Inkslinger On writing, on books, and on book arts

Why the Short Story Matters, Part 2: The audience you want to reach reads them.

The Best American Short Stories 2009

On Monday, I posted about the value of publishing short fiction and highlighted the site Emerging Writers Network (EWN) as a resource for researching print and online journals.  For emphasis, some repetition: If you're having difficulties finding representation or publishing that first or second novel, it's time to develop and to place shorter fiction. It increases your visibility and develops what is so adorably called your "platform."

Agents want to represent "career" authors (the terminology I see many agent websites using).  If they're going to invest time in you, they want to know that the effort will bear fruit beyond that initial book.  That doesn't mean, however, that they're eager to hear all about the trilogy you got planned in the middle of the pitch about your first (and unrelated) novel.  That's what you might do. 

A list of well-placed publications--and better yet, a few awards--demonstrates discipline and an awareness of the business of being a professional writer.  But an author, believe it or not, can hope for more than merely impressing an agent  during a pitch.  

How about impressing an agent--or, better yet, an editor--during her lunch break, ride home, or lazy Saturday morning coffee?  

In a recent and optimistic post, editor Alan Rinzler points out that agents and book publishers read short stories and short story collections in search for new talent.  I do not doubt that this is true.  Given that Rinzler has worked in the industry for decades, his words make me do a little dance.  I just had to link to his article.

I do feel, simultaneously, that Rinzler's examples are a bit rarified.  It takes a lot of luck--plus the prior dedication to writing and placing short fiction--to be picked up by a major publisher like Michael Chabon, Annie Proulx, or Wells Tower.  And it seems that many of the commenters on his post also recognize the hopeful, glass-half-full spin about getting noticed by publishers--while enjoying Rinzler's discussion all the same.

Rinzler's point, however, is spot on.  If you want to get noticed by someone in the industry, get your work placed where they can see it.  This includes not only in anthologies but also in literary magazines, both printed and online.  

The comments on Rinzler's post are as interesting to ponder as Rinzler's own discussion.  Should you place a story for free or hold out for pay?  I'm of the opinion that short fiction rarely pays a lot (unless your Chabon, Proulx, or Tower), so place it for free.  There's also some debate over the viability of the short story collection by a single author.  Rinzler states that short story collections have a large market, but I believe he means anthologies with multiple writers more than collections by a single writer.  From what I know, it's tough to sell a single-author short story collection.  You need to be a known quantity (usually by publishing individual stories) and have an agent firmly behind you--plus be ready to beat down lots of doors for a pretty small advance.  

How does an author find anthologies or collections wanting submissions?  Keep your eyes and ears open.  Sign up for the feeds and the newsletters of your favorite magazines.  Also, look in the back of Poets & Writers.  There are always calls for submissions in the classifieds.  What about contests so you can capture attention with your awards?  Creative Writing Contests keeps a running list of those, as well as of literary magazine themes and of writing residencies.  

And here are a couple more links to lists of magazines and journals that print short fiction (thanks, Alan Rinzler!): NewPages, which describes a large selection of literary magazines, and Duotrope's Digest, whose online resource lists over 2650 fiction and poetry publications.