Short Stories by Janet Gershen-Siegel |

Ah, Short Stories

I do love writing short stories, particularly because I can just toss them off relatively quickly and easily. So, probably the best part about them is: there’s a lot less planning to do. A lot!

But what do I, personally, think?

I firmly believe that a novel starts at something like 50,000 words. Although I will be the first to admit that a lot of my thoughts in this area are directly related to participating in NaNoWriMo.

Then it gets a bit trickier.

Novellas

So, evidently a novella is supposed to be somewhere between 10,000 and 40,000 words. But where the 40,001 – 40,999 word pieces fit in is anybody’s guess! However, I imagine that it’s a question more of how complete a story is, versus a hard and fast word count.

But I’m not 100% sure if I’m right.

And what is interesting (to me, at least) is that this does not seem to take into consideration chapters. But I don’t think short stories (usually) have chapters. Yet I am certain that novellas pretty much always will.

Flash Fiction

So, mainly because I really do not feel like creating yet another category, I am tossing my flash fiction together with the stuff that really belongs here. So apparently, flash is 500 words or fewer.

But if you thought I wasn’t planning my short stuff, well, the flash is really something I do not plan. And of course that much is totally all right.

Themes

So, do these stories really have any themes where you can categorize them in some manner? First of all, there are stories which I wrote for various iterations of The Longest Night Watch. As a result, you’ll see a number of stories where the underlying mood killer is Alzheimer’s disease.

But for other anthologies, there may be an LGBTQ+ element. In addition, there may be a cancer element for others.

But then there are those which I just plain wrote. Also, if you think you’re seeing some repetition, you’re not mistaken. Because I will be the first to admit that, sometimes, I just didn’t have gas in the tank.

So, I ended up cribbing from myself, heh.

But here are a few themes.

Personal Tragedy

So, for stories like Jared’s World Turned Upside Down or Mandy Goes to Aspen, the underlying elements are loss—lots of loss. With Jared, it’s the last day of his mother’s life. But with Mandy, it’s the big earthquake, which topples California into the Pacific.

Fatima’s Minnesota Wish is another such personal tragedy. Gentrification is, too.

Living With Aliens

I love the idea of human-alien romance, so I just had to write about it. The Courtship of Jeremy and Mitalisque is one such tale. Another is the combination of The Meeting, Just Married, and Designer Maroon (those are being combined).

But I also like the idea of alien children among us. This is My Child, Almost Shipwrecked, and The Student all reflect that.

History

Just like in The Real Hub of the Universe, I like a little history with my fiction. Stories like Aenor the Wanted, Vive André, and Saddle Up, Bank Teller! take the reader to another time, another place.

But speaking of time…

Time Travel

As I was writing the 2020 short stories, a character named Sharon Ensley caught hold of my mind and would not let go. So, she stars in 1960s Temporal Crimes (from 2023) and A Chance Encounter in Time.

She may or may not be the heroine of Front, Back, and Side Pages (even I don’t know yet).

School Daze

I tend to put students into difficult situations, and the theme of years of testing came up a few times. Testing, 1,2, Forever… and The Test reflect this (no surprise there, I suppose). But so does The Guitarist.

Prison Escapes

I am a big fan of World War II escape films, so it’s no wonder that they would sometimes be my go-to for a short story plot. Out of the Work Camp Frying Pan and Breakout… And Then What? are in this vein.

The Present Time

The Wine, the Music, and the Injury, and Julie’s Dollar are both from right now, more or less.

Post-Apocalypse

Not surprisingly, Alix’s Apocalypse, plus And the Band Played the Apocalypse are both in this group.

Of course, there are other little subcategories. I’m sure I’ll find them once I start really rereading these.

The Daily Prompt Short Stories

In 2020, I made an effort to write every single day. I took the alphabet and pulled a single prompt word out of thin air. But the truth is, all the word had to do was start with the correct letter. Otherwise, it didn’t matter.

Then, once the 26 letters were out there, I had two choices. One was to just start over again. I did that after the last day of a quarter, no matter what.

But the other thing I would do was write chapters for them. As a result, I have a number of multiple chapter works.

But are they good enough to go to a publisher or an agent?

Eh, maybe. But more likely, I will cannibalize them for something longer.

The same is true for daily prompt stories from 2023, although I almost always took the daily prompts and turned them into novella chapters. Also, there are some short stories on the list from 202` that should probably be combined into novellas.

But in 2024, I didn’t follow the alphabet much. So, for the most part, I just wrote what I wanted to.

For 2021 and 2023, I mainly spent the last quarter on NaNo. But in 2024, I spent part of the last quarter on 30Day50k. And I spent the last weeks on finishing some older stuff.

What About Finishing Older Stuff?

So, don’t get me started on the stuff I never really finished. So, should I take the plunge and complete them? Or just leave ’em hangin’? I think, if I am going to write a blog post about them, then eventually I will have to bite the bullet and finish them. Or kill them with fire.

So, we’ll see. But the more promising ones? Oh yeah, I’ll finish them. Although they may change a lot.

At this point in time, hell if I know. Yet.

Short Stories Are the Short Trips

I think if you can view creativity as a car, then the short hops are right here. The novels, of course, are the lengthy trips.

Novellas are somewhere in between, like when you drive for a few hours and hang around somewhere (like a beach, maybe) but you don’t stay overnight. But flash, I would say, is the really short hops. So, those are kind of like running errands.

But what’s the gas in the tank?

So, it’s imagination. In addition, prompts. Also 30Day50k, God love it. Also, observations. In addition, there are all the other things which just plain push me to write. So this includes, of course, characters that cannot shut up to save their lives.

At last, it’s time to turn the key.

Want More of my Short Stories?

If my short stories resonate with you, then please be sure to check out my other articles about everything from a job interview for a role hunting demons to the rambling mind of an Alzheimer’s patient who thinks the care home is evidence she’s been abducted by aliens.

These are all written under my name, Janet Gershen-Siegel although some may be under JR Gershen-Siegel.

Along with a few stops in a magical dive bar, a mob enforcer escaping to Alaska with the woman he loves, a wild ride escaping from an alien work camp, and also….

Short Stories ~ Apocalypse One of These Days

So, here are stories all about some sort of an apocalypse.

† A School for Scavengers
• Alix’s Apocalypse
† And the Band Played the Apocalypse
• Babel 2.0
† Beacon: A Light Shines in Gloucester
• The End
† The Future Has No Foundation
• I’d Rather Have Plastic
† Killing Us Softly
• Leedie and the Shine
† Your Call is Very Important to Us

Short Stories ~ Historical/Prehistorical

Because I love history and prehistory, it often inspires. So, check out some stories about what may or may not have happened in the distant or not-too-distant past.

Prehistory and Biblical Times

† Cave Canem and Cave
† The Field Gleaner
• The Great Cleanup
• The Panther

Dark Ages, Medieval Times, and the Renaissance

I also have some stories about a kind of middle part of our own human history.

† Aenor the Wanted
• The Village’s Death, and its Rebirth
† Will’s Dog (1599 – 1601)

1700s and 1800s

So, here are stories about some of my favorite parts of history!

• And the Horse You Rode in On
† The Bride
• Lizzie Borden is Vital to the Timeline (1890s)
† Mina’s Mission (1860s)
• Saddle Up, Bank Teller!
† Vive André (1790s)

Also these…

20th Century

• Camp (1970s)
† Courier to the Soviets (1962)
• The Hermit
† I Trade This For My Life (1920s)
• The Ides of the Secretarial Pool (1960s)
† Never (1970s)
• The Resurrection of Ditte (kind of the 1930s and 1940s, kind of not)

Short Stories ~ Living With Aliens

So, these are stories about humans living with aliens. And they can take place here on Earth, or on an alien planet, also on a spacecraft of some sort. But sometimes living with aliens means life is not so great.

First Contacts, Proving Ourselves, and Exploration

So, these are the good, the bad, and the weird. Sometimes, it’s the really weird. So weird.

• A Show for the Galaxy
† A True Believer in Skepticism
• Alien Allies
† All My Aliens
• Almost Shipwrecked
† Beauty is Only Earth Deep
• Hot Mess
† Interstellar Adoption
• Miss Milky Way
† Nothing Good Ever Happens at 3 AM
• That’s Alien Entertainment!
† They Must Be Angels… or Not…

Battles and Wars

But it’s not all sunshine and roses. So, from initial issues to the aftermath, here are some ways we just might fare in conflicts with aliens.

• Canada Saves the World
† Canaries
• Color and War
† Glad All Over the Galaxy
• The Interview
† Inventory

Dating, Love, and Marriage With Aliens

But there are also times when we just plain love our alien pals. And they even love us back!

† Complications
• The Courtship of Jeremy and Mitalisque
† Leave Your Tone at the Message
• Prom Night Was Never Like This
† This is My Child
• Tying the Knot With a Tefrain {a combination of The Meeting, Designer Maroon, and Just Married}

Short Stories ~ Our Future—Maybe?

There are also some stories where it’s almost a prediction of a possible future for us. But it’s possible that this is just for some other timeline.

† Frozen Fortress
• None of This is Real
† Peddler
• Quartz
• Skating
† Soul Rentals ‘R’ Us
• Stellar Stowaway
† Verity
• Water
† What’s an Animal?
• You Will Drink Your Coffee and Like It

Short Stories ~ Personal Tragedy

So next, here are stories where personal tragedy comes to the fore. Some of these may be difficult to take, so consider this to be your very own personal trigger warning. Because I ain’t kiddin’.

† Jared’s World Turned Upside Down
• Julie’s Dollar
† Mandy Goes to Aspen
• Martin’s Choice
† There is a Road

Short Stories ~ The Present Day, More or Less

I also wrote some stories with so much taken from right now that we may as well just call them as being from the present time.

† A Kitten
• A Tumble in a Tomb
† The Boy in the Band
• Building Trust
† Caring for Carole
• Carney Crash Canyon
† Cynthia
• The Dish
† Dominick and Angela
• Eight Nights

Also these…
† Fatima’s Minnesota Wish
• First Real Job
† Freedom of Choice
• Freshly Baked Bread
† Frozen Assets
• Gentrification
† The Guitarist
• Jealousy
† King Me
• The Last Patient
† Mandy Goes to Aspen
• The Myth of the Last Try

And then there’s…
• No Trip to Jupiter
† Odessa
• Props
† Quarrel
• Rescued
† Rivalry
• Shadow Puppets
† Small Acts of Defiance
• Uninformed
† The Wine, the Music, and the Injury
• Wilder Bloom

Short Stories ~ Prison Escapes and Their Aftermath

This is so directly related to my favorite type of film, it’s not funny. But what is my favorite type of film? It just so happens to be World War II prison escape films!

• African Escape
† Breakout… and Then What?
• Escape from the Alien Mines
† Unexpected Help

Short Stories ~ Sharon Ensley’s (and Others’) Time Travel Adventures

Long after the Time Addicts Trilogy ends, the tripartite human/Obolonk/robotic society still exists. So, who’s one of our fearless time travelers? Why, it’s Ms. Ensley herself.

But there are some stories where it may or may not fit the same universe. Yet those are still all about time travel. So, I’m putting them here. At least for now.

• 1960s Temporal Crimes
† A Chance Encounter in Time
• A Crime in Time
† … And the Walls Came Tumbling Down Again
• Back, Front, and Side Pages
† The Lost Luggage of Time
• Recruitment Time
† Side by Side
• Three Minutes Back in Time
† Time Stretching

Short Stories ~ Students Under Pressure

Now, you’d be hard-pressed to find someone who doesn’t, at times, still dream about being in class! Because that sinking feeling is just so universal, I’ve taken it and run with it!

† Examination
• Failure
† Mike’s Grades
• Sarah’s Invention
† The Student
• The Test
† Testing… 1, 2, Forever

Short Stories ~ Magic and Fantasy

So, there are a few stories where the plot is a lot more like magic or fantasy than actual science fiction or realism.

• A Fairy Tale for Skeptical Adults
† A Touch of Gray Hair
• Dragon for sale, cheap
† Enchantment Street
• The Escape Violinist
† The Forest
• The Metuchen Mystery
† Pixies

Short Stories ~ Tyranny in All Its Forms

While of course it’s a horrible thing to think about, it does inspire some writing. But some of this might be a bit triggering. And so, you have been warned.

• Blue Card
† Brown Eyes are the Law
• Darkness into Light
† In the Direction of Prejudice

Short Stories ~ The Ziranqui Invasion

Since I’ve been using them as more or less the equivalent of a catch-all villain, the Ziranqui get their own section. But I will be the first person to admit that I may have relied on them a little too much.

Therefore, some of these may get a different villain species. And then, of course, I’ll move them.

† Guilty of Imperfection
• Nuremberg Redux
† Out of the Work Camp Frying Pan
• What Did You Do in the War?

Short Stories ~ Related to Novels

In addition to the above, I have a few stories which are either prequels or serve as missing scenes from much larger universes.

• Bet on Marnie (Enigman Cave prequel)
† Eros vs Thanatos (Obolonk prequel)
• Message in an Odd Bottle (Obolonk/Time Addicts universe; will probably serve as a bridge to the third trilogy)
† The Dust Between Our Stars (Obolonk/Time Addicts prequel)
• The East Side of the Universe (Real Hub Prequel)
† Snowy Allston (Real Hub missing scene)
• Surprises (Enigman Cave missing scene)
† Timelines are Alive (massive crossover)
• Unreliable (Untrustworthy prequel)

Short Stories ~ Catch-All

Finally, for the stories which do not neatly fit into any of the above buckets, here’s a place for them.

But if enough of them end up following a theme, then I’ll make a new section.

(A-C)

So it’s true, I do seem to start a lot of stories with A or An, eh?

† A Celebration
• A Life in Maps
† A Path Not Taken … Much
• A Place
† A Trip
• AM/FM Ghosts
† Appealing
• Beware
† The Black Month
• The Bleeper
† Buzz

also, these…
† Candy
• Captive
† The Cause
• Chains
† Chip
• Clay
† Coincidence
• Coping
† Courage
• The Court
† The Crossing
• Cultural Exchange

Short Story Reviews (D-G)

So, here’s another group.

• Daybreak
† Dinosaurs

Also, these…
† Easy
• Feathers
† Flooding
• Fragments
† Freedom

And then…
† Getting Over It
• Glass
† Guinea Pigs

Short Stories ~ Reviews (H-L)

Also, there’s this smaller bunch.

• Halfway
† Handle
• How Much?
† I Hate Promises
• I Used to be Cruel

… also
† I Used to be Happy
• Impromptu Memorial
† In the Direction of Prejudice
† Intolerable Behavior
• The Invaders
† It’s Five O’clock Somewhere

Also, these…
• The Jungle
† Jurisdiction
• Justice
† Kelvin 505.928

and then there’s …
† The Landing
• The Lark
† The Law
• Legendary
† The Little Farm
• Loud

Short Stories ~ Reviews (M-O)

So, these are stories only starting with these three letters, but I certainly used them a lot!

• Make a Wish
† Marked
• Medals
† Merciful
• The Messenger
† Modern Sonnet
• Money Changes Everything
† My Heroes
• Mythic

Also these…
• Naturalization
† Neighborly
• Oh Little Town
† The Other
• The Outside World

Short Story Reviews (P-R)

Also, this smaller grouping.

† The Path
• Personal Magic
† Placid
• The Playback
† Protection

And then these…
• Quack
† Rage
• Recovery
• The Ridge
† Roommates

Short Stories ~ Reviews (S only)

So as you might imagine, there are a lot of short stories starting with the letter S.

• Save Me
† Scavenger Hunt at Lanterman’s Mill
• Scratches
† The Seed
• Separated
† Shadows
• Short, Sharp
† Snub
• So Long
† Soup
• Space Con
† The Star
• Succession
† Sunshine
• Suspension of Disbelief

Short Stories ~ Reviews (T-Z)

Finally, here is the last bunch.

• Taste
† Treasures
• Truth in Advertising
† Turkeys
• Underfoot
† The Unexpected Phenom

In addition, there are these.

• Weeding
† What’s Your Story?
• The Witness
† Who Do We Blame for This?
• Wicked Ways
† Worthy
• You Never Know

Short Stories