Tips for Writing a Short Story

• Put a man up a tree
• Throw stones at him
• Get him down

When you come to think of it, it's good advice for any writer. So follow the steps in the plan below to start writing great short stories.

Start with a situation - a problem to be resolved for your protagonist ( the man up the tree).

Then present the problems that can occur (throw some stones):

• Misunderstandings / mistaken identity / lost opportunities etc

The final step is to show how you can solve the problem - get the man down from his leafy perch - safely.

• Love triumphs / good conquers evil / honesty is the best policy / united we stand 

As you write, make sure that every word is related to this theme. 

It's tempting to use your short story to show off your talents at characterisation, descriptive writing, dialogue or whatever ... But every excess word is a word that dilutes the impact of your story.

The best stories are the ones that follow a narrow subject line. Decide what the point of your story is and even though it's tempting to digress, you must stick to the point otherwise you end up with either a novel beginning or a mish-mash of ideas that add up to nothing. 

Setting for Your Short Story

Because you have such a limited number of words to convey your message, you must choose your settings carefully ... there's no room for free-loaders in a short story! 

That doesn't mean you have to be trite or predictable when deciding on settings. For example, some of the most frightening settings for thrillers are not cemeteries or lonely alleys, but normal places where readers can imagine themselves.

Appeal to your readers' five senses to make your settings more real.  

Characters in Your Short Story

Around three main characters is all a short story can effectively deal with because too many will distract you from your theme.

Don't give in to the urge to provide detailed background on your characters ... decide on the characteristics that are important for your theme and stick to those. If you fall in love with your character, use him/her as the basis for a novel later on.

Short Story Dialogue

Never underestimate the power of dialogue in conveying character, but it must contribute to the main focus of the story - don't just use it to pad out your characters. Every word you put into the mouth of your characters must contribute to revealing your theme ... if it doesn't, be ruthless and cut it.

Vivid imagery also draws the reader in.

Capture the reader's interest in, and empathy for, your characters. You need to paint such a vivid picture that the reader can imagine himself or herself to be in the scene. Again this goes back to placing yourself there and transposing this into your writing as we discussed earlier.

That involvement is often referred to as reader empathy. And an empathetic reader lives the fictional dream. Let's look at some of the ways in which this can be achieved ... Click to read more about how to create vivid imagery in your short story.

Plot for Your Short Story

Make sure your plot works - there must be a beginning, a middle and an end. But don't spend too much time on the build-up, so that the climax or denouement (as in the twist ending) is relegated to one sentence, leaving the reader bothered and bemused but sadly, not bewitched.  

And don't signal the twist ending too soon - try to keep the reader guessing until the last moment.

If you're telling a fast-moving story, say crime, then keep your paragraphs and sentences short. It's a trick that sets the pace and adds to the atmosphere you're conveying to the reader.  

Don't re-invent the wheel ... take advantage of all the wonderful products that are available to writers (and artists) these days. 

When you've finished writing, always (always) proof-read your work to check your spelling, punctuation and grammar. Don't spoil all your hard work by presenting an unprofessional image to your readers.

StyleWriter, the Plain English Editor, is the world’s most powerful desk-top editor. It runs from within Word and other leading word processors to show you how to edit every sentence. StyleWriter can immediately show if you're using plain English in your writing, where the specific faults lie and how you can break any bad writing habits you have. When you use StyleWriter, you'll soon learn the skills you need to write well. Click now for your free 30-day trial!

Read articles here to help you improve your vocabulary ...

Proof Read Your Short Story

Readers are easily put off by bad formatting, bad punctuation or spelling mistakes. Don't distract them from your story - always proof read and then proof read again.

More hints

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If you feel you need to brush up your writing skills before you tackle your short story, click now to receive a course of 5 free lessons and don't forget to sign up for your free weekly writing tips newsletter. 

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