3 Tips on How to Write an Awesome Short Story
Wrong. short stories are very difficult to write because they are much shorter than novels. In a novel, the writers can take their time developing the story. They can include the background of the characters, they can spend pages and pages on describing certain events and they can develop the plot. In short, the writers have enough time and space to develop a story. However, short story writers do not have the same luxury. Short stories begin with a bang and they send the readers straight into the middle of the action because there is no time to prepare them for the plot.
Since short story writing is not that easy, we comprised here a list of 5 tips that we hope will help you write a memorable story. Here they are:
1.Begin your story with a bang
All writers know this, but for those who want to write short stories, this is a must. You have to draw in the reader fast and you can only do that by making a bold statement as soon as you start your story. Here are a couple of examples:
When I opened my eyes, I was holding a bloody knife and Jen was staring at me wide eyed. ‘Murderer!’ she screamed. I had no memory of what occurred or, more accurate, what I had done.
When they marched in and took my sister away, I didn’t even flinch. I knew it would satisfy their hunger and that would keep them away from us for another month.
Introductions such as these will draw the reader in and immediately make him or her ask: what the hell is going on here? Once you hooked your reader, you can be sure they will not stop reading until the end.
2.Use symbols
Short stories are meant to be short (duuh), so you can’t spend as much time on descriptions as you would in a novel. Symbols are a great way to convey a message to your readers without spending time explaining everything word by word. You can also use symbols to foreshadow an event that will take place later on. Here are a few examples:
- The seasons. If two people fall in love in the summer, the coming of winter can symbolize the death of their relationship.
- Cultural symbols. If your story is taking place in a specific country or region, you don’t have to say it out loud. By including symbols specific to the said country, your readers will immediately understand where the action is taking place.
- Use animals as metaphors for the character. In Jane Eyre, birds are a symbol of the woman’s captivity. Think about a symbol that defines your character. Is he/she trapped by something or suffering from something?
3.Keep your story short
When writing a short story, most writers prefer to contain it to one event: a woman being attacked, a man dealing with grief after his wife’s passing and so on. Keeping it down to one event gives you the possibility to explore it to the max, make the most of it and keep your story short. Think about an event that could shake someone to the core – and then write about it.
Writing short stories is not easy, particularly because they are short and you don’t have a lot of space to move around with description and character development. However, if you focus on one event, if you start your story with a bang and if you use symbols to give your readers more info about the characters or about the world where the plot takes place without actually saying it out loud, you will definitely succeed!