Writers are often told they should write short stories before a novel.
It’s true, with a caveat.
If you have no interest in short stories, and really, really want to write novels, you should.
You write for yourself, first and foremost. You write because it’s fun and because you have a story to tell.
This industry is full of conflicting advice from people with totally different journeys, as would be expected from an activity more art than science.
But a word of warning: many new writers who dive into their first novel are unsatisfied with the result.
They realize their skill level isn’t where it needs to be to tell the story in their head.
They get frustrated, bogged down, and end up spending years writing one book.
Again, perfectly fine if writing that book makes you happy.
But if you’re goal is to make a career out of storytelling and write novels for a living, there’s a strong case to spend time writing shorts first.
The main reason?
Starting with a novel means you will write 60 – 100 thousand words. If you are just starting out, you will improve while you write. That’s a good thing, except the writing quality may be different in act one than in act three.
The voice and style will likely change too. This isn’t bad, because you’re improving, but it will require more extensive edits than if you had some experience and maintained a consistent tone throughout.
These edits will be time-consuming. You’ll be tempted to spend eons rewriting and perfecting it because it’s your first book, and you care about it.
But doing so holds you back from your long-term career goal.
Writing short stories fast-tracks your improvement in the early stages, and gives you a playground to experiment and find your stride.
Short stories are a different art than novels. Character and conflict must be introduced more rapidly, and resolved faster. How you handle pacing, tension, and payoffs will be different. Some of these elements can only be practiced by reading and writing the particular form, but other aspects are universal.
- 1st person vs 2nd or 3rd
- Theme and imagery
- Eliciting emotion
- Wordcraft
These skills and others can be honed through short fiction without the significant time investment of the novel.
Few writers jump into their craft without studying in tandem. Some read books on character arcs and plot methods, others take courses. You’re in AuthorHQ doing exactly that right now.
Applying the lessons you learn from these sources is essential to continued improvement.
But so are feedback and iteration.
The novel process is a poor environment to receive and act on feedback in a timely manner. Most authors keep their writing hidden until they’ve written and edited the entire thing and pass it off to beta readers for feedback.
This interrupts the flow of studying, practicing, and refining necessary for rapid progress.
Short stories allow you to learn a writing technique, experiment with it, and receive feedback quickly. You assess areas for improvement and apply your learnings to the next story.
This develops your creative skills and your analytical abilities at the same time.
And because they’re short, they’re easier to finish.
Finishing gives you confidence and momentum, which will help you write more in the long run.
Approaching short stories with the mindset of improvement will help you detach from the emotional investment novels instill in us.
Some will be bad, but others will be good.
Each is a learning experience and yields improvement. This is freeing, and gives you room to have fun.
You can experiment writing in the style of authors you admire.
You can explore genres and tropes you otherwise wouldn’t have.
This alone is a valuable activity, since some of the best stories blur the line between genres, and twist our favorite tropes on their head.
You’ll figure out what you enjoy most, and it might not be what you thought when you first picked up the pen.
There’s also no obligation to pursue publication for your short fiction. The main goal is to practice and improve.
Ursula K. Le Guin said:
Beginners’ failures are often the result of trying to work with strong feelings and ideas without having found the images to embody them, or without even knowing how to find the words and string them together.
You have strong feelings and ideas to explore. But if you worry your skills aren’t able to do your novel justice at this point in your journey, use short stories to practice your imagery, wordcraft, and other universal writing skills.
Study techniques you want to learn, practice them, and get feedback so you can refine your abilities.
Finish multiple stories to build momentum and avoid tying your self-worth as a writer to any one project.
Use short fiction as a playground to develop your professional skillset. Get accustomed to your craft, then tackle the big project with confidence.
But remember, above all, to enjoy the process.
Happy writing!
If you adopt this strategy and also decide to pursue publication, read Submission Strategy: Shorts.
