How to write short stories - 8 Pro Tips Revealed

Writing a short story is not a complicated task. It requires knowledge and some techniques to write short stories seamlessly. If you choose to write a short story, you will have to pay attention to certain details such as the length of the story, theme, and type of short stories as there are many. In any case, the writing process is easy. All you need to do is use the right technique and follow the style of the determined content.

If you are a student, you will be asked to write a short story from time to time. You don’t need to make a complicated plot or discuss characters in detail. For a short story, an inspiration, a strange incident, a lesson learned, or a strange thought is enough. You can write a short story and it can become a great success. But, the question is: how to write a short story? Here are 8 tips for writing short stories that will help you get started:

Top 8 Tips for Writing Short Stories

Tip# 1 Find the theme of your story

The first step is to determine the theme of your story. Start with a brainstorming session, but keep in mind that it is not too complex since it’s a short story. For short stories, you can usually summarize the plot in one sentence to describe the theme of the story. Due to limited space, you cannot easily discuss multiple storylines in your text.

So focus on one theme and stick to it. You can find theme of the story from literature. If you try to describe the story more, it will quickly become sloppy and difficult to understand. Find inspiration from your daily life and what you know to choose the perfect theme.

Tip# 2 Decide the characters

After deciding the theme of the story you want to write about, think about the number of characters to be introduced in the story. Remember, all the characters in the story play a certain role. Consider all the details, such as their taste, habits, attitude, etc.

One of the most important story writing tips for beginners is that there is no need to introduce ten different story characters. Therefore, limit the character count: there should be fewer characters in a short story. Usually, in such a story, the maximum number of characters a reader can handle is three to four. Unlike long stories and novels, short stories are more about plots than characters.

Tip# 3 Set the time

Now that you have decided the theme and characters of the story, the next step is to decide the time period to be used in the story. Past, present, or future. To write a short story step by step, take into account your knowledge about past and present or consider future predictions to be shared in the story.

Tip#4 Imagine your story before you start

It is not necessary to write the complete script of the story in one sitting, but imagining part of the story helps a lot. Create a list of characters (not many; three or four, or sometimes two). One of the key tips for writing a short story is to present the conflict in the story, what the characters want, and this puts them in friction with each other or with themselves. Next, present the moment or the scene when the conflict breaks out (highlighted), explicitly or not.

Tip# 5 Don’t worry about discussing everything in detail

Details are important to share in the story, it gives the story its color and life. When writing a short story, the main thing is to share every information and combine it to tell a story. You can avoid discussing irrelevant details that take up the extra word count in the story and concentrate on sharing important information.

Divide your short story into three parts: introduction, main body, and conclusion. Just like you do reflective essay writing where a story is written while reflecting your experiences. In the first part, introduce your story and the characters. In the main body, mention the character’s conflict and discuss the main theme. Finally, in conclusion, present the solution that you found for the conflicts discussed in the text, write a happy or a sad ending of the story.

Tip# 6 Write your short story

Some guides give short story writing tips to beginners and advise them to focus on starting writing a story with an attractive first paragraph. While this is certainly important, it also puts pressure on you when you are about to write a story.

Don’t think, just write instead. Don't worry about how it’s going to turn out. Remember, your job is not to write words, but to choose the best words. To have a good story, you have to write flawlessly. Don’t worry about making corrections while writing, you can leave this step for later.

Tip# 7 Revise and Edit

After writing your story, you should start revising and editing your short story. This is the most difficult part of writing a short story, and you may feel like you are climbing a mountain. However, don't give up too soon. You are almost there. To facilitate revising, we recommend you to ask your friends or family members to read the story and share their feedback, this step will greatly simplify the organization of your work.

Tip# 8 Submit your story

Before submitting your story, be sure to read it aloud several times to find spelling and grammar errors and format it according to standard manuscript format. Then compare your story with a similar story like yours and read their recommendations to see if your story is right.

Finally, it's time to submit your story. Do not stress over it. You will be nervous when submitting your story, but you can’t publish it if you don't submit it. Of course mistakes are an opportunity to new learning so learn from your mistakes.

Closure

These are the creative story writing tips we have compiled for you. We hope these tips will help you write a good short story in the future. Welcome criticism that you receive after writing your story because it will challenge you to improve. Have fun writing and good luck!

An enthusiast reader and a creative writer, who loves to put emotions on a paper. Works as content marketing expert for Royal Essay Writers in UK. When not working, he enjoys watching Netlix or NBA.