How to Keep Short Stories Short?

[Isis56]

I see them all over Literotica, one-shot short stories that seem to have no need for a sequel. I started my story 'Nipped' as a tongue-in-cheek reaction to a conversation about werewolves. I had been talking with wanderwonder about America's current obsession with vampires and werewolves, and about how we thought supernatural boyfriends were overrated. He jokingly suggested that I submit a Lit story about someone who doesn't give a fuck when her boyfriend turns into a dog. I began to write. I never intended for it to last longer than two pages.

When I started plotting the story I realized that my little satire was turning into a real story, because without some sort of character motivation the whole thing fell flat. Why would the heroine be so dispassionate about life? Why would a pack of college werewolves be interested in her in the first place? I was unsatisfied with how the story ended, and then realized that readers were, too. I received mails with assumptions about the plot devices that I had never pondered—pregnancy, mating, even some terms that I hadn't heard before about "werewolf law."

Now I'm stuck in that terrible state of writing whenever I can and posting every few months. I have some other ideas for stories, but I'm almost afraid to start writing. I don't want to write chapter upon chapter. I want to write short stories without losing a sense of plot.

I guess the point of this thread is to ask more experienced authors how they do it. How do you write one-shots without making it into a basic jack-off story?

 

[TheeGoatPig]

I don't care what happens so long as I am happy with the stories I write. If it turns into a 20 chapter series? I'm fine with that. Pure stroke? Ok, I can do that. Bad reader feedback? That works for me too.

My favorite story that I have written is my least popular. It was pure stroke with no character development that fell flat on its face, but I still enjoy it because it is so ridiculous. But that is ok because I wrote it for myself, and not for the public. Yes, I posted it to see what they thought of it, but not for their approval or disapproval. It's fun hearing their comments, but I don't live by them.

I do this for myself. If a few people happen to enjoy it along the way that's just icing on the cake.

 

[oggbashan]

My plan to keep short stories short is to have a very simple plot that starts with a situation, develops minimally and then ends.

That works for fifty-word stories and for stories up to about 2,500 words. For stories longer than that I plan for more development and perhaps sub-plots before the conclusion.

A simple plan keeps the story short.

Og

 

[Isis56]

I don't care what happens so long as I am happy with the stories I write. If it turns into a 20 chapter series? I'm fine with that. Pure stroke? Ok, I can do that. Bad reader feedback? That works for me too.

My favorite story that I have written is my least popular. It was pure stroke with no character development that fell flat on its face, but I still enjoy it because it is so ridiculous. But that is ok because I wrote it for myself, and not for the public. Yes, I posted it to see what they thought of it, but not for their approval or disapproval. It's fun hearing their comments, but I don't live by them.

I do this for myself. If a few people happen to enjoy it along the way that's just icing on the cake.

I can relate a bit. The first story I ever posted was a dream that I had. Kid you not, I woke up in the middle of a climax and started typing. It's very personal, and though not my favorite or most popular, I probably get my favorite, most bizarre feeback from it.

My plan to keep short stories short is to have a very simple plot that starts with a situation, develops minimally and then ends.

That works for fifty-word stories and for stories up to about 2,500 words. For stories longer than that I plan for more development and perhaps sub-plots before the conclusion.

A simple plan keeps the story short.

Og

I should keep that in mind. Nipped started out as an entry for the 2008 Halloween contest, and now here we are. Maybe I don't know how to end a short story. The one I almost finished for the Summer Lovin' contest was basically girl sees boy, girl meets boy in bar, they fuck in a park. How do I write that without getting slut comments?

 

[Liar]

I guess the point of this thread is to ask more experienced authors how they do it. How do you write one-shots without making it into a basic jack-off story?

Have a good idea. "They met, they fucked, they came" is not a good idea. Almost all good short stories I've seen have had a very limited set of premises. What if a person with X charachteristics and attitude is thrown into situation Y? What is the initial reaction? Are there problems with handling situation Y? (there should be, or it wouild become a pretty dull story) And finally, how are thosr problems resolved?

If you get to that, the question "then what?" becomes irrelevant, and you can wrap up the story.

 

[_Lynn_]

I have short stories, one with ten-chapters, and everything in between. Some pieces are just meant to be longer than others. Snippets of ideas that don't form into more don't need many words. If one wants to expand, then go with it.

I don't ever plan how long a story will be. Wherever it takes me, I follow.

 

[JAMESBJOHNSON]

Shortie stories use stereotypes and simple interactions. Theyre as uncomplicated as yo-yo's, yet you can do complex tricks with them using few words.

Raymond Carver had a genius for it. Like his story about some guys who use a long weekend to go fishing. They trek through the woods for a few miles, set up camp, and discover a dead body in the river adjacent to the camp. They pow-wow and decide to report the body when they leave rather than ruin the holiday with cops and reporters. SHE SURE AS SHIT WONT BE DEADER!

 

[Darkniciad]

No clue. The best I can manage is about 5k words, and all of those but one is set-up, sex, and what I call the punchline of the story. A few steps up from "Is there some other way I can pay for this pizza?" is all I'm aiming for with those.

I can pull off a story with a little more to it in 10k words, but its a rarity. I simply don't have the skill to ram character development and imagery into a compact package.

I guess the best way to avoid writing a short stroke story would be to write a story without sex in it. That would solve the stroke problem, and only leave you with the short problem to tackle. It wouldn't get much play on Lit, but if the exercise accomplishes the goal, and you can transfer it over to a story with sex in it...

 

[_Lynn_]

No clue. The best I can manage is about 5k words, and all of those but one is set-up, sex, and what I call the punchline of the story. A few steps up from "Is there some other way I can pay for this pizza?" is all I'm aiming for with those.

I can pull off a story with a little more to it in 10k words, but its a rarity. I simply don't have the skill to ram character development and imagery into a compact package.

I guess the best way to avoid writing a short stroke story would be to write a story without sex in it. That would solve the stroke problem, and only leave you with the short problem to tackle. It wouldn't get much play on Lit, but if the exercise accomplishes the goal, and you can transfer it over to a story with sex in it...

It's rare I write a sex story anymore. Keeping one around a thousand words isn't difficult. As for not getting much play, you're right. However, once you have a fan base, they follow you into whichever cat you choose. I guess it depends who you're writing for . . .

 

[dr_mabeuse]

Have a good idea. "They met, they fucked, they came" is not a good idea. Almost all good short stories I've seen have had a very limited set of premises.

That's true. One definition of a short story is that it's a tale of how a person changes, usually through a single event. If you've got a number of events, or if your events take a lot of time to describe, you're going to be in trouble when it comes to keeping it short.

In TV, they use the term "high-concept" to describe a show that requires a lot of backstory or explanation in order to understand. Your werewolf story sound very high-concept. You're creating an alternative reality, another world. And once you've created that world, you're reluctant to dismiss it with one story. You want to stay and explore, and that's where you probably run into trouble.

 

[Isis56]

I've only posted three stories, so I don't think I can claim to have a fan base just yet. Insert sex here.

Argh, the whole thing was about how werewolves are people who can lick their own asses. Now I'm stuck writing about them without discrediting myself as an author. You win, stupid Twilight pop culture. You win.

 

[Weird Harold]

I see them all over Literotica, one-shot short stories that seem to have no need for a sequel. I started my story 'Nipped' as a tongue-in-cheek reaction to a conversation about werewolves. ...

When you're writing toungue-in-cheek stuff, you need to have the punchline to your extended joke firmly in mind and write aimed at that punchline.

The same thing basically applies to any short story -- if you don't want to be bothered with writing sequels and endless chapters, decide on how the story will end, what the punchline is going to be, and write to get to that predetermined ending.

If you're having trouble deciding on an ending, consider framing the story as one told by a stranger in a bar; either the bar-tender is going to end the story at closing time, or the stranger is going to get tired of talking and leave. Either way, you have an excuse for whatever unsatisfactory ending and no narrator remaining to continue with a sequel.

Of course, there is always the "And then a great meteor struck the earth and everyone died," ending that works for just about any story except post-apocalyptic stories that start that way.

 

[Boota]

In general I wouldn't sweat the idea of keeping a story short if it doesn't have to be. Word counts aren't important. The story will be as short or as long as it needs to be, and I think more of that is dictated by the story itself rather than any intention you may have.

I have trouble writing short stories now, and I used to lay one down in an afternoon. Since I started concentrating on novel length work my mind has shifted gears and everything seems a lot more epic in scale. I'm sure I can get the art back with some practice, but as I said above, the stories are just calling for more.

 

[Liar]

I've only posted three stories, so I don't think I can claim to have a fan base just yet. Insert sex here.

Argh, the whole thing was about how werewolves are people who can lick their own asses. Now I'm stuck writing about them without discrediting myself as an author. You win, stupid Twilight pop culture. You win.

Do you see an end? Is it a saga (about people who can lick their own asses) with a final conclusion?

I have at times written stories that just went on and on and on. And the reason was because I didn't know my story when I began. I didn't know what I wanted to tell. I just had a dislocated premise that I ad-libed around for fifteen chapters. Some can do that and still make it readable. I can't. It suuuuucked. Until I took a step back, realized the suckyness, looked at the premise again, and envisioned a brief confrontation -> concusion based upon it. Then I deleted ch 2-15, re-wrote ch 1 with a specific ending in mind, and posted it as one short story.

 

[sr71plt]

That's true. One definition of a short story is that it's a tale of how a person changes, usually through a single event.

The classic definition is a story that can be read at one sitting. In the technology age, the time someone is willing to sit and read has shrunk considerably.

I tend to write stories under 3,500 words, because this is the common short story contest link currently. Some contests are 3,000 words--and there are even some at 1,000 words and flash fiction is usually restricted to 750 words. It's an extra challenge to try to pack dilemma/change/resolution into that, but it can be done. And techniques for doing so are restricting the threads (usually to one for shorter wordage limits) and using words that pack bring up explicit images.

For Lit., of course, there are really no wordage restrictions. But, given that, I've also found that Lit. stories tend to be padded with extraneous "stuff" that detracts (for me, at least) from a good story arc--and that threads are left open. The latter is particularly the case where writers are doing serials that start posting before the story is wrapped up.

In the publishing world, e-booking has freed the wordage limits--at both ends--and has also opened up the niche markets.

 

[xssve]

I guess the point of this thread is to ask more experienced authors how they do it. How do you write one-shots without making it into a basic jack-off story?

One of the better non-human stories I've read, I think you're on the right track - I'm more curious about how this power developing struggle is going to turn out than how kinky the sex is going to be.

i.e., I think you're on the right track.

It starts out with our heroine just wanting to get laid without disrupting her schedule, but by the end the sex has become device that explores deeper themes, not just attraction, but dominance, social hierarchy, and interpersonal conflict.

That's a good thing.

 

[sr71plt]

It starts out with our heroine just wanting to get laid without disrupting her schedule

This reminds me of one way I keep some of my GM stories short. If my protagonist is a prostitute or easy lay to start with (even if one who is working a more serious "human" issue to give meat to the storyline), I don't have to go through all the "stuff" of preparing him to be willing to "to it." I can give more wordage to a plotline.

 

[xssve]

Make sense to me - sort of the opposite of reluctance/non-con tension/conflict if the protagonist really want's it, but is frustrated or ends up getting more than they bargained for.

 

[oggbashan]

Short is good. Long is good.

But they should be different.

Most stories posted on Literotica are "short" by modern novel standards. I consider that a short story can be up to 30,000 or so words without breaking the definition.

There are suggested rules for short stories. Here are some:

- they should leave out everything not necessary for the development of the story;
- they shouldn't indulge in lengthy passages of description or diversions from the main plotline;
- they should come to a definite conclusion and end.

However nothing prevents us from writing and posting a full-length novel on Literotica if we want to, but I think that the writing and planning for a novel differ from the methods for a short story.

If the short story begins to turn into a novel then I would recommend drastic editing and revision to make it either a short story OR a novel but not something that is neither.

Og

 

[Stella_Omega]

Og has said it!

When I'm editing something short, i look for my action arc, my character's development, and my theme. I take out everything that don't contribute to one of those things-- preferably two of those things. And then (this is the hardest part) make sure that the ending is unambiguously an ENDING. If you can tie a couple of plot threads in your last few sentences, that usually helps to convey a feeling of finality.

I've done the same thing you did, Isis, when I wrote about fucking a rock star in a limo and now I have something like 60000 words of cheap sex that still have gone nowhere..

 

[JamesSD]

In general, I think the way to keep stories short is to focus on plot. If you're writing a novel you can sprinkle in lots of details about setting and give all the characters elaborate backstories, but in a short story you need to leave a lot of doors open for reader interpretation. Except for the main 2 to 3 characters, your characters will be stock or flat. A good short story focuses on one event and how it affects one or two peoples' lives.

Some people are just naturally more concise than others. Being brief certainly has its advantages when the actual time available to write is in short supply.

 

[kromen]

In a ballpark figure, how many words should one look for when aiming for a short story? I've written one tale that just reached the bottom of the first page after posting. I have yet to go past two Lit. pages.

 

[Jenny_Jackson]

In a ballpark figure, how many words should one look for when aiming for a short story? I've written one tale that just reached the bottom of the first page after posting. I have yet to go past two Lit. pages.

Tough question. I wrote a story of 800 words once. It was awful. I've written stories of 60,000 words. It seems to me it's not a matter of how many words should be in a short story. It's a matter of characters developed to the point where the reader can empathise with them. A limited number of action characters - two or three - plus a few background characters. And a solid plot line that doesn't waver from start to finish.

 

[sr71plt]

In a ballpark figure, how many words should one look for when aiming for a short story? I've written one tale that just reached the bottom of the first page after posting. I have yet to go past two Lit. pages.

I think (for what that matters) that two pages is optinum for the largest possible reader attraction (and especially not more than this for a stroker). There are folks who say they just love the longer stories, but I'll bet dollar to donuts that two Lit. pages is optimum for attracting readers. The classic definition of short story is "a story that can be read in one sitting." In the current world, a sitting is a lot shorter than in earlier eras, I think. That would be something under 7,500 words.

Short story contests, by the way, tend not to go over 3,500 words in max length, especially the ones on the Internet. You might take that as a gauge of what the industry thinks is desirable. That would be one full Lit. page.

 

[Darkniciad]

I think (for what that matters) that two pages is optinum for the largest possible reader attraction (and especially not more than this for a stroker). There are folks who say they just love the longer stories, but I'll bet dollar to donuts that two Lit. pages is optimum for attracting readers. The classic definition of short story is "a story that can be read in one sitting." In the current world, a sitting is a lot shorter than in earlier eras, I think. That would be something under 7,500 words.

Short story contests, by the way, tend not to go over 3,500 words in max length, especially the ones on the Internet. You might take that as a gauge of what the industry thinks is desirable. That would be one full Lit. page.

While I still tend to agree with you, that's one of the things I've been shooting at determining with my third pen name. Much to my surprise, the two pagers on average are doing just about the same in every statistic as the 3-5's.

I'm not noticing any real variance in the views, votes, or anything else. It rather baffled me, actually. I was expecting at least the views to increase dramatically. Makes me wonder if every page of a story counts as a view. Wouldn't explain the similar average in votes, comments, and score, but that would at least explain the views.

On the other site where I post, the short stuff actually performs far below longer works. The longer it goes, the higher all the stats seem to rise with it.

Still think you're right, but my data is flying in the face of it for some reason