Backlist Stories, New Anthology

To my surprise, I have a backlist.

Some writers shed short stories the way long-haired cats shed fur. I am not one of them. I am more like one of those freaky-looking skin-only cats. Novels are my preferred length.

Let's face it, though, it takes less time to write a short, and it is also easier to get it published. (Though harder, I think, to earn any money on it.) So, somehow or other, I have rubbed a handful of stories off on the couch pillows. It's come to my belated attention that a number of these are now -- well, "out of print" doesn't describe it, because most of them were published online -- out of circulation. A bunch of these are flash fiction, a few are longer.

So I have two or three dozen stories hanging around. In some cases, the rights have reverted back to me. Others, I wrote as entries for my blog. A few I meant to shop around, but after the obligatory reject from Azimov's and Fantasy Magazine, put them back on the shelf and concentrated on my novels, which are my real love.

Let me get to the point. I'm thinking of taking a handful of these stories and publishing them as an anthology through Amazon's Create Space program. I'm curious to know how it works, how difficult it is to use, and whether it is a possible venue for my novels. Yes, I admit, Michelle Davidson Argyle has inspired me! Before I take that step, however, I want to make sure I know what I am doing. Starting with a short story anthology could be fun.

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As I think about these questions, I'm finding Jamie DeBree's advice on self-publishing helpful. Hat tip to Michelle for leading me to the link.

Comments

Jennifer said…
I never would have thought to do that. I'm with you on the short story thing--novels are my preferred length, and for some reason I can never sit down and work on short stories. I always feel restricted. Though lately I've been thinking about starting some new ones.

Good luck with CreateSpace. Hope it works out for you. :)
Oh, fantastic!!! I'll be doing a post devoted just to my experience with CreateSpace, and I'll do it soon, so hang in there if you can and hopefully it will help guide you through the process. :)
Tara Maya said…
THANK YOU, Michelle, I was hoping you would post something about that. All the nitty-gritty of formatting (Word doc? PDF? Can I use fonts? Do I need to use html to indicate italics? Double, single spacing? Ahhh!)