Editor's Desk:
Yes, Virginia, Short Fiction is Important
Short fiction is important. I feel like I shouldn’t have to say that, but in my years as both a fan and as a professional, I’ve seen it treated like a younger sibling or supporting character when compared to novels.
It’s easy to come up with examples of this. I’ve spoken about the perceived financial value of short fiction in previous editorials. That’s just one variable that speaks volumes about a portion of the reading community and contributes to the lower pay rates for short stories. And then there’s the friends, fans, and family of authors that find themselves asking “when will you publish a novel” as if what they’ve published isn’t as important or even real work? Or why not take a look at genre literary awards such as the Hugo, World Fantasy, and Nebula Awards? The award for best novel is always presented in the most prestigious position, last.
And some of you are probably thinking it’s only natural that a short fiction editor is going to believe that short stories are important. So perhaps “important” doesn’t make it clear enough. I’ll be more specific: short fiction is the heart of the genre. Yes, that important.
Your heart, just in case you’ve forgotten, pumps blood throughout your body, providing it with the oxygen and nutrients it requires to survive. It’s essential.
Short fiction, just in case you haven’t noticed, is the most common entry point for new authors and a place all authors feel more freedom to experiment with new ideas and storytelling techniques that the rest of the genre requires to keep evolving. Likewise essential.
I’ve often referred to the short fiction ecosystem as “the great churn.” Within, the best and brightest often catch the attention of those publishing novels. Once that process starts, their short fiction output begins to decrease or drops to zero. In response, opportunities are created for new authors. In some ways, it can be compared to working in a school, but instead of students graduating and moving up (which would further the second-class image for short fiction), authors are actually moving onto better paying work. And also like school, they sometimes come back to visit/send us a story. That is, if they haven’t entered that sphere of publishing that solicits away those authors with the lure of a sure sale. *shakes fist*
As much as we miss those that move away, we know that the next wave will take us somewhere new and exciting. That continual churn of the field is an essential part of short fiction and valued highly by its fans. We get a front row seat to the possible futures for the genre and the authors who will keep genre vital and moving forward. Sometimes they challenge us. Sometimes we don’t get it. Sometimes they open our eyes. Sometimes they join that pantheon of favorites we all have. Sometimes they draw the attention of new readers. Sometimes they make us scream with frustration or joy. That’s how we know the system is working. That’s how we know it’s essential.
So as I contemplated this editorial, I thought it might be fun to ask the following on Twitter:
Fill in the blank:
Short fiction is important because _______________________.
(“important” here can be important to you, to writers, to readers, to the genre, etc.)
Aside from the handful of “all fiction is important” people I expected to ignore, I was pleasantly surprised by the volume and variety of responses I received. I thought it might be fun to give you a snapshot into the general themes and categories in which the responses fell.
Short fiction is important because:
And perhaps most importantly . . .
If you participated in this little thought experiment, thank you. If not, why not take a moment and think about how you’d answer it. Maybe even share it or a story with someone you know.
ABOUT THE AUTHOR
Neil Clarke is the editor of Clarkesworld Magazine and Forever Magazine; owner of Wyrm Publishing; and a eight-time Hugo Award Nominee for Best Editor (short form). His anthologies include Upgraded, Galactic Empires, More Human Than Human, Touchable Unreality, The Final Frontier, Not One of Us, The Eagle has Landed, and the Best Science Fiction of the Years series. His most recent anthology, The Best Science Fiction of the Year: Volume 5, was published in October by Night Shade Books. He currently lives in NJ with his wife and two sons.
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ISSN 1937-7843 Clarkesworld Magazine © 2006-2020 Wyrm Publishing. Robot illustration by Serj Iulian.
Jeppe wrote on August 4th, 2020 at 6:48 am:
Short stories are indeed the core of the genre and recently I find I get greater value out of my reading time with short stories than with novels. Often you read a good novel, that could have been a great novella instead of a 500 page novel. I might not enjoy every story in an anthology or magazine, but doesn't require as much time.
Also, short stories usually allows for more ways of telling a story. They don't have to have a traditional beginning, middle and an end. No need to always tie up all loose ends, explain everything or provide closure for all character arcs. This is something you sometimes see in longer novels, where the author has written the story into a corner and ends up with a rushed forced deus-ex ending. A good short story can just be a peek into an interesting world, without telling us everything.