Finished!
Wooooohooo! Today I finished my sci-fi short story. It didn’t end at all like I was originally planning, but the image of the last paragraph just came to me as I was typing the last action scene. It’s a nice segue, too, I think for another chapter of the story. I’ve gotten a handle on the world as well. I’m really enjoying the idea of dolphins and sharks being used alongside humans in a war to retake the Earth. It’s been a while since I tried my hand at science-fiction, so it took some time to get into the groove. It’s also been a while since I’ve written a short story, which was a challenge to dive straight into simple plot without giving a lot of character back story. I like to connect with the characters I write, it’s the way I find my enjoyment in the tale-crafting. Short stories have to be a lot more plot-centric in order to work. But, after some work I really think I managed to get a feel for the characters as well. I’m particularly intrigued with Allison, the future-pirate. I left her in dire straits at the end of this installment, so I’m curious to see what happens to her.
Anyway, woohoo! Now I just have to decide what to do with the story.
What to do with it? How about you send it out to friends for review, then send it out to all the short SF markets one at at a time until someone gives you a bucket of money for it?
Is it stand-alone even with the Allison cliff hanger, or does it need editing to stand on its own?
John
Goooood question. I have two of my Houston friends reading it. I’m going to sleep on it, and come back to it for a second edit. My first reviewer wants it to be part of a longer story, make it a first chapter rather than just a short story. I’m thinking of Asimov’s first, high shooting, but they pay well and publish a lot.
If you haven’t written for a very specific niche, it’s good to start at the top of the list and work down on short SF publishers, because you might just nail a good publishing deal. The only concerns are postage and time if you end up working a ways down the list. Most folks who get serious about short SF tend to have a couple dozen stories out making the rounds, which means you’re never waiting a long time for something to happen. To mitigate postage, be sure to include the ones that allow electronic submission.
It also helps to keep a list of where a story’s been sent and when so you don’t accidentally skip, or hit a publisher twice.
With shorts, there’s more upkeep since a short writer tends to have a LOT more things floating around.
John
Thanks John! I’ve not really done much work with short stories, beyond keeping them on my computer. I’ll have to start a list.
~Kristen