Creating your own story . . .From Reading to Writing Stories such as “The Masque of the Red Death” may horrify you, while other stories delight you with humor, suspense, or surprises. You not only have the opportunity to read the stories of others, but you can also create stories of your own that will affect others.

Short Story

Creating your own story . . .A short story uses characters, action, and setting to explore a conflict and create an experience that engages readers. Like all literary works worth reading, short stories entertain us and touch our feelings. At the same time, they teach us something worth remembering.

Short Story

B a s i c s i n a B o xShort Story at a Glance

RUBRIC Standards for WritingA successful short story should• use the elements of character,

setting, and plot to create a convincing world

• use techniques such as vivid sensory language, concrete details, and dialogue to create believable characters and setting

• develop and resolve a central conflict

• present a clear sequence of events

• maintain a consistent point of view

• introducing the char-acters

• describing the setting

Introduction

• resolving the conflict

• telling the last event

• introducing the conflict• telling a sequence of

events• developing main

characters• building toward a climax

Body Conclusion

Sets the stage by

Develops the plot by Finishes the story by

Writing Your Short Story1 Prewriting

To imagine yourself inside another person . . . is what a story writer does in every piece of work. . . .

Eudora Welty

Listing interesting settings, characters, and conflicts. Mix and match them, or ask yourself what story each might inspire.

Remembering your daydreams. Contemplating recent news stories. Recalling experiences from your life.

Look for ideas for your story by

Writing Your Short Story1 Prewriting

Planning Your Short Story

1. Imagine the characters and setting. Who will be in the story and how will you show their personality traits? What setting will you use?

2. Think through the plot. What are the main events? What is the conflict? Will the conflict be resolved? If so, how? You might make a sequence chart to help you organize your ideas.

beginning event 1 event 2 event 3 final event/resolution

Planning Your Short Story

3. Choose a narrator. Who will tell your story? Will the story be told from the first-person or third-person point of view?

4. Create a mood. Will your story be frightening, humorous, or mysterious?

5. Identify your goals and audience. Are you writing for children, your peers, or a general audience?

Writing Your Short Story2 DraftingBegin your story wherever you like—at the beginning, the conclusion, or the incident that triggers the conflict. Many good stories begin in the middle and then go back to the beginning to provide more information. Remember, however, that the order of events must be clear.

Writing Your Short Story2 Drafting

Flesh Out the Characters

To make your characters real, use

description dialogue action

Writing Your Short Story2 Drafting

Use Description to Show Rather Than Tell Your Story

For instance, instead of telling the readers that Seth and Caleb disappeared, the writer uses description to show them disappearing: “A ray of light fell onto them. As if they were floating on the beam, they slowly faded away.”

Writing Your Short Story2 Drafting

Organize the EventsA natural way to organize events in a story is to use chronological order—the order in which events occur. Another choice is to use flashback—a recalling of past events. After the flashback, return to the present and continue telling the story. Just be sure that the sequence of events and the connections between ideas are clear.

Writing Your Short Story

TARGET SKILL USING DIALOGUEDialogue can add suspense to your story and help readers get to know your characters. Good dialogue shows the most important things characters say to each other.

3 Revising

Writing Your Short Story

TARGET SKILL PUNCTUATING DIALOGUEIn writing dialogue, remember to start a new paragraph each time the speaker changes. Also, use single quotation marks to indicate a quote within a quote.

4 Editing and Proofreading