Done!

[ksmith]

8 rms is done. It may be too long. It needs sanding and grouting. But it's done.

First completed short work in about 12 years. That should at least count for something.

Gonna go play with dogs now.

Comments

[battle-of-one.livejournal.com]

Oooh congrats on the short!! That counts for a lot. How did it turn out for you?

[kristine-smith.livejournal.com]

I like the story. It came out a little differently than I had originally envisioned--and I wound up tossing the original beginning, as usual--but I hadn't made a sincere effort at short since the early 90s, and it was an educational experience. I was trying for lightness and some humor, and while I was able to inject some of that, I wound up having to battle my predilection for veering toward the dark. I had to make a conscious effort to avoid the dark choice at several points along the way because it wouldn't have worked with the tone of the prospective market.

One thing that kept me from trying short all these years is that I had convinced myself that every story needed to be a perfect construct, a perfectly faceted gem of profundity. That's what happens when most of your short works exposure is the reading of Best Of collections, I guess. I always read the good stuff and miss out on the filler, and every magazine has filler.

So, I don't think this story is a gem of profundity. It doesn't speak in any particular way to the human condition, and I doubt it will wind up on any Best-Of lists if I am able to sell it. But it was fun. It gave me the opportunity to write fantasy for the first time and write a non-Jani story for the first time in *years*. I constructed various sorts of demons, and enjoyed doing it. I liked my two main characters, and would like to do more with them sometime. I liked my Lord of the Flies. Whatever winds up happening with this story, I'm glad I wrote it.

[battle-of-one.livejournal.com]

You know, I think that's a perfect success if you enjoyed the process and appreciate the outcome. And personally I think trying different approaches to your own style, and writing totally different things, is part of that refuelling process that we all need to keep ourselves fresh in the writing mind. It's so easy to feel in a rut if you're writing any kind of series, or to get too used to it, when stretching the writing muscles in a totally different realm can go a long way to helping the main projects. That is so great to hear and I hope you sell it soon!