How to Write a Short Story in 12 Concrete Steps

by Bella Rose Pope

1. Generate your idea

“The best short story ideas will always come from you yourself. Those are the ideas that you’ll
care the most about and be able to bring to life the easiest.” - Hannah Lee Kidder

(In writing a short story, you need to develop a topic,that you care about because when you are
interested with your topic it would be easier for us to developed it and mas nabibigyang buhay
because it came from our own ideas or it may came from what we have experience .

After you have a topic, you need to determine the audience and purpose for writing a short story.
First, you need to ask “What is my purpose?” or “Why do I want to tell this story?” The purpose
of a short story can be to entertain and/or to make your reader think or feel something. The
purpose is what you want your writing to do when someone reads it)

Example of idea:
1. Your character lives in a space pod traveling space, and they’re also claustrophobic.
2. Ash floated from the mountaintop and awoke your character from their night’s sleep.
3. Your character hasn’t eaten in days and stumbles upon real berries, and so does a starving
bear.
4. When your character’s heart is broken, they must find a way to heal it – any way.
5. Your character is an orphaned 7-year-old who hears voices.
6. Your character just found out they have a rare disease…that hasn’t been

2. Focus on Character Development

In order for a short story to be impactful, you have to know your character well. Having
good character development is essential in short stories since your main characters often
drive the story. But when writing a short story, you won’t have the same type of character
arc as you would when writing a full-length novel.

(According to this in order for your short story impactful you need to know your
character very well. Since you are writing a short story you only have a certain amount of
time to show your readers who that person is and you can’t do that if you don’t even
know who they are.)

Let me give you an example:

If you are writing a short story about your family or parents, whom you’ve known for
many years, versus writing one about strangers that you just met yesterday, of course you
will be able to craft a much stronger story about your family because you know them
very well. This creative writing techniques can help you bring out the best or most
compelling things about your characters same goes for your fictional characters.)
 Always remember that when you are learning how to write a short story or enhancing
your creative writing skills, investing time in character development to introduce your
readers to memorable characters.

Short stories have difficulties that are easily to solved. They frequently concentrate on
one area of a character's life, such as an issue or a relationship. In a novel, the topics and
conflict are usually more complex, and ideas might expand in several directions.

You don't have to spend a lot of time on your primary character, but you should be
familiar with their background, age, personality, family, friends, love life, and other
factors that impact how they see the world.

Remember that because your short story is shorter than a novel, you can skip a few steps.
However, knowing the entire character path might assist you create your primary
character in short stories.

3. Outline your short story.

The outlining process for short stories is much easier than a full novel, however we
shouldn’t disregard this step-in order to have a cohesive flow throughout the story.

(Outlining makes it easier to create a short story efficiently. Short story writing has a smaller
scope than novel writing, but it still includes many of the same characteristics of a good book: a
fascinating main character with a distinct point of view, a character arc, a few plot hooks to
anchor the narrative, and a satisfying conclusion. Early in the writing process, an outline ensures
that these parts are in place.) What Is a Character Arc? A character arc is the path a character
takes over the course of a story. A character's arc involves adversity and challenges, as well as
some changes to the character, and ultimately leads to resolution. Character arcs generally
progress in tandem with traditional three-act story structure

Here's what an outline should embrace for short story:

 The point of view you’ll use

(The point of view of a story is the perspective from which a story is told. Writers may
choose to tell their story from one of three perspectives: First-person: chiefly using "I" or
"we" Third-person: chiefly using "he," "she," or "it," which can be limited—single
character knowledge—or omniscient—all-knowing
Second-person narration is seldom used in narrative method in which the action is
directed by a character named you who is attributed to the reader. As a character in the
story, the reader is engrossed in the narrative. The narrator discusses what "you" do and
gives your insight into your own thoughts and past.

 How you’ll start the story.

 (You need to outline how you will start the story that hook the readers that will give them
excitement, or introduce the lead character or start with dialogue, use memories and
Begin with a mystery)

 How you will get from the beginning to the main issue.

(In to this part transitions words and phrases is significant because it will carry the reader
from one idea to the next. They help a reader see the connection or relationship between
ideas in the story.)

(A short story's first few paragraphs should clearly establish the story's environment.
What lies ahead? What season are we in?
The social environment must also be considered.
After you've established the setting, you'll need to introduce the conflict or rising action.
The primary character's difficulty or task is called conflict. The issue is essential to itself,
but the tension created is what draws readers interest.
One of the most significant components of a story is the tension because it keeps the
reader intrigued to know what happens next.)

 What happens at the “climax” (yes, even short stories have one!)

(The story's climax should then be discussed. A decision or alteration will be made at this
point. If it's done too soon, the reader will either miss it or expect another twist. This could be an
opportunity to explore where the characters wind up after the turning moment, or how they
interact with one another.

 Resolution of the main issue

(It occurs after the climax events, when you find out what happens after the conflict is
settled.)
 The very end.
(At the end of your story, you should answer any remaining questions. It denotes a
character's transformation as a result of their actions. It could be an emotional change or
physical change and so on.)
Keep in mind that the art of how to write a short story can close with something that ends very
abruptly or you can flesh it out until there’s a satisfying ending.

This is really up to you as an author to decide. Practicing this for short stories can help you create
an outline for your book, too

4. Start with something out of the ordinary.

In order to hook readers from the start of your story, you should write an opening scene that’ll
catch someone’s attention right off the bat.

EXAMPLE:
The short story entitled “The gift of Magi”

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ONE DOLLAR AND EIGHTY-SEVEN CENTS.
That was all. She had put it aside, one cent and then another and then
another, in her careful buying of meat and other food. Della counted
it three times. One dollar and eighty-seven cents. And the next day
would be Christmas.
There was nothing to do but fall on the bed and cry. So Della did it.
While the lady of the home is slowly growing quieter, we can
look at the home. Furnished rooms at a cost of $8 a week. There is little more to say about it.
In the hall below was a letter-box too small to hold a letter. There
was an electric bell, but it could not make a sound. Also there was a
name beside the door: “Mr. James Dillingham Young.”

This author starts with a very low money amount and then hits you with the fact that it’s
Christmas the very next day.
This is out of the ordinary because many readers understand that having such little money
(scraped up money, at that) right before Christmas isn’t typical. It’s odd – and also hits their
emotions right away.

If you want to learn how to write a short story, read the opening paragraphs of short stories. And
pay attention to the many different ways writers hook readers.

Start of a story – producing intrigue example:

“Chris Mankowski’s last day on the job, two in the afternoon, two hours to go, he got a call to
dispose of a bomb.”
Producing intrigue works a lot the same as the Dive. The difference is you want to leave more
questions than generate answers.

Again, the more you know about the story when you drop this first hint, the more clearly it will
communicate.

Avoid vague prophecy, hit them with something that will echo when the reader arrives at the
resolution.

ANOTHER EXAMPLE:

Take Hannah Lee Kidder’s example from this video above. One of the short stories in her
anthology, Little Birds, opens with a woman collecting roadkill.
This is how to write a short story with an opening that gets readers engaged, invested in your
character, and motivated to read the entire story.

Because we’re automatically intrigued by the fact that people don’t normally go around
collecting roadkill. It’s another place creative writing skills can really help you draw in your
readers in a short story.

Now, you don’t have to start your short story with something as strange as that but you do want
to give your readers a sense of who your character is by depicting something different right away
that also has to do with the core focus of your short story.

5. Get your draft done as soon as possible

Done is better than perfect. That’s the best way to approach the process of writing a short story
or anything else. We’ve all heard or read these words time and time again – and that’s because
they’re important; they’re true.
“The purpose of the first draft is not to get it right but to get it written”
— John Dufresne

(Drafting helps writers expand upon, clarify, and modify their initial plans and ideas, and
it helps them organize their content into a meaningful sequence or flow.)
You see, it is OK that I say my first draft is terrible. It actually seems like the norm. No
author is brilliant enough that they can go from crazy idea to publishable story in one
step. It's a long and iterative process that takes time, effort, and dedication. And the
acceptance that your first draft will be terrible.)
You’ll get your story down in a first draft, you will never know what really works and what
doesn’t. It is a starting place, a foundation for the editing process to begin

This is especially the case when it comes to short stories. Once you have your outline and
know how to start writing, drafting the short story in full comes next.

Don’t worry about editing or polishing the story up in any way right now. After all, you
can’t possibly make good edits until you know what the story looks like in full. When
you’re learning how to write a short story, resist the urge to get it perfect.

The process of how to write a short story is rarely one-and-done but usually takes writing,
rewriting, and editing to create your best work.

6. Edit your short story

Editing is where the real magic happens when you’re learning how to write a short story. We all
have this idea in our minds that we’ll get it perfect the first time and that’s just not how writing
works.

Most of the time, your first draft is just the bare bones of what’s to come but through line editing,
developmental edits, and proofreading, it will transform into something better.

Think of the actual writing as the wooden structure of a house and the editing as the drywall,
paint, windows, light fixtures, doors, and anything else that’ll make the house complete.

These are a few things to keep an eye out for when editing your short story. The elements of
story structure to look for include:

 Point of view consistency

 Tense consistency
 Consistency with the setting of your story
The setting of a story is a powerful driver for hooking book readers into a story.
Does your story setting help tell your story? Does it deepen your plot and enrich your characters?
Does your setting engage the reader by setting the mood and increasing the emotional connection
to your characters?
 Weak verbs (replace them with our list of strong verbs found right here!)
The distinction between a weak verb and a strong verb is based on how the past tense of the verb
is formed. Weak verbs (more commonly called regular verbs) form the past tense by adding -ed,
-d, or -t to the base form—or present tense—of the verb, such as call, called and walk, walked.
Strong verbs (usually called irregular verbs) form the past tense or the past participle (or both) in
various ways but most often by changing the vowel of the present tense form, such as to give,
gave and stick, stuck

 Showing versus telling (readers need you to show more!)

Learning how to show don’t tell in writing is one of the most difficult—and important—parts of
writing when you first start.

It’s what will give readers the coveted emotional attachment that forges true, long-lasting fans
(and customers!).

Why this showing example is better?

In an instance such as this, you want the reader to feel what you did: the surprise and the
sense of urgency, the fear.

Describing the crunching that hit your ears even through the pounding of your heart not
only creates a powerful visual, but it also tells the reader the state your body was in
during that intense moment. The first example is weak and does little to explain how you
actually felt in that moment
 The first example of telling is shorter, but it doesn’t do a great job of really showing the
impact you have on each other. Anyone can think of “best friend” and form an overall
thought about what that looks like. But this isn’t just “anyone.” This is your best friend.
Showing your relationship with one another is vital to forging that deeper connection.

 Stronger imagery
Using imagery in your writing means writing tangibly with the five senses: sight, sound, taste,
touch, smell. We often see sight and sound in writing, but if you can incorporate the less typical
senses, combine them together, and use them creatively, you’ll sculpt a much richer picture for
your readers.

When you use imagery of something familiar to someone, it can even elicit certain emotions
intentionally. This is a powerful writing tool.

For example, if someone had a younger sibling and you describe the smell of baby powder, that’s
a very strong olfactory memory and they’ll likely have memories of their childhood.

So, if there’s a new baby in the house, what do older children typically feel? Usually either
happiness or jealousy. So, depending on how you frame it and the tone, you can purposely make
certain readers feel something you want them to feel

 Spelling/grammar/dialogue
Example:

“You really shouldn’t have done that.”

 No matter what other punctuation you have, whether it’s a question mark or exclamation
point, it will go on the inside of the quotations

If you want to learn how to write a short story, editing is a necessary part of the process. So
what’s that look like? The editing process for short stories is pretty much the same for novels.

The only difference is that short stories tend to focus more on imagery and exposition than they
do full character and plot development