Seanan McGuire (seanan_mcguire) wrote,
Seanan McGuire
seanan_mcguire
  • Mood: accomplished
  • Music: Kate in the shower singing 'American Pie.'

Adventures in short-story land.

I am primarily a writer of novel-length works. I could offer a bunch of babble about how this is due to the scope of my artistic vision, but a) a lot of my friends are short story writers, and would slap me, and b) it'd be crap. I just have trouble thinking in blocks of less than twenty thousand words. That doesn't mean it doesn't happen, just that when it does, it's pretty rare.

The fact that I recently got a rewrite request on a short story submission that was essentially 'please increase your word count' is thus hysterical.

I'm doing pretty well, by my standards; I've actually managed to finish two short stories to the point of submission in the past month (no word yet one way or another, which is entirely reasonable and understandable), and I conceived, started, and completed 'Velveteen vs. The Isley Crawfish Festival,' which is a totally new setting for me. Super-fun. Not only that, but it's a totally new setting where I have no desire to write a novel. Practically unheard of.

(By the by, there is now a 'velveteen vs.' tag which will index all the Vel stories. Because there are definitely going to be more of them cropping up over the next few months. I stretch my short story muscles! I force cranky superheroes to do things that they don't want to do! I am maybe not such a nice girl.)

I don't think I'll ever be 'a short story writer' in the sense that I naturally think in the format, but I think I can get better at achieving a beginning, middle, and end in under twenty thousand words. And that'll be a nice change.

I'm pleased.
Tags: contemplation, short fiction, writing
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  • 6 comments

ayoub

September 1 2008, 18:59:41 UTC 8 years ago

If I was going to do justice to a story, then I can manage it in around 1100 words... But it would be a simple tale indeed.

I'm glad you're pleased! :D

seanan_mcguire

September 2 2008, 14:26:42 UTC 8 years ago

Thank you!