When I first tried my hand at writing fiction, I started with a novel. A lot of people make that mistake. I began with a compelling idea, and wrote about it until I ran out of things to say. When I stopped I had a 190,000 words that spent most of their time going nowhere.  I had spent not one minute learning the craft of writing. I’ve still got that novel. Every now and then I take it out and weigh it to remind myself how far a writer can go wrong before he tries something new.

Writer-agent-editor Terry Burns told me what I should do. He told a lot of people while he was lecturing a room full of would be writers at the annual OWFI conference. He said writers should perfect their skills on short fiction.

I had no idea how to write short fiction. But then come to think of it I had no idea how to write a novel either and short fiction had one compelling advantage over novels. They didn’t take so long to write.

Ten years later I have 45 short stories published in a wide variety of magazines and anthologies. I’ve won some some pretty respectable prizes: Grand Prize 80th annual Writers Digest Competition, Third prize 2011 Lorian Hemingway contest, OWFI Creme de la Creme winner in 2012, Storyteller Magazine’s Peoples Choice Award.

I’ve published a free standing short collection of stories, Southwest Gothic Tales available free on smash words, a Max Avalon single, Messages and a Novel, Owl Dreams, which is based on a character developed in a series of short stories. Pen-L Publishing has two more of my novels in the editing process. They both started off as pieces of short fiction.

Thank you Terry Burns.

On Saturday, April 12, I’m speaking to the Pen and Keyboard Writers of Edmond about writing short fiction and short fiction contests. For those who can’t attend and those who lose their handout, I am going to list a number of useful links here.

Duotrope is a site that offers a weekly newsletter which keeps writers in touch with new markets, old markets that are opening and closing, and contests. If you only have one link at your disposal, this is the one it should be. In the last two years, I have had 40 short stories published  in magazines and anthologies. At least 30 of these have come from Duotrope. This is a subscription site, but it is well worth the $50 per year it costs.

Just a Contest, and Freelance Writers, are two contest sites that charge no money and offer a wide variety of links to contest websites. They are great for this purpose but if you are looking for markets for short fiction they are not the place to go.

 

Writers Digest and Lorian Hemingway  have well known and well respected contests. I’ve had good experiences with both these sites and actually received a personal letter from Lorian Hemingway.

Writers of the Future is a contest site where many science fiction and fantasy writers have gotten their start. The contest is free. You can enter stories up to 17,000 words long, but you must be an amateur writer.

OWFI offers an annual contest for its members. The cost is exceptionally low and the prizes are worthwhile. I’ve been a winner, a loser, and a judge in this contest. If you are a regional writer you should be a member.

Frontier Tales is an on line magazine of Western Fiction. If your story is published it automatically is eligible for a “The Best Of” contest. Winners in the past have been published in The Best of Frontier Tales anthologies. The site is operated by Duke Pennell, my publisher, and yes, one of my stories won a “Best of” contest.

The Storyteller Magazine is a writers magazine that includes contests but is also a market. Regina Williams is the editor. I have to say she is the friendliest, most open editor I have ever met. She publishes the magazine quarterly, and each issue is loaded with 40 or more stories. Regina will give new writers a chance where many other editors will not.