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Save Our Short Story The Biscuit Writers’ Conference (at the Lindisfarne Centre, St Aidan's College, University of Durham, in the spring of 2004) included a lengthy forum-debate which explored the current UK market situation for short fiction. A distinguished panel of professional writers faced a no less distinguished audience of more writers and readers.
Jo Fagan kept notes and, following the close of the conference, wrote this precis of the event. – Brian Lister
For many years the short story enjoyed great popularity, providing a valuable showcase for budding writers. Concerned at its recent demise, the final day of the Biscuit Conference was entirely devoted to saving the short story. Inspired by a distinguished panel, delegates debated the many issues outlined below. Val McDermid (www.saveourshortstory.org.uk) chaired the panel, which included Denise Robertson, Margaret Little (Little Books Ltd), Jean Saunders (Writers’ News), Mark Robinson (ACE North East), Kevin Cadwallender (Sand Magazine), Celia Bryce, Mike Wilson (National Association of Writers’ Groups) and Josephine Fagan.
In order to earn their readership, short stories should be well-crafted, engaging and thought provoking. Pithy and polished, they may capture only a moment in time but the best of them linger long in the mind because they have the ability to both move and satisfy. Artificially divided into so-called ‘literary’ and ‘commercial’ forms, the short story has recently fallen victim to both intellectual and inverted snobbery. Hijacked by pseudo-intellectual writers of impenetrable prose and over-sentimentalised by an increasingly homogenised, patronising, commercial market, they appear to have lost much of their a mainstream appeal.
Readers groups and creative writing courses have mushroomed in recent years, bringing with them a vogue for writing and reading short stories. Whilst realistically we can’t all hope to be published, the sad fact is that outlets for short fiction have been decimated. Newspapers and magazines that once routinely carried short fiction have now abandoned it. Eager to explore the reasons for this, delegates suggested canvassing periodicals for the rationale behind this modern move away from fiction. Feedback from lending libraries would also provide valuable insight into short story readership.
On a positive note, there are still opportunities for short story writers. Small presses such as Biscuit Publishing bring out at least one anthology and one novella per year. There are magazines, which still regularly publish fiction. Chances of publication in these magazines can be improved by use of their ‘tip-sheets.’ Literary magazines publish short stories, however they do tend to be read by writers. Most are only available on subscription - so limiting the recruitment of both new and casual readers. Might suppliers and newsagents be persuaded to keep them in stock?
BBC radio still commissions short fiction but slots are limited and tend to favour work by established authors. Best selling novelists do not always make good short story writers. Their work can be disappointing; turning off potential converts. We know that website feedback affects programming schedules. Are we asking radio producers to air more short stories by new writers?
Internet sites popularise and propagate stories but they often exclude elderly readers. Whilst web-publication offers hope for the future, it does pose problems with regard to copyright and payment.
In expanding opportunities for writers, more might be made of niche markets. For example, fiction featured in in-flight publications would reach a large captive audience. Specialist publications such as those produced by the bereavement-counselling organisation Cruise might make therapeutic use of short stories.
Competitions such as the Biscuit Prize do help but sadly none of the current short story competitions have the prestige of the Man-Booker, or the Orange Prize. Sponsorship is needed for new high-profile competitions designed to raise the status of the short story. One such innovation is ‘End of Story’ – a competition launched by BBC2, in which viewers are invited to finish one of the stories begun by eight best-selling authors. Described as ‘pop idol for writers,’ it represents a new and different way of publicising short fiction.
Short stories and novellas have always been popular in Europe, Canada, Australia, USA and New Zealand. Closer to home, Ireland and Scotland enjoy a great and enduring short story tradition. In the main, English publishing houses reject the idea of even best-selling writers bringing out volumes of short stories. What hope then for the new writer? What hope for the writer who prefers short fiction to novels? Agents and editors agree that when reading a novel you can generally decide within the first few pages if it’s going to be any good. With short stories, you may need to see a whole collection before making a meaningful decision on the quality of the writer. Commercially they are seen as not worth the effort.
Ours is a sound-bite age with an appetite for immediate gratification. Pocket-books are becoming increasingly popular. Short stories and novellas may find a new life, not to mention a new and younger readership if presented in this fashionable form. That said books, a beautifully crafted novella may retail for the price of a novel. Sadly, some buyers may look at the number of pages, rather than the quality of the prose in deciding that such a slim volume is poor value for money.
We all need to expand our ideas regarding readership, the state of the market place and where our stories are best placed. Supermarket sales were discussed as a way of bringing short stories to a new audience. Whilst they do help to get a writer noticed, they are often sold at cut-price and so make very little profit.
Booksellers make the marketplace. Lack of publicity surrounding the release of anthologies, not to mention their limited availability, is bound to affect sales. Have the publishers got it wrong? Demand affects sales. Can our buying preferences affect the current trend?
Belief that quality will out and that we can influence current anti short story trends gave hope to us all. Solidarity among the writing community is vital in this endeavour. Muscular support for campaigns such as SOSS can bring about change.
Readers who enjoy short fiction must demand more of publishers, broadcasters and lending libraries. Most important of all, writers who wish to revive the fortunes of the short story and the novella must produce fresh, exciting, engaging, quality prose. – Jo Fagan
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The
forum was in two parts with a working lunch break. In the first part, “Waving
or Drowning,” each panel member provided an individual and professional perspective
of the situation, with comments coming from the audience members. During the lunch
break, panel and audience divided into smaller focus-groups and had further informal
discussions. The second part, “The Way Ahead,” heard ‘reports’
from each group.