No novels in the works for me, though. I keep stopping after 2,000 words to say, “Is it done yet?”
October 14th, 2009 at 8:03 am
Response to comment #1
Hi Rachel-
I don’t have stats regarding US readers’ interest in UK fiction but I do know that many books by British authors do very well here. Ian McEwan published two short story collections before winning the Booker Prize for his novel “Amsterdam” (BookScan sales #s: 142,734 trade paper, 14,723 hardcover), then even more acclaim and sales for “Atonement” (BookScan: 231,921 hardcover; 1,275,498 in two trade paper editions, 425,693 in mass market paper), which was also filmed with great success. Not to mention JK Rowling and the continuing best-sellers Agatha Christie, Dick Francis and,my favorite, John Le Carre.
-Alan
October 14th, 2009 at 8:05 am
Response to #5
Hi BubbleCow -
It definitely helps to win a Pulitzer Prize, and I agree with you that new writers should indeed give away their short stories to build a following. But publishing in a magazine or literary journal can also get the attention of agents and editors and lead to a short story collection.
-Alan
October 14th, 2009 at 9:16 am
I really don’t think new writers should give away their short stories. That implies their work isn’t worth anything. Always aim for a paying market. That doesn’t mean you expect to earn a fortune for your work. That’s unrealistic for most new writers. But at least a token payment shows respect.
I have stories in quite a few anthologies and am as proud of them as I am of my novels.
Jacqueline Seewald
THE DROWNING POOL, Five Star/Gale
THE INFERNO COLLECTION, Five Star hardcover, Wheeler large print
October 14th, 2009 at 10:16 am
Great post. I have published over 60 short stories online and in print. I have a half dozen in anthologies, too. But I have done it too long. In trying to write novels, I am handicapped now by all the things I learned writing short stories–such as– not too many characters, not too large a time period, little arcs, not too much description/ My novels are too sparsely populated, too compressed, too short. I am a miniaturist in a large-canvass world.
My advice is to write a novel first, then learn to write short stories. I did get the attention of an agent with my stories-but not to publish a collection. He believed if I did one I could do the other. Very few short story collection on unknown writers are published.
So far it hasn’t worked out. But who knows?
October 14th, 2009 at 1:56 pm
Response to #24
Hi Jacqueline -
I can’t agree that giving away short stories implies that the work isn’t worth anything. Publishers have taken a long time to realize this but it’s now unanimous among us that giving away stories and sample chapters sells books. At Wiley, we’re giving away free chapters for every one of our titles on our web site. Just today, moreover, Reuters reported from the Frankfurt Book Fair, that “allowing readers to preview book chapters before buying has a positive impact on both print and eBook sales”, quoting Russell P. Reeder, President and CEO of LibreDigital.
My own opinion is that aiming for a paying market is precisely what you’re doing by letting people sample your work, whether it’s a book, short story, anthology, poem, or any other creative work. It’s the best way to show potential readers what you can do and for them to see if they like it.
-Alan
October 14th, 2009 at 10:44 pm
I don’t think that the UK reading market is really geared for short stories. I don’t have the stats, but I’ve never seen a collection of short stories in the top 50 at Borders. I don’t know anyone that buys them.
I enjoy writing short stories myself – especially the challenge of “micro-fiction” (less than 1000 words) and – more recently – “txt-fiction”. There is a great competition where you have to write a short story in 154 CHARACTERS or less (the length of an SMS text message)! It’s a really unique challenge. I’m not affiliated, but the link for thos that are interested:
http://www.txtlit.co.uk/ There’s a £50 prize every month for the best entry.
Finally, I’m an unpublished UK author currently working with Alan on a consultative basis. Why not check out my freshly-pressed blog at:
http://www.carlselby.wordpress.com
Add me, and I’ll be glad to return the favour and follow all of your blogs too.
Many thanks,
Carl Selby.
October 15th, 2009 at 12:49 am
Thank you, Alan. I am encouraged by your reply and appreciate you taking the time to respond.
Rachel.
October 15th, 2009 at 6:24 am
Great post. I just began writing short stories after finishing the first draft of my first novel. I’m enjoying the form because it forces me to keep my writing tight to convey ideas as economically as possible. At the very least, I’ll be a better writer for it while compiling a collection of stories. I’ve posted some flash fiction on my blog as a way to introduce those who visit to my work. As I get better, I’ll replace what’s there now with new stories.
October 15th, 2009 at 9:25 am
Giving short stories away doesn’t mean they are valueless. Try to find a publisher for your work first and get paid. If successful, after they are published, rights eventually revert back to the author. At that point, post them on your website as free content to draw more readers. A short story in a magazine has a shelf life of around a month. The same story can continue working for you for years on your website as advertising for your style of writing.
You can do the same with stories that didn’t sell. The caveat is make sure the quality is there, because maybe it didn’t sell for a reason.
Great post, Alan.
October 17th, 2009 at 3:23 pm
Hi Alan!
Thanks so much for blogging about this. As always, the post was a pleasure to read and a great resource as well. I am working on several short stories now with two goals in mind: One, to refine my fiction-writing skills after spending many years writing theater and non-fiction; and two, to explore various ideas and characters I have been considering for a longer work. I absolutely love the examples you gave, and the great information.
Thanks again!
Karen
October 18th, 2009 at 7:20 am
I have put a collection of short stories together and am currently almost finished the road to self-publication. I call it my toilet book . . . because it is flash fiction, a collection of short, two-minute reads. What better location to put this gem than in the bathroom? I called it Joy in a Box, but perhaps I should have called it Joy on the Pot.
October 20th, 2009 at 7:42 am
Great blog! I totally believe in using blogs to explore potential book projects, roels-story.com is an example in the non-fiction, self help field. Much of my fiction work is a mixture of genres that agents find hard to pigeon hole in a marketable niche. Seems counter productive when originality is the goal. In a world of lightning fast publication and communication it makes little sense to wait on agents to find your work in the slush pile and get back to you – now it’s all about connections in the traditional industry – and all about self-promotion in the new electronic media industry.
October 20th, 2009 at 7:30 pm
Thanks Alan for this great post. And I’m glad that you responded to #24, Jacqueline Seewald, with that response. Of course we want to get paid. But most of the really good paying markets aren’t even open to unagented writers. And the ones that are, have an acceptance rate around 1%. That’s really hard to break into. I JUST got paid this year for the first time – I won a contest at ChiZine for a whopping $250 (but i was very excited and happy to get it) and got another story accepted in Cemetery Dance for another astronomical sum of $100 against royalties for an upcoming anthology. It’s just not realistic. We could spend our LIVES trying to get paid, and never do it. Publishing online or in print journals is a way to get your work out there, build an audience, and hone your craft.
But it’s good to see that short stories are selling. I’ve published about 18 stories online and in print over the last two years. I have finished one novel, Transubstantiate, a neo-noir thriller and am shopping it now. I am about 35,000 words into my next novel, a neo-noir transgressive novel entitled Disintegration. I’m trying to find a press and/or agent right now.
Also, lets not forget the graphic formats, graphic novels and comics are very hot right now too.
Peace,
Richard
October 21st, 2009 at 2:49 am
Short stories play a role in the whole reading culture by being the small manageble dosses for those starting out as readers
October 21st, 2009 at 9:31 am
[...] a recent and optimistic post, editor Alan Rinzler points out that agents and book publishers read short stories and short story collections in search for new talent. I do not doubt that this is true. Given that Rinzler has worked in the industry for decades, [...]
October 22nd, 2009 at 8:47 am
I noticed, when trying to format my stories into forms, that they find their own forms. A story is complete when it is complete. Some stories are short, some novellas, some novels. Some adapt from form to form. What didn’t work was when I tried to force a story into a form it really didn’t belong in.
(i.e. Making a short story into a flash fiction may make it more concise and dramatic or it may leave it feeling more like an outline. Expanding a short story into a novel may work beautifully or it may just be so much filler that the novel length is dull.)
(Note: However, I have been encouraged greatly by the idea that this can change -possibly- when working with a developmental editor and that beginning from a smaller idea can begin something bigger/or different than one initially envisioned.)
So, being true to a story (and its innate form, if such a thing exists), I have been sad that it seems there has been a dwindling market for the short story and especially for the novella, a form I especially appreciate.
(Many of my favorite writers have a novella gem in their portfolio.)
Thanks, Alan, for this encouraging article.
October 22nd, 2009 at 8:52 am
PS Alan, I understand you have a background in screenwriting too. If so, I would enjoy hearing more in the future about that experience and if and how you work with screenplays/screenwriters as an editor. It seems many novels are turned over to different screenwriters for such adaptations, but also that a good number of novelists and/or short story writers successfully write their own screenplays too.
October 22nd, 2009 at 8:20 pm
Thanks for an interesting and encouraging article.
October 25th, 2009 at 9:12 am
I have a ranking system I use to chart my progress as a writer. I know it isn’t completely accurate, but it gives me a basic gauge to judge the quality of my work.
Publishing credits used as a writing skill meter:
Level One: free online publication
Level Two: free print publication
Level Three: semi-pro payment online publication
Level Four: semi-pro payment print publication
Level Five: pro-payment online publication
Level Six: pro-payment print publication
I’m barely reaching level three and when I can accumulate pubishing credits on this level on a regular basis, I’ll move up to the next level and start targeting those markets. I always send my best creations to Level Six and work my way down the ladder, after the piece has been rejected, because I feel one should always aim for the top, but I notice which bin my work actually falls into and that lets me know where I am as a writer.
Once I’m able to accumulate Level Five and Six publishing credits on a consistent basis, I suspect I may have drawn a readership along the way. My short-story collections will be more marketable if I’ve proven myself and people have read my work prior to the unveiling of a collection. When I do write a novel, after hard work and honing my craft, I will be more likely to produce a work of quality and present a marketing plan that will enhance my chances of finding a top-notch publisher willing to take a gamble on my book.
I don’t want to kid myself that I can write a symphony before I’ve mastered the art of four part harmony and orchestration. I don’t waste my time writing a novel that I will be embarrassed to claim as my child, once I’ve earned the title of professional.
Short stories that are truly well-written are rare, valuable jewels that will always be sought by collectors. I want my work to be valued and for that to happen–I must put forth the effort and practice. The short story is the perfect practice prose, in my opinion.
October 27th, 2009 at 7:20 am
I myself had tried my hand at writing short stories for kids. Let me tell you it is not easy. I’ll be honest; when I had finished my first attempt I did not know if my short story was good or bad. I had a website so I published my short story as free reading. I have found that this is very good method to get feedback on your short stories. In short if you are new to writing short stories get somebody to publish your short story for free on the their website. Get some feedback and then decide if it would be worthwhile to pursue publishing your short story. Let’s face it not all short stories are equal. Some will sell other will not.
October 28th, 2009 at 3:28 pm
What an inspiring post! It’s so refreshing to hear good news about short stories. I love the form and have had very limited success having short stories published. There’s not a lot of money in having short stories published, but it is an immensely gratifying experience. One drawback to being a writer of short fiction is when asked by non-writers what I write and I answer “short stories,” it generally results in a puzzled look or a shrug.
Thanks for the encouraging post.
Donna V.
October 29th, 2009 at 2:04 pm
Great Short Stories usually take us into a space we have never imagined before and leave us considering new ideas, excited, or evoke breathless laughter. Many writers write for the pure pleasure. I especially love the humor of Mark Twain and stories of country life, and the sudden twist of O’Henry. At middle-age, After getting my BA, major in History and minor in English, and having a few stories published by the university, short stories addressing the years 1910-1940 US east coast have become my passion. A book of short stories is my goal and am well past the amount needed, yet have not attempted publishing since graduation. I will shortly, but for now it is gratifying to send copies to those in their 90’s and watch their reaction. They are my encouragement. Everyone who loves writing should continue, if only for yourself or those around you.
Thanks, encouragement is always helpful.
November 2nd, 2009 at 2:24 pm
I consider W. Somerset Maugham to be one of the greatest short story writers in the same vein as Guy de Maupassant, but you never hear about him anymore. I’ve written a compilation of non-fiction short stories, but everywhere I see only fiction for the short story category. What genre does the non-fiction short story fall under? And what’s the best way to get it published? Any advice will be most welcome.
November 2nd, 2009 at 6:43 pm
Alan,
Great piece. And close to my heart as well. I actually hosted the short story writer Simon Van Booy for a reading on Oct 25 and used it as an opportunity to praise the form. [*Van Booy's collection "Love Begins in Winter" is stunning and just won the O'Connor Award...a very important new award for those of us who love the short story.]
Anyhow, I did want to mention that in your take on Richard Ford, Proulx, and Chabon….it doesn’t really make sense…
Ford wrote “A Mulitude of Sins” two books AFTER winning the Pulitzer. It is probably better to note that before “Independence Day,” he published the amazing colleciton “Rock Springs.” It was actually that collection and “The Sportswriter” that made his reputation…
Chabon is so-so…though, “The Mysteries of Pittsburgh” had already launched him…
And with Proulx, again, she’d already won the Pulitzer when “Brokeback Mountain” came out. So, not a great example.I’m not saying I agree with the idea that only established authors get to “play” around with the short story, but it does happen…like Richard Russo publishing that so-so collection “The Whore’s Child” only after so many novels and after winning the Pulitzer…which is sad cause, you know, his agent discovered him via a short story in a university journal!
So let’s just focus on better examples….
Like Lahiri winning the Pulitzer for a story colleciton BEFORE she wrote her first novel, “The Namesake.” You went right to her new collection, but left that out.
I’d like to argue that in fact more first time short story collections than ever are being published right now. What are your thoughts?
*Lastly, I just discovered the new collection by Lydia Peelle this past weekend. A first colleciton. Brilliant so far!
Best,
Joshua
November 2nd, 2009 at 9:57 pm
Hi Joshua-
Thanks for your very informed and thorough comment, with the added information about Annie Proulx, Richard Ford, and Michael Chabon. Thanks also for the latest breaking news on short story publication and prizes. I hope this encourages writers to realize that agents and publishers continue to be interested in and looking for good short story collections.
Re Proulx, Ford, and Chabon, I should have explained that they were novelists who also wrote short stories, and didn’t intend to imply that their short story writing led them to try a novel.
Meanwhile there are more short story collections by both first time and veteran authors every year. There are also more prizes. Check out Publisher’s Weekly and Publisher’s Marketplace on a daily basis, and you’ll see that good deals are being made as agents are selling and publishers buying short story collections.
-Alan
November 3rd, 2009 at 1:33 pm
Hey all…
I have written a few shorts over the years. Nothing published yet. The piece I am now in the middle of is a collection that will cover many years of fictional time (as well as real effort time by me). All of the stories in this collection relate to the same time line, but are not always connected in any direct way. Each story is intended to stand on its own, but some contain people and events for other stories of the collection.
I have two stories ready to submit as shorts (two more are very close), and the whole collection should run over 100,000 words by the time it is wrapped up as a book.
Just researching how to do the first submissions and found myself here… Good luck to all!
Ralph
November 3rd, 2009 at 5:21 pm
It would seem that the short story format is the perfect opportunity to leave them wanting more. There’s a lot of great info here. Thanks Alan.
Regards,
Martin
November 7th, 2009 at 6:36 am
For about 10 years I’ve been writing short stories on business, career and marketing as a way to communicate with my public and create my personal brand in the corporate world in Brazil (I write in Portuguese). First I publish them in my blog and then I take the best ones, update, adapt, add or modify, group them by subject and send to a publisher. So far I have 6 books published in Brazil.
The first 5 are out of print, so I got the copyrights back from the editors and published them on demand on Lulu.com and Createspace.com. My last book was translated into English and I decided to publish it also on demand. I own the copyrights for the English edition, but the original Portuguese edition, published by my publisher, is still being sold in Brazilian bookstores.
Here is the point: writing short stories gives me a faster reward feeling than writing a whole book at once. Besides that, blogs are a great tool to take my writing’s temperature in a more often way and check out with my readers which way to go.
November 10th, 2009 at 12:31 pm
Alan,
Thanks for your note. Between Simon Van Booy’s recent visit, his win of the O’Connor Award, and your piece above, I’ve been encouraged to work on a longer essay about short stories in America today.
I was wondering about your take on BookScan. You mention them in your piece about short stories. According to their web site, by the way, they now claim to capture 75% of sales, not 70%. Amazing how they were able to bump that by a nice neat, round 5%, ay?
Here’s my problem with BookScan: they kill debut books, likely short story collection especially. They offer too much “information” too quickly, thus seriously hurting a book’s chance to find its audience and catch on organically. With that said, I’m not sure BookScan’s “information” can be trusted.
Here’s why:
I have spoken with authors who insist that the BookScan numbers don’t line up with their royalty checks.
Let me explain it in round numbers:
Let’s say a book sells 100 copies. By BookScan’s claims, they would be able to capture at least 70 or 75 of those sales. So they issue a report…and then someone at Publisher’s Weekly says, “Oh, those are bad sales.” And writes a story saying, “John Smith’s debut novel failed to perform and sold just 75 copies.”
But then….John Smith gets a royalty check…and it’s for selling 225 books…
How can that be? You see? Who do you think is wrong here, BookScan? Or the accountants at a publishing house…where the last thing they’d ever do is OVERPAY an author?
This isn’t an example, but a very real situation presented to me off-the-record by a very “big” author (I’ll leave it at that, as I fear naming prizes, etc. would be inappropriate).
So, what is your take on BookScan? Good for the industry? Bad? Flawed? Perfect?
Thanks!
Joshua
November 15th, 2009 at 10:58 pm
I’m actually glad I stumbled on this post tonight. I was sitting in a production of The Fall of the House of Usher at the Nashville Opera this afternoon with my wife, and I had a great idea for a book. Unfortunately, it was for a collection of short stories and not a novel. I’ve been reading so much lately about how the short story is dead that I had all but given up hope that my chosen medium (I much prefer short fiction to both read and write) had gone the way of the dodo.
Sure, I’m no Kurt Vonnegut, so my chances of getting my stories in The New Yorker are virtually non-existent, but at least I see a professional’s opinion that reinforces my idea just enough to make me think I might actually have a shot (no matter how small!) if I actually get to writing it.
November 16th, 2009 at 3:04 pm
Hello,
I would like to post a sample chapter of my nonfiction story, and I do not know where to post it. I appreciate any suggestions.
Thank you.
November 23rd, 2009 at 7:56 pm
It is about a year that I have discovered I love to write. I started with children’s stories. It took me a while to realize the meaning of “write in the genre that you love to read.” For me it was science-fiction short stories. Since I started writing them many thing have fallen in place. I still haven’t published any but I’m studying, learning and applying what I learn. There is great pleasure in writing and reading them. I have this weakness that I tend to skip descriptions when reading a story. For me short stories seem the right size. As far as publishing, I’m sending them to magazines that I have devoured since I was twelve. Thanks for all the helpful information. I have learned a lot and am still learning from The Book Deal. Thanks.
November 27th, 2009 at 8:49 pm
But . . . is the writer from this planet?
For example, I’ve got one of those fat “Writer’s Market” books with all the listings of publishers and agents. I think about 5 agents out of a hundred or so claim they’re interested in taking short story collections, and all five of them are lying.
Am I telling it like it is or not?
November 28th, 2009 at 6:41 pm
Hi RG-
I may be an incurable optimist, but I’m not the only one. Did you happen to catch the good news for short story writers in the New York Time’s list of 100 Notable Books of 2009?
Here’s a quote:
“One heartening development has been the resurgence of the short story — and of the short-story writer. Twelve collections made our fiction list, and four biographies of short-story masters are on the nonfiction list.”
Check it out:
http://www.nytimes.com/gift-guide/holiday-2009/100-notable-books-of-2009-gift-guide/list.html?em
-Alan
November 30th, 2009 at 8:50 am
Guys,
Don’t believe the hype…
I too am incurable optimist when it comes to the American short story….
So much so that it sorta bothers me when the NYTBR spends a full 1/3 of a very brief introduction making the claim that their list somehow signals a “resurgence of the short story.”
Especially when you consider this:
The NYTBR 100 Notable books for the past two years (2008 and 2007) each include nine short story collections. Do this mean that when you go from nine to twelve, it’s a “resurgence”? And who’s to say that there weren’t three more great collections in 2008 and 2007 that could have been included? I mean, the 2009 list doesn’t even include Elizabeth Strout’s “Olive Kitteridge”….which is only the 7th collection of short stories to ever win the Pulitzer Prize. That’s not “notable”?
Further, if one looks back a full decade, to 1999, the NYTBR suggestion of a “resurgence” appears even more suspect….
1999 was a great year for the short story. Jhumpa Lahiri’s debut collection, Interpreter of Maladies, won the Pulitzer Prize; it was just the 6th collection of short stories to even snatch the award, and it was the first paperback original to EVER win.
But, even more interesting, is that the 1999 NYTBR 100 Notable Books list includes no less than 29 short story collections! More than double the twelve collections on 2009’s list!
So, we should be insisting that the short story is not having a “resurgence” because it has always been thriving!! People have never stopped writing short stories, and people have never stopped reading the short story. Enough already with the “resurgence” talk….
Joshua
December 1st, 2009 at 4:20 pm
Short stories are not only fun to read; they are a blast to write! These Are The Moments, a collection of short stories that I have just published, brought me over a dozen different characters, in different situations.
The idea for the book came when I was sitting in my living room one night, alone. I caught a movement out of the corner of my eye, but of course, there was nobody there as I was the only one home. I sat on the notion for a moment that I was seeing another dimension of life and that took my imagination away – but I’m not a SciFi type of girl, so I had to think in my terms of another dimension – this brought me to writing quick scenes of others life. A novel takes you through a period of time, a short story – or mine anyway, and most I read – give you a scene and leave you thinking about that person and their situation.
Typically my writing comes out of my life, but this time, I got to do what I had always wanted to do, and make it all up. What fun. What wonder.
Keep writing them, keep reading them, keep enjoying them.
December 10th, 2009 at 3:31 pm
Joshua,
I agree with you wholeheartedly – all this talk of “resurgence” implies that there has been a drought (sorry for mixing my metaphors) – and those of us who love short stories know that there are so many out there for us to read, a veritable richness and abundance. As the great Janice Galloway said to me a few weeks ago, you just have to know where to look. Exactly! A good place to start is The Short Review (http://www.theshortreview.com). We’re trying to make it just that little bit easier to find them!
Tania
January 21st, 2010 at 11:27 am
I have a short story that needs exposure. I am trying to to get it published. I do not know the best web sites available(those read by the largest nnumber of people both in and out of the publishing industry) for posting.
Can You Help?
Thank You
Phil
January 23rd, 2010 at 9:09 pm
I had my first fiction novel published , its not selling as well as I hoped , I have 5 more ready but can’t afford to publish right now .. If interested in reading it I would like your input on A better Ideal of how to promote it thank you wanda, (peace to the seeker) is the name of my book
February 22nd, 2010 at 11:14 am
I have a collection of short erotic stories with an emphasis on HIV education that I am self publishing called Keep Your Panties Up and Your Skirt Down. I have heard over and over how publishing a book of short stories is a bad idea. Short stories are my thing. It’s what I do! This article gave me more hope that what I am doing will be appreciated. Thanks!
February 28th, 2010 at 3:40 am
Howdy!!! from Texas!
I’d have to start by saying Jesus Christ Him-Glorious-Self, did not hit the ground a’runnin’ with long stories. You ever read any parables from The New Testament? Yes! Short stories is what they is! They give the character, setting, then to the point, to the story they go! One of the bloody Beatles once said they preferred to make their songs short, as to leave the hungry ears of the listener only half full. Keep ‘em comin’ back for more! Hello? Any one home?
I write because I love to. However . . . like most of you fellow scribblers, my goal is to eventually make a living at it. And I see that black, looming shadow of my first novel towering over my frightened head. But (like S. King), I don’t see me ever abandoning the short story.
It LITERALLY CHANGED MY LIFE! when I read “The Jar,” by Ray Bradbury! My God, buy “October Country,” Bradbury’s collection of shorts. Each story is a world. Why waste pages and precious leaves of paper on too-long-too-drawn-out plots, for The-Master-Parable-Teller’s Sake!!!
The thing of it all is (in my opinion) that before you can master the art of telling a 100K word story, you damn well better be an ace at telling a 2K story! If not, your story will find its home at the top of the slishy slush pile where it so obviously belongs!
The cream will rise to the top (after much and much churning), the crap (no matter how brown and porous and spongy) will sink to the bottom. Write stories because you LOVE to write ‘em. The money will be a natural bi-product of the talent, so sayeth the as-of-yet unpublished construction worker/best-selling author.
Good luck to all aspiring scribblers such as me,
Brad Neal Clark
March 2nd, 2010 at 9:11 am
Thank you for the article.
I write short stories, and poems. I have just readied a collection of ten stories, and am hunting for publishers and/or agents who enjoy reading my work. Born and educated in remote part of Nepal, I, of course, have picked up the events of Nepal life. however, I believe the plots and the stories at large carry universal implications. The quest, the title story of the collection, for example explores the two early twenty boys’ aches of not being heard. Even if adroit at their respective professions, they are agonized at having to listen to the jitters. The protagonists, Kiran and Prasoon, after a drunk gambol, meander along the cities of Kathmandu wondering why they frequently drink and conclude they drink at forget. when they reach at a knoll which boasts of the view of Kathmandu, they abruptly decide to call names at Kathmandu, a quagmire that has been able to ‘fuck us’. The story culminates at their being tired and Prasoon reaching a lesson “we are not complete. why da fuck should the incomplete vain shout?”
I believe the stories are really readable. Longer in size, the stories truly convey iconoclastic juggernaut that is about to spring up.
if anyone is interested to read them.
please email at prolificsantu@hotmail.com
April 6th, 2010 at 7:06 pm
I love short stories and have many collection sin my favorite genre of ghost stories, dark fantasy, Gothic horror. Its was The Bloody Chamber by Angela Carter that made me want to be a writer. But I just can’t keep them short. I wish I could so I could establish myself with short stories like so many authors and I really try to stay below 5,000 words. But then the ending doesn’t work or the motivations aren’t deep enough and if the story gets longer and longer. I could cut them down but then after all that work…
I suppose one could , in the interest of science, ruthlessly cut a story down form long to short and still and also so stretch it out again and make a novel out of it. Re-purposing a product so web 2.0.
April 21st, 2010 at 11:07 am
What an encouraging article! And it has engendered a phenomenal number of posts. The short story (collection or as individual items) is not dead. Yes, short stories can be the germs for bigger things – my published thriller novels The Prague Manuscript and Pain Wears No Mask started out as short stories! My western Last Chance Saloon started out as a short story. Yet some stories do all there is in their limited length, and I’ve sold over 90 of them. Long or short, it doesn’t matter, let the story write itself with your help and it takes as long as it takes – even if sometimes that’s booklength! I’ve sold over 20 stories about a single character and intend putting them into a collection and now I’m encouraged that perhaps there is a market for it after all. Thank you!
May 3rd, 2010 at 8:05 am
Hi Alan,
I’ve just discovered your blog and am enjoying your entries. Thanks for so generously sharing your experience and wisdom with emerging writers.
It’s heartening to read your assurances (and those of Joshua Bodwell) that short fiction is, indeed, valued by publishers. I’ve been working on a collection of linked short stories that all address medical ethics themes (the subject of my Master’s degree) and I’m wondering if it’s worth pitching the four highly polished stories I already have or if it would be better to finish polishing them all, then pitch.
Any advice?
May 3rd, 2010 at 1:13 pm
Hi Sarah –
Four polished stories should be enough to give most folks a good sense of what you’re doing and where you want to go with it, but have any of them been published in a literary journal or other periodical? That would lend credibility to your pitch. And are you send them to a publisher with no agent? I strongly recommend finding an agent first. It’s not easy but can be very helpful.
Do you know anyone who has an agent or publisher? Having a referral from someone they know can help get their attention.
Good luck! And if the four stories alone don’t work, keep writing and polishing. It takes a lot of effort to write well and get published.
June 18th, 2010 at 2:49 pm
I’ve attempted several times so far to write a novel, but have been unsuccessful to each attempt. Less recently but still the most recent, I wrote the beginning of a story for which I could not find a bridge into chapter two. I have remained stumped as to how I can proceed with my main character, or even where I want to take the story, knowing only that it needs to maintain the quality of power as the first (and only completed) chapter.
So for now, I was wondering if there was a publishing agency that worked with both short stories and novels so that I could publish what I have initially as a short story until I can move on with my writing and then later publish the finished work?
July 8th, 2010 at 4:30 pm
I’m…a storyteller trying to be a writer. I have all of these stories and ideas in my head, but no stable form of writing. I write and i write a lot, almost daily. I write short stories, novels, lyrics, screenplays, poetry what have you. most of my stories seem to go on forever and ever and i dont know if thats a good or a bad thing. i want to write so everyone can read and enjoy my stories…and i would also like to make some good money and make this my profession…how cool would that be right? making money from something you love to do…
August 18th, 2010 at 2:29 pm
I have written short stories for many years, my latest book was published by Xlibris. They seemed to like it, gave me a break on the publishing costs, and offered it in hard cover, e-book and paperback. It’s selling pretty well.