Seven Fast Fiction Tips

SEVEN FAST FICTION TIPS  

(Archived by Writer's Digest on 12-26-2003)

 

From short-short stories to children's writing, here are some quick tips on fiction writing from the February 2001 issue of Writer's Digest:

"A short-short must remain simple, from conception through execution. Not simplistic, but simple. The key is to find a good port of entry by determining the point of the story in advance."

   -Geoff Fuller & Pamelyn Casto

"The second-draft outline is your plan for sorting through the mess. Without one, you're just grabbing anything that looks useful--here's a setting that almost works, there's a subplot that just needs a little polishing."

   -William Hutchinson

"One chance. That's all kids will give you before they toss your book aside. If the first sentence doesn't grab them, you're in trouble. If you haven't hooked readers by the end of the first page, you're about as good as last year's video game."

   -Marcia T. Jones & Debbie Dadey

"How your characters talk is just as important as what they actually say. In fact, good dialogue can be defined as the right speech content expressed in the right words. And good dialogue can do as much to create strong characterization as can description and exposition put together."

   -Nancy Kress

"Because I identified too closely with my characters to put them through these and other painful situations, I wrote a book that will never sell unless I completely rewrite it. Tiptoeing away from the emotional punch of a story makes it bland and superficial."

   -Joan Mazza

"Curiosity might kill a cat, but it's just the thing when it comes to getting a child to read. Kids are naturally curious about their world. Tap into that curiously by using dramatic statements that are sure to grab their attention."

   -Marcia T. Jones & Debbie Dadey

"While many short-shorts rely on a sudden shock at the end-the victim turns out to be the aggressor, the man turns out to be a woman-the most enduring manage not merely to surprise us, but also to transcend their few words. They compound meaning by linking the surface to layers that exist above, behind and beneath them."

   -Geoff Fuller & Pamelyn Casto