[Discussion] Short Stories

[Dr. Cakey]

Bit of a silly discussion topic, and a very broad one. I don't like short stories. It's just a personal quirk; I just get to the end of one and think "but y not 200 more pages?" Don't like one-shots or short films either. However, short stories have the notable advantage of being...short, as opposed to novels which are...not short. As a person/writer who has extreme difficulty finishing and/or starting projects, the medium has held increasing appeal to me.

 

The problem is that since I have so little experience with them, I don't really know how to go about writing one. The key problem is coming up with an idea (an idea that I want to write, to be precise) that's small enough to be a short story. My tendency - my rule - is toward fantastical worlds gradually unfolding and characters gradually developing over the course of a long narrative, which is pretty much the opposite of a short story.

 

Like I said, this is pretty broad. Discuss what makes short stories work, what can be told effectively with them, and other such sundries.

[mitchermitcher]

as ironic as this is i recommend borges' short stories. look up  the literature threads by hina in the literature section, those should be a decent place to start. they're very dense and highly intelligent short stories that put many novels to shame. i've only read like one or two so its not really my place  but that's a good start for short stories.

 

i would say that short stories are the primary medium for 'idea pieces'. if you have one singular idea you want to explore in some way, a short story is the most direct and succinct way to do so. if you're thinking of large expansive worlds or character development over time you are approaching things wrong. it has to be a single idea, like maybe one aspect of a fantasy world or the turning point for a character that changes them.

[LordCowCowCowCowCowCowCowCow]

Funnily I'm reading a short story book atm...Anyway

I find them quite interesting tbh. They can be hit or miss but the ones that hit tend to hit really hard.

I'll be honest I also really like fanfic oneshots because it's easier to get a specific idea without having to go through a bunch of potentially boring filler.

 

Though I did notice something when reading the book...Short stories tend to end sadly most of the time in my experience. Which is sometimes good but I'm of the opinion that sad endings are sorta...boring now. Plus it's easier to make something end sadly than anything else I find.

[Catterjune]

Also not so much a fan of short stories.

If they're good, I want them to last forever... which they won't cause they're short stories.

If they're bad... funk 'em, they're bad. Why would I waste my time with something bad?

If you want to write a few short stories but aren't sure where to begin, you could always write a series. Make them a few years a part, or have one vague central theme, and a solid stopping point every once in a while.

Just imagine your favorite TV show and realize that every 'episode' sorta is a short story from time to time. It has a good starting and stopping point, and all you really need to know is the vague premise. If you gotta explain every single time to get the story started again, then so be it.