Imagine the old fashioned story teller rolling out a tale.

I love short stories! Reading them.

Writing them. Working on them.

The short story is a fiction writer’s laboratory: here is where you can experiment with characters, plots, and ideas without the heavy lifting of writing a novel.  It’s a form that has so many possibilities. As a reader it is easy to drop into the world of the story, be immersed, and then in no time emerge, again and again, all in a single collection. The shorter the story, the fewer elements are needed.  

THE CORE ELEMENTS OF A SHORT STORY

  • A protagonist with a certain desire or need. It is essential for the protagonist to want something they don’t have, otherwise they will not drive the story forward.
  • A clear dilemma. We don’t need much backstory to see how the dilemma started; we’re primarily concerned with how the protagonist resolves it.
  • A decision. What does the protagonist do to resolve their dilemma?
  • A climax. In Freytag’s Pyramid, the climax of a story is when the tension reaches its peak, and the reader discovers the outcome of the protagonist’s decision(s).
  • An outcome. How does the climax change the protagonist? Are they a different person? Do they have a different philosophy or outlook on life?

1. Take the lead from stories inspired by the news

Writing begins and ends with the five Ws: who, what, where, when, and why. It is a great way of going deeply into the why of it all. It’s your story; person, place, thing, and the Ws. 

A short story allows you to see what motivates someone at a much deeper level. What has led a person to a place they never expected to be – either committing a crime or being caught. If you start with a crime, visualize where a man is convicted of crime and executed. Then move the story more deeply into the societal and personal factors that led to this act.

Prompt: Check your local paper for a few short articles about crimes. Keep a file. Then create a character who is definitely not the person in the actual crime story. Visualize someone you can empathize with deeply, and imagine what series of events/decisions would lead this character to be involved in this crime. See where the character takes you.

2. Think about a Holiday Event

High emotional expectations for a holiday get-together can mean greater chances for disappointment, conflict, even fights. While they can be painful in real life, these events are great seeds for stories.

Prompt: Think of the cheesiest expressions of good cheer for a holiday, whether greeting cards, holiday ads, or commercials, etc. Keep a file of inane good wishes. Recall holidays that did not live up to your expectations and how it went awry. You can also ask friends for their Bad Holiday Memories. From that create a situation where a character who absolutely does not want to go to this holiday event ends up going. Describe how he/she anticipates feeling. Then describe the event and see if you can subvert those expectations while still being true to your character.

3. Experiment With Twists

Check out National Book Award-winning author Charles Yu’s first short story collection Third Class Superhero. In addition to being witty and moving, the stories are written in so many different twists, including multiple-choice quizzes, screenplays, a game, lists, even literary analysis.

Prompt: Write a to-do list for a character. Is the list seemingly mundane? Or is it filled with hopes and aspirations? What obstacles will make it difficult to finish the list? Does the first list end up generating more lists as the character moves through the day or through life?

4. Start With Action

Beginning in medias can be useful because you have to think of a reason for the event to be happening. It gives you a dramatic beginning. Unpacking that event can lead you into the deeper meaning.

5. Play With Time

Think of a dilemma for a character, then set the story 100 years in the future or far into the past. Explore how the time period impacts the character’s options for dealing with the dilemma. 

Unleash the novel inside you

with compelling characters,

intricate worlds,

and fine-tuned prose.

“Linda has published twenty books. She blogs about the publishing world, posts useful tips on the challenges a writer faces, including marketing and promoting your work, how to build your online platform, how to get reviews and how to self-publish. She has mentored many authors and edited their work.” 

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