First story of the year.

[temporus]

Finally.

First short story draft of the year completed. 8600 words.  Ick.  3,000 of those were from tonight, because I just needed to finish this story already.  It's going to be a lot of editing.   I was originally thinking like 4K.  This is one that's going to need some serious work to get it submission ready.

Tomorrow, on to the next story.   I really need to learn how to write stories shorter than 4,000 words.  This longer stuff is just going to be a pain to try and sell.

Comments

[ogre-san.livejournal.com]

Congratulations on finishing.

As for the length, don't sweat it. The story is in charge of how big it is, not you.

[temporus.livejournal.com]

Thanks,

The main concern for me with regards to length, is that I'm certain it isn't necessary, but that I meandered my way through it. I don't mind overwriting then editing, but I would like to develop an eye for keeping some of my worst offenders out of the text in the first place. I guess that just comes with practice and experience.

That and I would like to have finished product at a length people are going to pay for. Sure, a good enough story, and the length won't matter. But longer stories cut down on market options in an all ready small field.

And I should probably stop obsessing now, and move on to the next story shouldn't I?

[ogre-san.livejournal.com]

Yeah, cutting is for the rewrite. You might get the story below novelette level and you might not. If not, there are still a few places that will look at stories over 7500 words.

[l-clausewitz.livejournal.com]

Yeah. Move on to the next story. I once chopped my way like hell through a short story and got it reduced to two-thirds its original size. Cutting something down to half, though, might be a lot tougher, soo good luck. ;)