Si vous n'êtes pas à l'aise avec l'anglais, utilisez ceci :
Cet outil vous fournit une traduction automatisée en français.
How To Write A Short Story
Everybody knows writing a story is not easy. Like the drama or the poem, it is imaginative literature that should appeal to the emotions of the readers. Since it communicates the writer's interpretation of reality, there must be an artistic use of language to signify human experience. But how do we write a great short story? What are the things to keep in mind in order to come up with a short story that works? Here's a quick guide to get you started:
1. Read
Reading is essential to anyone who wants to write. In order to be able to write a good short story, you must read other short stories first. This will not only give you the motivation and inspiration for your own story, but it will also help you learn how other authors made an impression on the reader and use their style as basis to create your own style and impression.
2. Get inspired
For seasoned professionals, there is no need to obtain inspiration because thoughts naturally flow and they only have to put them into words on paper. But for novice writers, it is important to have one because it will not only help you begin your first paragraph but also keep you going throughout. Your inspiration may take the form of an object. a person, or an event that you just can't seem to forget.
3. Conceptualize your story
Think of something you want to talk about with your readers. Let's say you want to relate a story about a couple who fell in love with each other. What about the couple? What is it about them that you are interested to let your readers know? Focus on this idea and think of other concepts that you want to associate with this couple. Suppose the girl's parents discommended their relationship. What about the parents? What did they do to stop the two from loving each other? This could signal a good beginning for your story. From here, you would have the notion what to write down.
4. Map out the scenes
In order to keep your writing aligned with your pre-conceived story events, it is good to briefly map out scenes of your story on a different piece of paper. Write down the possible characters of your story and list the main events in order. You don't have to put so much detail on them because this only serves as a rough sketch of how your story will look like.
5. Chooose your point of view
Who tells the story and how it is told is very critical for a short story to be effective. The point of view can change the feel and tone of the story radically. Hence, you must decide carefully before finally resolving with the angle of vision to use for your story. But whatever it is you decide to choose as the point of view, make sure it stays constant throughout your story to maintain consistency.
6. Conceive your characters
For a short story, create a maximum of only three main characters. Too many main characters will make your story confusing since each new character will provide a new dimension for the story. Each character should be more than cardboard caricatures. Make your characters speak naturally in proportion with their traits. Make them believable but mysterious.
7. Furnish a good introduction
When you have everything planned out, start scribbling your first paragraph. Introduce your main characters and set out the scene. The scene must be some place you know much about so that you'd be able to supply the necessary snapshot for a clearly described setting. Make your introduction interesting to hold the readers interest and encourage them to read on to the end. It is also important to hold back significant details and the greater part of the action at this point so the mystery is kept.
8. Build up a great plot
From your introduction, draw out events that will eventually create a problem or a conflict for the main character/characters. After that, begin laying out an array of clues to keep the reader interested, intrigued and guessing. Intensify the conflict as the story moves forward. This will not only make your reader enthused to read more but will also keep them riveted to your story.
9. Show don't tell
The characters should be the ones responsible for expressing the story through their actions and dialogue and not the writer telling the reader what is being expressed. Rather than saying, "Annette was really mad at her bestfriend Christina for stealing her boyfriend", say "Annette felt an ache in her stomach and a strong pang of betrayal as Christina approaches her and flashes her with a sweet smile. She breathed hard trying to calm herself as she speaks with suppressed anger: "I hope you're happy now that you've proven yourself as a friend."
10. Use active verbs
Put as much life into your story as you can. In order to do this, employ verbs in the active voice in your story. Instead of saying,"The flower was picked by Johanna", say "Johanna picked the flower."
11. Use dialogue every now and then
Dialogue is important in bringing your story to life. Don't just use it to pad out your characters. Use it to convey your character to identify with the reader. Use it in direct quotes like "Go there!" instead of indirect quotes as "She told him to go there."
12. Keep references handy
A good reference such as a thesaurus or a dictionary is crucial in creating a good story. You can use them to check your spellings and to find the words which best fit your description. Instead of using one lengthy sentence or paragraph, you can utilize one or just a few words to convey what you want to say. Oftentimes, one strong word has a greater effect than a paragraph full of fancy language.
13. Conclude briefly
Conclusions are tough sledding. For a good ending, it is advisable to experiment and to add a little twist. Make your ending unique but not hanging in a loose end. Make it satisfying without making it too predictable. Keep in mind to keep it short but concise and lingering so that the reader is left with a feeling of resonance. Your conclusion should wrap up everything from start to finish.
14. Edit and revise
After fashioning the last words of your story, it is time to begin the editing cycle. Carefully go through your work and fix all your mistakes regarding sentence construction, word usage, formatting. punctuation marks, diction, spelling, grammar, and descriptive analysis. Scratch out words, phrases and even paragraphs which don't seem to contribute to the basic elements of the story. After you're done, let it sit for a while for days and even weeks, then edit it again. Reread your story over and over again at different occasions. This will make you see various things you may want to change to make your story shine at its best.
15. Let others proof read
Have your friends take a look at your work. They may just be able to see mistakes which you have missed. For instance, they may be distracted with some words or lines which you adore dearly. In this case, you have to decide on changing it or cutting it off completely.
Writing a short story may not be easy but it can surely be done. With some knowledge on the basic elements and some passion and patience, it's effortless to pull together a story with just a few ideas. Just keep in mind that you're writing not because you have to, but because you want to. Keep the spirit up! Give it a go now!
BONUS : How To Write A Strong Start For Your Novel
I revised my Civil War novel Hearts of Stone many times before selling it to Dutton Childrens Books. My editor only had one major suggestion: Consider a new beginning.
If youre revising a novel, considering the first scene should be one of your last steps. Its hard to know how best to begin until youre sure how the story ends. And although everyone needs to revise in a manner that works for them, writers who perfect every sentence along the way can fall in love with sentences or scenes that ultimately dont best serve the story.
Skilled novelists convey character, conflict, setting, and voice in the first page, paragraph, even sentence. Its a tall order! But here are eight strategies that command readersand editorsinterest.
1. Grab readers attention.
Katherine Paterson begins Lyddie, one of my favorite childrens novels, this way: The bear had been their undoing, though at the time they had all laughed. Or how about this, from Richard Pecks A Long Way from Chicago: You wouldnt think wed have to leave Chicago to see a dead body. Who wouldnt want to keep reading?
2. Begin with Action.
Heres Walter Dean Myers powerful opening of Monster: The best time to cry is at night, when the lights are out and someone is being beaten up and screaming for help. Action can also be quiet, as in Beverly Clearys The Mouse and the Motorcycle: Keith, the boy in the rumpled shorts and shirt, did not know he was being watched as he entered room 215 of Mountain View Inn.
3. Arrive mid-conversation.
E.B. Whites Charlottes Web begins like this: Wheres Papa going with that axe? Lisi Harrison uses dialogue to start The Clique: Massie, wipe that confused look off your face, Massies mom, Kendra, said. Its really very simpleyoure not going. Both opening lines convey conflict.
4. Begin with an omniscient passage.
Occasionally, skilled authors begin high above their protagonist before zooming in and continuing with a more intimate point of view. Swallowing Stones, by Joyce McDonald, is about the repercussions a teen faces after he discharges a rifle and accidentally kills a schoolmates father. In the books beginning, readers travel with the fatal bullet: There is no stopping it; the bullet rips through the hot summer haze, missing trees, houses, unsuspecting birds, coming to roost, finally, like an old homing pigeon . The stage has been set.
5. Begin by mirroring the ending.
An Na does this beautifully in A Step from Heaven. In the opening chapter, the young protagonist describes how being in her fathers arms at the seashore makes her feel safe: I am a sea bubble floating, floating in a dream. Bhop. Her father ultimately leaves his family, and yet in the end readers feel hopeful when they read the same words used to describe her sense of security. Laurie Halse Anderson employs a similar technique in the opening and closing of Fever, 1793. The main character experiences daybreak quite differently in the first and last chapters, which reveals how she has matured.
6. State the problem.
Simply stating the problem in the first sentence immediately takes readers to the storys emotional heart. He did not want to be a wringer, Jerry Spinelli writes in Wringer, about a boy destined to wring pigeons necks in a local event. Many authors use this technique: All Ive ever wanted is for Juli Baker to leave me alone. (Flipped, Wendelin Van Draanen.) I am Mary. I am a witch. (Witch Child, Celia Rees.) Chapter One: Summer 1849 In which I come to California, fall down a hill, and vow to be miserable here. (The Ballad of Lucy Whipple, Karen Cushman.)
7. Let your character reflect.
Julie Johnston begins Hero of Lesser Causes with this reflective moment: It started out as a peaceful, plodding kind of summer, the summer of 1946. We didnt know that our lives would charge wildly out of control. For another example, see Jennifer Donnellys lovely Northern Light.
8. Provide a prologue.
Some writers hate prologues, but I say if it works for your story, use it. A prologue can help readers feel how desperately a protagonist does not want something to happen, as Jerry Spinelli does in Wringer. It can help readers understand what a character is about to lose, as Pam Munoz Ryan does beautifully in Esperanza Rising. And it can set a tone, as Gary Paulsen does in the marvelous prologue to The Winter Room.
Ultimately, I decided to write a prologue for Hearts of Stone. The novel originally began in the summer of 1863. Fifteen-year-old Hannahs father had already left their home on Cumberland Mountain in East Tennessee to fight for the Union Army. Hannah is estranged from her friend Ben because his father had joined the Confederate Army. Soon orphaned, Hannah shepherds her younger siblings on the long trip to a Nashville refugee camp, all the while longing to get back home.
The problem? Too many crucial events were lost in back story. My new prologue is set in 1861, when Hannahs father announces that hes joining the army, and it allows readers to meet Ben while his relationship with Hannah is still good.
Finally, I worked on a first sentence that could reveal both Hannahs conflict with her father and her strong sense of place. The book now begins this way: Pa ripped our family apart just as spring began whispering sweet promises up on Cumberland Mountain.
Hearts of Stones review in Kirkus concluded with a prediction that Readers will be hooked from the start. Im glad my editor asked for a new beginning. Sometimes it really does make sense to save the first for last.
I revised my Civil War novel Hearts of Stone many times before selling it to Dutton Childrens Books. My editor only had one major suggestion: Consider a new beginning.
If youre revising a novel, considering the first scene should be one of your last steps. Its hard to know how best to begin until youre sure how the story ends. And although everyone needs to revise in a manner that works for them, writers who perfect every sentence along the way can fall in love with sentences or scenes that ultimately dont best serve the story.
Skilled novelists convey character, conflict, setting, and voice in the first page, paragraph, even sentence. Its a tall order! But here are eight strategies that command readersand editorsinterest.
1. Grab readers attention.
Katherine Paterson begins Lyddie, one of my favorite childrens novels, this way: The bear had been their undoing, though at the time they had all laughed. Or how about this, from Richard Pecks A Long Way from Chicago: You wouldnt think wed have to leave Chicago to see a dead body. Who wouldnt want to keep reading?
2. Begin with Action.
Heres Walter Dean Myers powerful opening of Monster: The best time to cry is at night, when the lights are out and someone is being beaten up and screaming for help. Action can also be quiet, as in Beverly Clearys The Mouse and the Motorcycle: Keith, the boy in the rumpled shorts and shirt, did not know he was being watched as he entered room 215 of Mountain View Inn.
3. Arrive mid-conversation.
E.B. Whites Charlottes Web begins like this: Wheres Papa going with that axe? Lisi Harrison uses dialogue to start The Clique: Massie, wipe that confused look off your face, Massies mom, Kendra, said. Its really very simpleyoure not going. Both opening lines convey conflict.
4. Begin with an omniscient passage.
Occasionally, skilled authors begin high above their protagonist before zooming in and continuing with a more intimate point of view. Swallowing Stones, by Joyce McDonald, is about the repercussions a teen faces after he discharges a rifle and accidentally kills a schoolmates father. In the books beginning, readers travel with the fatal bullet: There is no stopping it; the bullet rips through the hot summer haze, missing trees, houses, unsuspecting birds, coming to roost, finally, like an old homing pigeon . The stage has been set.
5. Begin by mirroring the ending.
An Na does this beautifully in A Step from Heaven. In the opening chapter, the young protagonist describes how being in her fathers arms at the seashore makes her feel safe: I am a sea bubble floating, floating in a dream. Bhop. Her father ultimately leaves his family, and yet in the end readers feel hopeful when they read the same words used to describe her sense of security. Laurie Halse Anderson employs a similar technique in the opening and closing of Fever, 1793. The main character experiences daybreak quite differently in the first and last chapters, which reveals how she has matured.
6. State the problem.
Simply stating the problem in the first sentence immediately takes readers to the storys emotional heart. He did not want to be a wringer, Jerry Spinelli writes in Wringer, about a boy destined to wring pigeons necks in a local event. Many authors use this technique: All Ive ever wanted is for Juli Baker to leave me alone. (Flipped, Wendelin Van Draanen.) I am Mary. I am a witch. (Witch Child, Celia Rees.) Chapter One: Summer 1849 In which I come to California, fall down a hill, and vow to be miserable here. (The Ballad of Lucy Whipple, Karen Cushman.)
7. Let your character reflect.
Julie Johnston begins Hero of Lesser Causes with this reflective moment: It started out as a peaceful, plodding kind of summer, the summer of 1946. We didnt know that our lives would charge wildly out of control. For another example, see Jennifer Donnellys lovely Northern Light.
8. Provide a prologue.
Some writers hate prologues, but I say if it works for your story, use it. A prologue can help readers feel how desperately a protagonist does not want something to happen, as Jerry Spinelli does in Wringer. It can help readers understand what a character is about to lose, as Pam Munoz Ryan does beautifully in Esperanza Rising. And it can set a tone, as Gary Paulsen does in the marvelous prologue to The Winter Room.
Ultimately, I decided to write a prologue for Hearts of Stone. The novel originally began in the summer of 1863. Fifteen-year-old Hannahs father had already left their home on Cumberland Mountain in East Tennessee to fight for the Union Army. Hannah is estranged from her friend Ben because his father had joined the Confederate Army. Soon orphaned, Hannah shepherds her younger siblings on the long trip to a Nashville refugee camp, all the while longing to get back home.
The problem? Too many crucial events were lost in back story. My new prologue is set in 1861, when Hannahs father announces that hes joining the army, and it allows readers to meet Ben while his relationship with Hannah is still good.
Finally, I worked on a first sentence that could reveal both Hannahs conflict with her father and her strong sense of place. The book now begins this way: Pa ripped our family apart just as spring began whispering sweet promises up on Cumberland Mountain.
Hearts of Stones review in Kirkus concluded with a prediction that Readers will be hooked from the start. Im glad my editor asked for a new beginning. Sometimes it really does make sense to save the first for last.
