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a short break
Feb. 25th, 2007 12:00 pmReally, I do plan to post about Boskone, and maybe about some of the other interesting things I've run across lately, and about what it's like to apply for a major grant (I sent off the application for A Room of Her Own Foundation's Gift of Freedom at the beginning of this month.), but first I need to talk a bit about what's going on with me.
I wrote a short story to submit to the Holy Horrors anthology, and every single time I looked at it this past week to edit it, I just couldn't bring myself to do it. This is a bit of a problem, since the deadline's the 28th. Yesterday, it finally occurred to me why I didn't want to, what the problem with the story was.
It's not a story. It's a metaphor stretched into a story, and I started writing another one the other day. And quite frankly, as stories they suck. They're wonderful literary creations with lots of layers and grammatical punctuation and self-conscious imagery and competent prose. But they're not stories, not really.
I've become so focused on the technique that I've distanced myself from the heart of my stories, and that's not good. So I'm taking a break from short stories.
For the next bit of time, I'm focusing on finishing novels (Sabra's about as story and non-metaphor as it gets--sex, explosion, drug trade, corporate intrigue, lots of flash and bang) and critting novels for my friends, as I've promised. I'm also cleaning up my act around the house a bit--getting rid of clutter, finishing up old projects (my niece may actually get her quilt for her birthday this year), that sort of thing. I do plan to edit some of my older shorts that still need to get out into the world, but I'll come back to writing shorts when I have a story to tell.
I need heart and soul, not just mind.
I wrote a short story to submit to the Holy Horrors anthology, and every single time I looked at it this past week to edit it, I just couldn't bring myself to do it. This is a bit of a problem, since the deadline's the 28th. Yesterday, it finally occurred to me why I didn't want to, what the problem with the story was.
It's not a story. It's a metaphor stretched into a story, and I started writing another one the other day. And quite frankly, as stories they suck. They're wonderful literary creations with lots of layers and grammatical punctuation and self-conscious imagery and competent prose. But they're not stories, not really.
I've become so focused on the technique that I've distanced myself from the heart of my stories, and that's not good. So I'm taking a break from short stories.
For the next bit of time, I'm focusing on finishing novels (Sabra's about as story and non-metaphor as it gets--sex, explosion, drug trade, corporate intrigue, lots of flash and bang) and critting novels for my friends, as I've promised. I'm also cleaning up my act around the house a bit--getting rid of clutter, finishing up old projects (my niece may actually get her quilt for her birthday this year), that sort of thing. I do plan to edit some of my older shorts that still need to get out into the world, but I'll come back to writing shorts when I have a story to tell.
I need heart and soul, not just mind.
