Short Stories and Questions

Short Stories

We are learning how short stories powerfully
communicate.
I can define the features of a short story.

In your table groups brainstorm the

following:

What is a short story?

What is the difference between a short story
and a narrative?

In your groups, look at the following list of typical elements of
a story/narrative and put in order of importance. Be ready to

defend your choices!

○ Setting

○ Characters

○ Plot > Beginning/Middle/End > orientation/Complication/Rising

Tension/Climax/Denouement

○ A Narrator

○ Theme

○ A purpose? An audience in mind?

In your groups discuss this question:

How short can a short story be?

Six word stories

For sale: baby shoes, never worn.

Ernest Heminway

For sale: baby shoes, never worn.

How could this be considered a short story?

What elements of a story does it have?

Corpse parts missing. Doctor buys

yacht.

Margaret Atwood

Corpse parts missing. Doctor buys yacht.

How could this be considered a short story?

What elements of a story does it have?

We kissed. She melted. Mop please.

James Patrick Kelly

He read his obituary with

confusion.

Steven Meretzky

Activity

What are the “must haves” for a 6 word story?

Write your own 6 word story.

What makes a short story?

5 guidelines

(adapted from ‘A Stack of Stories” by B.Kenny,

E.Housden & M. Kenny)

1. The small picture

• You should be able to read a short story in one

go.

• They are usually between a few hundred

words and 20,000 words.

2. A Single Event

• The story should revolve around one central event. There is a single line of plot
development, unlike novels which can have
complex, multi-stranded plots.

3. A limited number of characters

• A short story will only have one character or a very small number of characters

• Each of the characters will have a definite rolethat advances the plot or helps the reader
understand the main character or theme more
clearly

• Usually their appearance is described by giving them only 1 or 2 defining features.

4. A single setting

• Unless your short story involves a journey, it

should not jump from place to place.

• Setting should be established quickly and briefly

5. The climactic ending or twist

• The climax is the turning point in the story and

a twist is an unexpected ending.

Usually short stories finish quickly. You ceave the reader feeling surprised or
wondering what happens next but don’t just
abandon them without an ending.

Themes

• ‘The theme is the main idea or comment on

some important issue that lies behind the
events in a story, play or poem. A writer’s
purpose and the structure of the story, play or
poem are closely linked. Together they provide
the thematic content, giving the reader
something to think about. Sometimes it’s easy
to work out the theme, sometimes you have
to think carefully about the story and what it’s
saying about life.

Poll

A theme is an outline of the plot of the story.

• True

• False

Poll

A theme is a main idea or issue in a story

• True

• False

Poll

All stories have a theme

• True

• False

Poll

If the reader understands what theme is, it helps them to think about the story more carefully.

• True

• False

Poll

You can write a really good story without having a theme.

• True

• False

• True or false?

• 3. All stories have a theme.

Activity

• 1. Read the story ‘Slither’.
• 2. Plot: what is the main event of the story?
• 3. Characters: how many characters are there and what are their defining features?

• 4. Setting: where is the story set?
• 5. Climactic ending or twist? How does this story

end?

• 6. Theme: what do you think the main idea or issue of this story is? What is it saying about life?

Activity

• 1. Read the story ‘The Flying Machine’.
• 2. Plot: what is the main event of the story?
• 3. Characters: how many characters are there and what are their defining features?

• 4. Setting: where is the story set?
• 5. Climactic ending or twist? How does this story end?
6. Theme: what do you think the main idea or issue of this story is? What is it saying about life?

Structure & Plot

• Basic plot: orientation, complication, climax

and resolution.

• Meta-narrative: creation, fall, redemption,

new creation

• Aristotle’s approach: Status quo, breaking the

status quo, recognition of the break, attempt to repair the damage, new status quo

Structure & Plot continued

Types of Plot Structures
1. Linear: going from start to finish.
2. Chronological: – following the order things
happened
3. Circular: returning to the beginning
4. Flashback: remembering what led you to where
you are now
5. Multiple: when a story has mini stories within
6. Parallel: used mostly in tv and film. Stories happen
side by side.

Plot & Structure

• Read the following two stories and answer the questions for each of them

1. What is the structure of the story?
2. What is the main theme of the story?
3. How did the story make you feel?
4. What did the author do to make you feel this way? (Think about structure, characters, plot, etc)

• Stories are:

• The Street That Got Mislaid
• 1112: Anhar – Iran to Woomera

Narrative Perspective

• Every story has a narrative perspective. What does this mean?

• First person:

• Second person:

• Third person:

Distinctive Voice

The use of distinctive voice in a story allows the
audience to understand the main character or
narrative perspective clearly .
You can create a distinctive voice in your writing
through your choice of :
• Narrative perspective
• Words
• Sentence structure
• Punctuation

• Read through the excepts from a Dog’s Diary and write

a description of :

• 1. narrative perspective. Whose perspective are we

reading?

• 2. Word choice. What is unusual or unique about the

‘dogs’ choice of words?

• 3. What do you notice about the sentence structures?
• 4. What is the most common form of punctuation used

in this excerpt?

• 5. What do the narrative perspective, word choice,

sentence structures and punctuation tell us about the
character (or distinctive voice) of the dog?

• Read through the excepts from a Cat’s Diary and write

a description of :

• 1. narrative perspective. Whose perspective are we

reading?

• 2. Word choice. What is unusual or unique about the

‘cats’ choice of words?

• 3. What do you notice about the sentence structures?
• 4. What is the most common form of punctuation used

in this excerpt?

• 5. What do the narrative perspective, word choice,

sentence structures and punctuation tell us about the
character (or distinctive voice) of the cat?

Distinctive Voice

• Choose another animal (not a cat or dog). Don’t

tell anyone what you have chosen.

• Write two diary extracts from your animal’s pov.
• Be sure to think about :
• 1. Narrative perspective
• 2. word choice
• 3. sentence structures
• 4. punctuation
• Let’s see if we can guess the animal through its

distinctive voice!

Characterisation

Characterisation is the technique used by an
author in the representation of characters in a
literary work. Characters are revealed by:
• what they say (dialogue),
• what they do (action),
• what they look like (appearance) and
• what others think and say about them

(others).

Difference between characterisation &

distinctive voice?

Distinctive voice refers to the main character or
narrative perspective. Focus is on narrative
perspective, word choice, sentence structure
and punctuation.

Characterisation refers to all characters in a
story, not just the main one. Focus is on what a
character says, does, and looks like, as well as
what others say or think about them.

Setting

Symbolism, motifs & extended

metaphors in stories

• Symbols are images, ideas, sounds or words

that represent something else and help us to
understand an idea.

• Motifs are images, ideas, sounds or words that

help to develop or explain a theme.

• A symbol usually appears once or twice, whilst

a motif is recurring.

• An extended metaphor is a comparison between

two unlike things that continues beyond one
reference. They are used to make a larger
comparison than just a single metaphor. The
comparison is projected more intensely in the
reader’s mind and there is usually a very specific
impression left by the extended metaphor.

•adapted from literarydevices.net