Short Fiction

The time is approaching fast. No story is ever complete. A writer will write and rewrite and revise, losing himself in the revisions and re-imaginations of a story, but there must come a time when he must send his story into the harsh publishing world. Like a good parent, the writer has done everything that they know how to do to make the story the best it can be to survive the world outside.

Publishers will not view a story in the same eyes as the writer. Actually, they better not. It is the publisher’s job to pick the best stories out of the mountain of submissions on their desks to make the best magazine or e-zine they can to bring in the readers and the customers to buy their product. They have to look at a story with a jaundice eye and carefully risk their business’s reputation on the stories they select.

I have enjoyed writing “The Last Friend,” and exploring the question of how the emotional dynamic of a person changes when their career crosses with the emotional attachment for someone. Despite my enjoyment, I must never delude myself into thinking that because I liked a story, everyone will. It is the writer’s job to appeal to their audience, to produce a story that can be enjoyed and can sell the magazine or e-zine it is printed in. Our work is art, but we would be fools to forget that there is a business side to it. It is with the reader and the editor in mind that I rework my stories into a draft they would be happy to read.

The time is approaching fast. This weekend I send “The Last Friend” into the world and see if I have really done my job right.

Thank you for reading and please visit www.davidalanlucas.com for more information on what I am writing and other news.