10 Interesting Short Stories That Could Change the Way You Think (2023)

FAQs

Where can I find interesting short stories? ›

What Makes A Good Short Story? The four elements necessary for your story structure are character, plot, setting, and tension. Balancing these elements is the first step to making your creative writing amazing.

While there are many different short story styles, here we will consider three popular short story types: lyrical, flash fiction, and vignette.

Write about a time when your friends made you feel betrayed for the first time. Write about a journey to discover what happens when you reach the bottom of a waterfall. Write about the lives of two hamsters as they squeeze out of their cage. Write a story from the perspective of yourself as a 3-year-old.

What are modern short stories? ›

Modern Short Stories is a Pittsburgh-based "media label" founded by Steve Soboslai and Chris Fafalios of the Pittsburgh pop punk band Punchline and friend Amanda Yu. Its slogan is "Every song is a modern short story."

True life stories are relatable

True life stories on the other hand, give people something to relate to, no matter how extraordinary the story is: 'This actually happened to someone, you know. This could happen to you or me'.

Elephant And Ant Story

There was an anthill near the elephant's home. The elephant sprinkled the water on the ants to show off his strength. The ants cried but the elephant only laughed and told them to stop crying or else he would crush him to death. One of the ants decided to teach him a lesson.

Homer's Odyssey topped the list, followed by Uncle Tom's Cabin – examples of the different ways in which respondents interpreted a 'world-shaping story', with the ancient epic having survived generations of retelling, while Harriet Beecher Stowe's 1852 novel was commended for being “the first widely-read political ...

"For sale: baby shoes, never worn." is a six-word story, popularly attributed to Ernest Hemingway, although the link to him is unlikely. It is an example of flash fiction.

Many academics, most notably author Christopher Booker, believe there are only seven basic narrative plots in all of storytelling – frameworks that are recycled again and again in fiction but populated by different settings, characters, and conflicts.

What is a simple short story? ›

The short story is usually concerned with a single effect conveyed in only one or a few significant episodes or scenes. The form encourages economy of setting, concise narrative, and the omission of a complex plot; character is disclosed in action and dramatic encounter but is seldom fully developed.

Precise word count definitions will vary, but as a general rule of thumb, a short story is anything up to about 7500 words (sometimes 10,000), with higher word counts typically called novelettes, and short novels called novellas.

The goal is to write a story, in 55 words or less, to understand, appreciate or process something about the impact, response or practice of medicine and delivery of healthcare at this moment.

A novella is a fictional piece between a short story and a novel with anywhere from 10,000 to 40,000 words.

What are the different types of short stories? Short stories come in all kinds of categories: action, adventure, biography, comedy, crime, detective, drama, dystopia, fable, fantasy, history, horror, mystery, philosophy, politics, romance, satire, science fiction, supernatural, thriller, tragedy, and Western.

A typical manuscript page (8.5×11 paper, 1-inch margins, standard 11- or 12-point font, doublespaced—like you would type in Word) is considered to be 250 words. So a 25,000-word manuscript is about 100 pages. A 50,000-word manuscript is 200 pages.

So are there 3, 7, 9, 20, or 36 basic story archetypes? Trick question — they're all wrong. The correct number of basic plot types is 6, and we know that thanks to a simple sentiment analysis tool.

What are the 9 types of stories? ›

A short story is a brief work of fiction, usually written in prose and running 1,600 to 20,000 words in length.

A sketch story, literary sketch or simply sketch, is a piece of writing that is generally shorter than a short story, and contains very little, if any, plot. The genre was invented after the 16th century in England, as a result of increasing public interest in realistic depictions of "exotic" locales.

You can get compelling plot ideas by reading the news or historical texts or watching documentaries. You can also use an existing nonfiction book to inspire a fictional novel, short story, or script. Thinking more broadly, you can source inspiration from a podcast, a poem, or even a self-help book.

A short story length is typically around 5,000 words in length but maybe as long as 7000 words. Stories that range from 500 to 1,00 words are classed as flash fiction (here's a great example). Stories less than 500 words are considered to be micro-fiction.

In terms of length, word count is typically anywhere from 1,000 to 4,000 for short stories; however, some have 15,000 words and are still classed as short stories. Stories of fewer than 1,000 words are sometimes referred to as "short short stories", or "flash fiction".

Vignettes don't have plots. Stories can be a tour of a fascinating place, or can delve deeply into character without really following a plot.

How do you write a short story in real life? ›

The wind swirled around me and the world went black... At first, I couldn't understand why I had woken up - then I felt the icy fingers close around my wrist... Walking through the graveyard, Katie couldn't shake the feeling that she was being watched... "Surprise!" They cried, leaping out from behind the door...

The best story is a well-told tale about something the reader feels is relevant or significant. The best stories are more complete and more comprehensive. They contain more verified information from more sources with more viewpoints and expertise. They exhibit more enterprise, more reportorial effort.

Use these stories to give your speeches power and to connect immediately and deeply with your audience. There are five of these basic stories: the quest, the stranger in a strange land, rags to riches, the love story and the tale of revenge. Each has its own structure and its own situations where it's useful.

How do I tell a story without talking? ›

Consider the little details

One way to make sure your images are successfully telling your story is to draw with detail. Narrative details can be key in a narrative without words. Background elements in your drawing can serve as clues to the plot, or the character.

A story may be considered powerful if it fulfills the following criteria; the more criteria met, the more powerful the story: The story can be told simply and quickly. The story stimulates behavioural change and change in attitudes. The story has a huge budget.

How Long Should a Short Story Be? The average short story should run anywhere from 5,000 to 10,000 words, but they can be anything above 1,000 words. Flash fiction is a short story that is 500 words or less.