Short-short stories (aka Flash Fiction) is really hard to write and make "shiny" or appealing to the inquisitive reader. The less words in a story the more important every word in the story is. That's probably why a lot of novelists find the short story a challenge. And that's probably why I, a short story writer, find the short-short (600 words or less) challenging.
Last night I wrote three short-shorts. (Note: I'm rarely that productive. I was having a creative night).
Bouquet: 397 words
Come Light: 82 words
That Night: 97 Words
(I'll go over them tomorrow before deciding if/where to submit).
The nice part about the short-short is that they really do take less time to write and revision is usually easier. Although, my first short-short story took two years to perfect and and topped out at 235 words. I have 8 drafts saved on my flash drive. This doesn't include pen and paper drafts. So, the moral here is: the short-short isn't easy, but it is just as fun.
Write on.
Comments (5)
I have a bunch of long stories in the making.. Took me 2 years to finsih one.. and that was only the first draft... everytime I try to revise it... I just get upset and think the revision is worse...
@ImUrKarma - I understand how that goes. I often feel my own longer stories are always in need of more revision. And often they are, but other times I am just nitpicking. Have you tried a writer's group / peer group for any of these stories to maybe help you figure out which parts may actually need editing? How long is your longest story and what is the genre?
If you want I would be more than happy to take a look at some complete prose and try my hand at nitpicking your work instead of mine own. Of course, I'll do my best to make my criticism constructive.
@darkgreenwriter - They are all hand written... ever time I have tried to start typing up one for a rough copy to start editing... I get fustrated... and just stop all together... Normally this is what causes me to NOT finish the stories LOL... However on the one story I finished in the back of the journal, I had people barrow and read and they all left comments on what they thought...
@ImUrKarma - Ah, I see. I usually type up a story after I've hand written it and then revise as I go. I then go through it and make two or three more drafts before I start letting people read it (otherwise it will end up being a grammar-focused reading rather than a content focused reading; while grammar is important it is the most easily fixed of writing problems).
My advice is to revise as you type and try not to be discouraged. Read/subscribe to some writer's magazines (ex: Writer's Digest, Writer's Chronicle) to get some general advice about writing. You'll find some things that help and eventually find a writer who overcame your own personal type of writing block.
If I lived in Florida I'd give your story a go-over. However, I'm stuck in the Midwest. So, I'll just wish you good luck and encourage you to find the courage to take your manuscript and type. That's the your next step to reaching your full writing potential.
@darkgreenwriter - I might just have to start typing it up now... Considering I have the time...