Writing a short story is not easy, and writing the opening is arguably the most difficult part. But, you dont have to worry. After understanding the components of a short story and trying out several versions of the opening for your story, you should be sure to find something that fits. Keep reading for tips on getting your story off to a great start.
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Part 1 of 3: Understanding Short Story Forms
Step 1. Read as many short stories as you can
While you can write short stories whenever you want, it's more effective if you've read a variety of short stories, ranging from classics to contemporary ones. After reading enough short stories, you will better understand the elements in a short story and what is more interesting to the reader. Reread your favorite stories and watch how they start. Understand which techniques are effective and which are not effective in the opening sections of the stories you have read.
- Read short stories from classic writers, such as Edgar Allan Poe, Anton Chekhov, and Guy de Maupassant.
- Read short stories from writers in the early 20th century, such as Isaac Babel, Ernest Hemingway, Flannery O'Connor, or Jorge Luis Borges.
- Read short stories from more contemporary experts, such as Alice Munro, Raymond Carver and Jhumpa Lahiri.
- Take creative writing workshops, whether at school or in your community, and read works by other writers who are also still learning. Sometimes, the works of experts can be a little intimidating. Reading the works of novice writers can make you feel that writing isn't really that difficult.
Step 2. Understand the components of a short story
Even though the opening part of your story is already very good, it will be a waste if you don't know how to continue it with a middle and an equally strong ending. While short stories can vary in narrative and subject matter, and some are structured in a more traditional way while others are more experimental, you should still understand the key aspects of a good short story:
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plot. Plot is "what happens" in a story. Stories that rely on plots are very concerned with what happens next, for example Poe's detective stories. Some short stories follow a pattern that begins with a conflict escalation stage, a crisis stage, and a dissolution or resolution stage. There are also stories that start in the middle of a crisis, or end with a crisis without telling the reader what happened after.
Your plot doesn't have to have the structure of a detective story, but you should always give the impression that something is at stake, be it that a character must realize that her husband is unfaithful, or that a character must win a race to please her father
- Character. Your story must have at least one character that your readers can like and support. Generally, your characters should be sympathetic so that your readers can better understand their motives, but if your characters are unique, well-realized, and interesting, your readers will also enjoy stories about them even if they may not invite sympathy.
- Dialog. Dialogue can be thought of as poetry in prose, and should not be used too often to voice a character. However, there are some writers, like Hemingway or Carver, who can write really good stories even though they contain a lot of dialogue.
- Viewpoint. Point of view is the perspective used to tell the story. A story can be told in first person, second person, or third person. The first person point of view means that the story is told directly from the perspective of the character, the second person point of view addresses the reader directly with the word “you”, while the third person point of view creates a distance between the narrator and the characters.
- Setting is when and where the story takes place. Setting can be very important in a story, such as the South American setting in the works of William Faulkner. In other stories, setting can also play a less important role.
Step 3. Think of the story you want to write
While there are many ways to write, taking the time to think about the story you have in mind can really help you. Maybe you were inspired by something you saw, or you were drawn to a strange story about your grandfather's childhood. Whatever your reason for writing your story, it can help you answer the following questions before you get started:
- Is this story better told from a first, second, or third person point of view? While you can try out different perspectives once you start writing, considering which point of view is more suitable beforehand can help you get started with writing well.
- When and where does this story take place? If your story takes place in a city you're not familiar with, or a period you don't know much about, you'll need to do some research before you can start writing with confidence.
- How many characters are there in your story? Once you've determined the number of players in your story, you'll better understand how long and detailed your story should be.
- Don't underestimate the power of writing without a plan. If you're inspired, just grab a pen and paper, and see what happens. If trying to plan a story before you start is giving you a hard time, you can just start right away and think about the details as you write.
Part 2 of 3: Starting Your Story
Step 1. Start with an intuition
Just relax, and write down the first thing that comes to your mind. You don't have to worry about what characters or what form of narrative you will use. Just write without pausing for a few minutes, and see what happens.
- Write for at least ten minutes without stopping. When you're done, you should reread what you've written to see if your opening sounds good, or if you can start the story elsewhere.
- Don't stop to improve your grammar or use of punctuation. This will slow you down and even make you doubt your ideas. You can improve your writing later.
Step 2. Start with an interesting flashback
While flashbacks can be overly sentimental or confusing to readers, they can also draw readers into your story, and make them wonder how the story continued from the past to the present.
- Pick a memorable moment for a character. This moment could be something very dramatic in the character's life, or a memory that will be developed later in your story.
- If you choose to start with a flashback, make sure your readers know when you've moved into the present, so they don't get confused or lose interest.
- Start with a moment when the character performs an unexpected action. Then, move to the present, and leave the reader wondering why the character acted the way he did.
Step 3. Start with a strong declarative statement
Don't be afraid to start your story with a strong voice that best describes your main character and tells readers what they can expect from your story. The opening part of a story defines the big picture of the story and helps the reader understand the events that took place. So a clear and unequivocal statement can help attract your readers.
- Melville's novel Moby Dick begins with a simple statement, namely "Call me Ishmael". From there, the narrator begins to talk about his love of sea voyages, and how much the oceans mean to him. This statement draws the reader into the story and makes him feel comfortable with the main character. Even though this is the opening of a novel, this technique can also be used for short stories.
- Amy Bloom's story, The Story, opens with the words, "You wouldn't have known me a year ago". This simple but no-nonsense opening attracts readers and makes them want to know more about the character and why he has changed.
- Chekhov's Lady With a Little Dog begins with the statement, "It was said that a new person had appeared on the sea front: a lady with a little dog." small"). The story then discusses Gurov, another guest on the coast, who is attracted to this woman and ends up getting involved in a passionate love affair. This statement is simple but effective, and makes readers want to know more about this woman.
- The right dialogue can also grab the attention of your readers and give you an idea of the characters in the dialogue, but you have to be careful, starting a story with dialogue is not that simple.
Step 4. Start with characterization
Your character doesn't have to speak directly to the reader. You can also let readers watch your character in action, to show what kind of person your character is and what he's at stake in the story. Here are a few ways to get started with characterization:
- Start with your character's quirks. Maybe your character likes to eat with two forks, or bathe with shoes on. Show readers what makes your character unique.
- Show what your character is thinking. Invite readers into your character's head to show them whether the character is guessing the gender of the baby in her womb, or worried about her mother's senility.
- Show your character's interactions with other characters. Letting the reader see how your character interacts with his mother, or with an old friend he meets on the streets, can give him an idea of who he is and what he will do next.
- Describe your character's appearance. Your character's appearance can tell you a lot about who he is. Don't bore your readers with generic details. Just show how your character looks to other people, or describe an aspect of your character's appearance that most people overlook.
- Short stories usually only consist of 15-25 pages. So you don't have to bother developing ten realistic-looking characters. Focus on building a compelling protagonist, and some other interesting characters too, but keep in mind that not all minor characters have to be detailed and uneven.
Step 5. Tell what is at stake in your story
Tell your readers what is at stake in your story starting with the first sentence or paragraph of your story. In a short story, you have only a limited amount of time to develop your idea. That way, if you start with dramatic suspense in your story, you can step back to explain why this is important after that. Here are a few ways to do this:
- Tell a secret to your readers. Say, "Mary has been sleeping with her sister's husband for the past three months." As you tell more about the situation and how Mary dealt with it, your readers will feel more involved in the drama and look forward to how it will turn out.
- Provide a conflict. Say, “Bobby hasn't seen his brother Sam in over twenty years. Now he wonders if his brother will show up at their father's funeral." These two sentences have already started to build a major conflict for readers: that Bobby and his brother are no longer close for some reason, and that Bobby may have to face him in a bit. As the story continues, readers will wonder why the brothers are no longer close.
- Give hints about something important from the character's past. Say, "The second time Anna left her husband was before her eighteenth birthday." Without divulging the story, you can tell readers that this story illustrates why Anna left her husband again, and why she did it in the first place.
Step 6. Develop your background
Another way to start your story is to develop your setting. If the town or house where your story takes place is important, you can tell readers about the setting-how it looks, smells, and sounds-before you develop your characters or plot. Here's how to do it:
- Focus on the details of the five senses. Tell your readers how a place looks, sounds, smells, and even feels to the touch. Is the weather in the story freezing cold, or does the story take place during the hottest summer on record?
- Place your readers. Without being too direct, tell them where the story is taking place. While you don't have to announce the location and year of your story, provide enough information for your readers to guess.
- Show what this setting means to your character. Think of it as a camera moving from the point of view of a bird approaching the character's house. Start by looking at the city as a whole, then focus on the area where the character lives, then show how this environment influences and shapes the character.
- Don't bore your readers. While describing the setting in sufficient detail can help grab the reader's attention, if you're a budding writer, this might not be the trick for you. Your readers may become impatient and immediately want to know who or what your story is really about, not just the setting.
Step 7. Avoid the things that usually derail the opening of a story
When you choose the opening of your story, you must be careful not to get caught up in starting your opening in a way that is too predictable, confusing, clichéd, or exaggerated. Here are the things you should avoid:
- Avoid cliches. Don't start your story with stale images or overused phrases, such as, "Sarah's heart is torn to pieces." This will make readers think that the rest of the story is also stale like this.
- Don't give too much information. You don't have to tell all about where the story takes place, what conflicts are at stake, and how your character looks right in the first two pages of your story. Think of the writing process as the process of helping your readers climb a mountain. You have to give them enough information so they can progress enough, but if you give too much information, they will get overwhelmed and fall down.
- Don't start your story with lots of questions and exclamation points. Let your writing tell its own story, instead of trying too hard to convey the excitement.
- Don't confuse your readers with complicated language. The most important thing is that you have to make sure the readers understand what is going on in your story. You can sacrifice some beautiful illustrative sentences or overly clever dialogues, so that readers have a better understanding of what's going on.
Part 3 of 3: Revise Your Opening
Step 1. Rethink what you have written
Now that you've written your opening section as well as a draft or two of your story, you'll need to rethink your story as a whole to determine if your opening still fits the story. You have to make sure that your opening attracts the reader, provides a suitable setting for the rest of the story, and puts the reader in the right place. Here's what you should do:
- Read your story twice. First, read to yourself without marking anything, then read again by marking the parts you want to cut, or the parts where you need to add information to make the story clearer and coherent. Once you have done this, you will better understand whether your opening is appropriate or not.
- Consider whether you can start the story closer to the end of the story. The first few pages of a rough draft of a story are often just a warm-up for the writer before he can really begin to tell the gist of the story. You may find that the opening section of your story contains too much unnecessary detail, and that you're better off starting your story on page 2-or even page 10.
- Read your story aloud. When you read your story aloud, you may realize things you wouldn't have noticed if you had just read it in silence. You can see if your story flows smoothly, and if the dialogue is engaging and natural-sounding from the start.
Step 2. Seek the opinion of the other party
Once you feel confident enough with a rough draft of your story, you are ready to seek feedback. Keep in mind that seeking feedback at an early stage of writing, before you know exactly what you want to write about, can leave you feeling discouraged and insecure about developing your ideas. Getting the right feedback can help you revise your opening, as well as your entire story. Tell your readers that you want to focus on the opening section, but also need public opinion. Here are some people you can ask for feedback:
- Ask your friends who like to read short stories and are able to give constructive feedback.
- Ask your friend who is also a writer.
- Take your story to a creative writing workshop, and pay attention to the feedback you get, especially about the opening. Keep in mind that this opening section won't be effective if the rest of the story isn't well written.
- Once you feel confident in your story and want to try publishing it, try submitting it to several literary journals. If your story isn't accepted, you can at least get some valuable feedback from the editors.
Tips
- Don't delete the story when you feel frustrated. You can take a few weeks off and come back to it later.
- Start several stories at once if you can't pick just one idea. You can even start combining some of these ideas later in the revision process.
- Remember that writing is an art that takes a lifetime to perfect. You may have to write twenty short story drafts before they all turn out great, or you may need to write twenty short stories before there is one that you really like.
