by Sarah Gribble |
Do you want to learn how to write a short story? Maybe you’d like to try writing a short story instead of a novel, or maybe you’re hoping to get more writing practice without the lengthy time commitment that a novel requires.
The reality of writing stories? Not every short story writer wants to write a novel, but every novelist can benefit from writing short stories. However, shorts stories and novels are different—so how you write them has, naturally, their differences, too.
Short stories are often a fiction writer’s first introduction to writing, but they can be frustrating to write and difficult to master. How do you fit everything that makes a great story into something so short?
And then, once you do finish a short story you’re proud of, what do you do with it?
That’s what will cover in this article—and additionally resources which I will link.
by Sarah Gribble |
Writing a short story is difficult, but there’s a special learning curve that comes with how to edit a short story. Even though there is a small word count, where do you start?
The editing process might not be your favorite part of the writing process (or maybe it is!), but it’s a necessary one.
Editing your short story can push the story idea into a whole new arena, which will make it more likely to grab a reader, whether or not that’s a fellow writer, editor, or writing contest judge.
In this article, I’ll take you through the step-by-step process of editing a short story. I’ll share the step-by-step process you should use to break down your editing phase into manageable chunks and what to focus on with each editing pass.
by Sarah Gribble |
Knowing how to write a short story seems like it’s a no-brainer. They’re short; how hard could it be? However, once you start writing a short story you’ll probably realize that you don’t know how to write a short story. You’d like to some short story tips.
A novel has hundreds of pages to get you involved in the characters’ lives and to transform you to another world, all to leave you with a great ending that you’re thinking about weeks—maybe even years—later.
In a short story, you have to do all that in a few pages. It’s no wonder most of the “new” writers I know would rather write novels. Short stories may be small, but they are mighty. (Not to mention they are a great way to keep up a writing habit.)
Chances are your favorite author started their writing career by writing short stories. Big names and favorite writers like Stephen King, Neil Gaiman, Ray Bradbury, Kurt Vonnegut, Shirley Jackson, Louisa May Alcott, Sylvia Plath are all short story writers.
I’ve talked about coming up with ideas, plotting, and some key elements of short stories. Now it’s time to stop dilly-dallying and get to writing. This article covers three successful short story tips and strategies to write a short story.
by Sarah Gribble |
If you’ve ever wanted to write a book, you might have heard the term “beta readers.” But what are beta readers? Do you really need them? Are they just free editing, or something different?
A couple hints: yes, if you’re going to publish a book, you need beta readers. And no, they’re not a replacement for hiring a professional editor.
by Sarah Gribble |
How do you submit a short story for publication? It’s a lot to think about and I’ve seen more than one writer throw in the towel and say they’re happy to just be writing. To make it easier, there are ten steps you can take to tackle short story submissions.
It may seem overwhelming, but once you know what you’re doing, getting short stories published isn’t as scary as it seems.
In this article, you’ll learn the ten steps needed to submit a short story for submission and hopefully get it published.
