I've decided that I simply mustn't write "novels." Aside from the fact that they're a dime a dozen nowadays, it has occurred to me that they don't particularly interest me. The only stories I've ever read are what are called "short stories." All the authors of fiction that I like are short story writers; moreover, I read these works over and over again. And being that I'm more inclined to linguistic felicity and improvisation in art, it makes more sense for me to write "short works of profound meaning" (which are, incidentally, my favorite kind of books) than to attempt these prose epics which are called novels. I don't believe, for that matter, that I could maintain interest in the same subject for the length of time it takes to write even the first draft of a novel. If I'm going to write something long at all, it's most likely going to be something I'm deeply interested in, and if I'm deeply interested in it, I'd rather write a monograph, a serious and scholarly study, than follow in the footsteps of Ayn Rand.
In sum: poems, yes; short stories, yes; "flash" fiction, sure; monographs, yes; novels, no, no, and also -- no. No is for Novel.
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