Little Crime/Mystery Fiction is Big Business

With the continued progression of e-technologies, the Internet, Blogging, My Space and Twitter as well as the evolution of the cell phone with its ever expanding features and by products such as Blackberries and text messaging systems the need for quality, fast, entertaining, readable literature has truly emerged. Short, short under 250 word fiction used to be utilized mainly by creative writing teachers as writing assignments to help students hone their writing skills. Writing contest regulations sometimes required word maximums of 250 words or less to add challenge as well as to make it possible to judge large numbers of entries submitted. For example: Can you write a science fiction short story 250 words or less, set in Louisville KY, using the words moon, astronaut, monster, crab cakes and summer? The results from these were rarely taken seriously by literary authorities or lay readers. Their general lack of quality, had us categorizing them more as cute, humorous, brain tease, puzzle solutions than literature. The challenge was geared more for the person who likes to tinker with crossword puzzles than for real writers to waste their time with.

Now with today's e'culture growing in importance by the minute, societies attention spans are getting shorter and shorter. Googling and clicking on and off twenty or more different web sites and links in just a few minutes on line being the norm, the need for writers to be able to entertain with just a few paragraphs has finally emerged. A writer has to be able to win over the e'browsers right from the start. More than ever before an author must make every word count. There's no longer any tolerance for long winded, self indulgence because click, the computer savvy has moved on.

In the non fiction arena there has always been an appreciation and places set aside for the brief blurb of news, history or short advise piece that helps fill a magazine issue or round out a text book's theme.

Now finally technology and the public are calling for short, mini fiction fillers too. The mystery/crime genre and its community of loyal followers are responding. Mystery and crime readers, writers, editors and publishers have always been on the forefront when it comes to giving new literary trends, writing styles and different structures a chance. The mystery/crime fiction genre industry and their fans have a natural thirst for new types of original works. Read almost purely for recreation and not bound by any rules of diction mystery/crime fiction and tiny, short, entertaining stories are a perfect match. The mystery /crime fiction community has seriously embraced, acknowledged and accepts little, fictional crime stories as a true emerging art form and their authors as truly, gifted, special artists.

Can you catch your readers' imagination, make them giggle, cry, sigh or just pause to think, using only 250 words. Try, you may find it's harder than you think but master this and I promise the quality and success of your longer prose fiction as well as nonfiction will improve dramatically. So, have fun, hone your talents and get ready for the coming explosion of public interest in short, short, fiction of all kinds. This market is going to be huge. Here are two examples of this charming style (under 250 words). Let us know what you think of the stories and the prediction that this market is about to go through the roof.

The neighborhood watch group

"Oh, so this is where it happened." Gabe gazed through the wrought iron bars of the gate, at the creepy looking gothic pillars standing crookedly among the over grown weeds in the court yard.

"Yes, twenty years ago today." Gabe's partner Harry informed. "I was a Rookie like you are now kid, walking this same beat."

"The last great battle of the street gangs. It's hard to believe, two gangs could fight each other and every member of both die. Not one survivor? They say it was bloody?"

"The bloodiest." Harry stuck the long skeleton key in the lock then twisted. The old gate creaked as it swung open. They stepped onto the yard. Across the way people came out of an alcove carrying glowing candles. "Shush!" Harry held his finger across his mouth then whispered. "Since this is going to be your beat, I thought you should know..." They watched the group carry their candles to the center of the pillars. "One candle for every member of the gangs that were slaughtered here."

"Who are they?"

"My friends, the neighborhood watch group. The one's really responsible for cleaning up this town. After the gangs came into the square, I locked the gates so no one could get back out. The gangs rumbled and did a lot of damage to each other. Then these neighbors came in and finished the tired, wounded gang members off." He pressed the key into the rookie's palm. Congratulations, new watch group leader."

Golden eggs

Scott parted the weeds so Mira could see the goose frolicking in the water. "Every night." He whispered. "The King's guards take her out to the mote to enjoy a quick swim then it's back down to the castle's basement where she works laying golden eggs for the king."

"You really believe she lays golden eggs?"

"Would all these guards be watching a regular goose?"

"And, you got a good plan this time?"

"You create a diversion to lure the guards away. While I lure the bird in the other direction using a smelly floating dead fish tied to a long string. I toss a net over her and we're rich."

"This don't involve me taking my clothes off again?"

"Well, how else are we going to lead men away from their posts?"

"Oh Scott!"

One week later, Scott and Mira were locked in the top room of the north tower of the castle. Through the tiny window they heard the king's speech. "The thieves have been caught. And, I've instructed our wizard to turn them both into Geese." He pointed at two Geese swimming in the mote.

"Liar!" Mira screamed. "We're up here! There never was a Goose that could lay golden eggs!"

"They can't hear you Dear. But I've thought of a plan to get us out of here. We'll expose the King and his Wizard for the frauds they are."

"I hope it doesn't involve me getting naked again." Scott stared at her. "Oh Scott!"