I came to a realization the other night about writing, an epiphany which probably seems obvious to writers who've been in the game for a while. Lately, I've been searching for places to submit some of my short, prose fiction. I was about to take down a list of publications when it struck me: What will getting a short story published do for me? What do I hope to parlay out of that experience? Truly, I don't mean to bash short stories, short story publications, or short story writers - "Stories" by John Cheever is one of my favorite books. Forgetting the fact that the competition in the short fiction market is supremely daunting, publication in a small press does not typically equal further accolades, a book deal, or even a relationship with a publisher. So unless I singularly desire to write short stories for a living or see myself as the next Tobias Wolff, it's ridiculous to focus on this form of writing. I would (and hopefully will) be better served focusing on my interest in young adult fiction, screenwriting, satire, comics, and non-fiction prose.
All of this lead me back to an age-old pondering of what it means to be a writer. I used to place a lot of stipulations on this label - before calling myself a "writer," I had to earn some money doing it or, at the very least, see some of my work published. Now, I look at writing similarly to the way I view running, one of my other pastimes. Entering a marathon or half-marathon or 10K - or somehow, miraculously, winning any of these races - is not the sole defining characteristic of being a runner. That reeks of elitism. A runner is a runner because of the simple, arduous task of hitting the pavement, counting the miles, weathering the aches, and doing it again the next day. It's a little hokey, I know, but I've discovered a positive outlook is essential in both running and writing.
About Me
- Joel Wayne
- An East Oregonian who spent some time in Missoula and Portland, I currently live in the City of Trees with my fiancé. And when I'm not drinking beer, hanging out with Adie, or doing other amazing things, I work as a writer for a local ad agency.
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2 comments:
Cool post!
Beth Fehlbaum, author
Courage in Patience, a story of HOPE..
http://courageinpatience.blogspot.com
Ch. 1 is online!
What you get from writing short stories is practice. What you get from having them published is a publishing credit. Some lucky folk (read as: hard working) do use short stories as the stepping stone to agents and/or book deals, too, of course.
Sure, it's not the glitz and glamor of pimping around a novel manuscript for 10 years hoping someone bites, annoying friends with the constant 'my novel' talk and not being able to move on, but short stories aren't quite useless, in my opinion. Way I figure it, by the time you're writing short stories that sell or are well published, you'll be ready for the novel game anyhow, and at least have the publishing credits and practice that may give you a leg up when it's agent time, as they'll know you're a writer, not just someone who wrote something once.
Even finding mediocre success in short story markets shows the writer is at least someone who works, and can formulate stories. One novel, no matter how good, only holds so much weight as proof that you've been able to carry multiple story arcs to a meaningful resolution. Sure, wrote one novel, can write another, in theory, but I've heard of plenty of people who only had one good novel in them, but rarely heard of anyone with only one good short story in them, and often those with many good short stories, have many good novels.
So, to me writing short stories is just a sort of investment in hope. It doesn't lead directly to any success, but it's a tool that can help one find it.
Kind of like MFA's in creative writing. It doesn't so much open doors as gives you more time and tools to recognize the doors and learn how to knock.
And btw, you're in a tough situation with having found a good job. My plan was to look for jobs this summer and hope to get one good enough that it would entice me away from starving through an MFA program. Having a job doesn't mean one can't write. In fact, imo, it means one can possibly just do their writing in a bit of comfort.
Of course, not being accepted anywhere has solidified my plans to keep looking for a job... joy.
Me personally? I'd pick the job every time. Writing will almost always be a side thing for most people, even after finding success (saw an estimate once that only 500 or so writers manage to make a living wage on their fiction writing alone in the US). Living life as a drunk hobo writer is always enticing... but not really.
Whatever you choose, I wish you luck and skill.
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