Short stories are getting bigger. No, that is not a size pun. The popularity of shorter works is growing, especially in the audio and eBook space. The easy culprit is our busy lives and shorter attention spans thanks to TikTok, Instagram, Facebook Reels, and the rise of bathroom time doomscrolling. However, weakened synapses and numb legs are not the only things to point a finger at. More and more readers are doing what so many generations before them did, using short stories as a gateway to the harder, lifestyle-altering, relationship-destroying drugs of full-length novels.
This year’s RMFW anthology, True Story: Tales from Rocky Mountain Fiction Writers, is one of those gateways. It includes tales written by twenty-two authors from three states. Editor Amy Armstrong with the help of RMFW member Bailey Finn sorted through hundreds of submissions to select those that best fit the theme and best represent what RMFW authors are: really freakin’ good. The anthology released on September 15th and is available through most online marketplaces (the Amazon behemoth and Barnes & Noble, predominantly).
Authors paying attention to the reader marketplace soon learn the value of having some shorter works in their retinue—or corral if you write Westerns. Short stories serve as reader magnets, projects used to draw in regular, dedicated readers willing to spend their time (and money, thank you very much) on novels and series. Rocky Mountain Fiction Writers provides member authors with a phenomenal opportunity every two years, by producing outstanding anthologies that offer authors exposure to readers and vice versa.
But short stories provide authors more than a marketing ploy. They provide a full-body workout that strengthens the writing muscles of plot development, character arc, dialogue, tension, setting, world building, and pacing. Forcing a complete story into a 5000- to 7,500-word framework makes authors trim the fat. Writers cannot afford expounding on backstory or a magic system or the importance of this year’s pumpkin festival to the residents of your northern Maine coastal town setting. Short stories lock a pinch collar on exposition that helps writers do the same in their novels. Writers learn to trust their readers, and that is vital to getting those bigger works published.
Allow me for a moment to slip into my literary agent alter ego. As such, I see hundreds of submissions that would benefit from this short story exercise regimen. Opening with flashbacks or lengthy prologues because they feel the reader needs this information up front is a sure sign of flabby writing. Instead, writers should drop in bits and pieces or simple hints throughout the first act that allow the reader to connect the dots on their own. Readers don’t need to have their hand held and pablum forced between their cute cheeks because the writer doesn’t think they are smart enough to piece together the complexities of this fictional world/plot/character backstory. What they need is to be put in a place and time and connected to interesting characters with goals, obstacles, and consequences in their path. Short stories force writers to do just that.
As an agent, I appreciate authors who write shorter works and get them published. It shows a level of mastery that includes not only the craft of fiction writing but the business, by having the patience to keep submitting that story until it finds a home. A short story writer can tell a tale both well and efficiently. They can meet a deadline and write within external confines. They can take criticism and work obligingly with an editor. When asked if agents or publishers even care whether an author has been in an anthology, the answer is, “The smart ones do.”
Enough from my point of view. As stated, twenty-two authors are featured in True Story, and each was asked about what they learned through this anthology process. Here is what some had to say (most were too high on anthology success to type a response that didn’t come out, “Shbhervbke kljknvuoiiooooo!”).
“As a novelist, it’s easy to find myself months into a project, suddenly longing for something shiny and new. If I began a new novel every time I got stuck in my current one, I’d never finish anything. Writing a short story lets me take a mini-break without completely derailing my novel. I can explore a totally unrelated idea, have fun with a brand-new voice, and stretch myself in ways that my writer muscles thank me for later. A quick ‘change of scenery’ can do wonders for my creative energy.” - Kelley J. P. Lindberg, author of “The Incendiary Power of Poetry”
“Whatever the anthology theme happens to be, give your creativity, emotions, and patience free rein, in order to emerge with a story you are proud of.” – Chris Dreith, author of “In Deep Water”
“I usually write speculative fiction, where I can invent an entire bizarre world. Writing general fiction pushed me out of that comfort zone. It forced me to trust character, voice, and conflict to carry the story. Annoyingly, it turns out they’re quite capable of it.” – Paul Martz, author of “What We Carry Back”
“The idea of a botany professor turned pizza chef popped into my head during a writing exercise at a RMFW workshop in Grand Junction. A short story I subsequently wrote featuring that same character was selected for [the] anthology. You never know how one thing might lead to another. The moral: Take advantage of every opportunity […] to learn and grow.” – PM Castle, author of “Pizza Girl”
Bottom line from the team: short stories provide new challenges and new opportunities. Write one (or more) and you’ll be surprised at the results. Many writers focus only on what they know, what they are used to doing. Writing for an anthology offers a chance at growth. It may also offer a chance to dust off something you’d given up on, add some spit and polish, and finally find it a home. My own story, “At the Feet of the Electric Messiah,” fits into this last category. Completed about three years ago, it had gone a dozen rounds with various periodicals that said thanks but no thanks. It just didn’t fit the right mold: not sci-fi enough, not historical enough, not thriller enough. But with a few minor tweaks, it found a home in True Story. And that’s another lesson to take to heart: don’t give up on your writing. It may not sell now, but if you stay open to the possibilities, the right home will open its doors to you.
Short stories are one of the best ways writers can hone their craft and get a foot in the publishing door. Now, you have a chance to get inspired and write one of your own. Just get yourself a copy of True Story and see what magic can be woven by artists bound by length and theme but given free rein to let their skills shine and imaginations soar.
True Story: Tales from Rocky Mountain Fiction Writers is available in eBook and paperback.
Bowen Gillings comes as both author and literary agent. Known for thrillers and fantasy tales laced with snark, wit, and characters you could share a beer with, Bowen writes to keep fiction fun. His story “At the Feet of the Electric Messiah” is included in True Story: Tales from Rocky Mountain Fiction Writers, released September 15, 2026. His latest book, Overstuffed Lunchbox: a Bunch of Bite-Sized Bits came out in 2025 and just happens to be a collection of his short works. He is an associate agent with Savvy Literary Services and is an active member of the Association of American Literary Agents. Bowen brings to the table over a decade of experience as an author and champion of authors. He loves giving back to the writing community through workshops, media, and conversations over choice beverages.