In the introduction to his short story collection, Blind Willow, Sleeping Woman, Haruki Murakami says this about writing short stories versus novels:
“To put in the simplest possible terms, I find writing novels a challenge, writing short stories a joy. If writing novels is like planting a forest, then writing short stories is more like planting a garden.
(Source)
“Since my debut as a fiction writer in 1979, I’ve fairly consistently alternated between writing novels and short stories. My pattern’s been this: once I finish a novel, I find I want to write some short stories; once a group of stories is done, then I feel like focusing on a novel. I never write any short stories while I’m writing a novel, and never write a novel while I’m working on short stories. The two types of writing may very well engage different parts of the brain, and it takes some time to get off one track and switch to the other.”
I couldn’t agree more with this. Most people classify fiction as fiction and don’t think much beyond that. But, I see short story writing and novel writing as very, very different. From the time I took an interest in fiction writing, I was driven to write novels. I liked having all those pages to develop characters and stories. I didn’t even write a short story until grad school, when it became a requirement. I discovered that writing short stories is really freaking hard. You only have so much time and space to capture (and keep) the reader’s attention. There is far less room for error — in cadence, word choice, etc. The rhythm of your sentences has to be just right. And then, before you know it, it’s over. You enter the characters’ lives briefly and then you say farewell.
I consider writing short stories like flings — intense romances that come in and out of your life relatively quickly. Writing novels is a long-term affair, a relationship full of ups and downs (like any relationship). Writing a novel involves ebbs and flows in commitment. There are days you want to just give it up, free yourself. There are days when you are so wrapped up with it that you lose sleep and forget to eat meals. And, in the end, through it all, it’s one of the most rewarding, fulfilling experiences there can be. Like any meaningful relationship, it teaches you more about who you are and who you want to be.
Novels will always be my primary love. I’m a relationship girl, what can I say? Like Murakami says, it’s difficult to write a short story while working on a novel. It’s like cheating on your significant other with some person who caught your attention randomly at the grocery store. I’ve been focused on a new novel for a while now and, interestingly, I haven’t written a single short story in all that time. I’m fine with that. I’m enjoying monogamy. There will be time for flings…