How do I know which story to save?

There are a million stories to write about in one’s lifetime, and about ten of those every day. It only takes the question ‘what if?’ to turn the simplest idea into a full-fledged story. Similarly, if a certain character grips my attention and I want my world to contain someone just like him; I’ll probably get all excited and find a way to make it happen.

The question is which story should I decide to pursue?

At this point, I normally ask myself what I really want to write. Is it a short story or a novel?

Some ideas lend themselves very well to short stories- that sudden twist, the fast movement of the characters, the possible unity of time and place and the revolving of the story around very few characters who adequately share the space you give to them in the short story.

Some ideas are meant for novels- where characters need to be developed slowly to reveal complex motives and the story takes place in multiple locations with multiple characters having different stakes in the various events of the narrative.

If an idea really gets me excited but is meant for a novel that I don’t see myself taking the time out to write, then I have to discard it. If the idea for a short story really excites me, I have to focus on the fact that it’s going to be a short story and not go overboard writing it.

The story I choose to write depends on the time I have and the sort of project I want to get involved in. Certain ideas suit certain forms and trying to bend the rules will lead to a dehydrated and condensed novel or a short story with false extensions.