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Source: https://writers.stackexchange.com/q/5078
License name: CC BY-SA 3.0
License URL: https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/3.0/

Source: https://writers.stackexchange.com/q/5078
License name: CC BY-SA 3.0
License URL: https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/3.0/

I write epic fantasy; I've written two trilogies in a joint setting, and am writing further books in the same setting.

I would like to start writing short stories for my setting as well - stories that I can send to short fiction venues, that can introduce new readers to my series and provoke their interest in my books. It's very important that, on the one hand, the stories be of a piece with the rest of the series, but on the other, they need to be clear, accessible, and engrossing to new readers who aren't familiar with the series yet.

I'm used to plotting on a pretty epic scale. Most of the "draws" in my work are built around a long range scope - gradual buildups, different threads intertwining with each other, Fate of Nations at Stake, the whole shebang.

**Where, within my epic-scale setting, should I be looking for story ideas appropriate for the "mere" scale of short stories?**

> **Disclosure:** This is a hypothetical question for the ["Short Story" topic challenge](https://writers.meta.stackexchange.com/questions/426/wtcs-short-story-writing). In reality I have not written any fantasy epics. No, not even one.

Original score: 7