Were you ever in a book club that fizzled-out? I’ve been in more than a few that went kaput. One common reason is that not everybody reads the assignment. Right? I’m here to suggest you switch to short stories. Why? First, the discussions are as satisfying as picking apart a full novel. Second, anyone can…
Tag: short stories
The View from the Editor’s Desk
Over the last three months, my co-editor Natasha Watts and I have had the honor of reading 78 short fiction submissions to RMFW’s 2020 anthology. Before taking on this job, I submitted countless stories, poems, and articles to countless magazines, journals, and anthologies. I learned the ropes of navigating a contract, working through revisions with…
How to Write When You’re Not Writing
For the last 12 months, I worked in a sort of creative fever on my latest novel. When I wasn’t at my day job, I was writing. When I couldn’t be writing, I was brainstorming. When I stopped writing to sleep, I felt like I was still trapped in the fictional world, not really resting…
Rocky Mountain Writer #174
Claire L. Fishback & The Blood of Seven Claire L. Fishback, who enjoys scaring readers more than a little, is having a busy year. In March, she released LUMP: A Collection of Short Stories, some 51 tales in all. Among those is “Remembra,” the story she published as part of the RMFW short story anthology…
Short Story Craft, Part 4: Conclusion
In preparation for the 2020 RMFW anthology, I’ve covered three critical elements of the short story: plot, character, and setting. These are the building blocks of short fiction; conquer them, and you’re guaranteed a good story. But a great story? A tear-in-the-eye, punch-in-the-gut, knock-it-out-of-the-park story? That requires a killer ending. In my opinion, the ending…