He Says Quality Stories Are Longer

[JAMESBJOHNSON]

Lawrence Block recalls how short his early short stories are but suggests the best stories are long. He says he couldn't write 3000 words to save his life, back in the 50s, now he cant write less than 10000.

Is he nuts?

 

[sr71plt]

If he said it that way, he's not nuts, he's just projecting his own experience onto everyone else. Just because he perceives he can't do it doesn't mean that others can't do it. There's a lot of that going around this forum, though, so he's not alone in projecting himself as everyone.

 

[JackLuis]

In effect he chooses not to condense to a single expression of a thought, but expands upon it and other ideas.

He chooses to write longer now that he has figured out his style.

In the universal vulva of fiction, all dicks may be accommodated!

 

[lovecraft68]

You'd get no indication of what is better received here. Both short and long have their audience.

For me personally I tend to write longer stories and that's also what I look for to read as well because for me 3k and under-at least for erotica-tens to be more of a scene than a story. A setup, a fuck, the end.

But many enjoy them. The good thing here is you write however, whatever you want and people come find you.

 

[JAMESBJOHNSON]

John O'Hara wrote some excellent erotica of 1000 words tho much of what he wrote is much longer. I tend to think erotica is incidental rather than epic. That said, its cool to link plenty of incidents together to make a long story if the incidents are closely related.

 

[PayDay]

I feel validated

 

[DreamCloud]

I have trouble writing anything long. New idea's keep interrupting and are infinitely more fun.

 

[PayDay]

I have trouble writing anything long. New idea's keep interrupting and are infinitely more fun.

You should add them into the story you are writing. Novelist call that a 'plot twist'

 

[DreamCloud]

You should add them into the story you are writing. Novelist call that a 'plot twist'

Interesting - My ideas are so diverse, I am not sure anything coherent would emerge.

 

[PayDay]

Interesting - My ideas are so diverse, I am not sure anything coherent would emerge.

Never know until you try

I wrote a second chapter to a story using the comments on chapter one this one time, and it seemed to work out ok .

 

[Rozalin_0123]

Interesting - My ideas are so diverse, I am not sure anything coherent would emerge.

I thought the same thing, but I eventually found a way.

Just keep the ideas fresh in your mind. How to piece them together will come to you over time. At least that's how it worked for me.

 

[JAMESBJOHNSON]

I find it useful to ask myself SO FUCKING WHAT when I write. It culls plenty of bad ideas.

 

[Over_Red]

I think he's nuts. My favorite short story of all time is The Swimmer; that's definitely under 10,000 words. Probably closer to half that.

Brevity is the soul of wit, right?

 

[SamScribble]

Sometimes short stories work when the are really short; other times they are better when they are a little longer. This is no 'rule'. There is no foolproof recipe. What works is what works.

 

[sr71plt]

There is no foolproof recipe. What works is what works.

We should have a macro of this that we can just paste on two-thirds of the threads on writing.

 

[JAMESBJOHNSON]

I haven't written shit in 5 months but a new one is at 3000 words and about 1/2 done, so 5K or 6K is unusual for me. I expected the story to be short and it isn't. But its a good trailer park sex-noir. So maybe Block is right.

 

[elfin_odalisque]

Dunno, but I've always thought that short stories, +/- 16 paperback pages are the most difficult to write technically.

 

[JAMESBJOHNSON]

Dunno, but I've always thought that short stories, +/- 16 paperback pages are the most difficult to write technically.

I agree. 5000 words is often too long or too short.

 

[Kethandra]

I find it useful to ask myself SO FUCKING WHAT when I write. It culls plenty of bad ideas.

My version of that is three part (and often is good for clarifying both fiction and life)
1. So what?
2. Who cares?
3. What difference does it make?
And if the clarification doesn't help, just insert one of the above as said by a character. Instant conflict.

Concerning the main thread question, Thoreau said:
"Not that the story need be long, but it will take a long while to make it short."
I like Block but he sounds lazy on this one.


--------
My Winter Holiday contest One-pager:
www.literotica.com/s/the-heroes-bar-santas-tale

 

[JAMESBJOHNSON]

My version of that is three part (and often is good for clarifying both fiction and life)
1. So what?
2. Who cares?
3. What difference does it make?
And if the clarification doesn't help, just insert one of the above as said by a character. Instant conflict.

Concerning the main thread question, Thoreau said:
"Not that the story need be long, but it will take a long while to make it short."
I like Block but he sounds lazy on this one.


--------
My Winter Holiday contest One-pager:
www.literotica.com/s/the-heroes-bar-santas-tale

Block isn't a favorite writer of mine, he's middlin' as we say in the South. He has a niche or two and errs when he strays.