@deadrats we may be defining internal (or interior) monologue differently. I've read a lot of short stories, and they almost all have it (I can't come up with any exceptions offhand, but I won't say "never"). Internal monologue can be direct or indirect. Maybe you're thinking only of direct internal monologue? That aside, I think you're right that another option, in between the two extremes, will be best. I lean toward not explaining, and I want to keep resisting that urge, but of course I want the reader to have a reasonable shot at putting things together. @tonguetied I wouldn't rule out the little sister ever breaking free, but my thought on her character is that she was at a key transition point by the end of the story, and failing to break away will dominate her for the foreseeable future. I want the potential turning point to be significant, and the fact that she doesn't break away to therefore also be significant and hard to come back from.
Why should the reader have to put anything together? That's really not what reading short stories is about. Readers shouldn't just have a reasonable shot at putting things together. You are giving them a story not a quiz. You don't have to make things complicated to be complex.
Why shouldn't they? I disagree with the assertion that this isn't what short stories are about. Many short story writers put the pieces out there and leave it to the reader to connect them. At least, in this is true in the realm of literary fiction. Maybe not so much if you're writing genre stories, but even there I can think of authors who do it. I like to read stories that you have to think about a little bit.
Then we're probably using terms differently, or else reading different authors. Most short story authors I read certainly leaves pieces for the readers to put together, to interpret meaning in what is being related. James Joyce, Raymond Carver, John Cheever, Shirley Jackson, Flannery O'Connor, William Trevor, Angela Carter, and so on.
I have read all these authors. They tell stories. They don't give clues for the readers to piece together. All I'm saying is you really need to have that clarity. Someone told you your writing was unclear. Maybe rethink your approach. It seems like you are afraid of being too simple, but that probably isn't going to happen.
I disagree. They do both. Those authors have stories open to interpretation because they aren't explicitly stating the meaning of the story. Carter has a story about a girl breaking free of traditional patriarchal notions of female roles and female sexuality, and doesn't explicitly lay it all out in front of the reader. It's a re-telling of Little Red Riding Hood, but the pieces you need, the symbols, actions, etc. are all there for the reader to use to understand what she's saying. Maybe you don't see this in those works, but that doesn't mean it isn't there.
I read something about this recently and it sort of got me thinking. I really do have this sort of 4,000-word comfort zone for my short stories. I've produced a few novellas that I had intended to be novels, but I seem to like 20,000 words for longer works. And my poetry is pretty much always 39 lines. Do you guys think you have a natural length you gravitate to as writers? And if so, what can be done to work around these or with them? I don't mind it for my short stories and poetry. I think it kind of helps. I write so much in those areas that it's like I've got a real feel for it. But I would like to write to a more average book length. I'm not really sure how do adjust my storytelling compass or whatever you want to call it. Any ideas? Can you relate?
I gravitate to novelettes and novellas (say, 12,000 to 25,000 words). I've only ever written one full-length novel, and my short stories always feel too sketchy to me - I keep wanting to fill them out more. This doesn't bother me at this point.
It's interesting to hear that someone else also unintentionally writes to this novella length. Any idea why this is true for you as well? I mean I've read way more novels than novellas. I've got something in the works that I really want to be longer. Maybe it will be, but my track record would suggest otherwise.
I am writing a novel and my scenes mostly are around 3-3.5k. That seems the length I am comfortable with, and gives me enough space to write my mini-story within this scene. I am quite satisfied with this length so I don't want to change it - but I don't know the number of actual scenes which my WIP will be composed of so I have no idea which length the whole mess will be. Long, I suspect
I never gave it much thought. As I said, it doesn't bother me that I gravitate to the novella length. I like the form. I like reading Joseph Conrad, Jim Harrison, and others who wrote lots of novellas. I admire long novels: they're rich, immersive experiences, and I'd like to write a few myself, but I don't think writing novellas is a problem.
It depends on what I'm writing. Novels 1 & 2 both came out at 105,000 words for their first drafts. The jury is our on what the finished length for both will be. Novel 3 feels like it's going to go longer. Short-stories, usually 3,500 words. To long to be flash fiction, but not long enough to do anything with.
What are you talking about? That's a very ideal length for a short story. Most short stories published in journals and magazines are between 3,000 and 5,000 words.
I write magazine articles (non-fiction) that length and those do get published, but I haven't found many avenues for fiction that length. A couple contests, but that's it. Nothing that pays more than a few hundred bucks a pop. Granted I'm happy enough to accept the money when it comes, but it would be nice to add a little more to it. Where are you submitting?
Again, you are so wrong about short stories that length. Pick up any magazine with short fiction and you will find the majority of stories are right around the same length as yours. I am talking about New Yorker stories, Tin House stories. Paris Review. One Story. Any journal or magazine, really. And some of those places pay quite well. You might want to check out a website called duotrope. It's an online database of basically every publication out there and includes how long they like their fiction as well as what they pay, how long they take to respond, acceptance rates and much more. Plus, it keeps track of all your submissions. You can search by fiction or nonfiction and even by word count. It's really great. It's $50 per year to have a membership. I think it's totally worth it. There are some free websites that have copied this idea, but I have found they just don't have all the same markets or are as useful. Also, you might want to read more short stories. The fact that you aren't aware that your short stories are an ideal length probably means you haven't read enough of them. You can never read too many, right?
You're right. I seldom read short stories and own exactly 3 anthologies. Mostly I read nonfiction & when I do read fiction, its generally novels.
I don't have a length for entire novels or stories, but the oddest thing is happening as I'm writing my novel. I use a separate file for each chapter and am finding that every single one (which usually incorporates one 'event') is coming in at 1,000, give or take 100 either side. It's not something I'm doing consciously, but every chapter I write always gets wrapped up neatly within a hundred words of this figure. It's quite bizarre.
Nice! Where do you write your article at? I've been writing some album reviews on Wordpress but I don't get much of an audience there.
In your opinion, what do you gals / guys think is the most formidable O challenges pertaining to the writing process?
Does it have to do with finding the inspiration to continue writing? If so, is it the constant / overwhelming challenges that you as a writer are faced with?
For me, it's starting a story. Sitting down to actually write is usually the toughest part. Once I've a sentence down, it starts to flow pretty well.
One thing I've found difficult is some of the research involved. A particular 'psychology' I've given a character is either a) not fashionable (which tends to make him/her either unlikeable or an anachronistic when it wasn't the intention) or b) completely wrong, in which case I have to reassess the character again. But I will go along with the others here and declare that just sitting down and doing it is daunting.
