The trick with short stories is to make them believable. This generally means that you need to stick to writing about what you know. And keep it simple. Remember that, in a short story, it isn’t necessary to sketch a huge background scenario. You only have 3000 words here, make them count. Get to your point, wring the juice out of it, and finish up.

A short story can be a character sketch with a point; it can be a narrative of a great night out with a twist. It can be a highly evocative and descriptive scene which pulls emotional strings. But all these things have one aspect in common: they are short, they must focus on a single point and they must deliver fulfilment.

So, how do you start?

Well, decide what it is that you want to say. Do you want to relate a tale that reveals a moral? Confide a personal secret? Describe a cherished memory? Once you know what your story will be about, you need to decide how you are going to tell it.

Will you tell it directly in your own voice? Using the first person, I, me etc?
Or will you choose to narrate it from an exterior point of view… he she etc. once you know this, make sure you stick to the voice you have chosen to avoid confusion. Some authors switch from one voice to another, but you might not want to try that out unless you’ve got some experience with the form.

Then you need to decide who is in the story. Is it just one person, two, a group? And what are their names? Make sure you have clear idea of each character and how they fit into your narrative.

It’s also a good idea to think about your ending before you start. This is a short piece of fiction so it shouldn’t be hard. Sometimes an ending will suggest itself while writing, and sometimes that will be better than the one you originally planned. Go with it, but don’t rely on an ending suggesting itself, plan one.

Don’t worry if you can’t sit down and write this piece on one sitting. Get as far as you feel you can before losing momentum. Then save your file, put down your pen and go away. Come back the next day and re-read and pick up the threads. Maybe during the day make some notes. But don’t stress. The story will tell itself if you let it. Just keep it top of mind for a couple of days and you’ll be amazed at what connections you’ll make.

Do not edit your material as you go. Just let it come out; don’t stop to correct typos or spelling. Even if you know you have constructed a sentence badly, leave it. Let your train of thought flow uninterrupted. You can edit later, and you will do a better job when you are focussed on it. When you are writing, do nothing but put down new words and ideas.

These are just some pointers and none of them are golden rules. The trick here is to be honest and let it flow, tell your story without pre-judgment or assumption, then send it to us!

Keep an eye on the site though, cos there will be more news and advice coming!

David Chislett