Tiny Tales

I keep writing short stories, and I keep asking myself why?   Is it because I was told many years ago – and have had it repeated incessantly since – that success with ‘shorts’ is a sort of proving ground for authorship?   A century or so ago, I guess, it might have been; Dickens began with his Boz sketches, didn’t he?  A century ago; not now.  

The technique for short story writing is quite different:  depth is positively discouraged; it’s all about outcome, with scant attention to the steps along the way.   The process for seeking publication is just plain frustrating, with turn-around tying up MSs for as much as three months at a time.  To some extent writing has to be a business:  short stories are not cost-effective.

So – all change!   Since my writing of ‘shorts’ is an indulgence, I’m simply putting them up on my website for anyone who wants.  They are still copyright, of course, and I would ask you not to reproduce them, but please come along, please stop by and read!   There are four to start with, there will be more as soon as I can get the time.   Personally, my favorite of this first batch is ‘Parfitt’s Island’ – but that’s just me.