Wednesday 26 June 2013

Short stories, novels and emotional engagement

I recently had a conversation with another writer about short stories versus longer forms, such as novels.  I enjoy reading and writing both.  But if I am honest, I do find it difficult to remember short stories that I have read, even though I would say that it is my favourite form to write (especially flash fiction). Is it because a short story gives us less time to get to know the characters and to make an emotional connection?  For me, memory and emotional engagement go hand in hand. In a novel we have time to develop a relationship with the characters. And if we fall in love with them, we won't want to leave.  We care about them.

Writing a novel is a huge emotional commitment - and a time consuming one.  It's a big task, in every sense.

And it made me think  - am I basically a lazy writer? Okay, so I have completed and published over 30 novels for children and teenagers, the biggest being only 35,000 words.  I don't think in epic forms.  I'm sure I would really struggle with 100,000 words.  When I write a short story it naturally takes around 1000 words.  I love the brevity of the form, and the discipline. The skill and joy of flash fiction, where you may have only 100 or 200 words to tell a tale, is a challenge I find highly satisfying.  Every word counts.  Every word has to earn a place in the story.

I'm currently reading The Collected Stories of Lydia Davis and am fascinated by the way she manages to take us inside the minds of her characters so quickly, and to leave the reader asking questions.

As a writer/reader/both, do you have a favourite form?  And is your preferred reading form the same as your favourite writing form?

Related post: http://janeayres.blogspot.co.uk/2013/05/does-size-matter-lydia-davis-wins-man.html


6 comments:

  1. I'm a short story writer at heart, although I am venturing into novels (the longest is about 50k, so still 'short')

    I also have a shelf full of short story collections that I love to read over and over - the stories do stay with me. In fact, I'm completely opposite to you, and I sometimes find myself unable to recall novels./

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    1. Hi Annalisa - if I think about it, I probably only remember a small percentage of all the novels I have read throughout my life, which is a shame. The ones that stick have memorable characters or premises, or some personal resonance. I have a less than impressive memory. If only we could recall like a computer does!

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  2. I am useless at short stories lol...my endings are so predictable lol ;)

    xx

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    1. Hi Vikki - I really enjoyed reading your short story on Readwave so do let me know when you put more up. I like writing different versions of stories with alternative endings - who says there is only one ending? :)

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  3. Probably just as well we are all so different!
    I have always struggled with short stories - for me, if a character/scenario are engaging enough to grip me, then I want to read lots about them, not run out of words after a few hundreds/thousands.
    The first novel I wrote came in at 200K words - the sort I like to read. My shortly-to-be-published debut is 128K, and I've just managed to get myself under control enough to finish one at 95K, but I don't foresee writing anything shorter than that, unless it is a novella about one of the minor characters in my full-sized fiction. That, I can see doing, because they will be an addition to the main story.
    I occasionally read short stories (my writer's group produce many, most of which sell to magazines), but I'm not enthralled by them, and I would never go out and buy a book of short stories unless I already knew the author.

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    1. Hi Deborah. And wow! How do you write so many words? I am in awe as I really don't think I am capable of that!

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