Writing Novellas & Short Stories

When I began writing, I was attached to the idea of trying to write a novel because that’s what all the “experts” were talking about. If you weren’t writing a novel, you weren’t going to be taken seriously.

I struggled immensely; but I kept moving forward because I was going to write a novel, dammit!

And I did it with my first book, just sliding in under the wire of the minimum word count that would classify it as a novel.

But I realized something after all the effort I put into that story. Novel writing isn’t my strength.

Intuitively, I knew I couldn’t keep up the pace of trying to write a novel every time I sat down with pencil and paper, so I embraced the idea of short stories and novellas when I found a rare corner of the internet where such things were being discussed without the usual elitism that came with the novel writing culture in a lot of circles at the time.

It was a blessed relief. I found my writing sweet spot.

Here I am, 28 stories later and still going. I don’t think that would have happened if I had kept on trying to write longer works.

Why does this matter?

It matters because I know there are people out there who aren’t writing the way they were meant to write. They aren’t leaning into their sweet spot, which is making their author journey much harder than it needs to be.

I spent last week in meditation and reflection and was quickly reminded that one of my Priestess gifts is getting things down to the essence. This is something I hadn’t previously connected to my writing. I picked up on it intuitively when I began letting myself write shorter, more concise works, but I hadn’t consciously made the connection that the structure of my writing is an outward expression of one of my spiritual gifts.

Writing a novel is a different talent than writing a novella or a short story. Novels can paint vivid, enthralling pictures for people who want someone else to set the scene for them. There is often intricate world-building with specific descriptions of colors, sounds, textures, etc. And there are certain brain styles that thrive on the excellent execution of this art.

Novellas and short stories get down to the essence of the story quickly. They leave a lot of things open for the reader to interpret on their own, which works wonderfully for people who enjoy letting their imagination run free, filling in the details of the story to their own specifications as they read.

I am here to give a blueprint of the story. The basic essence of which a reader can build on to create their own immersive adventure.

I’m glad I had the intuition to take a different path and explore the idea of writing shorter works. I’m more satisfied with the overall writing experience now that I’m leaning into my gift of distilling things down rather than trying to make myself fit industry expectations.

If you’re finding yourself disenchanted with your work. Examine it from a different angle. Are you writing in your sweet spot?

And this doesn’t only apply to the length of your work. Is the current genre you’re writing in one that speaks to your creative Muse? If not, maybe it’s time to explore a different one. Are you tired of the main trope rut you seem to have fallen into? Explore a new one.

Oftentimes, that struggle we feel sitting down to write isn’t because we’ve lost the will to create. Sometimes that “writer’s block” isn’t because our Muse is silent - it’s because we’ve got a hand over her mouth preventing her from exercising her full expression. We’re forcing her into our expectation rather than letting her lead us into the realm of possibility with wild abandon.

Even with nearly 30 published works out in the wild, writing novellas and short stories remains a practice. Every story is a chance to refine my skill of getting down to what really matters about the tale being spun. Each deep dive into the pool of imagination is sacred time spent in communion with my Muse finding the pearl in the oyster of story-weaving.

The decision to write novellas and short stories honors my gift of being able to quintessentialize.

So, I leave you with these questions…

Where could you lean more fully into your innate gifts on your writing journey?

Where is your Muse wanting to be more freely expressed?

Are you being asked to distill down and get clearer?

More isn’t always better.

A version of this, tailored to fit, has been cross-posted to Substack.
It shouldn’t have to be clarified, but this is the world we live in now: this article is written by a human.