S B
asked
Ingvild H. Rishøi:
Hi Ingvild. Having read through your catalogue (multiple times), I just wanted to express that you are among my favourite all-time authors! As a big fan of the short story in particular, I was wondering if you have ever considered returning to the genre in some capacity? Your style of writing always stood out as unique and creative, but also very intentional, and I selfishly admit it would have made me very happy! :)
Ingvild H. Rishøi
Hi!
How nice it is to hear that you have read my books, and multiple times -thank you! And it's also really nice to notice that there are still short story readers out there (they're not the loudest audience, I think?)
When I write, I have no genre in mind - or rather - I have one, but it often turns out to be the wrong one. When I wrote short stories, several times I was SURE I was writing a novel, as my raw material and first drafts were huge. But then I started editing, and when I edit, I like to keep only the words that feel strictly nessecary to me. And then, they all turned out to be short stories!
As for Brightly Shining (Stargate in Norwegian), I think it could also be called a short story - it is indeed a very short novel, but I was kind of thankful when my publisher said we could call it a novel. Thankful for the ... novelty, maybe?
But to answer your question: It seems like I can't control this - sometimes something turns out to be a short story, and sometimes (one time!) a novel. The book I'm writing right now is still very, very, long - and it's one story, but recently I've been wondering if maybe I could turn some parts of it into short stories. Among others, I think both Alice Munro, Elizabeth Strout and Frode Grytten has made really interesting mixes between novels and short stories, and that's inspiring. So right now, that's my plan!
But as mentioned above: My plans often go down the drain.
How nice it is to hear that you have read my books, and multiple times -thank you! And it's also really nice to notice that there are still short story readers out there (they're not the loudest audience, I think?)
When I write, I have no genre in mind - or rather - I have one, but it often turns out to be the wrong one. When I wrote short stories, several times I was SURE I was writing a novel, as my raw material and first drafts were huge. But then I started editing, and when I edit, I like to keep only the words that feel strictly nessecary to me. And then, they all turned out to be short stories!
As for Brightly Shining (Stargate in Norwegian), I think it could also be called a short story - it is indeed a very short novel, but I was kind of thankful when my publisher said we could call it a novel. Thankful for the ... novelty, maybe?
But to answer your question: It seems like I can't control this - sometimes something turns out to be a short story, and sometimes (one time!) a novel. The book I'm writing right now is still very, very, long - and it's one story, but recently I've been wondering if maybe I could turn some parts of it into short stories. Among others, I think both Alice Munro, Elizabeth Strout and Frode Grytten has made really interesting mixes between novels and short stories, and that's inspiring. So right now, that's my plan!
But as mentioned above: My plans often go down the drain.
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Ingvild H. Rishøi
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