Thursday 5 January 2012

Novel or Short Story...

At the moment my brain is in novel, rather than short story mode. Though I find that when I'm working on longer pieces my new ideas seem to be short story related, and vice-versa.

As I mentioned previously I've been getting on with combining all the information on my characters for my novel (before I rewrite Chapter 1) and it's been helped along by using the odd twenty minutes or an hour (as available) working on the information, between other tasks.

(I'm still waiting for the competition comments- but I hope to get them from the prose secretary via the post, soon.)

While I can't write the novel without quiet, I've discovered that combining the scattered information doesn't need the same depth of concentration as actually writing the story does; so I'm making a little more progress than I expected. And the list of questions I'm answering has given me some insights into my characters that I wasn't previously aware of.

So meanwhile, my short story attempts are on hold, but I'll certainly be making a note of this useful blog post by Sally Quilford, 'The Key Elements of a Short Story', so I can check I'm not missing something when I get back to them...

5 comments:

Diane Fordham said...

Progress is a good thing. Just go with the muse I think..whether u feel like writing your novel or short stories, just go with it - as long as you write that has to be a good thing :-)

Patsy said...

Glad you've found a way to make use of those odd snatches of free time rather than leaving everything for when you've got a peaceful day in which to work.

Rosemary Gemmell said...

Oh, novel or short stories - I ask myself that question lots of times! So I work on a combination of both, depending on mood. All the best with your writing this year.

Anonymous said...

I find it very hard to switch between short stories & novels. I find that you need to get deep into a novel without the distraction of any other writing to interrupt the flow.
So for me, it's one or the other at any given time.

Carolb said...

I find that I have to do one or the other, like you Sally. And I agree with you about getting deep into the novel without other distractions- or in my case, characters...

I certainly think the fact my sons are now teenagers has improved the amount of snatched time, Patsy.

As you say, Diane, and Rosemary, mood usually dictates what it's best for me to work on.