I haven't always written short stories. Truth be told, I started out as a novelist.
Now, granted, I was twelve years old at the time, and my work meandered from one action scene to the next with no clear idea on how the story would end (I was a true pantser)—but they were novels. My favorite would have to be Westward, Tally Ho! (65,000 words) about a young English aristocrat searching for his butler's long-lost daughter in the American Old West. It still makes me laugh.
Noveling went on hold in college, and while I occasionally found time to write a short story, I eventually allowed my writing to stagnate. It took me ten years to climb back into the saddle.
In 2008, I wrote When the Skies Fell (145,000 words; post-apocalyptic SF), polished it up, and at the insistence of my supportive wife, queried it with 26 agents. Three requested partials, but there were no takers. I set the manuscript aside and started another one.
I finished Time's Eye (155,000 words; future noir) in 2009 and queried it with 40 agents; I received 2 partial requests, 1 full request, but no takers. "To the back burner, Robin!" I started another.
In 2010, I wrote Waiting for You (110,000 words; YA thriller), queried it 23 times, received 2 partial requests, but there were no takers. You guessed it: I started another.
Last year, Write1Sub1 focused all of my energy on writing and submitting new short stories every week. Progeny languished at 86,000 words for months. But this week, I finished the first draft (145,000 words; a sequel to When the Skies Fell) and will start the revision process next month.
No more sitting on the sidelines. This year, my novels are getting back in the game.
How about yours?
I take my hat off to you for persistence Milo - tremendous efforts and recuperation. And the very best of luck with the latest novel - may it engender a tug of war.
ReplyDeleteWow. Milo, you're doing so well. As you know I've been tinkering with a novel this year, too.
ReplyDeleteI keep getting distracted by my short stories. But with persistence, I think I am beginning to see improvement.
I'll race you towards publication. I could do with the motivation.
Oh, do I hear you! I think I have more "back burnered" manuscripts in my closet than anything else. :)
ReplyDeleteBut, those partial/full requests mean something, Milo, and don't ever forget that. It means you're on the right track. It means you're getting closer.
I pulled a ms out of my closet the other day, one I never actually let go of in my heart, and I'm going for it. Again.
Good luck to you! Good luck to us all!
That's funny, I started with novels too (though never finished the early ones).
ReplyDeleteFor me, this year? I'd like to get a couple shorts written and out, then finish my second novel, which I've been halfway through for over a year.
Glad to see you throwing your hat back into the ring :)
ReplyDeleteGood for you!
ReplyDeleteAnd I'll soon dive back into my third novel.
Sandra: I don't think I'll be able to look at Progeny again for a while, but there's sure to be plenty of tugging and warring when the time comes.
ReplyDeleteDeborah: The race is on! I haven't decided yet if I'll take the agent route or small press route this year...
Madeline: Or does it mean my query letters are good, but my manuscripts are crap? =] May the force be with us!
Tony: It'll be a huge load off when you finish that WiP, mos def.
MS: Yep, it's official; can't take it back now!
Alex: Diving, wading, drowning -- all good things, right?
I've been focused on shorts too, but I'm really feeling the itch to write something longer.
ReplyDeleteI have 2 unfinished books in a series that I worked on during NaNoWriMos past, plus a new one that I started in 2011, so my goal is to get back on track with those.
I've got 5 shorts with markets right now so at least I won't feel guilty about not working on any new ones for a while (though we all know that when we SAY we aren't going to, that's usually when new ideas pop up, right?)
I've written a few that haven't found homes (yet?) and one that has - that's made me even keener to get on with the next one.
ReplyDeleteThat's what we do isn' it, write something, then write something else.
I finally finished one last year and ahve two more on the go at the moment.
ReplyDeleteCongratulations, Milo. I've never actually finished a novel, but I'm sure the feeling is the last page of a short story times...well, many times :)
ReplyDeleteHave you ever considered doing the epub thing with the others?
Not to sound like too big a nerd but at the end of this post I wanted to say, "Go get em tiger!" - I have never said that phrase in my entire life. But do it!
ReplyDeleteTo pack enough clout into a short story, well, you've got to have something interesting to say...
ReplyDeleteAnonymous 1, king of the silence!!
Mary: You're right about that, and it's always tough to jump back into noveling with so many shorter ideas begging for attention.
ReplyDeletePatsy: Yes indeed, and I've found that the occasional acceptance really motivates me to keep at it.
Martin: Good luck with those projects -- a trilogy, perchance?
Shane: I'm going to take the agent and/or small press routes first. I've been hesitant to climb aboard the self-publishing bandwagon; but maybe after I release an anthology and get my feet wet, I'll have a better understanding of the process.
Libby: Will do! =]
A1: Or at least say it in a way that's interesting...
Wow -- fabulous, Milo!!!
ReplyDeleteI am impressed and inspired by your output! I am still slowly slugging out my very first novel -- it's going through yet another rewrite. It's never really been off the back burner, and frankly there are times when the pilot light goes out.
I wish you tremendous success with Progeny!
...and maybe you should add another category for W1S1: Bi-Yearly, just for novelists.
I think that two partials was pretty good for your YA Thriller. Did you get feedback that might help you to improve your chances in netting more partials?
ReplyDeleteI was the complete opposite! I wrote a ton of short stories for years and years, getting published in various literary journals (yes I was a writing snob throughout the mid 90s).
ReplyDeleteSince I've been writing 100,000+ word novels, I have a tough time writing shorter stuff. That's why I'm doing some Flash Fiction here and there, just to keep growing as a writer.
You keep going. wow, 110,000 words. Yikes, I thought my 87,000 word YA was long. :) I'm chugging through three possible series to be published over the next year. That will be 9 books. Yikes!
ReplyDeleteGood for you, stick to it! I find that I balance short-stories now with my novels and it allows me to successfully write in two different genres: Historical for my novels and contemporary in short-fiction.
ReplyDeleteChris: We considered adding a novel participation level to W1S1 but decided to keep our focus on the short story. I've been including my weekly word counts with each check-in, as I plan on subbing my novel later this year.
ReplyDeleteMichael: Nope -- and it kind of stinks. I appreciate feedback in any form, but it's often hard to come by.
Jay: I've noticed that my short storying has definitely helped my noveling. Down with wordiness!
Ciara: Keep up the good work. I always inflate my first drafts and then deflate them considerably during the revision process.
Mark: Very cool; and in the process, you're a time traveler.
Congrats on finishing the draft, Milo. And that first novel sounds fun and unique - I think you should rewrite it for the upper end of the MG market.
ReplyDeleteI have a dozen novels languishing in a cupboard and for now they're staying there. I seem to be addicted to novellas.
This is what I like to hear! 2012 = Year of the Novel for Milo. :)
ReplyDeleteNovels ARE fun. I have a few dozen I need to write. They'll be shorter than 120k, though. ...much shorter.
ReplyDeleteMilo - You and me both. I have novels that jabber at me to be written at 3:00AM. It's time I did.
ReplyDeleteCate: My only concern with upper MG is that I'd have to change the age of the protagonist -- kids want to read about kids, not college-age doofuses, right?
ReplyDeleteJennifer: I sure hope so!
David: I always aim for 100K, but being a pantser, well...
Simon: Agreed -- and that might be the time of day mine jabber at me, too (but 8 hours earlier, of course).
Hi Milo.
ReplyDeleteW1S1 congrats, and good luck with the novel!
I think the hardest part of writing is to keep plugging away, when so many things tell us not to (except wonderful spouses), so congrats to that, Milo.
ReplyDeleteI'm finishing up a sequel to my first novel this year, and hopefully a novella, along with 52 short stories : )
Best of luck-
Congratulations on your W1S1 success!
ReplyDeleteCongratulations on making your Write1Sub1 goal. Just ten more months to go.
ReplyDeleteDaveK
Thank you, my Write1Sub1 compatriots! 2 months down, 10 more to go. =]
ReplyDeleteCongratulations on hitting your Write1Sub1 goal for February. Glad you liked my "rule".
ReplyDeleteDave K
Congrats on acheiving your W1S1 goals for February :)
ReplyDeleteInterestingly I find myself in a situation that is the opposite of yours -- I feel like I've been focusing all my time on novels and not short stories LOL
Congrats on your W1S1, and on finishing the draft! Hope it feels good to be noveling again.
ReplyDeleteThat's PHENOMENAL! Good God, man, you are a prolific writer! And you're an inspiration. I've been putt-putt-puttering for over a year on my queries (barely more than a dozen in all this time, pathetic!) and think in that time I've needed to both strengthen my story and my confidence for putting it out there. The research for agents/publishers alone is exhausting, isn't it...
ReplyDeleteSo I once again find myself tipping my hat to you - heck, I'm giving a grand bow, followed by a curtsey for good measure - for your work at writing and submitting. You absolutely should get those novels back out into the world. For whatever reason, I'd always thought 20 rejections would be my limit, but when I discovered that some of the most popular books out there right now had even been rejected 40-60 times, I realized I'd given up on myself before I'd really even started this grand game of Find the Publisher. :)
Congratulations on finishing Progeny, by the way! Outstanding!!
Dave: It was a good one.
ReplyDeleteRhonda: That's how I started out; I'm trying to find some kind of balance between them.
Charity: It does feel good -- a little scary and unmanageable, but good.
CK: Never give up, never surrender! Right? I've been fairly tenacious in subbing my short stories; now I need to believe in my novels just as much.
Milo,
ReplyDeletecongrats on the w1s1 event, and thanks so much for sharing the link to your Captain Quasar story. I'm a fan now! ;)
My novels are coming out this year, too....invading flash fiction, shifting, growing deeper.....
ReplyDeleteLoved reading this!
Various development versions of my esoteric fantasy, Covenant, have been kicking around for over 20 years. I figure if I wait long enough it will be given it's own sovereign state membership to the UN.
ReplyDeleteI admit that I've always been more of a novel-writer too -- I love short stories, and I know that flexing those muscles has improved me as a writer far more by not allowing me to take certain (rambly) liberties. Best of luck to you and your novels this year!
ReplyDeleteFrances: Thanks for reading! Muse-willing, there will be plenty more Captain Quasar tales in the near future.
ReplyDeleteShan: Open the floodgates, right?
Derek: Or maybe even develop its own artificial intelligence?
Katey: I've found that when I write short stories or a series of stand-alone tales with recurring characters, I'm always pondering the possibility of a potential novel-length project in the future.
Fingers crossed I'm planning to get back to my original WIP that I called once forgotten but am toying with changing the title to Marriage Lines. Impressive word counts for your novels.
ReplyDeleteWould love to read a post about how you tackle plotting.
What, me plot? I'm a pantser, through and through -- but I'm beginning to see the value in plotting as I stress out over how I'm ever going to end my WiPs. Thanks for the future-post idea!
ReplyDelete