How the Short Form Transformed Itself Into an Authentic Literary Genre
Size is a poor measure to value merit
The short form is a short essay. Dictionary.com defines the essay as
“a short literary composition on a particular theme or subject, usually in prose and generally analytic, speculative, or interpretative.”
The 16th-century French writer Michel de Montaigne is considered the father of the essay. He compiled his writings into a collection called Essais.
Francis Bacon, who introduced the essay in English literature, is Montaigne’s contemporary.
Montaigne and Francis Bacon were intellectuals. They used the essay to reflect on existential matters of life. Their pieces have become part of classical literature.
Montaigne and Francis Bacon packed their essays with profound wisdom. They employed literary devices like rhetoric with significant effect. Aphorisms litter their pieces. There are two gems from Montaigne:
“Marriage is like a cage; one sees the birds outside desperate to get in and those inside equally desperate to get out.”
“I prefer the company of peasants because they have not been educated sufficiently to reason incorrectly.”
Here are two aphorisms from Francis Bacon:
“Reading maketh a full man; conference a ready man; and writing an exact man.”
“We cannot command Nature except by obeying her.”
The essay gained popularity and respectability in the following two centuries. Charles Lamb, Joseph Addison and Richard Steele popularized the essay in the 18th century.
Writers like George Orwell, Aldous Huxley and Bertrand Russell wrote immortal essays in the 20th century.
The essay, a short literary piece, has since cemented its place in literature as a respectable genre.
Short-form on Medium
When Medium introduced the short form, it reflected its recognition that the short essay deserved patronage as the long reads.
Medium realized that the youth read Medium articles on their smartphones. Short essays took a minute or two to read, and millennials preferred short reads to long reads.
People greeted Medium’s promotion of the short form with skepticism because they viewed short posts as trivial and shallow.
Medium proved the skeptics wrong. The short form gained popularity, and many writers jumped on the bandwagon.
My experience with the short form
Honestly, I was also skeptical about the short form in the beginning. I used to read stories in the publication The Daily Cuppa.
Suddenly one day, a thought struck me: “Why don’t I experiment with short essays?”
I applied to The Daily Cuppa for including me as a writer. Its editor, Katie Michaelson accepted me as a writer.
My first post on the Daily Cuppa was about the nature of the short form. The editor liked the story, and she has been encouraging me a lot since then.
She wrote a separate story about me, and I am thankful to her for promoting me. She offered to include me as a scheduled writer, which I politely declined as I was facing turbulence in my personal life.
I write my first draft freely. After finishing the draft, I edit and ensure the story does not exceed the 150-word limit.
Misconceptions about the short form
#It’s a shallow medium and can only promote trivial topics.
I have exploded the myth that the short form is unimportant. I write about serious issues, and readers and fellow writers have appreciated my stories.
I have no pretensions of grandeur. Personal stories are not my forte. So I prefer sharing knowledge that I gained from reading non-fiction books.
#The short form is easy to write
Contrary to popular belief, writing short form is not a walk in the park. The word count aside, one has to compress the ideas and extract their essence to convey a coherent and intelligible story with meaningful takeaways.
#The short form promotes a frivolous writing style
Nothing can be farther from the truth than the allegation that the short form encouraged undisciplined writing. Writing for The Daily Cuppa has forced me to choose words carefully. I had to write cogently and succinctly after eliminating long sentences.
#The short form is spurious art
Size is not an index of quality.
The short form is miniaturized art. Miniaturization reflects sophistication and precision.
Final thoughts
The short form is a miniature essay. It has carried forward the traditions established by the essay’s founding fathers, Montaigne and Francis Bacon.
In his book “Essayism: On Form, Feeling, and Nonfiction,” Irish writer Brian Dillon identifies the essay as “a form that would instruct, seduce and mystify in equal measure.”
The short form is trivial yet profound, a paradox that it negotiates with ease.
The short read is reader-friendly; it does not intimidate the reader with long sentences. Its compact format facilitates quick and easy reading.
Personally, writing short form has been rewarding for me. It has helped me to polish my language. Most important, writing for The Daily Cuppa has introduced me to new writers who continue to support me.
Writing short reads helped me keep my daily writing habit.
The short form has opened up an exciting possibility for me, one I never dreamt of. My good friend and steadfast supporter George J. Ziogas suggested publishing my short-form stories as an e-book.
May the short read flourish as a distinctive literary genre!
Thanks for reading.
