Short Story Writing Discussed by HG Nadel
- By Cedric Hitchens
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- 13 Oct, 2017
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Short story writing is an art which is very similar to writing funny news headlines. Don't think so? "For sale: baby shoes, never worn." This story, written by Ernest Hemingway is considered to be the shortest story in the world. Though the theme of this story is a tragedy, it is very similar to the headlines we see in newspapers every day. One such example: "One-armed man applauds the kindness of strangers".
As a form of literature, short story writing has existed for hundreds of years. Fairy tales and Aesop's Fables have been famous for centuries and continue to be read even today. Stories and anecdotes were born in the oral medium and gradually spread throughout the world in written form. However, it was only in the 19th century that the form of short story writing was recognized as a separate genre of writing. Although novels were more popular at the time, some authors understood that the format of the novel cannot be used for shorter stories, which had a simpler yet coherent plot, fewer characters, and no subplots. Although the word count is by definition limited to 7000 to 9000 words, a short story also differs from a novel or a novella in that there is a simple plot, which flows through the story and a very tight and taut narrative technique which avoids unnecessary details.
The format remains faithful to the structural rules of traditional drama. The structure is supposed to have the following components: introduction (of characters, setting, and the scene), a central conflict, rising action (the conflict, along with other secondary hurdles to create the tension in the protagonist's journey towards his goal), crisis (the moment of truth), climax (a final showdown involving the protagonist and the antagonist), and the resolution.
These days, the word count defines the genre of writing more than the structure. The challenge of writing the shortest story made writers conscious about their word count. This resulted in a genre known as Flash Fiction or Micro Fiction, which is a very brief story. It contains several sub-genres such as 55 Fiction (55 words), Drabble (100 words), and the 69er (69 words), which are based purely on word count. Such stories are a form of the short story, but not generally considered the typical. A variety of writing styles and narrative structures have been invented in short stories.
Short story writing contains a wide spectrum. It is up to each short story writer to choose their own form, genre, and style. By sampling the various possibilities, short story writers will be better prepared to make an informed decision.
HG Nadel is an American producer born in France. She is a screenplay and script writer, self published author. Nadel is known as the author of "Eternal" love story. She has worked as a SAG/AFTRA agent but she step-up in her professional career and start writing.
As a form of literature, short story writing has existed for hundreds of years. Fairy tales and Aesop's Fables have been famous for centuries and continue to be read even today. Stories and anecdotes were born in the oral medium and gradually spread throughout the world in written form. However, it was only in the 19th century that the form of short story writing was recognized as a separate genre of writing. Although novels were more popular at the time, some authors understood that the format of the novel cannot be used for shorter stories, which had a simpler yet coherent plot, fewer characters, and no subplots. Although the word count is by definition limited to 7000 to 9000 words, a short story also differs from a novel or a novella in that there is a simple plot, which flows through the story and a very tight and taut narrative technique which avoids unnecessary details.
The format remains faithful to the structural rules of traditional drama. The structure is supposed to have the following components: introduction (of characters, setting, and the scene), a central conflict, rising action (the conflict, along with other secondary hurdles to create the tension in the protagonist's journey towards his goal), crisis (the moment of truth), climax (a final showdown involving the protagonist and the antagonist), and the resolution.
These days, the word count defines the genre of writing more than the structure. The challenge of writing the shortest story made writers conscious about their word count. This resulted in a genre known as Flash Fiction or Micro Fiction, which is a very brief story. It contains several sub-genres such as 55 Fiction (55 words), Drabble (100 words), and the 69er (69 words), which are based purely on word count. Such stories are a form of the short story, but not generally considered the typical. A variety of writing styles and narrative structures have been invented in short stories.
Short story writing contains a wide spectrum. It is up to each short story writer to choose their own form, genre, and style. By sampling the various possibilities, short story writers will be better prepared to make an informed decision.
HG Nadel is an American producer born in France. She is a screenplay and script writer, self published author. Nadel is known as the author of "Eternal" love story. She has worked as a SAG/AFTRA agent but she step-up in her professional career and start writing.
