Writing Short Stories Is Not The Same As Writing Novels

One of the most common misconceptions I’ve heard is that short stories are easier to write than novels because they are shorter. I don’t agree. In fact, I think short stories can be as difficult to write as novels, sometimes even more difficult.

A novel’s length is certainly imposing. Putting together upward of 60,000 words of coherent prose is not easy. But that length is also a powerful advantage. A writer that has tens of thousands of words to develop the plot, characters, and setting of a...