In a guest post on Jane Friedman’s blog, Elizabeth Sims identifies 20 reasons everyone should write short stories. Here are a few of them:
- “Short stories force you to practice economy of language as well as of plot material. How can I write my scenes with maximum impact and minimal words? Which of these many elements I just brainstormed on is the most compelling? Which are kind of weak? Nothing tentative or irrelevant can stay in. That’s a tremendously fun challenge.”
- “A blank page is a blank page, but if you know it’s page one of 400, that’s one thing. Page one of 10 is quite another.”
- “You can try out different genres easily with short stories.”
- “Short stories let you experiment with different forms and voices at low cost. First person? Third omniscient? Even second person? Mixed, right in one story? What the hey, give it a whirl. See how it feels.”
- “A short story is a break from the demands of a novel, which can get to feel onerous. Writing a short story in the midst of a tough slog in a novel can change your mental scenery and freshen the wind at your back.”
Read the rest at the link below.
