Just Like Old Times.

I did something last week I haven't done for a long time.  I sent a story out into the wilderness.

In the past few years, I haven't done much fiction writing. A number of reasons, including undertaking my Masters online and the whole Covid thing, meant I just didn't have the time. Or the desire. And then once you lose that momentum, it's hard to get back.

But I did a quick polish on a story and sent it off. I was also quite pleased to receive an acknowledgement within a few hours. A lovely one to boot.

I sent out a story about 11 years ago and never received anything at all. I queried a few times, and still nothing. Technically, I suppose it's still with them.  They did have a submission policy which stated I couldn't submit a piece to more than one place at a time, so please don't let them know I've since sold it. They might not be happy with me.

It was great to get another story out, and to have that anticipation.  Will they? Won't they?  You never know. I might even send out another one.

Ideas A Plenty.

I've had a good run of ideas for short stories recently. Some are merely snippets, some are almost fully fleshed. All have gone into my writing journal.

I have no idea how many will end up getting used. I never do. And some that do get used end up being more of an inspiration, or a launching point, rather than the original idea. A piece of conversation I overheard on a plane (and noted because it was so ludicrous) will get used, but even the original conversants would never recognise it. It was idea of the silliness of the conversation I loved, even though the participants were earnest and serious.

One of the ideas has already developed into a few paragraphs, and I'm enjoying writing this one. It's a comedy piece based on an idea I originally had about a year ago, but mashed it with another idea I had a week ago. And they fit so well together it is as if it was meant to be.

Writing comedy is difficult. Humour is so subjective that you can never be really sure how well it is working until a range of readers tell you. I've been fortunate in my attempts, and my biggest sale was a humorous piece which garnered good reviews, comments and even a mention in a recommended reading list.

But the main thing is the ideas have been flowing, and I'm working at whipping them into shape and pushing them out into the wild world.

Wish me luck.

Words Are Flowing Out Like Endless Rain Into A Paper Cup.

The piece I mentioned I've been struggling with has now been put on hold. That story will still happen, but it's been difficult to get going and even though I got some words down, I'm not really happy with them. Instead I've moved onto another story.

Last week, while walking the dogs, I was throwing around a story title that I'd discovered while I was in China earlier this year. And I was suddenly hit by a narrative idea that matched it. As soon as I got home I sat down and typed up 1,000 words without any effort. Clean words, that will require little editing or rewriting. And the process since then has remained as easy as that. This is going to be a good story. I can feel it.

I don't think I could have written this story a year or so ago. I wouldn't have known to include the elements vital to make it work. It feels like I learn new truths about writing almost daily. Even this morning, I had one of those 'hit yourself on the back of the head' moments. D'oh!  While reading a short story, I recognised an obvious aspect of writing that's been missing from my own work. And of course it is something that had been mentioned to me previously, but that I hadn't really 'got'.

Ah yes, I'm quite optimistic about my writing future at the moment. How's your writing going?

Short On Words.

People regularly ask me where they can buy my book. Which is great, because it means the people I meet and have contact with are genuinely interested.  The problem is, of course, that I don't have 'a book' as such.

As a short story writer, my stories appear in anthologies and magazines along with a bunch of other writers. And so I have to explain this to the person asking. Usually it makes little difference, as they ask where they can get hold of ones of those books.

In the past week I've had four or five people mention to me just how much they've enjoyed not only my story, but the others in the book. They mentioned how it was nice to read something that could be digested in a single sitting. It's as though they've never really read short fiction before.

It's true that we don't teach enough of the short form in school (and there are explanations for that), but a colleague and I have made a concerted effort to try to introduce more into our classes.

And it seems as though the students, although puzzled at first by the brevity of text, are starting to enjoy and appreciate these stories.

Long live the short form!

Distant Lands.

Once again I'm teaching Tim Winton's short story collection, Minimum of Two, to my senior students. This is about the fifth year in a row I've done so. I never tire of it and the writing never gets stale.

Want to learn how to write a short story without a word out of place and no excess? Read these stories.

Distant Lands, The Water Was Dark And It Went Forever Down, and No Memory Comes just to name a few. Brilliant. Concise. Descriptive. Detailed. Emotive. The writing is superb. Efficient use of words and layer upon layer of meaning.

If I could write half as well as Winton.....

Sigh.

It's enough just to read these stories. Go ahead. As Molly used to say, Do yourself a favour.

A Novel Idea.

Yesterday, as an exercise for a workshop I'm currently undertaking with Dean Wesley Smith, I sat down and outlined a novel.

I consider myself a short story writer and I've given little thought to writing anything longer for the moment. I feel I need to develop my skills at the shorter length before I attempt anything bigger.  A novel not only means more words, but a bigger vision and world to write in. So I was very surprised at how I managed to get this exercise done.

And I was pretty happy with the result.

Not that I'm planning on working on this particular idea, but writing a novel no longer seems as unreachable as it did even two days ago.

And, I must say, Dean Wesley Smith is my new hero. If I could only convince him to come to Australia to run his Character voice and setting workshop here.