So, one of the new writing goals I’m trying is to finish a short story within a few days of starting it. I know myself. If I don’t finish it within a few days, bad things happen. Sometimes it goes wonky, growing legs and walking off on its own. Other times I completely lose my train of thought. But finishing isn’t easy. Often, the end seems so obvious that I don’t want to write it without adding some fantastic twist or complication.
Last week I returned to a story (Grands) that already had gone a little wonky. I knew we were going to be out of town all weekend, and I considered re-starting and dewonkifying it by writing it in a lab notebook, which worked well for Moon Dragons.
But writing in a lab book ended up with Pastor Pastornack’s Sabbatical going wonky…
I felt inspired, and thought I could finish Grands in a couple of days. I didn’t. Even though our family weekend included relaxation time in the hotel rooms, I wasn’t able to go back to it. Today is Tuesday… and I still haven’t gone back to it. I think it’s close to being done…but, as I mentioned above, finishing is one of the hardest parts of writing for me.
Other goals? I’m diving into promo for The Cities of Luna. It comes out in exactly one month! We’re still trading final edits back and forth, but it’s mainly picky little stuff like which of my made-up words need to be hyphenated and which do not. We want to be consistent throughout the series, not only correct.
So I’m editing, promo-ing, and yes, writing, every day. So yeah for some goals, but boo for the finishing-stuff goal. I’ll work on that.
AmyBeth Inverness 
Congratulations on the eminent release. And I can totally relate with stories going wonky. All mine grow to be ungainly beasts.
You said, “Sometimes it goes wonky, growing legs and walking off on its own.” I feel like this happens to me all the time. I’ve written plenty of short stories that turned into novellas and novellas that turned into novels. My characters are always surprising me, and plots often take twists I didn’t see coming. I try to treat it as part of the process–even when it messes with my carefully laid plans.
Good luck with your upcoming release and with finishing your short story!
It’s a big decision, knowing when to embrace the wonkiness, and when to fight it down! Some stories can absolutely be expanded into a novel. Others… they might think they’re all that, but they’re not lol!