Comments on: Any advice on writing a good short story? http://www.acajunstory.com/short-story/any-advice-on-writing-a-good-short-story Mon, 06 Feb 2012 17:57:59 +0000 hourly 1 http://wordpress.org/?v=3.0.1 By: sonofwampa http://www.acajunstory.com/short-story/any-advice-on-writing-a-good-short-story/comment-page-1#comment-3091 sonofwampa Wed, 03 Mar 2010 16:59:59 +0000 http://www.acajunstory.com/short-story/any-advice-on-writing-a-good-short-story#comment-3091 Posting your story is not a good idea, because technically once it is posted on the web it is considered published and many magazines may not want to buy it after that. So, let your friends or maybe a teacher read it. Kurt Vonnegut, who wrote many science fiction stories, felt that there were eight rules that should be followed to write a good short story. Here they are: 1. Use the time of a total stranger in such a way that he or she will not feel the time was wasted. 2. Give the reader at least one character he or she can root for. 3. Every character should want something, even if it is only a glass of water. 4. Every sentence must do one of two things — reveal character or advance the action. 5. Start as close to the end as possible. 6. Be a sadist. No matter how sweet and innocent your leading characters, make awful things happen to them — in order that the reader may see what they are made of. 7. Write to please just one person. If you open a window and make love to the world, so to speak, your story will get pneumonia. 8. Give your readers as much information as possible as soon as possible. To hell with suspense. Readers should have such complete understanding of what is going on, where and why, that they could finish the story themselves, should cockroaches eat the last few pages.<br><b>References : </b><br> Posting your story is not a good idea, because technically once it is posted on the web it is considered published and many magazines may not want to buy it after that. So, let your friends or maybe a teacher read it.

Kurt Vonnegut, who wrote many science fiction stories, felt that there were eight rules that should be followed to write a good short story. Here they are:

1. Use the time of a total stranger in such a way that he or she will not feel the time was wasted.

2. Give the reader at least one character he or she can root for.

3. Every character should want something, even if it is only a glass of water.

4. Every sentence must do one of two things — reveal character or advance the action.

5. Start as close to the end as possible.

6. Be a sadist. No matter how sweet and innocent your leading characters, make awful things happen to them — in order that the reader may see what they are made of.

7. Write to please just one person. If you open a window and make love to the world, so to speak, your story will get pneumonia.

8. Give your readers as much information as possible as soon as possible. To hell with suspense. Readers should have such complete understanding of what is going on, where and why, that they could finish the story themselves, should cockroaches eat the last few pages.
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]]> By: patches http://www.acajunstory.com/short-story/any-advice-on-writing-a-good-short-story/comment-page-1#comment-3090 patches Wed, 03 Mar 2010 16:22:59 +0000 http://www.acajunstory.com/short-story/any-advice-on-writing-a-good-short-story#comment-3090 HI SON I am the author of a children's story called ( the little spaceship) the only thing I can tell you , is use your imagination, you could start with an imaginary friend of a person who no one believes in what he says. and then it comes true. form your own mental images and write them down as you think of them. and then put it in writing. and soon it will become a book. but please do not place it on the internet until you have it published because if it turns out to be a good story some one will take it from you .<br><b>References : </b><br>I wish you all the best my book is on amazon.com all over the world HI SON
I am the author of a children’s story called ( the little spaceship) the only thing I can tell you , is use your imagination, you could start with an imaginary friend of a person who no one believes in what he says. and then it comes true. form your own mental images and write them down as you think of them. and then put it in writing. and soon it will become a book. but please do not place it on the internet until you have it published because if it turns out to be a good story some one will take it from you .
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I wish you all the best my book is on amazon.com all over the world

]]> By: texastrublu http://www.acajunstory.com/short-story/any-advice-on-writing-a-good-short-story/comment-page-1#comment-3089 texastrublu Wed, 03 Mar 2010 15:33:59 +0000 http://www.acajunstory.com/short-story/any-advice-on-writing-a-good-short-story#comment-3089 This is going to sound strange, but figure out your conclusion first. Work backwards on the plot adding information as you choose. You can do this in an outline format or even do a power point story board if that helps. One friends of mine does index cards and switches them around like the police do on big cases. Sketch out your main characters-give them details that may not be important to what they do in the story, but that will give them motivation for their decisions. Figure out what the main conflict will be-and in SciFi there is usually an external threat that is paired with the hero's internal flaws or weaknesses. The tranformation of a negative trait into a positive one is part of the successful metamorphasis of the character and the plot. Good luck.<br><b>References : </b><br> This is going to sound strange, but figure out your conclusion first. Work backwards on the plot adding information as you choose. You can do this in an outline format or even do a power point story board if that helps. One friends of mine does index cards and switches them around like the police do on big cases. Sketch out your main characters-give them details that may not be important to what they do in the story, but that will give them motivation for their decisions. Figure out what the main conflict will be-and in SciFi there is usually an external threat that is paired with the hero’s internal flaws or weaknesses. The tranformation of a negative trait into a positive one is part of the successful metamorphasis of the character and the plot. Good luck.
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]]> By: jellybean12345 http://www.acajunstory.com/short-story/any-advice-on-writing-a-good-short-story/comment-page-1#comment-3088 jellybean12345 Wed, 03 Mar 2010 15:23:59 +0000 http://www.acajunstory.com/short-story/any-advice-on-writing-a-good-short-story#comment-3088 The best way is to start with an outline. Plan out your whole story. Make sure you know whats going to happen. Then use that and write your story just adding in the dialogs and those events.<br><b>References : </b><br> The best way is to start with an outline. Plan out your whole story. Make sure you know whats going to happen. Then use that and write your story just adding in the dialogs and those events.
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