Short Stories....

[tonic]

Anyone have any tips on writing short stories? I heard that the key to getting good or used to writing is just writing a bunch of short stories to learn. I mean I can write them but my problem is that I'm too descriptive and I make it so that the readers feel like they need more to the story. I mean I write it and it just sounds like one chapter to a bigger scheme which I am trying to get away from because I want to learn how to end a story when I need to. Well if you get what Im saying that's great if you don't well then you can glance away from this post. But mainly Im just asking for what the thread is called. Help on Short Stories Thanks,

[littlemissattitude]

I think that the best thing to do is to go and read lots and lots of short stories by the acknowledged masters. I'd say probably start with Ray Bradbury, Arthur C. Clarke, maybe Harlan Ellison ("When Jefty Was Five" is amazing). And definitely Stephen King. Anyway, those are some of my favorites. There are others out there. Also, out of the sf/fantasy/horror genre, get hold of a good college-level American literature anthology that has lots of short stories in them. Look for "The Lottery", by Shirley Jackson (although I'd call her writing horror), something by John Steinbeck, maybe "By the Waters of Babylon" by Stephen Vincent Benet, which is a great little literary short story that could be classed as fantasy or science fiction. (I'm mentioning these as they come to mind, so they aren't in any particular order and you might not find all of them in any one anthology.)


And don't just read the stories. Study them. Analyze them. And then try to do what they do.

Edit to add: You mention trying to write short stories, and thinking that sometimes there isn't enough to them. Notice, when you're reading short stories, that sometimes - maybe even often - there isn't all that much to a short story. That's the art of it.

[I, Brian]

Also, something I've heard frequently advised is to subscribe to short story publications in the genre - for example, Asimov, if writing sci-fi. That way, you can get a very good idea of the comtemporary market and competition. I would like to stress that recommendation.