Last month, I wrote about a short story competition in
which I had been a finalist. I enjoyed short story writing and taught an
introductory short story course many times. It was a great format in which new
writers could find their feet. When asked by one student what a short story was,
another somewhat cheeky student replied that it wasn't a long story.
A short story can be anything from 100 words to 15,000
words long. At 100 words, it is sometimes referred to as postcard or flash
fiction. By contrast, a novel can be from 40,000 to 100,000 words. Depending on
the genre and the publisher's guidelines, it may be longer. But, long or short, the requirements are
the same as for any story.
You need to create a protagonist and antagonist, as
well as the setting or world in which they live. From the beginning, a conflict
must be introduced into the plot that escalates to a climax and is then
resolved, resulting in a change in their character(s).
You can populate a novel with main characters and
plots, as well as sub-characters and sub-plots. It can cover the span of a few
days or a few years. In a short story, there are usually no more than two or
three characters, and the story takes place over a brief period, such as a few minutes or a couple of
days, but the basic principles still need to be there. Here is a 230-word simple example that I wrote for my class, which takes place in the space of a few minutes.
STRAWBERRIES
Zach (protagonist)
takes the basket from his mother. He’s fifteen, too old to be picking
strawberries. (the strawberry field = setting) His sister, three years
younger, smiles at him.
“I can pick more than you,” she says. (conflict with his sister)
“Can’t,” Zach mutters, and strides away between the
arrow-straight rows, kicking up sun-scorched dust with the toes of his
runners.
“Zach!” His mother’s voice reminds him of why they are
here.
He drops to his
knees, parts the green canopy of protective leaves to reveal the bright fruit
beneath. His fingers close around a plump, glistening berry, but before he can
separate it from its stem, other fingers close around his. He looks up into a
pair of blue eyes twinkling with mischief. The girl’s (antagonist) dark
hair is held back under a blue and white bandana. They stare at each other
across the green spine of the strawberry plants.
“I got it first,” he says. (conflict with his antagonist)
She pouts and releases his fingers. (more conflict) Zach plucks the
fruit, looks at it for a moment, then hands it to her. She takes it, her
fingers again brushing against his, as she lifts the fruit to her mouth. Seduced by the sight of her moist tongue caressing
the berry, he catches his breath. (escalation) She sinks her perfect teeth into the succulent, pale pink flesh.
(climax) He imagines that rhapsody of texture and flavour on his tongue,
and slowly returns the full, knowing smile she gives him. (awareness = resolution)
So there, in a nutshell, is a short story. I hope you enjoy it.
