Do you want to be a writer? A short story is an excellent place to start. I'll show you how to write a captivating one with these five key tips.
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​Like a novel, a short story should have a main character. Even though you have much fewer pages for character development, you still need to do it. If your reader doesn't know the sort of person your protagonist is, connecting with that character can be difficult.

However, you need to be efficient with your words. A novelist might spend seven pages describing all a character's hopes and fears, but you can't in a short story. You need to decide on the information you want to convey, then do so in as few words as possible.

Express the following about your protagonist early on:

• Physical traits. Get across appearance characteristics like gender and age so your reader can visualize the person. If your character has a specific physical trait that will play an important role in the story, show that trait at the beginning. For instance, if you're writing an action story that will entail an impressive feat of strength at the climax, your reader should know early on that your main character is strong. Possibly you can open your story by showing him chopping down a tree.

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• Mental traits. Give a sense of the character's personality so your reader can get to know them. You can do this in just a few sentences. If your protagonist is sarcastic, possibly they can crack a joke. If your protagonist is shy, possibly another character can say hello, while your lead struggles to make eye contact. Like physical characteristics, if your character has a specific mental trait that will play a critical role later on, establish it early.

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• Cultural traits. These characteristics involve the environment a character lives in, plus has lived in. Are they a well-paid architect who owns a penthouse apartment? A small-time crook sleeping in an alley? Like physical and mental traits, if a certain cultural characteristic will play a significant role later on, present it at the beginning.

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Your story can open with your protagonist already in trouble. Or, you can open by showing them going about a typical day. If you pick the second option, that day should only be typical for a page, maybe two. You need to throw your protagonist into a conflict quickly.

Make sure they have something to lose if the problem isn't solved - what's on the line is known as "the stakes." In a thriller story, the protagonist may lose his life if he doesn't solve his problem (ex, a serial killer targeting him). In a romance story, the protagonist's life may not be in jeopardy, but something else important should be (ex, her shot at a lasting relationship).

Once you establish that something major is at stake, your reader should feel a connection with your lead. And once emotionally invested in the character, your reader should eagerly turn your pages to see how the problem turns out.

In novels, a protagonist may run into various problems. Supporting characters may confront their own dilemmas, which can play out over many chapters. Short stories don't offer enough room to properly address multiple conflicts.

​Make sure the conflict that arises from your hero's problem is a compelling one - then stay focused on that single conflict through the story, remaining in the POV of your lead.

That being said, though you should concentrate on a single plot thread, that thread shouldn't be flat. You want to escalate your conflict - you want the challenge for your protagonist to seem increasingly harder. If possible, you even want to "raise the stakes," ie give your protagonist more to lose going into the climax than at the story's start.

For example, let's look at the thriller story mentioned earlier, about a serial killer targeting a man. At the beginning, the man is with his friend, an off-duty police officer with a sidearm. Toward the middle of the story, the killer murders the cop. Now, the unarmed man is alone - defeating the killer has become a more difficult challenge.

​Just before the climax, the man finds out the killer plans to murder his wife after him. Now, more is at stake if the hero fails to defeat the villain. Not only will he die, his wife will too.

You don't need to explain the context of every story event to your reader. Not only does this eat up valuable page space, it takes away any mystery. Raising questions in the mind of your reader is good. You want to eventually provide the answers, but delaying them builds suspense. Along the way, you can drip bits of information.  
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For instance, the serial-killer story may open with two men in suits running through the woods. Your reader will wonder why they're doing this. You don't have to explain that they're running from a serial killer (even though they are).

​Possibly, you can show one of the guys tripping over a log. The other panics. While he helps up his friend, he says, "Hurry, I see him coming."

Now your reader knows they're running from a man (you've dripped some information). However, your reader doesn't know who this man is (you've raised another question). A page or two later, you can reveal that their pursuer is wanted for fifteen murders.   

A twist is a major reveal that pulls the story events in a drastically new direction. The key to writing a good twist is to subtly hint at the shocking truth through the story, while misdirecting the reader so the connection isn't made.

In a short story, a good place for a twist is during the climax, directly before it, or directly after. In any case, it should occur toward the end.

For instance, in the serial-killer story, during the climax, the reader may find out that the main character was responsible for sending the villain on the killing rampage.

​The main character is a surgeon who was medically careless during a procedure, causing his patient - the villain's wife - to die. After lying in court, the doctor, along with the help of his high-priced attorney, was found innocent of any crime. The death, coupled with the lack of justice, pushed the already-troubled villain into a darker place, which led to a rampage.

Here's how to create an effective twist from these events...

Through most of the story, you'd portray the doctor - the main character - as a sensitive, moral family man, while portraying the villain as an emotionless butcher. The masked villain wears a necklace with a ring on it. The police assume it's some ritualistic death symbol.

During the climax, when the villain has the doctor cornered, the villain finally removes his mask. His eyes are filled with tears. Though he's definitely a murderer, he's not emotionless. The villain gives the doctor a phone and insists the doctor admit what he did to the police. The doctor confesses to medical malpractice and lying in court. 

Content with this admission, the villain sets down his gun. He clutches the ring around his necklace and tells the doctor it belonged to his wife. The police show up and take away both men.

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​Be sure to check out my free online writing class.
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Are you writing a book, screenplay, or short story? You can enhance your writing project with the literary device personification. Learn what personification is and how to apply this powerful technique to the story you're telling.
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​Personification is the giving of human qualities to non-human items, such as buildings, animals, and even concepts, like fear or perseverance. 

The two major forms of personification:

• Non-human. With this form, a non-human takes on the characteristics of a human. In a cartoon, a non-human item, like a tree, might have eyes and a mouth and the ability to talk.

 

• Human. In this form, a human represents a concept. Have you ever heard the phrase, "Name is the embodiment of X?" For example, "Jill is the embodiment of joy." That's an example of this form.

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​In books, screenplays, and other forms of narrative writing, personification can help an audience emotionally connect with non-humans. Since emotion is very important in storytelling, writers try to widely weave it into their stories. Personification is a literary tool that can create an immediate, and strong, emotional connection, thus is used often.

In addition, when characters embody concepts, the theme of a story can feel more visceral.

​Let's look at some examples...

​Non-human Characters

Non-human personification is critical for stories with non-human characters. In a fantasy story, for example, most of the characters might be animals. For an audience to identify with them, they should be given human qualities like the ability to talk.  

In a science fiction story that takes place in a different galaxy, all the characters might be aliens. Though these aliens may not look like humans, the writer should give them certain human qualities so the audience can identify with them.

For instance, although most of these aliens may be seventy feet tall and have IQs of 850, they live in homes with families (just like humans) and bicker with family members (just like humans).


​​Settings ​

Emotion isn't just effective with characters, but all elements of a story's world. Settings are a great place to apply personification to create a human connection.

​For instance, let's say a character in an adventure story enters a dangerous jungle. A writer can elevate this scene by personifying the jungle. "Human vs. human" conflict is emotionally engaging. And though a jungle isn't a human, if it can feel like one, the conflict can become more vibrant...

Ken takes his first step into the Bagana wilderness. The jungle's hot sun stares down at him. He looks for shade, but wherever he goes, the unforgiving sun finds him.


​​Objects ​

Like a setting, objects in a story can feel more vibrant if personified. Let's look at an example in an action story...

​Charles knows he's in trouble. He can hear his enemy's footsteps racing toward him from behind. Though Charles lost his gun, an old friend is still around. His set of brass knuckles, hanging out in his pocket.
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Let's go back to our personification example, "Jill is the embodiment of joy." When characters in a story represent concepts, the theme of a story can feel more palpable to an audience.

A theme is the takeaway about life in general an audience would have after finishing a story. Since themes are abstractions about life, they involve concepts. Examples of story themes:
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• Determination can lead to justice
• Love can be found in unexpected places
• Unresolved issues from the past can ruin the future

When certain characters in a story embody concepts related to the theme, the conflicts those characters go though can show the depth of the theme, and thus, make it more believable.

For an example, let's look at this theme: Unresolved issues from the past can ruin the future.

In this story, our main character will be Bill. He used to be a criminal. He went to prison for ten years. When he gets out, he decides to leave his life of crime behind and create a peaceful future for himself in the suburbs. There, he meets Sophia, a kind woman who has never committed a misdemeanor in her life.

​Bill views her as a potential wife - she represents "the future."

A couple months into dating Sophia, Bill gets an unexpected visitor at his doorstep, Allen. Allen was Bill's old criminal associate, who feels he's owed $90,000 from a job they did over a decade ago. Bill doesn't believe Allen's justification, and even if he did, doesn't have $90,000 on hand.

​Allen, who represents "unresolved issues from the past," keeps antagonizing Bill.

Sophia can't help but notice Bill's conflict with this angry stranger. To get revenge on Bill, Allen eventually targets Sophia. In the climax, she escapes death. However, even though Allen is arrested, Sophia has lost interest in marrying Bill. She decides to leave him.

​This idea of concept representation can be furthered with the development of motifs, which are recurring elements in your story that stand for ideas related to your theme. In the example above, story elements associated with Sophia can help you make points about the future. 

For instance, she could be renovating her and Bill's house, wanting to put a fresh, modern take on some of the old styles. Allen's appearance in their life causes so much stress Sophia becomes too distracted to continue with the project and puts it on hold.

This plot event conceptually conveys the point, "Because of Allen, Sophia and Bill's relationship has stopped moving forward, and is stuck in the past." 

• ​Think about emotion when applying non-human personification

• Consider non-human characters, settings, and objects as subjects to personify

• Consider the concepts of your story theme for human personification

• Create supporting characters that embody these concepts and put them into conflict with the protagonist and each other

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• Leverage motifs to make conceptual points via supporting characters who embody concepts

​Be sure to check out my free class for books and screenplays.
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​You might also like my examples of other literary devices, such as alliteration examples, metaphor examples, and symbolism examples.
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Find out what a metaphor is and how you can use this powerful literary device to elevate your writing.
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A metaphor falsely states that one thing is another while creating a truthful, symbolic comparison. Some examples of metaphors:
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• His kitchen is a sauna. A kitchen obviously can't be a sauna. However, if the temperature in someone's kitchen is very hot, this statement can be true symbolically.

 

• Her argument is bulletproof. You can't shoot bullets at an argument, let alone block them. However, if someone has a very strong argument that could withstand debate, this statement can be true symbolically.​

These two writing tools are often mixed up. They are quite alike, but with a key difference.

With a metaphor, you state that one thing is another. For instance, "his kitchen is a sauna" and "her argument is bulletproof." In a simile, you also compare one thing to another, however not as directly. You don't plainly say one thing is another, rather say it's similar to another.

A word like "is" can still be used, however, a word such as "like" or "as" goes with it. Some examples of similes:

• His kitchen is like the surface of the sun

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• Her argument is as strong as iron

Metaphors play a variety of roles in narrative writing. Two major categories:

• Descriptions and dialogue

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• Abstract comparisons 

​A great description creates a vivid image in a reader's mind. However, if a writer eats up multiple pages describing a single character, place, object, etc, the motion of the story can come to a standstill. Readers may get bored, even if the language is colorful.

A metaphor is a great tool for creating a vivid description without using hundreds of words.

​As you now know, a metaphor states that Thing A is Thing B. Let's say Thing A is a character in your story your audience hasn't yet met. If you choose something for Thing B that your audience already understands, you can immediately give Thing A characteristics of Thing B with a simple mention.

​For instance, let's say Thing A is a character named Stanley who has an odor problem. Here's how you can get across that trait with a metaphor:

Stanley sits next to me at the kitchen table. When he reaches for the salad bowl at the center, the stench of a dumpster releases from his armpit.

The reader would get quite a vivid description of poor Stanley in just a few words.

Keep in mind, when you come across metaphors in narrative writing, they're not always written in a straightforward way like the examples we looked at earlier (ex, "his kitchen is a sauna").

In the instance with poor Stanley, the word "is" does not explicitly appear in the comparison, yet a metaphor is still present. The text is suggesting that the odor from Stanley's armpit is the stench of a dumpster, even though the phrasing doesn't include "is."

Metaphorical writing works for dialogue in a similar way as description. A character can get across a vivid point quickly with a spoken metaphor. For example, let's say a narrator thinks a character, Fred, is a bad dancer. Here's how that could come out in dialogue:

Jack, in the passenger seat, asks, "How was that club you and Fred went to last night?"

"The place was all right. But I had to keep my distance from him once he got out on the dance floor. I didn't want people to know I was friends with the guy."

"I thought you two were cool?"

"He's not a bad dude. But those dance moves. His feet are made of concrete."

Not only can a metaphor help describe a person or thing a character is talking about, but the character doing the talking. In this example, in just a few words, the narrator not only expresses Fred's bad dancing, but expresses his own sarcasm.

Now you're accomplishing quite a lot with just a few words. 

In dialogue and description, metaphors tend to be tight together within the text. "His feet are made of concrete" is a metaphor that starts and ends with a single sentence.

​However, abstract comparisons may also be present in narrative writing, which can play out over multiple scenes, possibly even the bulk of a story.

Consider the phrase "X is a metaphor for Y," which you've probably heard. For instance, "Ethan almost drowning in the lake is a metaphor for his failing relationship with his son."

​With abstraction, a writer can take the concept of a metaphor and broadly connect Thing A with Thing B. Nowhere in the text is a writer saying Thing A is Thing B, yet if the characteristics of Thing A strongly resemble those of Thing B, a connection forms.

Let's say the character Ethan has been struggling to mend a relationship with his rebellious son. No matter how hard Ethan tries, he can't seem to gain his son's attention. Panic grips Ethan. He comes to believe the relationship is over.

Now, let's say Ethan, upset about his son, decides to take a swim in the ocean to clear his head. Unfortunately, he's caught in a bad current. No matter how hard he tries, he can't seem to win the fight against the water. Panic grips Ethan. He comes to believe he's going to drown.

Then someone tosses him a life preserver.

Here, a metaphorical connection is made between Ethan's relationship with his son and his near drowning. Ethan being saved with a life preserver implies that his relationship with his son can also be saved.

Be sure to check out my class on how to write a gripping book.
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You might also like my articles on alliteration examples, definition of personification, and symbolism in writing.

Learn what alliteration is and how to use it to improve any kind of writing. Plus, find out what to avoid when applying this literary technique.
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​Alliteration is the repetition of a consonant sound at the beginning of two or more close-together words, as in "big boat," with "b" the repeating sound.

A repeating vowel sound doesn't form an alliteration. For example, "anticipated arrival" wouldn't qualify even though both words begin with the same "a" sound (FYI, the word pair is instead an example of another literary device, "assonance").

As mentioned, "big boat" is an example of alliteration. This example involves two consecutive words beginning with the same letter. However, this format isn't the only variety of alliteration...

"Showy ship" is also an example of alliteration. Unlike "big boat" - which just repeats the single-lettered "b" sound - "showy ship" repeats a double-lettered sound, "sh."

"Colorful kite" is an alliteration because the same sound is repeated at the beginning of the words, even though that sound comes from a "c" in the first and a different letter, a "k," in the second.

On the other hand, words with the same consonant at their starts don't always form an alliteration. As mentioned, alliteration is about the sound letters make, not the letters themselves.

"That tornado" would not be considered an alliteration. Even though both words begin with "t," the letter is used to form different sounds in each.

"Cook the cauliflower" is an example of alliteration even though the two words with the repeating sound - "cook" and "cauliflower" - aren't directly next to each other ("the" separates them).

​As long as the words with the repeating sound are somewhat close to each other, they form an alliteration.

​In the examples provided so far, pairs of word share a repeating sound, however, technically, the sound can be repeated in an unlimited number of words as long as they're somewhat close to each other.

​"Riding a rusty rollercoaster is a ridiculous idea" is an  example of four-word alliteration.

Narrative writing is about storytelling, encompassing fiction (ex, a novel) and story-based non-fiction (ex, a biography). Narrative writing is made up of two major components: dialogue and description.

In brief, dialogue is the part of the text your characters say, while description is the rest of the text. Let's look at this example:  

Howard sits on the couch and flips on the TV. His wife enters the den. She glares at him and heads upstairs. "Everything all right?" he asks.

​She keeps walking up the steps, without a reply.

How can we enhance this segment of narrative writing with alliteration?

Be careful using alliteration in dialogue. Good dialogue should be true to how a character would talk. Since most real-life people don't go out of their way to insert alliterations into their speech, neither should most characters. However, if a certain character in your story is grandiose, and speaking in alliterations is consistent with the character's personality, then go ahead and stay true to that.  

Anyway, description tends to be a better place for alliteration, in general.

As mentioned, you can use alliteration to draw attention to certain words. Since you should apply the device sparingly, you don't want to pick random words. You'd want to alliterate for a reason. For instance, you might want to choose words that play a strong role in a point you're making. The added attention can stress your point.

In the example with Howard and his wife, her ignoring him - and him not knowing why - is the takeaway from the scene segment. Alliteration could be used to accentuate this takeaway. Here's a slightly revised version:

Howard sits on the couch and flips on the TV. His wife enters the den. She glares at him and heads upstairs. "Everything all right?" he asks.

​She keeps walking up the steps, silent.

Notice the difference? Notice the alliteration? At the very end, "steps, silent." The dash of alliteration highlights her silence, her key characteristic.

Don't miss my free online course - I'll teach you how to write a great book...
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You might also like my additional posts on literary devices, such as what a metaphor is and what personification is.

If you want to learn how to market a book online, you've come to the right place. Uncover powerful tactics for BookTok, email marketing, cross-promos, and much more.
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​Before you focus on selling your book, you want it to be as good as possible. For highly effective writing techniques, check out my free online writing course.

​Applying a variety of digital tools to reach your book's target readers online, getting them excited about your book, and encouraging them to order a copy.

Here are your primary digital tools - click a link to jump to its section in the guide:
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• A writer website
• A writer email list
• Writer social media profiles
• Paid ads

​If you're a writer, I highly recommend you create a website for yourself. It'll make you look professional, plus act as a hub for important information. 

​​To get started, you first need to do buy a domain name - they're not expensive (you can even get one for free)...

Your domain name should be "your name," followed by ".com." For instance, you're currently on my writer website, which has a domain name of tedgaldi.com. I'd recommend you get your domain name ASAP before someone else out there with the same name as you buys it first.

You can get a free domain name from Bluehost.

The domain name is free if you also get a hosting package from them (which are very cheap, starting at just a couple bucks and change per month). Hosting refers to the servers and technical infrastructure that keep a website running. If you want a website, you must get a hosting package from somewhere.