by Charlie Fish
Well, this is a luxury! I can record a short story I read without having to use the workarounds I need to use on Goodreads to record my short story reads!
Don’t get me wrong – I do agree with Goodreads policy about short stories in online magazines. If that is the only way the short story has been published, then that is the way it has to be entered. It is the same if you read a short story in dead tree format. If it has only been published in a collection, then that is the way it has to be recorded on Goodreads. Since Goodreads doesn’t confide in it’s volunteer Librarians, (and yes, for my sins, I am one) I’m only guessing at the reasons, but I’m sure they include;
📚 Goodreads uses the ISBN (or ASIN in the case of Kindle books) as the identifier. Random short stories without this will make a lot of work and mess. Don’t believe me? Look at the shambles some of the works on Goodreads that have many pre ISBN works. Alice in Wonderland or anything by Jane Austen would be a good place to start.
📚 A short story that isn’t published individually won’t have a cover. No problem, the member will simply ignore the rights of the copyright holders and grab an image from online. Or decide to use the cover for the whole collection which leads to a big mess and confusion. I know GR members grab random images for their reviews all the time – but I’m assuming Goodreads TOS will mean Goodreads are absolved and you, Dear Reader will be the one facing a complaint.
📚 Less common but it does happen. The author only wants his/her work displayed in the format it was offered for sale. How you enter a short story will turn up on their dashboard.
I’ll leave my workarounds for another review. Here is my (micro) review!
Short, darkly funny and not a word wasted. And a double word score for being about one of my favourite board games!
I found this short story here http://www.eastoftheweb.com/short-stories/UBooks/DeatScra.shtml
Carol - She's So Novel! 