Have you thought about writing a short story for Christmas?
Some of us have a little more free time at Christmas and there’s no better way to make use of it than writing a short story.
The thing about the short story is that it can be as long or short as you like.
I don’t set out with a particular length in mind although I have tried but mostly I have found that short stories determine their own length.
In other words, once you begin writing the story will tell you how long it should be.
There are no real rules for the short story form but they do tend to cover one event – if you find your story expanding as more conflicts emerge you might just have found yourself writing a book!
If you are just starting to write short stories I suggest you begin with one main character and find an event that changes them.
The simplest way is to remember that a story is about something that happened to someone and how that someone reacts and changes in response to the event.
If nothing happens you have no story. Stories where a character starts out happy and ends up happier do not engage the reader.
So what does?
Readers enjoy seeing characters navigating through obstacles. The obstacles don’t have to be huge but the effects on the character can be life-changing.
My short story/novella Sweet Little Things was longer than I originally intended.
I found as I wrote it that as a character rather than plot driven story the characters needed more time to develop and I spent a lot of time writing my way into my characters heads – seeing the world through their eyes and giving them room in the story to breathe.
Sweet Little Things sprang to life from an exercise from my own book Practical Creative Writing Exercises. The exercise was the one below.
PRACTICAL CREATIVE WRITING EXERCISES
4. THE OLD WOMAN
There is an old woman living down the road from you. Every morning as you pass her door on the way to work she is outside her house. She is either cleaning her windows or picking up rubbish. She is always cheerful, says hello and remarks on the weather.
You wonder if she is just doing these chores because she is lonely. Maybe she’s just there because being outside gives her the opportunity to chat with her neighbours.
You vow to invite her for tea some evening, but you never do.
One morning you pass and she is not there, but there is a note on the door, and it is addressed to you.
What is written on the note?
Where is the old woman?
Why has she chosen to address this note to you?
What effect will this note have on you?
Will you take action?
Again you can replace ‘you’ in the story with any character you like.
As I embarked on the exercise above I found myself changing almost everything about it. The exercise was merely a trigger for my imagination.
Sweet Little Things grew into a story about a shy and lonely old woman, Pat, who forms the beginnings of an unlikely friendship with a young neighbour.
When Pat makes a mistake by giving the neighbour’s little boy an inappropriate gift the friendship is suddenly over.
If she is to salvage the friendship Pat must overcome her own shyness. Her deep fear of saying the wrong thing is the obstacle she must overcome – if she is to save the friendship.
So, from a ‘writerly’ point of view, you can see that there is no big plot. There are no earthquakes, affairs, murder, sharks, mountains and no guns or knives.
This is simply a story about friendship and loneliness.
The obstacle that comes between Pat and her friend is simply her own shyness but if Pat can overcome this it will change her life.
If you decide to write a short story feel free to use the exercise above.
You will be amazed at how the story changes as you write. The old lady might even become a young man, other characters may emerge and the conflict may be entirely different from the one you imagined.
This for me is the joy of writing. The process of discovery a writer goes through as the words mount up is a wonderful thing to experience.
If you get stuck – don’t stay in the ‘stuck place’ take a break. Maybe go for a walk and allow your unconscious to do the work.
Try working on something else for a while, maybe write about your day, or play a musical instrument, draw a picture – it doesn’t matter – as long as it’s something different.
When you return to the story you will find yourself looking at your work with a fresh eye and enthusiasm for the task ahead.
I hope you find time to experiment with writing a short story and if you do I wish you the very best of luck.
Best wishes
Grace
P.S. Sweet Little Things is now free with Kindle Unlimited.
SWEET LITTLE THINGS
It could have been a beautiful friendship.
She’s all alone and scared.
Her new neighbour could be a friend. She’s a young girl with a beautiful little son.
It could have been a beautiful friendship but will Pat be able to face her fears?
Read this nostalgic and uplifting look back into a gritty 1970s Liverpool.
DOWNLOAD SWEET LITTLE THINGS FROM AMAZON.COM
DOWNLOAD SWEET LITTLE THINGS FROM AMAZON.CO.UK
PRACTICAL CREATIVE WRITING EXERCISES
Need inspiration?
Many writers say that the hardest thing to face is that blank page. But not if the page isn’t blank!
Try these exercises and start writing now.
Never Be Stuck Again!
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