Self Publication and Short Stories

[oOGarrettOo]

So, I'm really hard up for money at the moment, and I've considered throwing my short stories together and tossing them up on a self-pub site called Lulu.com.

Under one pen-name I have no qualms. It targets a specific group and that's what it's for, so I generally disassociate it with my general writing.

And that's where I'm nervous. Two of the stories I'd put into this compilation are actually here in the guild. One thing I worry about: are these short stories honest representations of my more extensive work? I put years into my novels, whereas my short stories are written quickly, sometimes in just a couple hours. I worry that attaching these stories to the pen-name I plan to use in the future might affect me in a way I don't want.

The other thing I worry about is: are they actually good stories? I'm sure you other writers all feel the same, "is my work actually good?" and all that jazz, but it can really stress a person out.

I'm not sure where I was going with this, so I suppose advice would be the only purpose for this thread.  

[Thorns and Spices]

One piece of advice I remember reading was always "things you wrote years ago will keep coming back to haunt you, so be careful what you submit for publication". This means in mags as well as in books. They don't need to be representations of your wider work, but they do need to be good, and they need to be things you're proud of. If you're not proud of them, or if you're not proud of them when you look back at them from the vantage point of a year or two, don't publish them.

I mean there will always be pieces you look back at and think "oh gawd what was I thinking, the folly of youth" etc. Just be wary.

But I was reading Neil Gaiman's blog a while ago, and he was talking about this one short story that he'd tried to publish 20 years ago. One person said it was a nonsense and another person said it just wasn't that great. So he put it in a drawer, all dismayed, and forgot about it. And then 20 years later he was asked to write a couple of stories for different collections, and he remembered this one and dug it out to give it a look-over. And it was a lot better than he remembered, and a lot better than others had told him it was at the time, and in fact better than other stories he HAD had published back then.

Just make sure you've polished them so that they're totally finished in your mind, and had people read through so you know there aren't typos or misplaced commas. And that they're not brand new stories, because the distance of a few months can really help when it comes to editing.  

[ncsweet]

I've always liked your stories, and they've usually made me want to read more. Maybe if you aren't sure, publish them under a different pen-name. I know plenty of authors who have multiple pen-names, so that wouldn't be too odd.  

[oOGarrettOo]

ncsweet

I've always liked your stories, and they've usually made me want to read more. Maybe if you aren't sure, publish them under a different pen-name. I know plenty of authors who have multiple pen-names, so that wouldn't be too odd.

I was thinking about this, actually. I like the stories enough, The Bells are Ringing is one of my favorite shorts that I've written, but they're nothing compared to my novels. So I think maybe a different pen name would work out. I can keep the two separate that way.

So....any ideas on good pen names? XD  

[HorsesOfTheNight]

Hmm. I will have to think about a kick a** pen name for you! I have two different pen names but I use one pen name more than the other one.  

[oOGarrettOo]

I used a random name generator, and it actually spit out a few decent ideas.(after it went through about a hundred of shite ones)

Celyn Kendall
Eleanor Zeal
Ermintrude Perdy

I like the first one the best, but honestly, what's more awesome than Ermintrude? That's just a bangin' name, and it's memorable because it's so different.