So, you want to write a short story. There is more to writing it, than just telling a story. Have you heard the phrase “Show, don’t tell?” If you haven’t, then remember it. Show; don’t tell means to use your characters to convey the story through their actions and dialogue.  

Before you can put this information to work, you need a story idea. Choose your idea and shape it with these six rules. 

q       Theme

q       Plot

q       Story Structure

q       Setting

q       Style and tone

The Theme is the story you are trying to tell this could be something that can help in our lives or convey a message. You don’t want to be preachy to your reader, and at the same time, you shouldn’t have to explain what the moral of the story is. Your reader should be able to learn that through your story. 

To keep the reader interested you need a Plot, conflict or struggle that your main character has to overcome. The struggle can be with another character or something inside the character such as feelings. The main character or hero/heroine should win or lose on their own and not be rescued by someone. 

The conflict should intensify as the story moves forward and should reach its climax at the end of the story. 

*Steps to plotting-Conflict starts, things go right for the hero/heroine, things go wrong, final victory. 

For Story Structure, best advice is to jump right into the action, let the reader know who the hero/heroine is. Here’s where you’ll need to decide whether to tell your story in “first person” or “third person.” 

First person is telling the story as if it were happening to you, using the pronoun “I.” Third person is telling the story as if it’s all about other people, using the pronouns “he”, “she”, “it”. 

If you choose to use the third person point of view, tell the story through the eyes of just one character—usually the hero/heroine. 

Now, decide whether you’ll tell the story in the present or past tense. Past tense is writing the story as if it already happened, present tense is writing the story as it is happening right now. Once you have chosen your tense “stick to it,” don’t switch between tenses as it will confuse your reader and they will leave your story unfinished. 

Decide on a Setting, a place and time that are interesting and familiar. 

Style and tone is the language you use that is right for your story. Whenever you can use action and dialogue to let the reader know what’s happening, “show, don’t tell.” 

Put dialogue in direct quotes like “Come help!” instead of indirect quotes as “He told her to come help.” You don’t need complicated words to write well; in fact simpler is usually better. Simple words and sentences are easier to understand. 

Finally, choose the best word—the one that is closest to your meaning and gives the clearest image possible. If you can’t think of a word, use your thesaurus. 

Now that you have some background of what your short story needs, it’s time to start writing. To use these six rules effectively you’ll need to add a beginning, middle, and ending. 

The beginning of the story is important, because it’s what draws your reader in. The best way to do this is to jump right into the story. Be as direct as you can, if you have a 1,000-word limit your beginning should not take up more than a fifth of your word limit (200 words), or no more than a typed double spaced page.

When writing short stories you don’t have the luxury of many scene changes, so to help you collect your thoughts write down all your ideas for the opening-the introduction of your hero/heroine and his/her problem. Make sure to give the reader a clear picture of the main elements of your story. The reader needs to be able to visualize your characters and the setting. 

Below are two examples of openings to short stories. 

Dialogue

The Secret Letter Box, by Marjorie A. Scanlon

“My letter is ‘m,” said Amy. “I have something in the letter box that begins with’m.”

“Is it money?” said Todd. “Money begins with’m.”

“Give us a hint,” said Miss Wade. 

Narrative 

Juan waited in Hidalgo’s office. Already and hour had passed-he knew it was an hour, he’d watched each minute fall off the clock on Hidalgo’s wall-but still, he waited. He had to wait. Obedience was expected, demanded.

*Excerpt from ICL handbook.

Now, work on the opening of your story, next you’ll learn how to put together a suspenseful middle.

You Can Write a Short Story Part 2, By Linda S. Dupie

Many writers call the middle the meat of the story, but I like to think of it as an OREO cookie. The creme filling is what holds the ends together, just as the middle of your story should bring the beginning and ending of your story together.

The middle is the part of the story where your conflict builds for your hero/heroine. Depending on the length of your story, you may have a couple of set backs before your hero/heroine triumphs in the end. For example, we used a 1000-word count in part 1 of this series, so we'll continue with it. In part one, it was said that your opening should be no longer than one-fifth of your word count, so for the allotted 1000 words that is 200 words. That means your middle should be around 600 words, thus leaving you with 200 words to end your story. As you can see 1000 words is not much when you have a story to tell.

My advice for a story of this length is to use one major obstacle and focus on how your hero/heroine works to overcome the conflict. As your character moves through the story, s/he should be working to obtain their goal for the ending.

This sounds like a huge task, but it doesn't have to be. Remember the phrase "show, don't tell" will help. Whether your character is overcoming an inner conflict or physical one, using action and dialog keeps your story moving.

Detail is great, just don't get bogged down by describing every little detail, it's good to leave a little to the readers own imagination.

If your character is overcoming an inner conflict (feelings/emotional), then use their action in conjunction with dialog to show the steps they take to overcome their obstacle. Does s/he talk his problem out with a doctor or trusted friend? Then write the dialog. Once your character has talked it through, make sure your hero/heroine arrives at the solution and not one of your supporting characters. That cheats the reader and undermines your hero/heroine's credibility.

*For longer stories, 1500-2,500 words your lead character might have to overcome two or more obstacles to gain what they are after.

Points to Remember

* Show, don't tell. Use action and dialogue to keep your story moving along.
* Stay in the correct point of view (POV). If you are telling the story from your hero/heroine's POV, then you can't jump to another character to tell the story.
* Keep your tenses consistent. If you have chosen to tell the story in the third person, be sure not to slip into first person or vice versa.
* You don't have many words to work with in a 1,000-word story so choose the best possible words to get your story across to the reader. More often than not, a reader would like the writer to get to the point of the story. Just be sure to choose the right words.

Now, grab your thesaurus if you haven't already and work on making your middle the crème filling that holds your story together.

Next tying up the loose ends: your ending.

Copyright 2001, by Linda S. Dupie. All rights reserved.

You Can Write A Short Story: Part 3, By Linda S. Dupie


You've worked hard on your story, now it's time to round out the story with your ending. This is the time to exit your story gracefully.

Once you've reached the final climax of your story, you should end quickly. Your reader's interest drops quickly from this point on. A brief paragraph or two is all you'll need.

You'll need to exercise a little restraint with the ending; you shouldn't have to spell out the lesson learned. The reader should have come to that conclusion from reading your beginning and middle.

For example, you've written a story where your main character is trying out for the school football team. He's small and doesn't know the other kids. He has overcome his obstacles and made the team, making the team is the final climax. Your reader should already see from his actions he's elated, you need to wrap up the story without summarizing.

Example Ending

Walking off the field after the first practice, Ray joked with the other players and made plans for the weekend.

You've now brought closure to his other obstacle of not knowing the other kids and you've placed him on the practice field without summarizing the story.

Tips to Remember

* Your story should get off to a quick start, with a hint of the conflict to come.
* "Show, don't tell"
* Your story should build to a climax that resolves your main conflict.
* Your main character is the one resolving the main conflict.
* Avoid summarizing the theme of the story and let your readers draw their own conclusions.
* Finally, does your title pique the reader's interest?

You've ended your story and left the reader satisfied great job! Keep writing!

Copyright 2001, by Linda S. Dupie. All rights reserved.

Author Bio- Linda S. Dupie is a freelance writer, she writes on a variety of subjects including Travel, Kids and Family issues. Linda also publishes and writes a web site and print magazine called Rainy Day Corner for the Writing Family. http://www.rainydaycorner.com

MAKE A LIST AND COUNT YOUR BLESSINGS! Column by The Poetry Muse, Lynne Remick

With school over, you may not want to spell or count for a long time. But here's something that's fun to count-your blessings!

Consider people, places and/or things you are thankful for and make a list. Believe it or not, you've nearly got at List Poem! A list poem is an old form of poetry that itemizes people, places, things or events. They are easy to write, because there are few rules. The objective is to make the reader "look at" or "think about" something. . List poems can be short or long, serious or silly, rhymed or unrhymed. All you list needs is a beginning phrase, like "I'm thankful for" or some other appropriate lead and ending, like this (Note the bracketed additions to the list):

Counting Blessings
© 2003 Lynne Remick

[I'm thankful for:]
The last day of school
The first day of summer
Sand and sea
Starfish and egrets
Turtles that swim
Tides that come in
Cattails that wave
Creatures great and small
Trees where owls live
Theaters and popcorn
Friends and family
Freedom of speech
[But most of all,]
The last day of school.


You can make list poems out of any subject, like "ten things I know about…" perhaps, your brother or sister. Here's an example:

Ten Things I Know About My Sister
© 2003 Lynne Remick

She wakes up crabby
She likes ketchup on eggs
She doesn't like to wear pink
She likes to pull my hair
She hates peanut butter sandwiches
She doesn't like to share
She lets me eat her vegetables
She eats my meat so I don't have to
She trades crayons for cake
She snores at night.

Here's a list poem that combines two lists--a list of things I don't want done to me, and a list of what I might do to someone who does the things on my first list.

Don't Bug Me
© 2003 Lynne Remick

Don't ever touch my long brown hair
Or I'll hide your underwear.
Don't put bullfrogs in my bed
Or I'll tickle you till you turn red.
Don't ever rain on my parade,
Or I'll spike your lemonade.
Don't repeat a word a say,
Or I'll tell on you one day!

After you have tried a few list poems and counted your blessings, you can always call for more. A Blessing Poem or "Prayer Poem," as this form is sometimes called, calls a blessing or good fortune to a certain subject. You can bless a teacher, a parent, a friend, or even a rabbit! You can start your poem with "may," "bless," or "let."

Prayer for a Hare
© 2003 Lynne Remick

Bless the rabbit in the wood
For he's soft and full of good
Let him find a sweet hare wife
So he may live a fruitful life.

The best thing about list poems is that you choose the subject, style and length. If you can't think of an idea, list the reasons you can't write a list poem!

© 2003 Lynne Remick

Lynne Remick resides in New York with her beloved son Kevin, a darling Schipperke named Dante and Sahara-a feral cat, along with a spoiled Hedgehog named Willow and her three babies, Winken, Blinken and Nod. In the midst of this zoo, Lynne studies children's literature, reviews children's books and writes stories and poems for children.

FAMILY ROUND ROBIN, By Ken Clifton

If a family has some extra time and is looking for a way to enhance family connections, a family writing round robin is a great answer. It is a way to promote family communication, better understanding of each other, and general fun.

In a family round robin, the members of a family taking turns to develop upon the last family member's storytelling develop a story. If a family is not into fiction, they can use the same round robin techniques with poetry. One by one, the family continues to develop the story or poem in their own creative fashion.

For example, Billy, a member of an imaginary family, starts off the story by talking about a family of aliens land on the planet after their space ship ran out of fuel. Billy is really interested in science fiction, and the family is not surprised at this story plot choice. Billy is happy for getting a chance to share that interest with his family.

Nancy, who is a pre-teen romantic, takes Billy's story and twists it into a tale about the alien daughter falling in love with the strong and handsome farm hand that had given the family a place to live in the barn. Family eyes roll and laughter breaks out as Nancy's face turns red at the mention of her boyfriend by Billy.

Next, the father continues the tale by describing the family's mission to rebuild the space ship without being detected. As the father continues about the technical aspects of the space ship engine, everyone but Bill start to drift off inattentively. He regains some attention upon mentioning the family spy activities in town. The alien dad figure, according to Billy and Nancy's father, is a former soldier in military intelligence, and he has a plan to get the family to safety. The dad loves to play the 007 figure, being able to forget his boring job and average pay.

Next the mother develops the romantic role that Nancy brought up, and she deepens the plot, suggesting that the farm hand is actually a spy as well. That gets all the family's attention, and she feels she has pulled the family's interests together.

Now, as we go back to Billy, the story has a broad base upon which to build another layer of story development. The family story goes around the circle as many times as desired, each person trying to go off in a new and inventive direction.

This round robin time killer can be done anywhere. For practice, the family can kill time in the car developing stories based on things seen out the window. It can also be done on without paper; however, writing the family development down will provide a source to look back on and gives more time for each person to develop the story or poem.

So, the next time that the power goes out, there's nothing on TV, or you just want to kill some time in a fun way, a writing round robin might just be the ticket to start the creative juices and communication lines working.

© Ken Clifton 2003 - Author of: 777 Things You Can Do In Heaven -Available August 2003 at major online retailers- http://beingone.20m.com/heaven-things.html

BAKING (or writing) FROM SCRATCH, By Katie Clark

You have a blank screen before you, a glass of your favorite soda, a stack of crackers, ten willing fingers; yet you sit still. The words won't come. Have you ever been there?

You've got what's commonly called writer's block. How do you get around it? How do you get to creating a character that breathes our air and walks among us?

I like to do a little something called brainstorming. How do I do it? Here's a few simple steps to get you started.

READY...

Have a pen and paper, or a blank screen, ready. Now, think of a name--any name! I choose Darby. What might a girl named Darby look like? Long, dirty blonde hair. Brown eyes. Glasses? What is her favorite food? What are her hobbies? Where does she live? How old is the picture in your mind? Eleven? What is her facial expression? She's frowning--why?

Now, what would make a young girl frown. It bothers her so much that she frowns alot? Perhaps she feels left out--that doesn't seem right. She wants a toy that she can't have? No, that's not it either. What is it then?

Take a good look at that frown. What kind of frown is it? A sad one, a frustrated one, a confused one?

SET...

Darby's is definitely sad. What would make a girl sad? Her friend has moved? Her kitten was stolen? Or perhaps her mother's dead? That's it! In fact, I think she's been gone most of Darby's life.

Now, what would bring this up in young Darby's life to remind her that she's sad over it? Something her mother might be involved in? A mother/daughter banquet, maybe?

Now is the time to begin outlining. You know your characters name. You know what they look like. You know what their problem is. Now you've got to create their story.

Where is Darby when she learns of this mother/daughter banquet? Her friends house? Maybe she overheard her friend's mother telling about it. It's all the girls at school are talking about. In fact, it's all Darby's thinking about. That, and how she has no mother.

But Darby is strong. What might she do to remedy the situation? Find her dad a date, to in the end give her a mother? Go with an aunt? Refuse to attend?

GO!

Now is the time to begin your writing. You know about your character. You know what their story is. Now you have to tell it. Start at the most obvious point--in Darby's case, the moment she overhears her friend's mother telling her daughter about the banquet. It's easier and harder than it looks. You've got to tell and perhaps retell, until it's just right. Until Darby is telling us her story instead of you. When Darby is speaking to us, we know she's alive.

When you get to the point that your character knows what she wants as much as you know, then you've reached a good point. Some of my best and favorite stories have come from using this formula. I ask myself these questions: What's their name? What would a person with this name look like? What are their favorites? What expression is on their face? How did it get there? If one thing could be wrong with that situation, really wrong, what would it be? How would a person with that name, and with those looks, with those favorites, react to this situation?

Once I have the answers to these questions, the going is always easier. I might, and often do, run into other obstacles along the way, but I have the main ingredients in the bowl. If you try this formula for yourself, perhaps with a few variations, then you will, more than likely, find yourself telling someone's story. The someone is up to you!

© Katie Clark 2003

INTERVIEWING 101, By Victoria Groves

The art of the interview is more than just who, what, when, where and why. To get to the heart of any story worth reading is finding quotes that sparkle and surrounding them with easy to follow details. Sound difficult? Maybe at first. But an intriguing article always starts with a solid interview and you'll get better each time you conduct an interview. Here are
some basic pointers:

1. Like a Boy Scout, be prepared- If you are interviewing the president of the local power plant, make sure you know a little bit about it before you meet with her. If you are interviewing someone about a marathon fundraiser, try to get your hands on a press release so you know how many years it has happened and where they plan to donate the money.

2. Questions, questions- Before your interview, come up with 10 questions to ask your subject. They can be basic, like "How long have you been a champion bowler?", but they will get the ball rolling. And if you are nervous, a list of written questions can help prompt you and alleviate any jitters. Most likely, your interview will seem more like a conversation, but
if your subject isn't much of a talker, prepared questions can help you get out of a one-word answer rut.

3. Nix the jargon- Interviewing a lawyer or a doctor (or a fan at a Star Trek convention) may leave you with a notebook full of terms you and your readers can barely pronounce, let alone define. Ask for clarity. There is never a dumb question and most interviewees, like you, want to make sure you get it right. When you leave the interview, you should be able to explain what you've learned to your kid brother or your grandmother. That means make it lingo-free.

4. Ask, ask again- Try asking the same question in different ways if you aren't getting colorful or expressive quotes.

So, when you received first place, what did it feel like?

What happened when you won?

Did you think you would win?

5. Spell this- Before you leave the interview, triple check the names of all individuals and organizations that you discuss with your subject. Your subject's name may be Amy, but if she spells it Aimee, you won't know until you ask.

Interviewing is an acquired skill that you can master. To learn more about these five tips or to get a few more under your belt, check out the following resources:

Websites:
www.journaliststoolbox.com
www.icfj.org International Center for Journalists

Ebook:
More Than Any Human Being Needs to Know about
Freelance Writing, by Jenna Glatzer

Books:
Responsible Journalism: A Practical Guide for Working
and Aspiring Journalists, by Jeff Alan
Creative Interviewing: The Writers Guide to Gathering
Information by Asking Questions by Ken Metzler

© Victoria Groves 2003

Victoria Groves is a former newspaper writer and current freelance writer living outside Boston. She has been published by Baltimore Magazine, Chesapeake Family Newsmagazine, Planned Parenthood's Teenwire.org and Highlights for Children, among other publications. She is also the writer and editor of the monthly e-newsletters Raising Financially Fit Kids and Dollar Diva, a publication that teaches economic independence to girls and young women. She can be reached at vmgroves@yahoo.com.