Write and Sell Short Stories

From LoveToKnow Freelance-Writing

If you hope to write and sell short stories on a regular basis, whether fiction or nonfiction, you'll need a plan to be successful.

Writing and Selling Short Stories

Make a Plan to Write and Sell Short Stories

The first step in a developing a plan to not only write but also to sell short stories is to set aside time to write. This may sound all too obvious, but it's easy for life to vie for your attention and distract you. Many a would-be writer bemoans the fact that they have been too busy to write. If you hope to write short stories to sell, you'll need to establish a writing plan to help short circuit life's writing detours.

Once you establish a time, your plan should specify how it will be used. This is different for each writer. The approach you take will evolve along with your portfolio. What works for one writer may not work for another, so how you plan to use your allotted slot of time will depend on you. Consider the following possibilities to help you establish a writing regiment for short story creation and development:

  • Set aside 20 minutes a day four days a week to devote to your short story – The amount of time you set aside can be adjusted, but 20 minutes is a great place to start. Everyone can find 20 minutes somewhere in their day.
  • Set a daily word count goal
  • Set a daily page count goal

Short Story Markets

The next step in your writing plan will be to choose the story you want to write. How do you decide? If you want to write and sell short stories, it's best to have a market in mind and to tailor the story to meet the market's needs.

Nonfiction Markets

Anthology markets are a great way for beginners to break into publication, and you can also build a steady income as a short story writer once you establish a working relationship with the publisher or editor. Creative nonfiction anthology markets include:

Literary journals and magazines also publish creative nonfiction.

Fiction Markets

Finding anthology markets for fiction is not quite so easy. It's sad to say, but the market for short fiction has dwindled. If you want to write and sell short fiction, you'll have to make researching markets part of your writing plan. Here are a few markets to get your started:

Other markets for short stories can be found in literary journals such as these:

A few popular magazines still publish fiction, but most of these magazines target women, so be sure to keep your audience in mind when writing short stories. That's all part of researching the market. If you find a magazine that accepts short fiction and you're not sure of who the intended readership is, glance at the advertisements. They provide a pretty clear picture of who reads the magazine.

What Is Creative Nonfiction?

If the repeat anthology markets such a Chicken Soup for the Soul interest you, but you're not quite sure what creative nonfiction is, here it is in a nutshell. It's learning to write a nonfiction story with the elements of creative fiction. You want to write with an active flavor that shows instead of tells. To accomplish this you'll include action and dialog instead of adjectives and adverbs. The story is true, but reads like fiction. It requires the development of a well-crafted plot with a beginning that hooks, a middle that brings out emotion and moves the story forward and an end that satisfies.

Producing What's Wanted

If you want to write short stories and sell them, you need to think of your work as the product you sell. Check the guidelines to see what editors are looking for. Pay attention to details like:

  • Word Count
  • Format
  • What contact information they require
  • What genre they accept
  • Themes for upcoming issues
  • How to contact the editor and what their name is
  • Is a query necessary?
  • What is the deadline?
  • What rights do they want? (In some cases when the author retrains the rights to their story they can sell the same story more than once).

In general, the guidelines provided by each publication are the parameters in which the writer works if they hope to sell their product. Pick your market, write your short story, and submit. Then move on to the next one. It can take months to hear from a publication, so don't waste your valuable time waiting instead of writing. Keep writing and submitting. Some stories will sell, others won't. Recycle them. Find another market and tweak the story to fit their guidelines.

Retrieved from "http://freelance-writing.lovetoknow.com/Write_and_Sell_Short_Stories"

 


Comment on Write and Sell Short Stories



(Displayed with your comment)                        (Will not be displayed)
Verification Code:   
    

Freelance Writing Categories
LoveToKnow Tools
More Articles




How much do you expect to earn from your freelancing writing this year?