“All Your Stories." was kind enough to ask for my advice to writers and here it is.
Advice for Writers
Stephen King wrote a book of advice for writers. About half way through he said, “I can tell you how I write. I cannot tell you how you write!”
Nor can I. However, consider this advice and take it if it suits you.
There are editors who promote mimesis over diegesis. In other words, they will reply to your submission suggesting or instructing you to “show not tell.” They would have rejected Charles Dickens and Jane Austen on those grounds because they were great ones for telling and didn’t they do well!
Write the story the way you want to write it and find a different editor who is less hidebound.
I suggest you get someone to read your work for you. They will notice things you have not noticed yourself.
I write flash fiction, so I am bound to say that cutting out any unnecessary words from your work will always result in a better story. Think of poetry. The best-loved poems are less than a thousand words in length.
For practice, I advise writing a letter to the local paper. The shorter the better and it is more likely to be published because editors like short letters which get to the point without going all round the houses.
Read. It is obvious but a writer who reads is more likely to succeed. In particular, reading works in the genre of your own story and reading magazines in which you would like to be published.
And then look at the formatting. Does this editor want your work in Arial and double-spaced or do they favour Times New Roman?
I would avoid AI, not only because many editors forbid it but also because I submitted three speeches from Shakespeare to Grammarly and the smug little bot thought it could improve on his work!
I hope this advice is of use to you. You will admit it is brief.
The End
