Writing short stories has always been my favorite form of writing. Some say it’s difficult to get all the elements of a good story in anything less than novel length. But I tried writing a full novel and, well, it still isn’t complete after 10 years. I think that keeping so much in mind is more than I’ve been able to handle but I hope to tackle what I’ve already written again soon. Key word is “hope”. Short stories, though, are something I can flesh out in my mind and then write/revise/repeat until I think it’s good enough to share. I studied at VCU and was fortunate to have great, already published instructors who encouraged me to continue with writing. One asked if he could mentor me but I had so much going on in life at the time (divorce, custody battles, etc.) that I politely refused his offer because I didn’t think I’d have the time to work with him and didn’t feel that I deserved that kind of assistance. A lack of confidence in my ability to write well, I suppose. A NYT bestselling author and another writer compared my work to that of Ray Bradbury’s and J.D. Salinger’s- a true compliment indeed, as I’ve long admired Bradbury’s work more than any other author I’ve read.

Rejecting that offer of help is my one regret. I should’ve accepted the offer and may now be a better, and better-known writer.

Thank you for your encouragement. I may even pull up the file of that not-yet-completed novel and get back to work completing it. I really do want to finish it, so I suppose this winter is as good a time as any.

If you decide to write short stories again, I’d love to read them. Just let me know and I hope you have a great new year!