A good short story is, among other things, a highly organised system. Its parts feel in connection with one another. There’s very little waste or randomness. Many decisions have been made along the way, by different means, some conscious, some not. It feels fraught with intention, full of direction. It doesn’t necessarily know what it is, but it won’t settle for being, well...less coherent (organised) than it could be.Now, this is different from saying it was all planned out. On the contrary – a good story also feels spontaneous, wild, unscripted. It seems to be arising in front of the writer as she works. We feel the writer surprising herself, being educated and guided by her own work of art. And yet, when we look closely we can’t help but notice some mysterious quality that feels a lot like intelligence coursing through it.Revising, then, might be thought of as a system for getting more organisation into the little system that is our story.

A good short story is, among other things, a highly organised system. Its parts feel in connection with one another. There’s very little waste or randomness. Many decisions have been made along the way, by different means, some conscious, some not. It feels fraught with intention, full of direction. It doesn’t necessarily know what it is, but it won’t settle for being, well...less coherent (organised) than it could be.

Now, this is different from saying it was all planned out. On the contrary – a good story also feels spontaneous, wild, unscripted. It seems to be arising in front of the writer as she works. We feel the writer surprising herself, being educated and guided by her own work of art. And yet, when we look closely we can’t help but notice some mysterious quality that feels a lot like intelligence coursing through it.

Revising, then, might be thought of as a system for getting more organisation into the little system that is our story.

How the work really gets done

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