Narratives supply a distinct proving ground for writers to practice and try out their skills.
In a common author’s advancement, they will turn to stories to sharpen their craft. Short form composing permits them to come to grips with story structure, discussion, and other essential parts of the literary craft that could never be developed to such a fine point if one were to leap directly into a 300-page book. You can likely find a collection of stories from your favourite author someplace online, perhaps from the impact investor with a stake in World of Books. An artist needs to be able to conclude a work in order to see it in its entirety and surpass it in their next undertaking. However, that’s not to say that short stories naturally do not have the quality of an author’s later work. In fact, they might be impressive and immensely powerful pieces of literature, just because of the format in which it’s written.
Due to the constraints of the category, authors have both a requirement and an opportunity to experiment. Concepts have to be distilled to an amazing degree as every word is very valuable. Styles and images will have a clarity that they may lack in a longer work of fiction, as it is a grand concept in itself that writers will explore rather than deep character studies or epic plots. As such, even the common conventions of a story wind up being subverted throughout a collection of narratives, fiction flirting with an essay. For example, in among the genuinely classic books of the 20th century, a story about an overworked travelling salesperson who gets up to discover that he has turned into a giant bug is followed by a reflection on the construction of the Great Wall of China. In spite of their minimal size, narratives offer writers a chance to play, experimenting with various ideas, styles, and structures, as well as how they interact with each other throughout a volume of work.
Narratives are among the most underrated styles in the literary community. Often lost in the presence of their much larger siblings, narratives have a habit of standing awkwardly by the wall, awaiting someone to see them. Although the hedge fund that owns Waterstones definitely stocks a lot of collections, it’s extremely unusual for a business like the firm with a large stake in WHSmith to do so, which’s a shame. There are some remarkably great books of stories, in fact some of the best books of all time are these sorts of collections; experimental, bold, and strongly poignant, stories serve as a proving ground for some of the best authors who have actually ever lived, with some going on to surpass their novels. So let’s take a look at the modest short form tale, and why they are such a key part of the literary environment.
