How to Write a Short Story

For many writers, the short story is the perfect medium. While writing a novel c
an be a Herculean task, just about anybody can craftand, most importantly, finisha
short story. That does not mean that short stories are easy to write or that th
ey aren't as artistic and valuable as novels. With practice, patience, and imagi
nation, you could be the next best-selling author.
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Part One of Two:
Writing a Short Story
1
Collect ideas for your story. Inspiration can strike at any time, so carry a not
epad with you wherever you go so that you can write down story ideas as they com
e to you.
Most of the time, youll just think of small snippets of information (a catastroph
ic event around which you can build a plot, a characters name or appearance, etc.
), but you will sometimes get lucky and a whole story will reveal itself to you
in a couple of minutes.
If you have trouble finding inspiration or if you need to write a story in a hur
ry (for, as an example, a class), learn how to brainstorm. If you can t come up
with any ideas, you might have to look to family and friends for inspiration.
Experience usually helps to build good plots. Many of Isaac Asimov s mysteries c
ame from experience of certain incidents.
2
Begin with the basics of a short story. After you ve chosen an idea, you need to
remember the basics of a short story before writing one. The steps to a good sh
ort story are:
Introduction: introduce characters, setting, time, weather, etc.
Initiating action: the point of a story that starts the rising action.
Rising action: events leading up to the climax or turning point.
Climax: the most intense point or turning point of the story.
Falling action: your story begins to conclude.
Resolution: a satisfying ending to the story in which the central conflict is re
solvedor not! You don t have to write your short story in order. If you have an i
dea for a great conclusion, write it down. Move backward or forward from your st
arting idea (it may or may not be the beginning of the story) and ask yourself q
uestions. What happened before this? What happens next?
3
Find inspiration from real people. If you have trouble understanding or finding
attributes of a character, turn to your life. You can easily borrow attributes o
f people you know or even strangers you notice.
For example, you might notice that someone is always drinking coffee, talks in a
loud, booming voice, is always typing away at the computer, etc. All of these o
bservations would together make a very interesting character. Your character can
even blend attributes of a number of people.
4
Know your characters. For a story to be believable, the characters have to feel
genuine and realistic. It can be a difficult task to create interesting and real
istic characters. But here are a few strategies to create "real people" to popul
ate your story:
Write a list, titled with the character s name, and write all the attributes you
can think of, from their position in the orchestra to their favorite color, fro
m their central motivations to their favorite foods. Do they talk with an accent

? Do they have any quirky mannerisms? You wont include all this information in yo
ur story, but the more you know, the more your characters will come to life, bot
h for you and for the reader.
Make sure your characters personalities are not perfect. Every character needs
to have some flaws, some problems, some imperfections and some insecurities. You
might assume that people wouldn t like to read about a character with a lot of
flaws, but that couldn t be farther from the truth. Batman wouldn t be The Dark
Knight if he weren t a borderline sociopath!
People can relate to characters with problems, as that s realistic. When trying
to come up with flaws, you don t need to give your character some huge, bizarre
issue (although you definitely can). For most characters, try to stick with thin
gs you know about. For example, the character could have anger issues, be afraid
of water, be lonely, dislike being around other people, smoke too much, etc. An
y or all of these could be developed further.
5
Limit the breadth of your story. A novel can occur over millions of years and in
clude a multitude of subplots, a variety of locations, and an army of supporting
characters. The main events of a short story should occur in a relatively short
period of time (days or even minutes), and you typically wont be able to develop
effectively more than one plot, two or three main characters, and one setting.
If your story has much more breadth, it probably needs to be a novella or novel.
6
Decide who will tell the story. There are three main points of view from which t
o tell a story: first-person (I), second-person (you), and third-person (he or she).
a first-person story, a character in the story tells the story; in the second-pe
rson the reader is made a character in the story; and in the third-person, an ou
tside narrator tells the story. (Second-person narration is rarely used.)
Keep in mind that first-person narrators can only tell what they know (which wil
l be limited to what they see firsthand or are told by others), while third-pers
on narrators can either know everything and explore every characters thoughts (th
ird-person omniscient) or be limited to only that which can be observed by one c
haracter (third-person limited).
You can also mix and match. For example, you could switch between a first-person
narrative in one chapter, and third-person in another, or even have more than o
ne first-person point of view. An excellent example of this is the short story "
Rashmon", by Akutagawa Rynosuke[1]. This was later turned into a movie of the same
name by Akira Kurosawa.
7
Organize your thoughts. After you ve prepared the basic elements of your story,
it can be helpful to make some sort of time-line to help you decide what should
happen when.
Your story should consist at least of an introduction, initiating incident, risi
ng action, climax, falling action, and resolution. You can draw or write a visua
l with very simple descriptions of what should happen in each of these stages. H
aving this done will help you keep focused when writing the story, and you can e
asily make changes to it, so that you are able to keep a steady flow as you writ
e the full story.
8
Start writing. Depending on how thoroughly you ve sketched out your plot and cha
racters, the actual writing process may simply be one of choosing the right word
s.
Generally, however, writing is arduous. You probably wont know your characters an
d plot as well as you thought, but it doesn t matterin a sense, they will tell yo
u what they need, even if you paint them into a corner. Plus, there s always the
second draft!

9
Come out swinging. The first pagesome would say the first sentenceof any writing s
hould grab the readers attention and leave him/her wanting more.
A quick start is especially important in short stories because you dont have much
room to tell your story. Dont dillydally with long introductions of the characte
rs or uninteresting descriptions of the setting: get right into the plot, and re
veal details about the characters and setting piece-by-piece as you go along.
10
Keep writing. Youre almost certain to hit some bumps in the road to finishing you
r story. You ve got to work through them, though. Set aside a time to write each
and every day, and make it a goal to finish, say, a page each day. Even if you
end up throwing away what you wrote on that day, you ve been writing and thinkin
g about the story, and that will keep you going in the long run.
Consider participating in writing groups or activities. One very good activity f
or writers of all kinds is "National Novel Writing Month," or NaNoWriMo.[2] Ever
y year, from November 1 through November 30th, you are tasked with writing a nov
el of at least 50,000 words. Brilliance and quality are off the tablethe goal is
the act of writing. Check out the reference link for more information.
11
Let the story write itself. As you develop your story, you may want to turn your
plot in a different direction than you had planned, or you may want to substant
ially change or remove a character. Listen to your characters if they tell you t
o do something different, and dont worry about scrapping your plans altogether if
you can make a better story as you go.
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Part Two of Two:
Editing a Short Story
1
Revise and edit. When you ve finished the story, go back through it and correct
any mechanical mistakes, as well as logical and semantic errors. In general, mak
e sure the story flows and the characters and their problems are introduced and
resolved appropriately.
If you have time, put the completed story down for a few days or weeks before ed
iting. Distancing yourself from the story in this way will help you see it more
clearly when you pick it back up.
2
Get some second opinions. Send your revised and edited story off to a trusted fr
iend or relative for revisions, edits, and suggestions. Let your reviewers know
that you want to hear their real opinions of the story. Give them time to read i
t and think about it, and give them a copy that they can write on.
Make sure you consider everything that your reviewers tell younot just the parts
you would like to hear. Thank your reviewers for reading your story, and dont arg
ue with them.
Incorporate whatever edits, revisions, and suggestions you feel are valid. Your
writing will be better if you carefully consider constructive criticism, but you
dont have to follow all the advice you get. Some of the suggestions may not be v
ery good. Its your story, and you need to make the final call!
3
Don t give up. It may be frustrating if you re having trouble writing. You can r
un out of steam, get angry at characters, and feel sador even a little guiltywhen
a beloved character dies or is killed.
Just know that you will, in all probability, doubt your own writing skills at so
me point. This is totally normal. You ll feel it s not worth continuing, and tha

t you should give up and become a waiter in a dive cafeteria. When these thought
s arise, they can easily take over and make you quit then and there.
One of the hardest tasks as a writer is to learn to squash those feelings and co
ntinue writing. When you begin to have these doubtful feelings, or get tired or
bored, stop writing! You can get up, take a walk, get a snack, watch TV, or anyt
hing to relax. When you return, do so with a fresh mind. You may still not want
to write, but tell yourself a few good things about your storyanything about it,
from one good passage you wrote, to a well-thought out dialogue, to an interesti
ng characterand congratulate yourself. You re doing something most people can t d
o.
If someone else knows about your story and has read it, they can also be a good
source of encouragement. Just tell yourself that you will finish this story beca
use you want to. It doesn t matter if the story isn t the best ever writtenthere
will be others. If you have a goal to finish it, that s what you ll do.
4
Read! Nothing can help you learn how to write a good short story better than rea
ding good short stories. Note the style and how the author uses brevity to their
advantage.
Reading a variety of authors and styles will help you learn how to adopt differe
nt "voices" for each story you write, and broaden your creative palette. Pay att
ention to how the authors develop their characters, write dialogue, and structur
e their plots. Here are some suggestions:
"I, Robot", by Issac Asimov.
"Steps", by Jerzy Kosinski.
"The Celebrated Jumping Frog of Calaveras County", by Mark Twain.
"The Secret Life of Walter Mitty", by James Thurber.
"A Sound of Thunder", by Ray Bradbury.
"Three Questions", by Leo Tolstoy
"Mr Gum and the Power Crystals" by Andy Stanton, for a children s one. (This is
a basic one)
"Brokeback Mountain", by Annie Proulx
"Do Androids Dream of Electric Sheep", by Philip K. Dick.
Note: many of these short stories have been turned into successful films, or hav
e become familiar cultural references. For example, "A Sound of Thunder", the mo
st re-published sci-fi short story of all time, introduces us to the "butterfly
effect." Philip K. Dick s stories have given us Blade Runner ("Do Androids Dream
of Electric Sheep"), Total Recall ("We Can Remember It for You Wholesale"), Min
ority Report ("Minority Report"), A Scanner Darkly ("A Scanner Darkly"), and man
y others. It is important to have all these elements in order so you can have a
head start of ideas to work with.
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Sample Short Stories
Sample Short Horror Story
Sample Short Literary Story
Sample Short Love Story

Tips
Make sure you don t overwork your mind. If your story writing stifles or you com
e up blank, set it aside for a time, say a week or month, and go do something el
se, then re-read and polish what you have. It will help you continue with new vi

gour. Come back to your story after a few hours or after a good night s sleep, a
nd you ll be amazed at what you can then come up with!
Try making your characters varied. One could be happy all the time, while anothe
r can be sad and angry all the time. Creating different personalities will make
the story more exciting for the reader. Who wants to read a story where all the
characters are variations on a theme, or worse, cardboard cut-outs?
While you may sometimes want to scrap a story, make sure youve got a really good
reasonnot just an excuseto do so. If youre just stuck temporarily, try to work thro
ugh it. Sometimes youll come up with another idea that youre more excited about. Y
ou may want to work on the new idea, but if this happens frequently, it can turn
into a problem: youll start a lot of stories, but you wont ever actually complete
one.
Think carefully about all the elements of a story, for example the main characte
r, setting, time period, genre, supporting characters, enemies and conflict, and
plot.
You can write about a past event or a fantasy that you have. A really good way t
o write about a past event is to think of an event that occurred and change it t
o be maybe more exciting, and to your liking. Your main character can be an adap
tation of yourself or someone you know. But be careful, because real people are
often not as dynamic as story characters.
Use images to help the story flow. Some people s brains work with images more th
an words and simply imagining a place or animal, then adding all the details and
senses, can develop into a story.
Do research. If you are trying to set a story in the 1950 s, research the family
dynamics, clothing, slang, etc. of the period and locale. If you try to write w
ithout knowing the background, the story will seem amateurish, and people who kn
ow the era will not hold back their critique.
Is there a song or type of music that gets you connected to the emotions and eve
nts you want to convey through your writing? Try playing some before or during y
our writing.
Cant find friends or relatives honest enough to tell you what they really think a
bout your story? Consider joining a writers group, where you can learn tips and t
ricks from other writers and get (hopefully) quality critiques. You can probably
find a local club, but there are also online groups.
If something s running through your head, be it about home, or your dog, write i
t down and expand it. This is a gift from the Muse, so don t waste it.
Show 5 more tips
Warnings
Short stories are the hardest kind of fiction to write. You have to do everythin
g that happens in a novel (introduce characters, create conflict, develop charac
ters, resolve conflict) inside of twenty or thirty pages. Respect the genre. It
isn t easy.
Don t get lazy about spelling and grammar. Show the readers you know what you re
doing by presenting an error-free story. At the very least, run it through a sp
elling and grammar checker. It won t miss "their" and "they re" mistakes, but ma
y flag the wrong use of "its".
Don t get lazy about writing. Don t end the story with the reader still confused
. Cliff hangers are okay, but only if you are planning to write a second book, o
r as in the case of "We Can Remember It for You Wholesale", if the cliffhanger i
s integral to the story.
Don t become too proud of your story after you ve finished it. Don t set yoursel
f up for disappointment, which, in all likelihood, will comeespecially if you sub
mit the story for publication. Instead, remain professionally detached from it.
Ideas cannot be copyrighted, only the expression of ideas. Besides, there are on
ly so many plots. Feel free to borrow the broad outlines of any masterpieceevery
writer does it.
Dont get discouraged. If youre trying to get your story published, it will most li
kely be rejected. Rejection is a big part of being a writer; sometimes its warran
ted, but sometimes its not. Be proud that you have completed a story and keep pra
cticing your craft if you enjoy it.

At a Glance: Writing a Short Story

Collect ideas in brainstorming sessions and daily life, on a portable notepad. S
ee pictures and details.
Sketch out the structure: setting the scene, rising to a climax, then falling to
a satisfying conclusion. See pictures and details.
Flesh out each character s personality and history, then distill it to a few mem
orable characteristics. See pictures and details.
Jump right into the story, grabbing the reader from the first sentence without a
long introduction. See pictures and details.
Set yourself daily writing goals as you expand the story. Getting words on paper
is more important than perfecting your original idea. See pictures and details.
Edit the story with a friend s help. If possible, set the story down for a few d
ays to give yourself a new perspective. See pictures and details.
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