Stephen King on the Craft of Short Story Writing
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- เผยแพร่เมื่อ 19 ก.พ. 2013
- In this interview with Rich Fahle of Bibliostar.TV, bestselling author Stephen King discusses the art of writing short stories and short fiction, and the fact that many writers today forgo the short story to write the novel, sometimes before they are ready to navigate "the quagmire of the novel."
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Sure will glad to help:
1) Get ALONE anywhere and shut the door and hang a note on it "working". You must do this even if its for 30min. a day.
2) For that time set a goal either 30min. (as noted above) OR what I do is set a word limit 500 min.
3) READ! READ! READ! novels.
4) Get Stephen Kings book " On Writing"
5) Get the little book "The Elements of Style" by Stunk and White.
6) Have a light plot and just let the story develop on its own you will be amazed at the characters that just show up!
is this the right one? There are so many on Amazon. www.amazon.in/Elements-Style-William-Strunk-Jr/dp/020530902X/ref=sr_1_1?keywords=the+elements+of+style+by+strunk+and+white&qid=1579095719&sr=8-1
Reading is overrated. Write and you’ll find your style and polish your skill.
@@omardelmar I would say reading is underrrated. After reading the great gatsby, the handmaid's tale and the perks of being a wallflower i was able to write about 20 000 words in 5 days. When i can't read, i can barely write.
@Nes Ally how and why do you write if you can’t read? At some point you’ll read your work tens of times and if you’re writing a novel that means you’ve to go through all that. You just can’t write well if you don’t read. It’s just not possible
@@ryanmacharika3946 What that person wrote wasn’t even worth your intellectual response. If you don’t have the attention span to READ, how do you have the attention span to Write!?? It just makes no sense. I wholeheartedly believe that in order to be a writer, and a Good writer at that, you most certainly have to be a reader! And like you said, you will absolutely have to read your Own work an indefinite amount of times so there’s literally No way to be a writer without also being a reader.
Reading is Magical! ✨♥️📚
I appreciate that King shares his failures as well as his successes. Too many successful people forget their struggles and present their life as if it were charmed from the beginning. Even worse, some present their life as if they were always talented, but had to overcome great odds to show their talent to the world. Steve comes right and says that some of his worked was crap. He said his first few novels were so bad that he "didn't even bother revising them." I appreciate that, because I have been in that boat and I am motivated to continue developing my work knowing that even great writers produce duds.
"We all go out broke. Everything is on loan. You're not an owner, you're a steward . . . When you do have something, remember the people that don't." --SK
How's that boat sailing?
@Evan Hodge Free life-changing tips AND copy editing? What a lucky chap. Could you have phrased it in a more patronising way though? Or do you not have the _discipline_ to forbear?
I like the guy who makes this interview. He posses the rare ability to shut the fuck up and let the man talk. Too many journalists just constantly bombard the interviewed with questions or flat jokes trying to shine and ruins the thought stream.
Witold Krasuski hahahahaha so true! Well said.
Very true. If I interview one day, Ill keep this in mind.
Charlie Rose was one ...he would shuffle through his papers while the guest was talking and make odd unnecessary interruptions and laugh inappropriately at things implicating he is not even listening to the guest in the first place.
@Ethan: Amen. Charlie Rose was the absolute worst when it came to interrupting. He had a special knack for interrupting somebody right as they were about to say something interesting.
wow, an interviewver that actually lets him speak
My favorite Stephen Hawking book is Harry Potter and the secrets of dark tower
😂😂😂😂😂😂😂😂
That's not Stephen King's book and he is Stephen King not Hawking.😂😂😂😂😁
@@sanatantudu8216 Are you sure?
LMFAO 😂😂
That was funny
I'm 16 and I recently decided to stop my novel after being away for a while and losing motivation and continued with short stories. My writing has become so much more polished after my experience with writing the novel and I stay much more concise and motivated with my short stories, I've really found my calling
Gabe pRoDuCtIoNs Dont give up on it, but there is nothing wrong with taking time to revise it... sometimes you need time for clarity.
congratulations, you have concrete evidence if when you were full of shit, and pretended to have known the answers!
don't worry, you still don't have them ,yet
For Sale. Baby shoes. Never worn.
-Ernest Hemingway
I remember studying short stories in year 7 and that was one of the examples: shook me to the core that did.
baby shoes, for sale, never worn.
Plot twist the baby killed the parents and took their shoes
Excellent example of the power of a few well chosen words to speak volumes!
"First met when lost." -Gravestone Adirondack Mtn. cemetery.
I've been focusing more on flash-fiction between 500-1000 words, and it's ridiculous how much you can end up cramming into such a tiny space.
I love flash fiction. I've been trying to write some of my own, thinking it would be easier because of the shorter length. I was mistaken
Barry Allen is my favorite flash fiction character. (LOL kidding)
sounds like you wish you wrote novels
Night Shift was one of the first collections of Stephen King's that I've had the pleasure of reading. He doesn't write about death as much as the thoughts of others surrounding it. That's the wonder...
I really needed this. I have been writing a short story for a while now and was afraid to post it online due to the fact that everywhere I researched, it said that short stories were not valued much. Well, if Stephen King says its worth it, no one is going to stop me now.
One step at a time.....
I am the same. Does anybody know how I can get my collections, or even single stories, published for money?
In my opinion that's the way to go if you wanna be a writer. You won't run a marathon from the get go would you? It's better to take it one step at the time. At the end of the day a novel is just a collection of short stories with a common theme well putted together
Here's a story idea for you...
Imagine writing this apocalyptic world that has this crazed Mad Max/Elon Musk type of setting. To counter malnutrition from food (due to contaminated soil) the human organs have been upgraded with bio-tech filters, and the brain has this implant that runs on cold fusion (which is now stable) however, if the cold fusion cerebral injections become depleted, the people begin to go insane.
Death emporium markets exist, where citizens have to sell bits of their body parts as currency; to pay their rent, fingernails, flesh for groceries, etc.
The normal life expectancy is only about 40 (if they are lucky).
😆
call it practice, or call it the beginning of a collection of short stories - either way you're certain to be successful.
I’ve been writing for 12 years, writing novella-length stories for 10, and have written one full length novel. I’ve never been published and I’ve never tried to be published, even independently. I’ve just been enjoying the ebb and flow of it. There were hitches along the way, in 2016 I wrote maybe five or ten paragraphs at most. I was too busy working, drinking, and doing drugs. Got sober in 2017 and found my love for writing again, it helped me at a time when I was at my lowest and I’ll never forget that.
I’m working on my first “real” novel right now. I don’t know where it’ll take me, if anywhere at all, and I suppose that’s the joy of it. All I know is the process is extremely meaningful and it really is a therapy of sorts.
Enjoy the ride, I’ve been chipping away at a novel for two years and your story is similar to mine, in terms of drinking. My mind is a lot clearer now
Good luck my friend. You've been through so much you deserve success in this endeavor! 🤞
Steven King ... 69 years old ,hit buy a car in 1999 sustained broken bones in his right leg and hip, broken ribs, a punctured lung and a head injury.... still ticken....
Buy = by
What a treasure
...... does coke for some time, writes some weird shit. Still ticken
Ticken... or turkey?
Cocaine has restorative powers some say
Come to think of it,my favorite works by Stephen King have been his short story collections.
+Ethan Aked Probably not as it's all part of the same story, however, The Gunslinger was started as a short story, for a competition if I remember correctly, and had to use the first line "the man in black fled across the desert"
Night Shift,Different Seasons etc. were great.I haven't read the Gunslinger series.
I'm working on a novel and a short story right now. I'm looking forward to when they are finished.
R Lindsey can I read it
How you getting on with them? Finished I hope? ;)
Six pages a day baby! You can fix it when it’s done.
How is it now?
I see a few people have asked over the years to no response, but I'll try anyway... How you getting on?
I think we've got to give a lot of credit to places like Reddit. Their NoSleep section is crammed full of fantastic short stories. They're all horror also so it fits my bill perfectly.
thank you for making things about yourself
I’m currently working a 12 hour shift in a remote railroad signal box, it has 360 degree panoramic views. In front of me is the ocean and the sun is glinting on calm waters, behind me are mountains, I can see tiny white specs moving up and down the mountains (sheep). Either side are lush green meadows which produce vibrant beautiful colours from wild flowers in the summer time.
The signal box is an old Victorian wooden building. The old pendulum clock is tick tocking in a very mediative rhythm on the wall.
My dog is curled up asleep next to the old log burning stove . The wind is trying to make its way through the thin panes of glass which makes a beautiful haunting sound
The resident Robin is outside on the steps eagerly pecking at the bread & biscuits crumbs I’ve thrown out for him.
It’s a far cry from my last career in the city , I was well groomed and sharp suits , nice car and big house until one day ( 3 years ago) I saw the light after being forced to lay off some people at my company. It hit me hard & I just couldn’t live with myself anymore. I handed in my notice and walked out . The Universe came to my rescue and found this job for me,
now I have long hair & beard and look like Grizzly Adams . I’ve taken up painting with water colours and I’m regularly bringing my paint pads here to work.
I regularly have this channel playing in the background.
The only person I see occasionally is an old farmer who drives by on an old open top tractor, he’s an old man with a flat cap, bright red face, his sheep dog between his legs with its front paws placed on the steering wheel .
I call him “ Farmer Jones” although I’ve actually no idea what his real name is.
He acknowledges me by raising his index finger off the steering wheel of his 1950’s tractor that has seen many many years of extreme mountain winters.
Both Farmer Jones & his old sheep dog stare straight ahead without flinching.
Where they go is a mystery as the the old drovers track goes on for miles way up into the mountains, they normally drive back past about 5.30pm and disappear back into the mountains in the opposite direction.
He’s a tall man with 1970’s hair cut , kind of reminds me of an old Clint Eastwood stature . I’m sure he must have been a very handsome man in his day . I imagine the local girls hoping to catch his eye on a Saturday night at the old village hall dance.
I’m guessing that there was once a Mrs farmer Jones but judging from the vacant stare of both him and his dog that they both experienced “ THE DAY !“ that life for them stood still” .
Mrs Jones was getting ready to leave their old white washed mountain top farm to do the weekly shop in the local town , she’d been looking at a fancy catalog which had arrived in the post and had been looking at a beautiful summer dress that she wanted to buy for their daughter who’d got married some years before and had moved to the city suburbs with her husband and had recently had a child.
As she was leaving she noticed a dead rat laying under the kitchen table . She thought oh thank god ‘Dylan’ the sheep dog finally killed that damn thing, it’s been raiding the pantry for months , he’s such a good dog considering his young age, I do love him .
Mrs J got into the old car which took a few turns to start and slowly made her way down the old drovers track towards what can be loosely called a road , she glanced up at the mountains opposite her and saw Mr J and Dylan as specs in the distance rounding up sheep. She loved them both with all the love of a woman’s heart.
She made her way along the road until arriving at a T junction of a main road , to the left was the local town however Mrs J turned right . ( if you asked her why she turned right on that particular day, all she could tell you is that …. All intention , meaning, thought , feelings just evaporated, “ I was a whispy summer cloud that drifts with absolutely no control , it came out of nowhere and yet I was connected to everything in the universe!! I just kept on driving , I wasn’t aware I was driving!!).
Mr J & Dylan had arrived back many hours ago from the mountains as it was getting dark , he knew something was wrong as did Dylan , both fearing the worst . The phone line was down as usual but he’d managed to get the word out that Mrs J was missing.
3 days go by and Mr J looks at the open page in the catalog and think … You stupid man, I should have bought her something fancy !! I should have noticed, he wipes away a tear .
Dylan noticed the rat he killed for his mama and had left it there so she could see she didn’t have to fret no more about it eating food from the parlour. Dylan thought .. it’s my fault she left I should never have left that rat in the kitchen.
THE DAY !!
Fast forward many years and that vacant stare is still there as they both go over that day forever
. Mrs J found herself in the suburbs of a City she’d only visited once and followed a vaguely familiar road until she arrived and parked outside a vaguely familiar house.
Marie her daughter was playing in the front garden with her new 1 year old child , something made her look up and notice an old beat up car parked on the road just in front of the gate. A female telepathy kicks in “ She knew “
she walks to the car and opens the driver door . The Female glance of eyes meeting for a split second carries more information than any Male could ever comprehend nor fathom.
No words required, Marie took her mother by the hand sat her down at the kitchen table whilst she prepared the spare guest portion of the house .
Mrs J stayed for a month until she left with a note to her Daughter “ Thank you “ !!
. Mrs J these days is still with us but not with us . THAT DAY she dissolved back into the universe !!
so Anyway, I’ve another train coming so I’d better go and pull a signal lever !!!
I Look at the passengers faces as the train passes by, some have their heads in their phones , some stare emotionless out of the window , lost in their thoughts as life takes them on an individual journey of lost lioves, love, despair, anger , worry , contentment.
It’s a journey we all must make …God speed to you all ❤️🙏🙏🤷♂️
The plot is everything. Planning is almost everything (it can change as the story develops). The difficult part is taking your reader on a journey of discovery-about the protagonist and about themselves. Short stories are the tops.
As someone who primarily writes short fiction (short stories and chapbooks), I love this. Stephen King is a master with both short fiction and novels, and whatever you wish to write, you can learn a lot listening to him discuss the craft.
I'm so happy that he mentioned Raymond Carver - My fav short story writer.
Just stumbled onto this site as I have been writing short stories for some years now. Many of which have never been completed. I come up with an idea for a story and put the scenario on paper. It will just sit there and the I come up with another story. I have at least 6 stories in their infancy. I'd like to get motivated to complete one. I have had to cease work due to health. I'm 60 and think that with all the free time I have now, I could pull my finger out and begin my adventure.
Stephen King has had an extraordinary life and career and I want to pinch my nose when I read a couple of your remarks. A real craftsman.
This man is my writing hero!
I like the "Different Seasons" anthology.
I've been rereading "On Writing" again. About half way through. Good for copywriters and always love the insights.
+Small Biz Geek I found Different Seasons to be some of his best early work! Shawshank Redemtion and The Body are classics in their own right
Small Biz Geek
The green mile was one of his best works. The movie also was phenomenal.
I always start out with "this would be a great novel" and it ends up being a short story is what happens to me. This is very motivating. Thank you for posting it.
I've never written a short story before, never been that good at it, but I've finally decided to do it and that it will help my writing a lot. It's just a very daunting task, doing something I've never done before -so trying to get all the advice I can.
Thank u for your life's work. And thank u for deciding not to give up or retire. We luv u, Stephen King!
I love Stephen Kings writing style. Brilliant man!
I adore this man and his work, he is such an inspiration.
You definitely have a better chance of somebody reading your story if it doesn't take them 20 hours to do so
Hahahah yes
that’s the truth and then you can go on from there if the opportunity presents itself but honestly who doesn’t love a good short story.
This is humbling yet inspirational. I myself am in the midst of writing a short story
Started a horror short piece tonight, taking a brief break, and found this video helpful. Thanks!
Thanks for sharing this! Stephen King is a great storyteller.
In my childhood and teenage years I always used to be an on and off writer. I’d come up with certain ideas for plots and characters, devote myself to briefly writing them, and then shortly lose interest afterwards from my own constant criticism of my work. I still do write as a hobby during my free time when I’m not working at both my jobs. Recently though I’ve been a little more serious and have completely devoted a lot more of free time to actually finishing my own writings. When I write now I usually find it best that you’re pacing your stories. That can take a good amount of time with occupying the majority of the overall writing for the work. It is necessary though in order to not throw a ton of ideas on the reader, audience all at once and make them feel lost, or develop disinterest in the piece. It helps with further establishing the scenes, characters, and elements that you wish to incorporate into the story and make it enjoyable to the individual looking into. That, and it makes people gain a certain connection to a great amount of the aspects there in. I know that since I’ve been doing a bit of writing myself and have managed to publish two books, “Lost Case Encounters” and “Tales Of Alandria: Bridging Of Worlds”. Each time I devoted myself to writing out the scenes in each chapters for the books I always wanted to put great amount of meticulous detail into them to really flesh everything out for the readers, make them feel that the events are unfolding before their very eyes.
Any coaching I can get from listening to Stephen King I appreciate. The man is an expert in his field.
I love Mr. King! He's been such an inspiration to myself and other aspiring authors. :)
Night Shift is his best collection of short stories by far.
Always amazing!
Brilliant writer.
Nice job by the interviewer - he asked just a couple of succinct questions and had the poise to shut up and listen. No interrupting, no forced humor about "the King of Horror" or "I'm your number-one fan." And I feel like King appreciated the chance to give thoughtful replies and not having to yuk it up.
Still so humble after so long.
When writing a novel I think writing short stories are really a good idea when you get tired of the novel. I’ve been writing a novel which is mainly about a bounty hunter which hunts her bounty across the Louisiana swamp but sometime I get tired of it so I go and write a short story, not seriously usually, just changing up
Sad they stopped publishing short stories. I wished they would start back. Love, respect, and positivity always. Neita James,:-)
As an aspiring writer I would love to write a novel but when I begin to write I take ideas, and feelings I have begin a story and instead of a novel it's a short story. I have so far written two short stories and it's really enjoyable to me. It's freeing to me to be able to write multiple short stories than say one long piece of work. Though hopefully I can grow and write a story that's engaging enough to be worthy of being a novel.
are you a bot ? what the fuck are you saying
You've got to admire how humble King is. And yes, not that I've read them all, but I've read a lot, very few writers get anywhere close to Raymond Carver when it comes to short stories.
It's incredible . .1.3K subscribers ... and there he is ....
Kings best work is his short stories. My fave is Different Seasons of all his books, altho they are novellas. But Skeleton Crew n Night Shift are amazing
I feel I can gain some insight and useful perspective from this, Stephen King and all his renowned reputation or otherwise. What he touches on is true: short stories don't always get the recognition they truly deserve.
I'm from Maine and I met him 3 times. He's an intelligent man.
Here's a story idea for you if you find it interesting...
Imagine writing this apocalyptic world that has this crazed Mad Max/Elon Musk type of setting. To counter malnutrition from food (due to contaminated soil) the human organs have been upgraded with bio-tech filters, and the brain has this implant that runs on cold fusion (which is now stable) however, if the cold fusion cerebral injections become depleted, the people begin to go insane.
Death emporium markets exist, where citizens have to sell bits of their body parts as currency; to pay their rent, fingernails, flesh for groceries, etc.
The normal life expectancy is only about 40 (if they are lucky).
😆
King's right. I wrote some very good short stories when I started and won prizes with them. But that led me to believe that the only way to make a living out of writing was to extend myself and focus on the long form. It took me many years of failure with the novel - failure which virtually made me decide to give up writing altogether - to realise that I should have stuck with what I did best. Some of the best writers who've ever lived - Chekhov, Carver, Mansfield, Trevor, Alice Munro - have stuck with short stories (and plays in Chekhov's case). It's not about realising your limitations, but realising your strengths. Unfortunately, because it's the successful novel that usually leads to fame and financial independence for writers, many writers turn to it when they really should ignore it. Forget about money, fame, ego, big houses and fast cars. Focus on being read!
I'm reading "The Body" right now, it's amazing!!!
I read about his short fiction in wikipedia. I myself have 2 Amazon collections. I write novels but find myself doing a ton of shorts several months before i tackle the next.
i did two collections - 'the hardest why hold back?' and 'Adventure season.' In amazon.
Publishing my novel soon in 2 months :)
I watched this in 2013 in school. Inspired me, now in 2024 I still remember it.
Great little talk.
The interviewer asks pretty good questions. Well done.
+David Arndt Jr. - You also have to take into account that not every page will have the same word count. Pages with mostly dialogue will have a lower word count than one that is mostly narration.
I still remember a story from Reader's Digest titled: "Before He Was Stephen King". After numerous attempts he finally made it. He held the evidence for his wife standing in the kitchen to see and they danced together slowly with delight.
Raymond Carver - The Bath .... what a talent that man was, unbelievable ability.
Yes, I like Carver more than King. The Bath is a masterpiece.
Good interviewer. Kinda knows the craft.
How are your short stories so good? They're the best!
Awesome!
Girl who loved Tom Gordon in the background!! I loved Patricia McFarlene
The interviewer looks so nervous. I would too if i was interviewing this great man
Why? He seems calm, humble and open.
King introduced me to Euel Arden - i thank him for that.
If there was anyone of whom I had the honor to sit and talk with about life.. it is, King.
As a published horror writer myself, I LOVE writing short stories. Only trouble is, they are very hard to sell as book collections.
How many words is a short story?
Anyone know when this interview was or when this interview was posted?
A living legend. Listen to everything this man says very carefully; you won't get truer wisdom anywhere else. And read "On Writing". If you're a writer and haven't read it yet, shame on you.
I am a writer myself and am working on getting that book. I have been studying the art of story telling and writing for a long time. I have read many books to see different styles of writing. I am trying to get "On writing" as that is a hard book to get.
Mile High Amazon sells it.
Ryan Merritt I recommend his book "Danse Macabre". It is a nonfiction treatment of supernatural literature. He once said that his personal favorite horror short is "The Room in theTower" by E.F. Benson. My favorite is "The Wendigo" by Algernon Blackwood. peterjpuleo.blogspot.com
It is one of the greatest books on writing, period.
In "On Writing" he recommends "The Elements of Style"
Stephen King on the craft of short story writing: "It's a difficult craft." THANKS. Is your channel always so articulate?
This book freed my pen! I just finished my first novel "6 Miles With Courage" Stephen a hundred times thank you! I got it I have seen the rabbit in the cage with the number 6 painted on it.
thanks
Wow! Stephen King said his short stories were bad. This gives me hope and says to never give up!😊
Lmao that Joel Osteen book in the background.
Paid advertising.
Cool to hear from S King! So what is the ideal word count for a short story?
I have to ask one more question. Is your book professionally published or are you self-publishing? What do you think would be good for a debut novel, and if you're doing it professionally could you give me some info on how to get a literary agent and what I need to do to get professionally published. Thanks!
I didn't think Misery had started out as a short story,Stephen. I'd read part of it and I love the movie. Kathy Bates is good. That's why she'd got an OSCAR for best acting in a lead role.
The other consideration that I'm surprised wasn't covered here is the fact that there simply aren't that many markets left for short stories anymore, and what few remain are very difficult to get published in, and most don't pay very well. Stephen King can bend the rules to a large extent because publications who might not even ordinarily run fiction will make room for a SK story, and pay top dollar for it. In the early 1970s, when he was publishing in men's magazines that were considered "ghetto" markets, those still paid on average about $250/story -- the equivalent of like $1,400 today. Even just selling 3-4/year, as he was, amounted to a pretty decent side gig. Of course, even then, general and genre fiction in periodicals was drying up -- it was gone from the men's mags after about 1982. Today, as I said, only a few big names (New Yorker, Atlantic, Playboy) publish mainline fiction, and the genre mags (F & SF, Asimov's), and that's about it. The opportunities for selling short stories are much, much more bleak than they were in the 70s or earlier decades.
Some people are into model making and others do crossword puzzles. I write short stories of mystery and imagination, initially for my own enjoyment. Writing short stories isn't easy for me, and I have to work hard at it. If I was qualified to give advice, it would be: choose the three act structure. Avoid unimportant information (too much backstory etc). Kill "babies" as often as it takes, and speed up the reading experience with active voice as opposed to passive voice. My motto is: get in; activate the fuse; and get out.
King is a master writer no matter the length or genre.
Shorts have been my fave to read or write since I started raising kids. Obvious reasons. LOL
Interesting that some of King's novels started as short stories, including Misery.
Everytime i hear stephen king talk in interviews is like im reading a book.
SK is the best. I recommend Quitters Inc.
Kelly Link is a pretty good writer (published by Random House) who specializes in short fiction. Not all writers turn to the novel. ;)
King is amazing
To anyone who hasn't already, please read Different Seasons. Four novellas in there, one is good, one is really good and two are downright brilliant.
My mom has all the books except 2!!
Why is there a Joel Osteen book on display in the background??
I'm months away from 30, never perused further education after leaving school but I've had a multitude of ideas and characters buzzing around my head, is it worth getting into writing? Or should I accept that the window has closed?
Can I ask something? My name is Roger Terry and I'm working on my first novel, Stephen is my idol and he is the reason why I got into writing in the first place. Would you have any tips on the writing process or on how to keep the book moving more smoothly. If you would just give me any words of advice I would really appreciate it. Thanks!
King wrote a great book on that.
There are fine videoshere on youtube, too.
Check out the channels of Ellen Brock and Vivian Reis, for starters.
The fact he realized his first two novels were not even worth revision teaches a good lesson.
He knows his stuff, does our Steve.
The Gingerbread Girl is an absolutely fantastic story.
Love hıs all books
I struggle to stretch my stuff out at all, and end up with a product way too short
where is the rest of the interview?
I wonder if he remembers my sister Linda from Lisbon High School study hall?
How to copyright short stories in a series?
Favorite Stephen King short story: Quitters Inc.
Having thought about this: The problem is that so much of that which is categorized as a short story, is little more than a well done stand-up comedy joke, with the twist of a punchline, so that it may be called a short story. After one reads a mere handful of those, by Silverberg, Sturgeon, Ellison, et al, enough is enough already :-) It may have been Walter B. Pitkin, Thomas Uzzell or John Gallishaw who made the point that, as per psychology (neuroscience, as per Kahneman, Twersky, Ariely et al), a short story is one that takes the anxious reader no more than an hour to read: 8,000 - 10,000 words. With that in mind, there is the teleplay for the likes of a Deep Space Nine episode, which happens to run to that limit, can be expressed as a narrative, and is, by the demands of its audience, a complete and well organised short story. The same applies to a 25-minute, radio drama, such as Gunsmoke.
The book with the creepy blonde's face in the background... how is it called? Please....?