Tag: How to Write Short Stories and Get Them Published

Quirky Characters

by ashlister, posted in Uncategorized

 by Ashley Lister
One of the main reasons we read is to meet new and exciting characters who are doing new and exciting things. Whether it’s a Christian Grey, a Jane Eyre or Winnie the Pooh, we want to meet these novel individuals who have been brought to life through fiction.
There are several ways to make fictional characters come to life from the page, many of which I discuss in my book, How to WriteShort Stories and Get Them Published. However, one of the main ways to create a character, a character that lives beyond the page, is to make them quirky. Quirky characters stay in the minds of our readers. Quirky character traits, because they’re so unusual, give the reader a sense of realism when they notice they’re reading about someone with unconventional behaviour that they have seen in the real world.
Violet Baudelaire, in Daniel Handler’s Lemony Snicket stories, has a trait of tying back her long hair into a ponytail whenever she is trying to address a particularly difficult problem. Given the way the Lemony Snicket stories are constructed, Violet has to face many difficult problems and spends a lot of her time tying her hair back. It’s a quirk that makes her seem more than a mere fictional character.
The character of Orr, in Joseph Heller’s Catch 22, is quirky enough to stuff crab apples into his cheeks so that they bulge. When this is first introduced to the reader it is seen as something vaguely ridiculous that fits in with the surreal attitude Heller has taken to armed conflict.  It is only later in the novel that the reader understands this quirk is a key part of Orr’s story.
Windsor Horne Lockwood III in Harlen Coben’s Myron Bolitar novels is another character with quirks that make him believable. He is wealthy and comes from a moneyed background and, whenever he’s engaged in an important conversation, he steeples his fingers whilst concentrating. It’s a subtle detail: but it gives you a clear impression of a character who, when he’s not playing gold with hedge fund managers, or negotiating deals with investment bankers, is saving Myron’s life like some dark and twisted superhero.  
As I’ve said before, the advice offered here is NOT intended to be seen as altruistic behaviour on my part. I’ve written a book, How to Write Short Stories and Get Them Published and, if you’re interested in writing short fiction, I’d dearly love you to buy a copy.  The book is based on knowledge and experience I’ve accrued from fifteen years of teaching creative writing, and from twenty-five years of being a published author, and from the research I conducted whilst acquiring my PhD in creative writing. If you want to write short fiction, I want you to buy a copy of the book.
To create a character with quirky traits, it works better if the quirk comes naturally into the creation of the character rather than being something placed there artificially.  We can believe in an ex-smoker who stares wistfully at people shivering in smoking shelters: it’s a relatable response. We can empathise with the genius practical-mined scientist who has a four-leafed clover on his desk because it shows a duality between the known and the unknown world. But, a character who simply wants to wear a hat made out of blu-tack, is neither relatable nor deserving of our empathy. This sort of detail is simply quirkiness for the sake of quirkiness.
Quirkiness can be shown through a character’s favourite, overused, word. Quirkiness can be an interest in rare flowers that seems uncommon for a character who was once the most efficient member of a crack military unit.  Quirkiness can even be the Mickey Mouse wristwatch, worn by the eminent Harvard Professor Robert Langdon, in Dan Brown’s novels.
Character quirkiness does make characters seem more real and less like the result of reading two dimensional letters from a flat page. When it’s done properly, quirkiness can make your characters live long in the memory of your readers and well-remembered characters are the goal of every writer.  
Please remember, if you want even more useful advice on How to Write Short Stories and Get Them Published, don’t forget to order a copy of my book.

Writing Ideas

by ashlister, posted in Uncategorized

 by Ashley Lister
They say that one of the most frightening things a writer can encounter is a blank page. I’m not sure this is 100% true.  I’m a writer and, given the choice between a dark cellar full of spiders or a blank page, I’m happy to have that blank page every time. It would be the same answer if someone asked me if I’d like to stare at a blank page or listen to someone dragging their fingernails down a chalkboard. I would happily opt for the blank page.
However, I do know that the blank page can be intimidating to a lot of writers and in an effort to make it less daunting, I thought it might be useful to share a handful of ideas that might inspire creativity.
Please don’t think this is altruistic behaviour on my part. I’ve written a book, How to Write Short Stories and Get Them Publishedand, if you’re interested in writing short fiction, I’d dearly love you to buy a copy.  The book is based on knowledge and experience I’ve accrued from fifteen years of teaching creative writing, and from twenty-five years of being a published author, and from the research I conducted whilst acquiring my PhD in creative writing. If you want to write short fiction, I want you to buy a copy of the book.
One way I find useful for breaking the spell of the blank page is to write a simple haiku. For those unfamiliar with the form, a haiku is a three-line poem, based loosely on our interpretation of the Japanese form which contains seventeen ‘on’ or ‘morae’. Here in the West we’ve interpreted that to translate as syllables and the lines are split into a syllable count of 5-7-5. For example:
a new story world
sits beyond the white screen of
each new document
The values of writing a haiku are immeasurable as a warm-up exercise prior to writing something longer. This is like a runner stretching before a marathon, or a musician going through scales before performing with an orchestra. No one expects other professional artists to jump straight into being creative, so why should it be different for writers?
Write a haiku before you start each morning. It could be something fun to describe the weather (it’s raining again / just like it did yesterday / and the day before) or you could use it summarise the plot you’re working on or a particular character you want to write about or just say something about the environment in which you’re working (a fat little dog / sits heavily on my lap / his head on my arm).
When I get students to write haikus in class, I get a genuine pleasure from watching them count on their fingers as they deliberately shape the words to confirm that they’ve identified each syllable correctly. This is not a normal way for anyone to interact with words, and it’s one of the reasons why I think it works so well as a warm-up exercise for every writer.
So, before you start writing, take a couple of minutes to create a haiku, just to loosen your writing muscles. It gets you thinking about words in a different way, it helps diminish the dread of the blank page, and it helps to keep the blade of your creativity razor sharp. And remember, if you want even more useful advice on How to Write Short Stories and Get Them Published, don’t forget to order a copy of my book.

Short Story Review – Episode of the Dog McIntosh

by ashlister, posted in Uncategorized

Episode of the Dog McIntosh
Who wrote it?
P G Wodehouse was one of the greatest comic writers of the Twentieth Century. He became a master of farce, creating a wonderful array of characters and imaginary fairyland based in the Edwardian British upper class. His 100 books have been translated into countless languages and remain an important part of popular culture. For the full biography on Wodehouse, follow this link: https://www.biographyonline.net/writers/p-g-wodehouse.html
What’s it about?
‘Episode of the Dog McIntosh’ begins when Bertie Wooster is looking after his Aunt Agatha’s Aberdeen terrier. Complications set in with the appearance of Roberta (Bobbie) Wickham, and they start to become hilariously more troubled when Bertie tries to help Bobbie.
Why is it worth reading?
P G Wodehouse is a talented writer, and I believe that any talented writer is worth looking at. He has an ability to surprise the reader and he repeatedly uses this to good comic effect.
What’s so special about it?
This is an exchange from early on in the story between Jeeves, speaking first here, and his employer, Bertie Wooster. The third person in the conversation is Roberta (Bobbie) Wickham:
“Indeed, sir?”
“I’m glad you can speak in that light, careless way.  I only met the young stoup of arsenic for a few brief minutes, but I don’t mind telling you the prospect of hob-nobbing with him again makes me tremble like a leaf.”
“Indeed, sir?”
                “Don’t keep saying ‘Indeed, sir?’ You have seen this kid in action and you know what he’s like. He told Cyril Bassington-Bassington, a fellow to whom he had never been formally introduced, that he had a face like a fish. And this not thirty seconds after their initial meeting. I give you fair warning that, if he tells me I have a face like a fish, I shall clump his head.”
“Bertie!” cried the Wickham, contorted with anguish and apprehension and what not.
“Yes, I shall.”
“Then you’ll simply ruin the whole thing.”
                “I don’t care. We Woosters have our pride.”
“Perhaps the young gentleman will not notice that you have a face like a fish, sir,” suggested
Jeeves.
“Ah! There’s that, of course.”
“But we can’t just trust to luck,” said Bobbie. “It’s probably the first thing he will notice.”
                “In that case, miss,” said Jeeves, “it might be the best plan if Mr. Wooster did not attend the
luncheon.”
I beamed on the man. As always, he had found the way.
I listened to this conversation on audio book recently whilst I was at the gym and almost fell off the treadmill laughing when Jeeves made the suggestion: “Perhaps the young gentleman will not notice that you have a face like a fish, sir.” Wodehouse’s work is rich with humour like this and he knows how to craft a conversation between characters so that their distinctive voices and personalities shine from the page. If you’re looking to emulate a true master of dialogue writing, you can’t fair much better than looking at the communication between Jeeves and Wooster.
If you want to buy your own copy, this is the Amazon Link:
And, if you have dreams to write to this standard, please take a look at my book, How To Write Short Stories and Get Them Published: https://www.amazon.co.uk/dp/1472143787/ref=cm_sw_em_r_mt_dp_U_fpDlDbM5CS66H

And, if you have dreams to write to this standard, please
take a look at my book, How To Write Short Stories and Get Them Published: https://www.littlebrown.co.uk/titles/ashley-lister/how-to-write-short-stories-and-get-them-published/9781472143785/