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AllWriteFictionAdvice:December2012

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ALLWRITEFICTIONADVICE
A D V I CEONCR EA TI V EWR I TI NG

S UNDA Y, 2 3 DE CE MBE R 2 0 1 2

GivingYourWritingEmotionalImpact
Elicitingemotionalresponsesfromyourreadersisntas
easyasitsounds,becausetherightemotivereaction
fromthemiswhatmakesnovelsandstoriesso
appealing.
Buttogetthatkindofresponse,thewritingneedstobe
emotional,itneedstobearousingormovingetcwithout
beingschmaltzytothepointwhereyourreadermightgag
onthesyrupy,soapstylesweetnessofitall.Conversely,
youdontwantthewritingtolackthatimportantemotional
puncheither.Littleornoemotioninthenarrativewill
producearatherboring,flatread.
Emotionwithinthestorycreatesasenseofimmediacy
withthereader,auniqueclosenessthatmakesthe
readerempathise,understandandcareaboutthe
characters.
Howtocreateemotion
Firstly,youneedacharacterthatthereaderwillidentify
with,onethatisfullyrealisedandrounded,onethatthe
readerwillrecogniseandcareaboutfromtheoutset.If
youhaveareaderthatdoesthat,thenitwillbemuch
easiertoelicitemotionalresponsesfromthem.
Andafullyroundedcharacterismucheasiertoworkwith
becausethecharacterandthereaderwillsharethose
emotionalresponsesandsentiments.
http://allwritefictionadvice.blogspot.in/2012_12_01_archive.html

A LL WR IT E FICT ION
A DVICE

IsBackstoryNecessary?
CreatingLastingImages
TrustYourMemories
ReadingYourMSSOutLoud
SortingFactfromFiction

WE LCOME T O A LL WR IT E

Soyou'veembarkedonyour
fictionwritingjourney.
It'soneofthehardestthingsto
docreateawhole,believable
worldforotherpeopletoenjoy,
especiallyifyou'renewto
writing.It'salsooneofthe
loneliestjobs,especiallywhen
thereisnohelporadviceor
support...sorightheretherewill
behandyarticles,examplesand
simplestepbystepguidesto
helpmakethecreativeprocess
thatmucheasier.

FE BR UA R Y FE MME S
FA T A LE S

Thisnewdeliciouslydark
anthologyisoutnow,witha
rangeofstunningfemalewriters
toscareanddelightinequal
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AllWriteFictionAdvice:December2012

Secondly,thequalityofwritingreallydoescount.Ifthe
writingisntstrongenough,thenthenarrativewontbe
strongenougheitheranditwillthereforelackthat
emotionalpunch.Foremotion,thewritermustalways
usetherightexpositioninotherwordsshow,donttell.
Thisissoimportant.Showingstrengthensastory.
Tellingweakensit.
Ifawriterresortstotellinghisorherwaythrougha
scene,thentherewillbezeroimmediacy,zero
connectionwiththesceneandthereforezeroemotion.
Thirdly,ifyouwanttocreatevariedemotionalimpacts,
yourcharactersneedtofaceadversityanddanger,they
needtofaceseeminglyimpossibleobstacles,orthey
shouldgothroughphysicalandemotionaltrauma,
becausewhatevertheygothrough,thereaderalsogoes
throughitwiththem.
Theactofovercomingthoseobstacles,andfacingthose
traumasandtheadversity,createsdifferentemotions
thrills,sadness,excitement,sympathy,dislikeetc.And
thesituationswithinthestorymakeforpowerful
emotionalmoments,thekindthatthereaderremembers
thekindthatsatisfiesthereadersneedforanemotional
connectiontothestory.Loveandjoy,death,painand
loss,deceptionanddishonesty,thrillsandfeartheyall
thriveonemotion.
Thebestwaytoillustratethisconceptistothinkofsoap
operastheyalwayshaveemotivestorylines,andwe
becomeinvolvedwithourfavouritecharacterstrialsand
tribulations,andthatsbecausewecareaboutwhat
happenstothem,wehaveaconnection,thereis
immediacy.
Aswritersweshouldalwaysexploitthosemoments,for
example,whatifyourmaincharacterdiscoversasecret
letterthathintsatbetrayal?Orthemaincharacters
wife/husband/son/daughteretc.iskilledinanaccident,
orthemaincharacterisinsuchadiresituationheorshe
hastomakeaterribledecisionthatwillaffectthemforthe
restoftheirlives?
Alltheseareverysimpleexamples,butwrittenwell,they
willdrawoutamultitudeofemotionstobuildaroundthe
narrative.Andofcourse,therecouldbemanyofthese
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measure.Iamprivilegedto
haveeightshortstories/poems
publishedinthisbook,soifyou
likeyourdamesalittledarkand
dangerous,thisisthebookfor
you.

NOW A VA ILA BLE ON

A MA Z ON

FebruaryFemmesFatalesThe
Book

WIS E WOR DS ...

Writingislikebeingmarried
youhavetoworkhardat
maintaininghappinessand
equilibrium,butinvariablyone
alwaysendsupinthedog
house.

A BOUT ME
A J HUM PA GE
UNIT E DK INGDO M

I'vebeenwritingfor
over25yearsand
startedoutinthe
publishingindustry.I've
publishedarticles,studyguides,
poems,flashfiction,short
storiesandanovel.Ialsowork
fulltimesoI'mALWAYS
working.
V IEW MY CO MPL ETE PR O F IL E

BLOOD OF T HE FA T HE R

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AllWriteFictionAdvice:December2012

scenesetupswithinthenoveltokeepthereaders
emotionsonaknifeedge.
Andofcourse,nostoryhasemotionwithoutthatstapleof
allstoriesconflict,especiallywhenyouhavecharacters
youloveandcharactersyouhate(thedynamicof
protagonistandantagonist).Conflictcreatesanendless
listofemotions.
Thestorythemesmightalsocreateemotion,whatever
thegenre.Somethemesinparticularareveryemotive
war,loveorbetrayal,forinstance.
Andnowritercanwritewithoutlookinginward.Themost
painfulofmemories,thejoyousones,thescaryones,the
thrillingonesourownbankofrecollectionscanprovide
thecatalystofemotiontoourwriting,andsometimesit
makesiteasiertowrite,becausewehaveexperienced
them.Andbecausewehaveexperiencedthem,wecan
alsosharethem.

NowavailableonAmazonKindle
UKandUS

BLOOD A ND GUT S
A NT HOLOGY

Writingisaboutexploringhumannature.Weresocial,
emotionalcreatures,andthingsmakeusirritated,or
angry,thingsmakesuscry,somethingshurtus,some
makesuslaugh,somefilluswithhappiness,somethings
scareus.Everydayweexperiencethem.
Thefictionalworldisnodifferent.

Creatingemotionwithinthenarrative:

YOUASCAREDYCAT?Now
availableatAmazon

Excellentcharacterisationisessentialcreate

immediacyandaconnectiontothereader.
Show,donttell.
Emotivethemesmakeforemotionalwriting.
Conflict&overcomingobstaclesprovidesemotion.
Qualityofwritingcounts.
Lookinwardforownexperiences.

FE BR UA R Y FE MME S
FA T A LE S S T OR IE S

Thankstoeverybodyforstoppingbythroughoutthe
yeartoreadsomeofthearticlesandhopefully
becomebetterwriters.

MerryChristmasandHappyNewYeartoeveryone.

AllWritewillreturnintheNewYear.
PO S TED B Y A J H UMPA G E A T S UN D A Y, D ECEMB ER 23, 2012

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S A T UR DA Y, 1 5 DE CE MBE R 2 0 1 2

TwistintheTaleStories
Continuingthethemeofconstructingshortstories,
oneofthemostpopularstylesofshortstorytelling
isthetwistinthetale,especiallywithinspeculative
fictionandhorrorgenres.
Notallstorieshavetohaveasurpriseorstingat
theendmoststoriesdontneedit,butthething
aboutthetwististhatifdonecorrectly,itmakesfor
agreatstoryhencetheyenjoyedbyreaders.It
alsorepresentsawritersabilityconstructthestory
inquiteacleverway.

VisittheFeardomclickthepic

Thepremiseofthetwistinthetalestoryisvery
simplethewriterdeliberatelymisleadsthereader
duringthenarrative,leadingthereadertobelieve
theymightexpectacertainending,onlythentobe
wrongfootedatthelastpossiblemomenttoa
shockingorsurprisingconclusion,onetheynever
sawcoming.

S T YLIS H BLOGGE R A WA R D

Itsoundseasy,butthesetypesofstoriesare
anythingbut.Andthatsbecausethetwistthat
momentyoupulltherugfrombeneaththereader
happensonlyonceanditmusthappenatexactly
therightmomenttohavethegreatesteffect.
ItsAllAboutDeceit
Itstheonetimethewritersetsouttotrickthe
reader.Andtheonesthatworkthebestarethe
onesthatfoolthereaderthroughoutthestory.At
nopointshouldthereaderdiscoverthepretenceor
deceit,despitethesubtleclues.Thisiswherea
cleverwriterexcels.
Intruth,thewriteriscreatinganillusionwithinthe
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2015(8)
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December(4)
GivingYourWriting
EmotionalImpact
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GettingtoGripswithShort
StoriesPart3
GettingtoGripswithShort
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narrativetofoolthereader.
WheretoStart?

StoriesPart2
November(4)
October(4)

Foronce,withthistypeofstory,startattheend.In
otherwords,havesomesortofendinginmind,
evenifitisroughlysketchedout,andthenwork
backwardstofillintherestofthestory.
Becausethesestoriesneedtobemeticulously
constructed,Iwouldadvisesomeplanningatleast,
sothatyouhaveanideaofyourbeginningand
yourmiddlesection,too,andnotjustthatall
importantending.
Itsoundscrazytoworkbackwards,butthatshow
twistsneedtobeconstructed.
Forexample,inashortstoryIwroteforthe
anthologyObsession(StaticMovement,2011)
calledWatched,thecentralcharacterisshownas
anobsessivewholivesinanapartmentoppositea
provocative,flirtywoman.Themaincharacterhas
beenwatchingherforsometime,andthestoryis
toldthroughfirstpersonPOVforimmediacy.
Thecluesinthenarrativeleadthereaderto
believethewomanisaprostitute,andsheinvites
themanintoherapartmentforagoodtime,
knowinghesbeensurreptitiouslywatchingher
fromacrossthestreet.Sheisshownplayingupto
himandleadinghimonafterall,itsjustajobto
her,itpaysthebills,eventhoughheisnotquite
hertype.Andhesshownenjoyingherflirtations,
andwantingtogetintimatewithher,justlikeany
redbloodedmalewould.

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T WIT T E R

YoucanfindmeonTwitter:@AJ
Humpage

FOLLOWE R S

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withGoogleFriendConnect

Members(266) More

Alreadyamember?Signin

Sheundressesandrunsabathforthemtoshare
somefun,andtellshervisitortoleavethemoney
paymentforherservicesonatable.
Buttherisingtensioninthestoryiswhatthe
mysteriouswatcherwantswiththiswoman,and
whathesubsequentlydoestoherinthebath,and
itsnotuntilthefinalmomentofthestory,whenthe
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AllWriteFictionAdvice:December2012

maincharacterlooksinthemirror,thatthetwistis
finallyrevealedtheattackerisntaman.
Itsawoman.
Thestoryisaboutsexandobsession,anditfools
thereaderintobelievingthemaincharacterisa
manwithoutactuallyrevealingthis,oreventhe
charactersnamethereforeitmisleadsthereader
toenvisageanendinganddupesthemattheend
becausetheydontexpectthecold,obsessivekiller
tobeawoman.
Areallifeeventinspiredthestory.Itsconstruction
startedwiththemaincharacterfemalerather
thanmaleexpressingbehavioursmore
associatedwithmales,soIknewthefinalreveal
wouldprovideaneffectivesting.FromthatIhad
anideahowthestorywouldend.AndbecauseId
seensomethingthathadsparkedthestorytobegin
with,Ialsohadabeginning.
SoIthenhadtoworkbackwardsfromtheending
toinfillthedetailsandconstructthewholestory
inotherwordsIhadtoconstructthemiddle
section,whichcontainedtheactionandtension
andthecluesetc.
LeadaMerryDance
Youhaveabeginning,youhavethetwistending,
andyouvegotyourmiddlesectionsketchedout.
Thismiddlesectioniswhere,proverbially,youlead
yourreaderonamerrydance.Thismeansyou
havetoguidethemintotheillusioninordertofool
themattheend.

MOS T POPULA R A R T ICLE S

Chapter&NovelLengths
Justhowlongshouldachapterbe?
Whatsthebestlength?And
doesanovelhavetofitintoa
setamountofwords?Theseare
justtwoo...
Flashbacks
Whatisaflashback?Flashbackis
oneofthoseusefultoolsthata
writercanusetoenhancea
story.Itenrichesand,ina
sense,nourish...
Subplots
Imoftenaskedbynewwriters
howsubplotsshouldevolve.
Somewritersfindsubplots
difficulttogettogripswhile
othersareputofftry...

WOR K S OF A J HUMPA GE

http://ajhumpage.blogspot.com
ThrillersChillers'n'Killers

SHA R E IT

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T R A NSLA T E

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Todothisyouhavetoplantsubtlecluesandhints
withinthenarrative,andnotmakethemsoobvious
thatthereaderwillguesstheoutcome.

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S E A R CH T HIS BLOG

Forinstance,withWatched,themanyclueswere
delicateandindirect:
Sheloosenedthebeltonherbathrobe,gazedat
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AllWriteFictionAdvice:December2012

mytallshadow.YourenotwhatIexpected.
Thatswhattheyallsay.Ishookmyheadslow,
deliberate,intuitive.No,IguessImnot.
Itdoesntgiveanythingaway,buttheclueisthere.
Theguestisntwhatthewomanexpected,because
theguestisawoman,notaman.

PA GE VIE WS LA S T MONT H

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Thisishowhintsandcluesshouldbe.
GOOGLE + BA DGE

TheFinalReveal
Thisisthemomentthewriteryanksawaythe
fictionalrugfromthereader.Ithastoberightat
theendofthestoryinordertoaffectthegreatest
impact.Revealtooearlyandtheeffectofsurprise
orshockislost.
Ifyoumakethefinalreveal,andthengoonfor
anotherhalfapageofnarrative,againtheeffectis
completelylost.Thefinalrevealshouldsignalthe
endofthestory.

AJ Humpage
Author and artist

Follow

Summary:
Workbackwardsfromtheending.
Plantsubtlecluesandhintsdelicateand
indirect.
Therevealmusthappenattherightmoment
formaximumeffect.
Happensonlyonce
Nextweek:Givingyourwritingemotionalimpact.

PO S TED B Y A J H UMPA G E A T S A TUR D A Y, D ECEMB ER 15, 2012

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GettingtoGripswithShortStoriesPart3
StructureTheending
Endingsarejustasimportantastheopeningsofstories.
Thatsbecausetheendingofastoryperformsmorethan
onefunction.
Agoodendingiswhenthecruxofthestoryreachesits
pinnaclethatfinalmomentbeforetheclimax.Everything
inthestoryleadsuptothismoment.
Moreimportantly,theendingofastoryisformedfromthe
naturalprogressionofthenarrative.Youshouldnever
forceanending,otherwiseyouruntheriskofdemolishing
thefabricofthestoryandthusruiningitforthereader,
butalsobecausetheywillseethatitiscontrivedand
forced.
Aswithnovels,shortstoriesdonthavetohaveahappy
ending.Dependingonthetypeofstoryyouarewriting,
youcanhaveadramaticending,asadending,ahappy
ending,oryoucanhavethetwistinthetailtypeofending
(theseneedcarefulconsiderationandconstructionin
ordertoworkmoreonthatnextweek).
Butwhateverthegenre,theendingneedstobenatural
andsatisfactory.Butwhatexactlydoesthatmean?
Inessence,theendingshouldleavethereadersatiated,
thatonthewhole,theyagreewiththefinaloutcome
youveconstructed,thattheyhaveasenseofohthat
wasgreat,orIdidntseethatcomingorthatwasso
movingetc.
Inordertoachieveanaturalandsatisfactoryconclusion,
firstlythelatterhalfofthestoryshouldtotieupanyloose
endspriortoitsfinale(e.g.dontleavethereader
guessingwhathappenedtoJohnDoe,lastseendangling
fromacliffinthemiddleofthestory,butthencompletely
forgottenattheend).Thisdoeshappenwithstory
construction,wherewritersbecomesoengrossedin
writingitthattheysometimesforgetwhatsome
charactersweredoing,soitsimportantthatthese
glitchesaresorted.
Inadditiontothat,anyquestionsraisedbythestoryneed
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AllWriteFictionAdvice:December2012

tobeanswered,sodontleavethemunanswered,
otherwisethereaderwillbecomeannoyedandfrustrated.
Somethingelsetoconsideristhis:whyisyourcharacter
doingwhatheorsheisdoing?remembermotivation
andhowhavetheyovercomethebarriersintheirway?
Howhavetheygottothishighpointinthestory?Whatis
thelikelyconclusion?
Theendingevolvesthroughthemaincharacter
achievinghisorhergoal.Theyhaveovercomeall
obstaclestogettotheclimax(whetheritsagood,bad,
sadoranindifferentending).
TheClimax
Thisissometimesmisunderstoodbywriters,whoassume
theymusthavelotsofactionandexcitementtofinishthe
story,butactually,ashortstoryisntlikeanoveloran
actionmovie.Itdoesnthavetobeaboutexplosionsand
mayhemandnonstopaction.Ashortstoryendingcan
besubtleorgentleitcanbethoughtprovokingoritmight
evenshockingandabrupt.
Inotherwords,itshowthewriterconstructstheending
thatgivesitthegreatestimpact.
Andofcourse,itshouldneverdragon.Theending
shouldbeswiftformaximumeffect.
Inessence,theconclusionofyourshortstoryneedsto
achieveseveralthings:
1.Itneedstoprovideasatisfactoryending.
2.Itneedstoanswerquestionsposedinthenarrative.
3.Theprotagonist/antagonistachieveshis/hergoal.
4.Itisanaturalprogressionofthestoryandisntforced.
5.Itisswiftandeffective.
Andjusttomakesurecertainelementsarenotforgotten,
asimplechecklisthelpswithconstruction.
Shortstorychecklist:
Haveyouplannedthestory?
Whosestoryisit?
Whatisitabout?
Whatisittryingtosay?Whatisthetheme?
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Whatkindofactionisthere?
Isthereavariedpace?
Doyouhaveatleastoneofthethreeunities?
Isthereconflict?
Whatisthecharactersmotivationforhisorher
actionsandsubsequentactions?
Istheendingsatisfactory?
Doesitflownaturally?
Istheendingswiftandeffective?
Themostimportantthing,however,istotakethetimeto
thinkandplanthestory,toaskquestions,toknowthe
storyyouwanttotell.Itsbettertoknowwhereyouwant
toplacekeyscenes,toknowwhatwillhappentothe
maincharacterandtoknowthekindofconclusionthe
storyneedsbeforeyoustartwriting.

Nextweek:Howtowritetwistinthetalestories
PO S TED B Y A J H UMPA G E A T S UN D A Y, D ECEMB ER 09, 2012
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GettingtoGripswithShortStoriesPart2
Withyouropeningandyourhookinplace,your
charactersintroduced,andthetoneandcruxofthestory
set,itstimetolookatthemiddlesectionoftheshort
storystructure.Thissectioniswherethebulkofthestory
takesplace,whereconflictarisesandpacingplaysavital
role,andwherekeysceneshappen.
StructureTheMiddle
Onthewhole,themainportionofactionhappensinthis
section.Andjustasyouwouldconstructnarrative,
descriptionanddialogueinanovel,thesameistruefor
shortstories,whereabalanceofthesethreeelementsis
crucialtotheshortstorycomposition.
Dontbefooledintothinkingthatjustbecauseitsashort
storythatyouhavetoscrimpondescriptionandreplaceit
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AllWriteFictionAdvice:December2012

withlotsofdialogue,orreplaceanydialoguewith
constantaction.Youdont.Youneedbothina
balanced,equalmeasure.
SetouttheCharactersMotivation
Thissectioniswhereyoushowthereaderthemotivation
forthemaincharactersactionsinthestory.Inother
words,showtheproblemyoucharacterfaces,andhow
thecharacterwillovercomethatproblem,despitethe
manybarriersinhisorherway.
Themotivationiswhatdrivesthestorytheveryreason
foryourcharactersactions,reactionsandsubsequent
actions.Thisisthesectionwherethewritersposesthe
whatif?andwhatnext?kindofquestionsforthe
reader.
Withoutmotivation,thecharacterhasnowheretogoand
nothingtodo,andthereforetheresnostory.
Conflict
Itspartofeverystory.Youmusthavesomesortof
conflicthappeningbetweenyourcharacters,orthe
charactersandtheirenvironsorwiththemselves,
becauseconflictisthecatalysttoprovidingthereader
withtensionandatmosphere.Withoutit,thereisno
story.
ThinkofyourfavouriteTVdramasthereisalways
conflictofsomedescriptiontomaintaintheviewers
interestandthatsenseofwhatwillhappennext?
Conflictpromotestensioninmanyways,whileadded
descriptionwithinthenarrativebolsterstheatmosphere.
TheThreeUnities
Ivetouchedontheseinpreviousarticles,buttheseare
specificallyimportanttoshortstoriesbecauseyouare
workingwithalimitedamountofwords,sotheseunities
providethereaderwithwhattheyneedtoknowinterms
oftime,placeandaction.
UnityofTimeShortstoriestendtotakeplaceovera
shortperiodoftime,asopposedtonovelsthatcancover
days,monthsorevendecades.Thetimeframetells
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AllWriteFictionAdvice:December2012

readerwhenthestoryishappening.
UnityofPlaceThistellsthereaderwherethestoryis
takingplace.Unlikenovels,wheretheremaybea
multitudeofplacesettings,ashortstoryusuallyhasjust
oneplacewherealltheactiontakesplace.
UnityofActionThistellsthereaderwhosestoryitis
sothestoryistoldfromoneviewpointthroughout.(Itisof
coursequiteacceptabletohaveseveralviewpointsina
shortstory,howevertheyshouldbecarefullyconsidered
beforestartingthestory).
Theresnogoldenrulethatsaysyouhavetohaveall
threeunities,howeverhavingmorethanonehelpsmake
thestorystronger,soaimtohaveatleasttwo.
Varythepace
Peaksandtroughsthatsthebestwaytodescribewhat
youshouldbeaimingforinthenarrative.Smallboutsof
action/tensionbalancedwithgentler/softermomentsso
thatthepaceisbalanced.
Ifnothinghappensinthestory,thepacewillbestatic,
anditslikelyyouwillboreyourreader.Ifthenarrative
racesalongatbreakneckspeedwithoutapause,thistoo
willputthereaderoff.Therewillbemomentswhenyou
wantthereadertoslowdownandreflecteveninshort
storiessoalwayslookforbalancewhenpacingthe
story.
AimingfortheCrescendo
Themiddleisalsothesectionwhereyoubuildthe
momentumofthestoryasitheadstowardsits
conclusion.Thecharacterovercomesthebarriersyou
placeintheway,andtheclimaxapproaches.

Itdoesnthavetobeactionallthewaywhichsome
writerswronglyassumetheyhavetoprovidebut
insteaditcanbeagradualbuildupoftensionor
atmospherethatleadstowardsacrescendo.
Nextweek:GettingtogripswithshortstoriesPart3
Endings
PO S TED B Y A J H UMPA G E A T S UN D A Y, D ECEMB ER 02, 2012

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