Discussion: Short Stories

I recently read Until Midnight by Melissa Landers, which got me thinking about short stories—you know the stories that are set between, before, or after the novels and are generally a cheaper way for readers to get introduced to a writer’s work.

Given the chance to read a short story before you read the novel, would you?

Some short stories—especially the ones that are set after a novel—can contain spoilers. That’s a given. But I don’t particularly mind them as long as they’re not too big of a spoiler. As you can see from my review of Until Midnight by Melissa Landers I read it before the novel, which I don’t even have. Yet, there was one good thing about doing so, it gave me a chance to get introduced to the writer’s style and the story to see if I would even be interested in picking up Alienated. Since the short story got my interest, I’m now curious to see where it all began. Sure, there were a few things that could have been spoilers, but I don’t particularly feel like I know the entire story leading up to Until Midnight.

So, I guess my answer would be yes. I would buy/read the short story before I bought a novel by an author I’m unfamiliar with. That method might not be for everyone, but I find that it generally works for me.

Question: What are your thoughts on short stories?