Sort by: Most Relevant Publish Date

TOO SHORT  

A published author shares a how-to guide to writing a killer short story, with well-developed characters that pull you in and make you want to read more, and that editors will offer to buy.

If anybody tells you that short fiction is a dying art, ask them if they've tried selling a story lately! The competition among writers in the short fiction market is as healthy as ever. Increase your chances of success with this ten-point checklist.

The seven short stories fall under the umbrella term of "science fiction" but they expand the genre in new and entertaining ways. They are guaranteed to leave a lingering impression after you finish reading them.

This article reviews several of the many short fiction contests in the United States.

Sci-Fi is notoriously difficult to write but if you have a flair for the genre, you can learn how to sell a short story to a science fiction magazine. It is far easier to sell short story sci-fi pieces than full-length novels and the pay is decent.

This Adaptations is an anthology of short stories that were the basis for 35 movies. Why do filmmakers adapt from literature, anyway? Editor Stephanie Harrison quotes film theorist George Bluestone: "Film feeds off literature like sharks off a marlin."

Book review of Alice Munro's short story collection, Runaway. This effort proves that Munro is a master of her time, a wonderful writer that countless try to imitate, and few manage to succeed on.

Presented here are some general tips for young writers beginning their first or one of their first short stories. A quick and easy guide.

Collections of fiction short stories are becoming increasing popular in the writing world. Some books listed here to study up on if you wish to venture into that genre.

A short list of top paying publications for writers of short fiction.

Many people think that writing a short story should be pretty easy. With this easy seven-step plan for short story writing, you should be able to turn out great short stories in no time.

Many aspiring writers struggle with one of the most common problems: short story or novel? Many plots can be extended into novel length or compressed to fit into a short story, but how do you choose?

So 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.

Although both short stories focus on men who have are alienated from society, Hawthorne's The Minister's Black Veil and Melville's Bartleby the Scrivener differ in theme and character motivation.

Where else can you spend less than $10.00 and have a book of short stories that you assembled? Perhaps nowhere except on Amazon.com Shorts!

If you write mostly about yourself, sooner or later you're going to feel stuck in a rut. Here are some tips for creating new characters for short stories.

Analysis of Tim O'Brien's short story "The Things They Carried".

Every fictional story needs some basic things to make it good. Learn how to fulfill those needs so that readers will be entranced by your fiction writing.

Fiction tells lies in order to get at the truth. This essay examines eight short stories by both American and international masters of the form in order to see how they approach the truth and its function in our personal, political and societal lives.

Many writers think that they can break into the fiction writing market by writing short stories either for contests or for publication. While this might have been true at one time, it is seldom the case today. Read on for the truth about the short story market.

The short story is NOT dead; this article provides you with the two key ingredients needed to write a great short story.

An analytical comparison of the element of ambiguity in Hemingway's Hills Like White Elephants and Hawthorne's Young Goodman Brown.

Every fan of horror or science fiction knows the name of Richard Matheson, from scripts for Vincent Price movies such as House of Usher, his own The Incredible Shrinking Man, to the classic vampire tale I Am Legend. Together now are his 86 short stories.

Short stories are much different from novels, and setting the mood must be done much more quickly. In this article I explain how you can use description, dialogue, and action to effectively establish the mood of a short story.

Starting a short story is often the most difficult part because it is in the first few paragraphs that you establish the tone, pace and mood of the entire work. Starting your short story is a crucial point and should be handled with care.

A step-by-step to submitting short stories to online magazines

Editing is every writer's least favorite task because it means clipping and pruning those sentences you worked so hard to formulate. Editing a short story is sometimes even harder than editing articles because writers are usually more attached to fiction work.

This collection of short stories introduces new tales in a style of Black British writing that takes readers from the West Side Stories as featured in Newland's debut novel, The Scholar.

Most writers would assert that the qualifications of a well-written short story are limited to length, but they would be wrong. There are several other important factors to writing a well-written short story.

A Short-Story Primer on Communications in Criminal Justice

For the purposes of this essay, I am going to cite and explain a thematic ambiguity that is present in two short stories written by William Faulkner: "A Rose for Emily" and "Barn Burning."

Ten short stories are dissected to reveal the way in which, as Poe stated in his essay "Hawthorne's 'Twice Told Tales,'" the short story affects a continuity of design, uniting effect or impression as a whole in its construction.

Do you believe in the unexplained? Maybe you will, after you read this short story with a strange ending.

Diaz's stylistic choices examine the plight of Dominicans in the United States in his short story collection Down.

Writing a fiction short story or novel takes a lot of different skills. However, there are three main plot elements that are absolute necessities when writing fiction. Learn what they are and why you need them here.

This is a piece of short fiction that imagines what would happen if parachuting Elvis impersonators went high-tech and gained jet propulsion.

A short story about a woman and her struggle to silence the voices in her mind that ask her to do the unthinkable.

The short story, as a writing design, is as old as the written word. Though briefer than a novel, it requires the same kind of planning and attention to detail that any good writing demands.

This award winning speculative fiction novelist already has a legion of fans, but C.J. Cherryh's woefully underrated short fiction is sure to win over a few more.

This article highlights the important challenges found in any piece of short fiction. It includes info on how to become successful in this dynamic field of writing.

Learn from the professionals. It's very simple advice, but rarely taken by the short story writer who could benefit first by reading the work of his or her peers.

Finding the right market to submit your short story to requires several kinds of research. To increase your chances of being accepted and published, you must submit to the right short story market.

One of the best ways to get attention with your short fiction is to enter contests. And if you win, you can earn some money in a genre that doesn't often pay.

The first person short story is popular today. This article explains why literary short fiction pays the most, and what can be done with the first person short story.

Article on the many places to find science fiction texts in free, legal electronic forms.

Although some adult magazines do accept short story submissions from freelancers, it is much easier to sell short stories to children's magazines. If you have a love for children and if you can write an entertaining story, this might be a great market for you.

What are all the elements that make up a short story? I'll show you the key points.

The literary world favors a novel. Many editors will not even consider short story collections. For authors in love with the short story, though, there is hope.

An analysis of how Katherine Mansfield employed Modernist techniques in her approach to writing short stories.

I personally believe that writing short stories is more difficult than writing novels. The reason is there is less room to work, less space to accomplish what any good story, short or long, needs to accomplish. Here are some tips on how to write short stories.

Tod Goldberg's collection of short stories "Simplify" is excellent. He is a name to watch and this collection should be read.

See if you can guess the movies from the titles of the short stories.

How to write a short story in a fun and creative way. Examines the kitschyness of writing short stories and what is necessary to have while writing a story.

Flannery O'Connor and Joyce Carol Oates used similar styles and techniques in their respective short stories, "A Good Man is Hard to Find" and "Where are You Going, Where Have You Been?"

As a writer my main focus is short stories that I publish on the internet. There are many times when I get an amazing story idea and hope that it will blossom into more than an idea.

Shirley Jackson's short story, "The Lottery", aroused much controversy and criticism in 1948, following its debut publication, in the New Yorker. Jackson uses irony and comedy to suggest an underlying evil, hypocrisy, and weakness of human kind.

It's difficult to really categorize any truly great piece of literature or art. There's an extremely faint line dividing the genres of Science Fiction, Fantasy, and the Metaphysical.

The short story character can be defined using a few traits, which you later use to refer back to them. Research your characters, stick to simple speech patterns, and make sure the characters are thinkning in line with their beliefs.

In this collection of short stories written in the 60s, author Joan Didion brings together a collaboration of short stories that showed some of the aspects of the 60s, family life and her personal feelings towards writing in one novel.

An essay that look at the use of character and metaphor to describe a moral universe in Hurston's short story "Sweat."

Science fiction stories generally take what we understand about reality and the universe thus far, project it into the future, and then explore the possible consequences of what we already have - or may yet - set into motion.

Some simple things you can do to make your dialogue flow smoothly when writing short stories.

Truth is a core element in any good fiction writing. Monica Wood handles her truth with talent and intelligence in all of her published work.

Glimmer Train is one of the better markets for up-and-coming short fiction writers. The editors have put together a compellation of interviews on the subject of writing along with a few essays.

Strange Horizons is dedicated to offering readers unique and inventive science fiction and fantasy. It also pays generous rates to writers and illustrators.

Character sheets are not only good for role-playing games. Fiction writers can use them too. They can help you turn your flat, boring character into a completely real person.

Remember Greg the Bunny from his Fox sitcom a few years back? He's reemerged from hibernation and now appears in new short films on IFC, resulting in this new DVD compilation.

Short films aren't very popular. However, Rocketboy is a short film that everyone should see.

When writing short stories, focus is the key. There is not a lot of room for excessive detail. The basic of the short story is that there is a beginning, middle, and an end. So, how do you create your plot from this short focus?

Some times we need to jazz up our short fiction to give it new life - here I will share a few tips on how I accomplish this in my own writing.

Akira Kurosawa's classic Rashamon is loosely based on two short stories by Ryuonsuke Akutagawa. There are naturally differences in the film and the stories since a film is an interpretation of an individual (in this case Akira Kurosawa ).

Many groups and societies award works of Science Fiction and Fantasy. Whether you're looking for a good read, or looking to get some recognition for your own work, these awards are worth checking out!

editorial on Christian Science Fiction

Tips for fiction writers regarding short story creation.

By demonstrating the desire for connection, a short story satisfies an internal human urge to be understood and connected with someone or something else.

Reader review of horror author Stefan Bourque's short story, "Drain."

Getting your short story accepted in a magazine is a thrill in itself. It is hard to do and takes a lot of dedication, research, and time. When you finally do get your story accepted, it is clear you have a winner.

While writing for the hit television shows Star Trek: The Next Generation & Deep Space Nine, I formulated helpful writing strategies. Let me share them with you to help your own science fiction writing.

If you're like me, story ideas come to you in the middle of a long dinner with your family and while you're driving down the road. Inspiration can strike during a meeting or while you're working out on a treadmill.

Science fiction's a fluid genre that changes with the course of time. It's a literary voice that evolves with a generation, the genre borne out of wonderment, out of curiosity, to satisfy the age-old question of "What if?"

The first science fiction film was created in 1902 and ran 14 minutes. Have you seen it?

A brief guide to creating such technically awful science fiction that it becomes a million-seller.

Science Fiction slowly transforms into science fact that impacts our lives

Any fan of science fiction, movies in general, or space exploration will find something interesting in the Science Fiction Museum and Hall of Fame.

Science Fiction and Fantasy is a genre on the rise throughout Christian Fiction. For a very long time, Sci Fi and Fantasy novels were often passed over or not well marketed because publishers in the CBA...

Antimatter is one of the mainstays of science fiction. There are very few self respecting star ships on TV or in the movies that do not power their warp drives with antimatter fuel.

To get your kids writing, why not tap into their enjoyment of science fiction? From appreciating Harry Potter to loving Buzz Light-year, kids gravitate towards writing based on magic, space ships, aliens, and fantasy elements.

2006 marks the 50th anniversary of several classic science fiction movies, and summer weekends are the ideal time to watch these movies, with a bucket of popcorn and a suspension of disbelief. These movies paved the way for the classic TV shows of today.

As a literary geek working staff for the 10th time, I offer my view of what went on this year at the largest Science Fiction convention in America, plus some hints for those who may attend next year.

Though Stephen King is notorious for writing huge novels, some of his best stories are the short ones. MUTE is his newest short story, recently published in the December edition of Playboy Magazine.

Maybe a nonreligious person would never enter a church to find God, but through powerful spiritual fiction, many an agnostic has come to faith by reading a powerful spiritual short story or novel.

Creole Society influenced much of the writing of Chopin, from characters to plot lines to setting. This is an in-depth essay examining how

Perhaps one of the greatest American Romantics is Nathaniel Hawthorne. Revered for his use of allegory and symbol, Hawthorne is known for his ability to intertwine religion and nature with the supernatural.

There is something in writing, the process or the idea, that brings about a joy. It is not always joy, but the best moments are filled with it. This article tells you why.