^{Photo by Tima Miroshnichenko}

Authors don’t have to craft long, complex literary works to break through the literary field. Regardless of length, all authors need is a compelling storyline carried out by enthralling characters incorporated into a well-paced, well-worded narrative.

Imagine if the world is only made up of a single form of literature, say, novels. Every story authors want to share with the public will only be written into a lengthy narrative broken down into multiple chapters following the same three-arc structure. There may still be numerous stories, but readers are only compelled to read them from the same form.

Limiting.

Regardless if there are different types of novels – suspense, mystery, fantasy – having only the same form of literary work will limit not just the field and how readers perceive literature. It will also restrict their imagination toward comprehending how typical novel plotlines unfold, molding their minds to follow the same pattern of reasoning and creativity. Fortunately, the world we’re living in isn’t this restrictive. Throughout the years, authors have been given the volition and freedom to craft and convey their stories through different designs, allowing them to play around with however they wish to express these. Having the liberty to do so has helped writers effectively communicate, likewise, embellished the world with more entertainment and literary variety to choose from.

What makes literature fun and exciting is that authors can openly play around with expressing a thought. Multiple writers may share similar stories or lessons to convey, but how they develop can branch out into different actions and threads, allowing for various means of consumption and different degrees of enjoyment.

Will they be writing short stanzas to deliver their stories?

Or will they be going for a more poetic style?

Nobody knows. And this is what precisely makes literature such a beautifully complex field. Authors can take one thought or plotline and weave them into different forms. Instead of producing redundant and indistinguishable material, society is gifted with numerous narrated from different angles. With this lack of restriction, readers enjoy having copious literary materials, as though they’re never going to run out of new and fresh stories to consume.

However, with this abundance, readers may also desire to consume multiple stories despite an apparent lack of opportunity. Hence, readers’ experience of hoarding books without actually reading them. As the publishing field constantly provides readers with new and exciting stories, they’re drawn to continually want to read more without having the opportunity or time to. This leads to numerous underappreciated stories and authors that never get to break into the field.

If only there were a way for readers to consume different stories in one sitting, or at the very least, shorten the duration to which they can read other stories. How excellent is it if readers pick a single book and have the experience of reading multiple ones?

Author Brian Clements provided this chance to his readers. With his Anthology of Short Stories and Poems, Clements provided multiple adventures following different characters within one book, creating a compendium of short stories that can stand alone or be connected depending on the readers’ insights. The author has written and collected short stories and poetry into this book that readers will undoubtedly enjoy, as a whole and with its parts.

Brian Clements isn’t the sole author who’s thought of creating a stockpile of different stories. This type of literary form has long existed, and countless authors have already banked on writing short-form stories and compiling them to create a name for themselves and as a community. Think of this style as something similar to a class photo, where everyone, regardless of characteristics, stature, or features, is gathered, creating a whole. This synergy among different stories or different authors is an anthology.

An anthology book is a collection of stories that can be enjoyed separately or delicately pieced together by a specific detail or interpersonal relationship. Unlike long-form novels, these books don’t follow an overarching plot or a single character and cast. Instead, they’re open for authors to delve into distinct themes throughout the different stories, giving them enough space to write whatever their hearts and minds want. Anthologies give writers the perfect opportunity to experiment on their craft, test their skills, and provide more to their readers while doing less than the effort they give when writing long-form novels.

Beyond being perfect materials for readers to enjoy, anthology books are also an opportunity for authors to grow and belong in a community. As a material of different stories, anthologies can be composed of different literary pieces by various authors. This gives them an equal amount of increased exposure, leveraging each other’s readers to grow their audience. It’s a win for everyone.

Since most readers now want to consume a broader range of themes and stories, exploring and jumping from one genre to another, anthologies are a growing trend in the field. To readers, these books are the perfect material to expand their awareness and vision of literature. At the same time, they’re also the right avenue for writers to grow and improve their creativity by dabbling into more forms and avenues to creative writing.