Just do it (with a little help)

Writing a short story can be a flash of inspiration or a challenging ordeal. Sometimes a burst of creativity can send me running towards the computer or fishing around for a pencil and pad. At other times writing can be more like pulling my own teeth.

First off, what is a short story? How short or long does it have to be? The simple answer is as short as you want, but not as long as a novella. There are no hard and fast rules, but generally speaking, a short story should waste no time.

Literary legend has it that the shortest story ever is by Ernest Hemingway and goes like this:

For sale: baby shoes, never worn.

This exercise in brevity makes a typical piece of “flash fiction” look like War and Peace. It is nonetheless a short story, because it has a theme, tells a story and is an example – albeit extreme – of Hemingway’s economical style, whether he actually wrote the six-word vignette or not. In as few words as possible, it gets the reader to imagine an involved and emotional tale.

Getting started

Never mind about writer’s block – a short story is no big investment. Just put pen to paper or fingers to keyboard and see what comes out. If you don’t like it you can always trash it, but you’ll be surprised at what you can come up with in just a few minutes and how fun it can be. The most important thing to do is get the ball rolling.

Here are some guidelines and tips to help you write a story:

Write descriptively

When describing a scene, thing or a person, consider physical details and accuracy, but also the feelings inspired by what you are describing. What words give you those feelings? How much you concentrate on feeling or accuracy will depend on the kind of story you are writing. Do you want to be clinical or create a strong mood? Find the right balance: too much detail can be boring and too much emotion overly sentimental.

Use metaphors and similes. Shakespeare shows time and again how the use of metaphor can be vivid and evocative. Take this line from Hamlet:

But, look, the Morn, in russet mantle clad,

Walks o’er the dew of yon high eastern hill.

Note how powerful a description a metaphor can be, while not necessarily being accurate. Keep in mind that your metaphors may mean one thing to you, but something entirely different to your readers.

Avoid using too many adverbs and adjectives. One of the most prolific authors of our day, Stephen King, from his no-nonsense memoir On Writing:

The road to hell is paved with adverbs.

While adverbs and adjectives have their place, use them sparingly and try to describe things via action.

Characterization

In a short story, the fewer characters the better. You don’t have much time either, so too much description of your characters’ traits and deep character development is simply not possible. Keep things moving and say what you have to say, but not more.

It is easy to give advice like “get into the head of your character,” but perhaps it is more helpful to say “let your character get into your head.” In other words, use your own experiences, personality and feelings when developing your characters. “Write what you know,” may be a bit of a cliché, but I find it to be especially true when creating characters. As far as settings and plots go, however, let your imagination run wild.

Pay attention to details in peoples’ speech, clothing, mannerisms, etc. – anything that you personally notice or that interests you. Use them when developing the voice of your character. The character’s voice is always important in a story – no matter the genre or how outlandish the scenario, the characters should always be “real”.

Direct and indirect characterization

Direct characterization or “telling “is when the narrator flat out tells us about a character:

John was bad at math.

Indirect characterization or “showing” is when dialogue or action displays a character trait:

John said, “Two plus two equals five.”

Plot:

The plot is the basic outline of events in a story and how they are organized. It is the “meat” of the story, or a “selective version of events”, as described by one literary theorist. Don’t tie yourself to plot conventions or tropes – a story doesn’t need to have a resolution or follow any of the standard blueprints in order to work, though you may find it more challenging to create something “good” without falling back on certain tools.

Dialogue

Dialogue in fiction should be selective and serve to differentiate one character from another. It should help plot development, demonstrate conflict, provide background, and create dramatic situations and intrigue.

My taste may not be typical – in fact I hope it isn’t – but I find it refreshing when a story’s dialogue is realistic. I appreciate when characters speak how real people do, as opposed to some of the clichéd or quick and clever ways we have come to expect from fiction. This enables me to become more absorbed in the story, by recognizing or relating to the characters.

Setting

Colin Bulman defines setting very nicely: place, time, historical events, political climate, social circumstances, religious belief and atmosphere. Each of these elements can have a stark effect on the characterization, tone and believability of your short story. How setting is important to a story differs depending on the type of story and what role the setting plays. Genres such as horror, war and science fiction can be defined by their settings. Settings within a story may also change, with a little or a lot of influence on the narrative.

Language

Standard English is English that conforms to accepted rules of grammar and usage. Bulman states that it should normally be used – unless there is a strong reason not to – because readers prefer it. I would agree that the author usually wants to be understood, though dialect, slang and other techniques that might go outside Standard English can also say a lot. Shakespeare and Dickens even managed to change the English language by inventing new words and expressions.

In conclusion, here are a few more quick tips to help you with your story:

• Create a conflict
• Use characterization and dialogue to make your protagonist “live”
• Create an antagonist – it can be a person, society, an inner or outer force
• Use a “twist” ending

Now that you you know how to write a story, go and write!

Suggested reading:
Bulman, Colin, Creative Writing: A Guide and Glossary to Fiction Writing, 2006
King, Stephen, On Writing: 10th Anniversary Edition: A Memoir of the Craft, 2000