The short story has been popular with readers for many years and for a variety of reasons. Because of its length, a short story comes to the point quickly and it takes a very skilled writer to develop a character in such a format.

A regular feature of magazines in the 1800’s, the short story often led to writers being “discovered” by publishers and go on to become famous authors. Nathaniel Hawthorne and Edgar Allan Poe, Samuel Clemens as Mark Twain all excelled in the short story genre and became famous and well-loved authors.

A short story usually deals with a single incident, covers a small period of time and has limited characters. It moves much faster than a novel and building suspense is a difficult undertaking. Often the story starts in the middle of a crises or set of actions and has an abrupt ending. There is no set standard for the length of a short story but they are most often between seven and nine thousand words. A new form of the short story, one with less than 1,000 words, is referred to a “flash fiction”. Many of Aesop’s fables could qualify for the title of flash fiction.

Some of the most famous short stories are Grimm’s Fairy Tales, written between 1824-26. Nearly every child since that time has heard one of those short stories or had them read to them on their mother’s lap.

In the era of radio, many short stories were adapted as radio plays. Radio dramas were very popular, enjoyed in the evening when the light was often too dim to read a book. Light bulbs weren’t as bright as they are today, making reading a real chore after the sun set. The 1920’s and 1930’s were the prime era of radio drama, which employed an army of writers to come up with short stories to dramatize. Walter Gibson, an accomplished writer of short stories, developed the character that would become famous as The Shadow. Later, when television replaced radio, many short stories were depicted on series such as Philco Television Playhouse and NBC’s Kraft Television Theatre. Americans loved the dramatization of familiar short stories and watched faithfully every week.

Short stories are also a good way for children to learn to read. “Short shorts” like Dick and Jane have been used in reading programs for generations while school libraries are filled with collections of short stories that young students can enjoy. Such literature is ideal for young people whose attention spans are understandable short, interesting stories that aren’t long enough to make them sit still for long!

You can find short stories in any genre of writing from romance to science fiction. Magazines, particularly those geared toward women, still rely on short stories to boost their sales and increase their readership.

A Summer of Short Story Thrills, Chills, and Adventure
CHANDLER, Ariz., June 1 /PRNewswire/ -- iPulpFiction.com -- Where The Short Story Lives -- celebrates the summer reading season by presenting 90 short stories in 90 days, from June through August. iPulp delivers stories for all ages in a spectrum of genres including classic pulp heroes and heroines, mysteries, horror, science fiction, fantasy, westerns, and more. The site features exciting, original short stories and exclusive reprints by contemporary writers such as J.A.

A short story 'genius' finally gets her due
NEW YORK - Author Deborah Eisenberg is in the dining area of her apartment, peeling an orange. She removes a small piece, places it on her plate and peels again. It takes a couple of hours, but when finished, she has an arrangement as artful as a lotus flower. Or, in her case, a short story.

Debut Short Story Collection Hits the E-Book Market
The Things Your Eyes Have Seen Available for Low-Cost Purchase on the Amazon Kindle, Free Download on Lulu.com