Needing guidance re story line.

I have been writing two series of stories. One is Tina Carson, the other is Debbie Gibson.

At some time in the future, the story lines merge as Debbie goes to work at the same place as Tina. I have written a story that has both characters in it.

My question is, is it better to submit them as two separate stories and duplicate the bits where they overlap or just submit it as one fairly lengthy story?

Thanks in anticipation.

TeamEquipe.

TeamEquipe said:

I have been writing two series of stories. One is Tina Carson, the other is Debbie Gibson.

At some time in the future, the story lines merge as Debbie goes to work at the same place as Tina. I have written a story that has both characters in it.

My question is, is it better to submit them as two separate stories and duplicate the bits where they overlap or just submit it as one fairly lengthy story?

Thanks in anticipation.

TeamEquipe.

Click to expand...

I enjoy it more when there are two stories that are connected. A bit of overlap, as long as the overlap is short and not exactly the same, makes for a fun bit of reading.

TeamEquipe said:

At some time in the future, the story lines merge as Debbie goes to work at the same place as Tina. I have written a story that has both characters in it.

My question is, is it better to submit them as two separate stories and duplicate the bits where they overlap or just submit it as one fairly lengthy story?

Click to expand...

An author I edited had much the same problem. He solved it by writing separate stories. In the parts where stories overlap, he retold the story from the viewpoint of the separate characters, so it ended up not being the same story at all, really.

I did much the same thing for a series of incest stories I wrote for another site. Same story, essentially, but it was told first from the father's point of view, and then from the daughter's. It was a challenge, but worth it in terms of my giving the two characters separate identities.

I've used this in three distinct sets. In A TASTE OF INCEST: LEMONADE 01 and 02 and 03 one player tells the first part of the tale and the next two players relate subsequent events, all with minimal overlap. In BLACK & WHITE & RED ALL OVER 01 and 02 the story is seen from different perspectives -- and I should wrap that up with a chapter by the third participant. In A TASTE OF INCEST: TURKEY (Dad) and (Mom) I retell a story with genders swapped, from father-daughter to mother-son.

I have more stories cooking (like my BLACK & WHITE pieces) with chapters told from varied POVs, like the OP's crossing-storylines strategy. I also plan pieces where two or more flash stories intersect in one submission, like distinct POVs of a hot encounter. Whether such dual tales should be in a single story, or two or more distinct chapters, probably depends on length, overlap, and complexity. If little overlap and not too long, put them in one submission. If much overlap and greater length and complexity, separate the tales.