Readership today is broader than it has ever been, with readers eager to consume content in a variety of lengths, formats, and genres. Writers can benefit greatly from having a portfolio of short form writing such as essays, short stories, and poetry, giving them the opportunity to reach these readers, improve their writing craft, create awareness for other work, and build credibility in the marketplace. As with full-length books, there are numerous ways a writer can publish their short work. Here are four, common publishing paths available:
If you have a large portfolio of short work or have been keeping an active blog for some time, you may have enough content to pull together a collection of your work and publish it just like you would a full-length book. The key to a great collection is to find a common theme or topic that ties all of the pieces together, making it feel like a cohesive whole.
Some common themes for nonfiction collections include courage and perseverance, coming of age, and religious or spiritual journeys. Some common themes for fiction collections include good versus evil, the supernatural, and dystopian futures. Here are some recommended collection word counts to keep in mind:
• Personal Essays: 50,000 – 80,000 words total• Short Stories: 40,000 – 60,000 words total• Poetry: 30,000 – 50,000 words total
Collections of short work can be a tough sell to literary agents and traditional publishers, unless you are already an established author. If you find that a traditional publishing path is not a good option for your work, you can pursue other paths such as assisted self-publishing or do-it-yourself publishing. Print books continue to be the top selling format for books; however, you can widen your readership even more by publishing an eBook and audiobook of your collection.
If you don’t have enough pieces of short work to create your own collection, you can search for anthology opportunities. An anthology is a compilation of short works, but from many different authors. Whether in the genre you write or something new you explore, anthologies can offer you an opportunity to reach readers by tapping into the audiences of other authors.
Anthologies are highly readable because the individual writings are brief (1,500 – 2,000 words), making them appealing to readers who want to quickly engage with a piece. They typically include between 20 and 30 contributors and focus around a universal theme or message. For some writers, the opportunity to be published in a collection is enough compensation on its own, but it’s common for contributors to be paid a one-time, flat fee ranging from $25 up to several hundred dollars.
Here are some directories that can be searched for anthology opportunities:
Poets & Writers – One of the largest nonprofit literary organizations in the United States serving poets, fiction writers, and creative nonfiction writers, with a large database of literary magazines open to submissions. New Pages – A guide to literary magazines, indie publishing, university presses, creative writing programs, writing and literary events, writing contests, calls for submissions, and more. Duotrope – A paid service offering a database of literary markets, as well as other helpful features like a submission tracker and deadline calendar. You can complete a free trial to try out its features before committing to a subscription.
Literary magazines and journals focus on publishing short form creative writing such as short fiction, poetry, essays, book reviews, and sometimes art and photography. Some even specialize in poetry such as Poetry Magazine and The American Poetry Review, while others specialize in spiritual or religious content. Some publications will offer a small payment when your work is accepted for an issue, but many will compensate writers by offering free copies of the publication as payment instead.
If you can write short pieces that fit into a niche category you may have a better chance of getting something published, because you’re offering exactly what the publication is looking for. Be sure to pay attention to ALL submission requirements including word count. Not following the requirements will likely lead to an automatic rejection from a publication. Many publications use online platforms such as Submittable for their process, so it may save you time to go ahead and create an account. Here are some popular literary magazines and journals currently accepting short pieces:
• Boulevard: publishes short fiction, poetry, and nonfiction, with a focus on less experienced or unpublished writers.
• Brevity: publishes short essays from both well-known and new writers.
• Creative Nonfiction: publishes immersion reportage, personal essay, memoir, and more.
• Hippocampus: features memoir excerpts, personal essays, reviews, interviews, and craft articles.
• Memoir: publishes visual artwork, sound projects, short form memoir and creative nonfiction essays, interviews, and book reviews.
• Poetry Magazine: publishes text poetry, visual poetry, audio poetry, and video poetry.
• Story: publishes both short fiction and nonfiction.
Platforms such as Patreon, Substack, and YouTube allow authors to offer content directly to their dedicated followers in exchange for a small, monthly subscription fee. The content can include book-related bonus material such as short stories or deleted scenes, serialized chapters, poetry, essays, or exclusive videos, podcasts, and Q&A sessions with fans. Followers sign up to pay a tiered subscription or membership fee and in return, you provide them with content or other exclusive incentives. You determine the subscription fee levels and the higher the subscription fee, the more substantial the content you provide.
Subscription-based platforms provide writers with an ongoing income directly from fans and followers, while deepening those relationships and creating a community of readers eager to support them. These platforms allow writers of short pieces to release new work on a weekly, bi-weekly, or monthly basis, keeping their followers interested and engaged.
Every piece of writing you do is another valuable piece in your writing portfolio. As long as you own the content and don’t sign the rights over to anyone else, you can repurpose this content however you like. You can use your content for author newsletters, turn a short story into a full-length book, or expand your personal essays into a memoir. There are endless possibilities when it comes to repurposing your content, so be sure to take advantage of all of the opportunities that are out there.
Short form writing such as essays, short stories, and poetry can be very valuable in building a writing portfolio and establishing publishing credits. Writers can create awareness for their work and maximize their reach by utilizing one or more of the publishing methods noted above. For those wanting to make a career out of writing, honing your skills in a variety of short formats can lead to more opportunities and a loyal readership over time.
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