The Trouble With Word Counts

[SPoots]

Hey all, wondering if anyone has any advice for getting word count under control. My stories tend to sit around the 4000 word mark (hell, my current one spiralled out from a practice character sketch to a 10000 word short), which is all well and good, but not when you want to submit a piece to a 1000-2000 word market.
Anyone have any advice on planning or editing a piece to fit in such guidleines?

Bearing in mind, I wouldn't try to edit a 4000 word piece down to that, not unless I really hated half of what I had written.

 

[Jo Zebedee]

Start doing the writing challenges here - they'll start to give you an idea of tightness and what works in short stories. The 300
Word one is particularly good for getting confident in the flash length - it is reasonably easy to push a 300 up to slightly expanded.

For me, reaching anything beyond 1-2k and below 60k is always a challenge

 

[SPoots]

Thanks, I will be sure to check them out and give it a go.

 

[Phyrebrat]

Start doing the writing challenges here

This.

pH

 

[DelActivisto]

Not sure. I have the same problem of getting too wordy and having stuff spiral out of control.

 

[Mouse]

I would like to know the opposite. How the hell do I manage to get a decent word count? What is everybody actually writing about?!

 

[The Bluestocking]

My writing group just told me to keep writing, finish the draft, then start editing ruthlessly and paring things down.

Better to have too much content than not enough.

 

[Cathbad]

I so hate editing. It always makes me think, "Who wrote this crap?"

 

[R.T James]

I so hate editing. It always makes me think, "Who wrote this crap?"

Then the ever present dwindling "oh wait" realization that you are in fact the idiot who wrote that !

Damn past me! Making life hard for future me while present me is pushing the problems to both sides of the time line!

 

[Cathbad]

Then the ever present dwindling "oh wait" realization that you are in fact the idiot who wrote that !

Shhh.... don't let Present Me learn that fact!

 

[Tim Murray]

Dang! The future me just went on strike!

 

[ratsy]

I would say do an outline. Know each scene and what you want to accomplish and you can plan a word count much easier

 

[SPoots]

Sometimes I can approach a story with an outline. Sometimes a story just comes spontaneously. For example, a character sketch I started to get around some writers block has now spun into a 10,000 word piece. Anyone else find that?

 

[Jo Zebedee]

Sometimes I can approach a story with an outline. Sometimes a story just comes spontaneously. For example, a character sketch I started to get around some writers block has now spun into a 10,000 word piece. Anyone else find that?

I had to ban myself from the challenges when I found I had ten stories waiting to be written.

Although the well is currently dry so i might enter for a wee while

 

[SPoots]

I had to ban myself from the challenges when I found I had ten stories waiting to be written.

Although the well is currently dry so i might enter for a wee while

One of my favourite things when I run out of ideas is to flick through Brewer's Dictionary of Phrase and Fable. Can usually find something fun to play with in there.

 

[DelActivisto]

My writing group just told me to keep writing, finish the draft, then start editing ruthlessly and paring things down.

Better to have too much content than not enough.

You have a better writing group than me.

 

[The Bluestocking]

You have a better writing group than me.

I have the best writing group in the world And I do mean it. Took me a long time to find them but I finally did. They are the best "tough love" group ever

 

[DelActivisto]

I have the best writing group in the world And I do mean it. Took me a long time to find them but I finally did. They are the best "tough love" group ever

I tried another one today. They did a stand up oration session, where the members read aloud their work, but I didn't participate, just listened. No way am I reading my stuff aloud.

Which is odd, because I actually like public speaking - I love the opportunity to pontificate.

 

[The Bluestocking]

I tried another one today. They did a stand up oration session, where the members read aloud their work, but I didn't participate, just listened. No way am I reading my stuff aloud.

Which is odd, because I actually like public speaking - I love the opportunity to pontificate.

My group is online. We critique in writing via email and Word documents.

We have to be online though - 2 members are in the UK, 1 is in the US, and I'm in Asia.

 

[DelActivisto]

My group is online. We critique in writing via email and Word documents.

We have to be online though - 2 members are in the UK, 1 is in the US, and I'm in Asia.

Good diversity; that's pretty neat. It's good to make your acquiesce, fellow global citizen!

Online critiques might work better for me. I might want to bite someone in real life critiquing my plan. Online I can just think, "Well you just don't appreciate my brilliance," while writing, "Exactly, thank you so much!"

Oops. Is anyone going to give me critiques now?