How To Write A Short Story
Storytelling is an indispensable part of our history. Without it, we would not be where we are as a society. Follow the footsteps of Edgar Allan Poe, Ernest Hemingway , Flannery O’Connor, Virginia Woolf, and Anton Chekhov and unleash your creativity and hone your writing. A short story is a short piece of narrative that can be finished in one sitting. Typically between 1000-7500 words, a short story focuses on an isolated event or series of events in order to evoke emotion or a certain effect from the readers. Owing to its relatively short nature, a lot of discipline and creativity is needed if you want to write a short story.
When you are in college and taking creative writing classes, it's likely that your professor will require you to write a short story as a writing assignment or even a final term paper . If you believe fiction writing isn't among your strong suit, here is a guide on how you can write a short story.
Know yo ur story’s tension or conflict
No one yet knows how to write a short story without a conflict. Truly, conflict is what drives the story. Without it, there is nothing to be resolved, and the plot line would be but a straight line. Even with stories where it seems like nothing is happening, there is always a conflict. Conflict may be internal or external.
Foreshadowing
The key to a great short story is to include only the necessary details. Everything that you mention in the story must be of importance to the plot or to the meaning of the story. This is best explained by Anton Chekhov:
One must not put a loaded rifle on the stage if no one is thinking of firing it… If it’s not going to be fired, it shouldn’t be hanging there.
Know your protagonist, if there is one
The protagonist is the main character of the story, and on whom the story revolves around. As the author, you must know your character well—how he/she will act under certain circumstances, his/her motives and backstory, everything. This will enable you to depict him/her realistically.
Choose your point of view
The point of view is the story’s defining factor. This is the lens through which you will present your story, so how your reader understands and reacts to the story is dependent on this. Each point of view evokes a different effect, depending on what they can reveal and what they cannot tell. Some of the short stories that successfully manipulate point of view are Edgar Allan Poe’s “The Tell-tale Heart” and William Faulkner’s “A Rose for Emily.”
Write the perfect first line
As readers, you should know that the first line is crucial for capturing your attention. An intriguing first line should have a hook that will keep your reader going, meaning it’s important for the first line to be, for lack of a better word, perfect. Pay close attention to your first line; revise it as needed.
Research and revise
This goes for both language and content. Your language needs to be clear but beautiful, so revise like you are Hemingway, utilize the literary devices available to make your short story more appealing. Research on even the minute details of your story—it’s important that your story is realistic or believable and without any loopholes in order to suspend disbelief.
Keep reading
Different writers have their own style, and exploring this would keep your horizons growing. Ultimately, no one can tell you how to write a short story or how not to write it. You, as the author, need to find out what works for your short story.
Custom term paper writing assistance for college students
When you write a short story, you will need to exert a lot of creativity and originality to it if you want to stand out. There are many short stories that entice readers even if it's just less than 10,000 words. The joy of reading a short story is in the minimal effort it takes to read it, but the impact it leaves when you are finally done reading. But, if you are someone who's not that interested in writing and has creative writing as a prerequisite to courses that really require your attention then maybe what you need is a bit of writing assistance. Luckily, CustomEssayMeister is here to provide just that. We have a selection of writers who are more than capable of writing a short story for you. With your instructions, we can have something whipped up for you right now. Just let us know what you need and we will work on it right away! Let's work together to write your short story.