Writing Short Stories When You Usually Write Novels

Writing a short story is something I feel like every writer should know how to do. It doesn't matter if you say that you "only write novels" because there is going to be a time where short stories are needed. Short stories have multiple purposes.

How Short Stories Might Benefit You:

• You want to give your readers a little extra. Your readers are important. I can't stress that enough. Sometimes giving them a little something extra isn't going to kill you. Writing a short story is a good way of doing that. Say you have a side character that your audience just loves. Why not give them a little short story in that side character's point of view. It doesn't have to be related to the original story but be sure to give it a plot on it's own.

• Helps you omit needless words. If you don't want to give into your readers, then at least use it as practice to omit needless words. It will force you to stay focused on the plot and try not to generate subplots, since it is a short story.

• It opens up other opportunities. Anthologies being one of them. Or for those who aren't published yet, short story contests. There are a lot of them. Anthologies and contests are a good way to get your name out there so use it to your advantage.

• You learn to gain control. This might sound a little weird but I was one of those people who would try to write a short story and ended up writing a whole damn novel. I learned to tone it down. It taught me how to control my story, keep things on the right path because your characters really don't have the control of the story, you do. When your character's veer off, that's you trying to explore your options or you just really have a hard time following your own directions. 

 I'm sure there are other ways that short stories can benefit but these are the immediate things that came to my head.

Now that we know how short stories can benefit you, lets move on to how to write one. I'm a novel writer. I know how hard it can be to cramp a story into a limited amount of words. But I learned.

For this short story contest I decided to enter, the guidelines for the story were:

• Any genre
• No more than 3,000 words
• Due November 31st

It was a pain in the ass.  I had a great story planned out but then I realized that it was too damn long. Something had to go but what? Everything varies for me. I don't always do the same method twice in a row but these are the basics of my process.

• Figure what I wanted from the story. That meant plot. I needed a small plot that had a lot of impact and could intrigue readers to continue. So knowing what I wanted for a general plot was important.

• Keeping characters limited. There are only two characters that the readers know the names of and one that everyone refers to as "Boss" but you don't get to know him as a character very well. Keeping characters limited means that you will have to not fill your story with a ton of characters. That will just make it drag. Keep the characters that have an important role. 

• Throw everything into an outline. I advocate outlines more than anyone I know. I love outlines. They are the way I keep everything in line. I even outline blog posts. By throwing what you have into an outline, I was able to establish three major parts of the story that were 1,000 words a piece and it was more than enough for what I was writing. It will also keep you from veering off into something that it shouldn't be.

• Write what's important. This is the only way I didn't go over the limited amount of words. I only wrote down what was important to this plot. When you have subplots or a series, you'll probably have to write a lot more than in a short story. Novels are more complex than short stories. I only have one plot for this story. Keep only what's important to the story. 

It might look like a lame little list here but it works for me. It's as simple as it can get really. It's a short story, after all.

How To Handle Constructive Criticism

Constructive criticism can be a scary thing when you've written or made something for others to see. While you'd love for people to just tell you how awesome you are, it's not very realistic that someone would do that. People are more than likely going to point out what you could do better, and while it will feel like you are being stabbed, you'll find that you can actually learn from it.

Things to know about constructive criticism:

•  It can be painful to hear. It really can be painful to hear but you will learn to handle it better the more it happens and you'll be able to distinguish the good from the bad. 

• It can help you improve. There is a point where you are going to need help from an outside source, especially if you aren't planning publishing through traditional means. Constructive criticism is a way to help your story and your writing improve.

• You can learn from it. It kind of falls in with the previous point but I'm going with it anyway. Constructive criticism can help you find your weaknesses and places that need help. Learn from it so you don't make the same mistake twice.

 Things you SHOULDN'T do about constructive criticism

• Ignore them. Do NOT ignore the constructive criticism, especially if you asked for someone to review your story. That's just rude and you might end up losing readers. I guess this is for people who post online more than published authors.

• Laugh at them or play it off as a joke. Again, that's rude. That is disrespecting them and their opinion. If you don't like it then maybe you shouldn't be posting your work for people to see. 

• Reject everything. Just don't. Some things are okay. When it's consistent, maybe you should look into that. If they just tell you that you suck, then you can forget everything I said and ignore them. That's not being constructive. 

• Take everything too personally. There are people who are going to have biased opinions and aren't going to like what you wrote. That's fine. You can't please everyone. Just remember that there are going to be people who loved your story. Not everyone liked Harry Potter or Twilight or Hunger Games. It's going to be the same for everything.

• Ask for critiques if you aren't going to like it. I feel like this one is rather obvious but people tend to do this a lot. I'm not sure why you would ask someone to critique your work if you didn't want to accept it but just don't do it if you don't want to hear what they have to say. 

• Belittle the person giving you a critique. This is also rude. They took the time out to try to help you and you go and try to make them feel bad about it. That's not okay. Respect them. If you don't like what they said then just say "Thank you for reading my story," or "I'm sorry this story wasn't to your liking." etc. Be polite even if you want to reach through your computer and strangle them.

This might not have been the best guide ever to how to handle constructive criticism but I have a hard time wrapping my head around why people react to it badly. I get my fair share of constructive criticism and I welcome it. It helps me become a better writer and improvement is something all writers should strive for. 

How To Make the Most of Your Beta Readers

I've recently run into issues when beta reading. People don't seem to take it seriously. As a beta reader, being blown off and basically told that my opinion doesn't matter really pisses me off. Despite the fact that I'm trying to help, writers tend to think that my opinion isn't important.

As a writer, these are the things that are really going to help you improve. It's important that you take someone's comment into consideration if they gave you constructive feedback. I'm also a writer, I hate people telling me that there is something wrong with my story, but I consider that they might be right. More than half the time, they are.

So writers, before you get a beta reader, here are some things you might want to remember as you continue with your writing path.

Some things you SHOULDN'T do with your beta reader:

• Tell them that their opinion is wrong - They are your reader, your audience. Their opinion really does matter. While not all of their opinions should effect your story, you should at least try to see it from their point of view - as long as it's reasonable. If there is some kind of biased against a type of person or event then I think it's safe to say that was just an opinion and you can ignore it.

• Think that betas are there just to compliment you - if that's what you are expecting, then I think you'll be in for a rude awakening. It's not realistic to believe that your writing is the best. If your beta reader isn't finding anything wrong with your story, then they are probably lying to you. They are bound to dislike something.

• Argue with your betas about something you disagree with - It's petty. Arguing with your beta is something you should avoid, especially when the beta is just giving you his or her opinion your story. They are allowed their own opinion. Trying to justify yourself shows a lot of who you are as a person and you will lose betas that way. It makes you sound like you believe your writing is superior to anything they have to say.

• Do not expect your beta readers to finish in one day - Come on, let's be real. They have jobs and lives too. If you send them a 150k novel and hope that they will finish it in a day, then you are sadly mistaken. If you want quality input, be patient.

Some things you SHOULD do with your beta readers: 

• Ask questions - Questions can get you very far when it comes to your betas because you then get to pick apart their brain and really discover why they may have or may not have liked a certain part of your story.

• Value and respect their opinion - These people are your audience. They are taking time out of their busy day to read the story you wrote and while some of their opinions may hurt, you've got to learn to take it. Some of them might just tell you that it sucks and give you no reason as to why - ignore them. They are being assholes. You want them to explain why it sucks. Take things into consideration.

• Get to know your betas - I don't know about you, but I would want to know the person who is about to rake through my manuscript.

• Be firm about certain points - People will argue and argue about a lot of the things that really needs to be there in your story. You should know what is relevant to your story and what isn't. If they feel like your character needs to be a badass when your character isn't then tell them no. There are some things you need to stand firm about, especially when someone is trying to change the entire plot of your story. That's not what a beta reader is for.

• Compile facts - If a good portion of your beta readers say that there is a certain part that they really just can't stand or they don't like what a character did (within reason - antagonists tend to be disliked sometimes) then you might want to consider changing that or fixing it. Try to figure out what they didn't like about it and work on it. It doesn't matter if you liked the scene or if you didn't, sometimes you write things that aren't important to the story.

• Find a good platform that works for the both of you - Personally, I think Google Docs is the best place to go when beta reading and editing need to be conducted. It's easily available and you don't need to have a Gmail account to send it to someone without a Gmail account. My friends don't have one and they are able to use the comment feature just fine. You should also be lenient about how it's sent to them. 

• Edit your manuscript before giving it to a beta reader - This is for the sake of a the beta reader. They don't want to read your sloppy first draft. Fix it up to the best of your abilities and then give it out for someone to read. It makes it easier on them as a reader and they can actually enjoy the story.

• Set up a way you can communicate with each other - Keeping in touch is a good way to connect with your beta reader. If you have questions, then you can ask each other without problem. In any kind of partnership, communication is key.

These are my general thoughts and opinions on how writers should benefit from beta readers. As a writer, it is important to remember that you have room to grow.  You will never be the best at it as you keep changing and improving. Beta readers can help you there so please treat them with respect.