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cessary fillers and adding confusing complexity to my pieces. Short-form forces you to be as concise as possible, staying within the bounds of 150 words to get your point across.</p><blockquote id="25c8"><p>If you struggle with conciseness and know for a fact that you can lose readers through a forest of words, short-form is a must-try.</p></blockquote><h2 id="ae2f">2. Consistency Above All Else</h2><p id="532a">As eluded to in my intro, consistency is more than a key to growing as a writer, it’s <i>absolutely critical</i>. Without consistency you:</p><ul><li>Struggle to grow a following</li><li>Struggle to hone your craft</li><li>Struggle to stay motivated</li></ul><p id="94e9">Short-form helps you consistently write even when time doesn’t permit. It also helps you battle periods of writer’s block or idea shortages, breaking down the mental barrier by only needing to find 150 words.</p><blockquote id="66d4"><p>Short-form makes it easier to stay consistent as a writer, allowing you to: grow a following, hone your craft, and stay motivated. It also helps you hurdle the barriers of being short on ideas and time constraints.</p></blockquote><h2 id="3538">3. Idea Proving Ground</h2><p id="4319">Short-form can be the perfect way to sample an idea that you aren’t ready to fully commit to. Maybe the idea of a longer-form piece is daunting, or maybe you’re unsure if it will be well received; however, short-form can provide instant feedback about an idea you’re on the fence about.</p><blockquote id="36a2"><p>A successful short-form post can become the key to your next long-form story. The instant analysis can boost you over motivation humps and help you prioritize when and what to write about.</p></blockquote><h1 id="b122">In Summary</h1><p id="d6ee">Short-form is the ideal place to practice conciseness, find consistency, and prove out long-form story ideas. It’s a format that you should absolutely <b>not</b> sleep on, instead opting to make it part of your writing routine.</p><p id="4552"><i>For those who have yet to give short-form a go, what has held you back from doing so?</i></p><p id="1a8d"><b>For the

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experienced short-form warriors out there, what other ways can this format help improve your writing?</b></p><p id="f341">Happy writing!</p><p id="2aa1"><b>More from Jeff:</b></p><div id="68b1" class="link-block"> <a href="https://readmedium.com/the-what-why-how-approach-to-conflict-resolution-3207f4e39021"> <div> <div> <h2>The What — Why — How Approach to Conflict Resolution</h2> <div><h3>An easy and effective way to orient your life.</h3></div> <div><p>medium.com</p></div> </div> <div> <div style="background-image: url(https://miro.readmedium.com/v2/resize:fit:320/1*cPiZ5s6ot9OYNWuGtn61iw.jpeg)"></div> </div> </div> </a> </div><div id="00fa" class="link-block"> <a href="https://readmedium.com/3-stories-that-will-immediately-improve-your-writing-7a370526a639"> <div> <div> <h2>3 Stories That Will Immediately Improve Your Writing</h2> <div><h3>Avoid discouragement and enhance your literary acumen</h3></div> <div><p>medium.com</p></div> </div> <div> <div style="background-image: url(https://miro.readmedium.com/v2/resize:fit:320/1*S7iLKg0flwLBXrrIgH6WWQ.jpeg)"></div> </div> </div> </a> </div><div id="68d5" class="link-block"> <a href="https://readmedium.com/are-these-painful-email-mistakes-causing-more-grief-than-good-103c94413a3d"> <div> <div> <h2>Are These Painful Email Mistakes Causing More Grief Than Good?</h2> <div><h3>Ask yourself these 3 questions to improve your email etiquette.</h3></div> <div><p>medium.com</p></div> </div> <div> <div style="background-image: url(https://miro.readmedium.com/v2/resize:fit:320/1*89hXwIV1GS2-vQfDLgcH4g.jpeg)"></div> </div> </div> </a> </div></article></body>

The Saving Grace of Short Form

3 reasons why it needs to be a routine part of your writing regimen.

Photo by Shamia Casiano from Pexels

This past weekend was the first since joining Medium that I had to take a break from writing. It was a short break, 3 days, but a break nonetheless.

Actually, this isn’t entirely true. I did manage to take 20 minutes or so to publish the following during that time:

The above idea spontaneously popped into my head on Saturday afternoon, one I just had to get it out into the world.

But on a platform that incentivizes total time read over total views, why bother with short, 150-word or fewer stories that “lack” depth and detail?

Glad you asked!

Here are 3 exceptional reasons as to why short-form should be part of your writing regimen.

1. Practice Conciseness

I have the tendency to be entirely too wordy when writing, using unnecessary fillers and adding confusing complexity to my pieces. Short-form forces you to be as concise as possible, staying within the bounds of 150 words to get your point across.

If you struggle with conciseness and know for a fact that you can lose readers through a forest of words, short-form is a must-try.

2. Consistency Above All Else

As eluded to in my intro, consistency is more than a key to growing as a writer, it’s absolutely critical. Without consistency you:

  • Struggle to grow a following
  • Struggle to hone your craft
  • Struggle to stay motivated

Short-form helps you consistently write even when time doesn’t permit. It also helps you battle periods of writer’s block or idea shortages, breaking down the mental barrier by only needing to find 150 words.

Short-form makes it easier to stay consistent as a writer, allowing you to: grow a following, hone your craft, and stay motivated. It also helps you hurdle the barriers of being short on ideas and time constraints.

3. Idea Proving Ground

Short-form can be the perfect way to sample an idea that you aren’t ready to fully commit to. Maybe the idea of a longer-form piece is daunting, or maybe you’re unsure if it will be well received; however, short-form can provide instant feedback about an idea you’re on the fence about.

A successful short-form post can become the key to your next long-form story. The instant analysis can boost you over motivation humps and help you prioritize when and what to write about.

In Summary

Short-form is the ideal place to practice conciseness, find consistency, and prove out long-form story ideas. It’s a format that you should absolutely not sleep on, instead opting to make it part of your writing routine.

For those who have yet to give short-form a go, what has held you back from doing so?

For the experienced short-form warriors out there, what other ways can this format help improve your writing?

Happy writing!

More from Jeff:

Short Form
New Writers Welcome
Advice
Writing
Ideas
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