Short, Sweet, and in Print! by Angela K Couch +giveaway!

After years and years of pounding out 50,000 – 85,000 word novels, last spring I tried my hand at something under 6000 words. My introduction to the short story. Needless to say, it took several attempts to get the story depth and length to coincide, but in the end I was quite pleased with my efforts—Fire In a Storm set in 1934 USSR—and even more pleased when I learned it was a finalist in the 2014 Storming the Short Story contest and would be published in the anthology Out Of the Storm.

After trying unsuccessfully to break into publishing with my novels, seeing my words in print within the next year felt really good. I was hooked. Just in time to be informed of another short story opportunity. This one gave me a whopping 7000 words to work with. Piece of cake. ;)

My second story, Shackled, a western romance, was quickly accepted for publication by Next Step Books for a romance anthology that will be released this fall. *Happy dance*. Since then, I have written two more short stories for contests (still waiting on those, but one is a semifinalist so far!), and would like to share what I have learned about the art of a short story—which I am still striving to learn.

Backstory: 
You can only use tidbits of backstory because of the word constraints, but make sure you still have it. The better you know your character—their little quirks, likes, dislikes, and everything from their past that made them who they are—the deeper and more three dimensional that person will look on the page. It will show in how they view the word.

(In Shackled, the hero’s occupation before he headed west was as a carpenter. He can’t help but notice loose boards, quality of wood, and craftsmanship, etc. It adds nothing to the plot, but it brings the character to life.)

Secondary Characters: 
If they are not vital to plot, character development or setting, you don't have room for them.

Tension:
Really this isn’t much different than in a novel, only easier as you have less words to extend it across. Make sure it’s there, from the first sentence to the last. I am actually more prone to set down a short story than a novel when the tension wanes. After all, there are usually other short stories to turn to in the same book.

Tightening:
The benefit of a short story over a novel is that instead of 80,000 words, you have less than 8000 to analyze in detail, making sure they are the best fit. It’s easier to cut all those lazy verbs, weasel words, and airy descriptions, bringing the action to life in a few short words.

Show: 
I know it’s often easier to keep the word count down by simply telling what happened, but don’t do it! I mean, you can—a sentence here and there—but still show us the story. Let us be there, experiencing those few minutes of life that have been etched into the pages—or single page—of your short story.

The End: 
Be ready for it, it comes quickly, and don’t linger after the resolution. Unlike a novel, you don’t have room for a full chapter or epilogue telling of their “happily ever after” (if you give them one) and you don’t need it. Reading a short story is not like watching twelve hours of epic Lord of the Rings and needing a half hour to unwind before you can live with yourself again. Don’t waste words. End it strong.

These are only my observations from my writing. Have you tried your hand at writing short stories? What have you found works?

If you like short stories, leave a comment and e-mail address for the chance to win an e-book copy of the anthology Out of the Storm.

Angela K Couch lives in Alberta, Canada with her “hero” and three munchkins. Fascinated by history and in love with creating fiction, she's been lost in writing most of her life. As a passionate believer in Christ, she can't help her faith from permeating the stories she tells. Often her martial arts training, love of horses, and appreciation for good romance sneak in there as well. She has been a finalist and semi finalist in several short story contests and was a semifinalist in the 2015 Genesis Contest. Visit her at www.angelakcouch.com, or follow on Twitter or Facebook!

Characters Should be Like Ogres . . . I Mean Onions, by Angela K. Couch

A while back I had a friend read one of my manuscripts--something most of us writers are guilty of. Her main suggestion was “more detail!” She wanted to know the colors and makes and designs of everything in the setting so that she could see it clearly. She said in essence, “Every story has already been told, it’s the details that make this telling of it yours.”

Only one problem. I already thought I had plenty of detail for the setting. The rug in the living room was blue with a flower pattern and had a worn trail across it. I told my readers that much. How much more did they need? I didn’t want to have to start skimming my own book! (Yep, I’m one of those readers.) I didn’t want to bore myself, or my readers, with overly in-depth, detailed setting. But, with details, I still wanted to make the story mine, and only mine.

Then I realized setting is just a tool to evoke the reader’s imagination so your story feels believable, and authentic. What makes the story yours, is your characters. They need to be real. They need to be unique and they need to be like onions. Yes, they should make you cry! Ok, while evoking emotion is a great thing for your characters to do, I am talking about layers. Lots of layers. More layers than your readers will even realize exist.

Recently I took part in a course discussing lies people are often subconsciously convinced of from early childhood. These lies affect their worldview and behavior. The instructor had us conduct detailed interviews with our characters that reached beyond the spectrum of what will ever be mentioned in the novel, but this layer, or many layers, of detail will be perceived and felt by your readers. While the last thing you want bogging down your novel is too much back story, you still need to know the history of your characters’ lives and everything that made them the way they are.

Yesterday, a short story of mine, “Fire in a Storm”, was released in the anthology “Out of the Storm”. When I first wrote my main character, he actually played more of a supporting role and all in all fell flat. My second draft pulled him into the limelight, switching everything to his POV, but still he was just a piece of cardboard—two dimensional. Slowly layers were added, most only hinted at within the 5000 word limit. But it’s all there, under the surface…enough that I am tempted to expand his story into a full novel someday. Knowing who he is, it would be so easy. Of course, then I’d have to get to know the heroine a lot better!

Now I can confidently sit down and pen a story, knowing that even if the plot has been mapped out for the reader, I still have to make my characters real…because people are like snowflakes. There are no two alike.

They are also like onions…the closer you get, the more they make you cry ;) What are some layers you like to add to your characters?

“Fire in a Storm” by Angela K Couch

USSR 1934

“He was secret police and he knew his purpose. Religion was the enemy and God, the deception. Then a glimpse of gold and silver, and the woman who wore it, threatened everything he trusted.”

Angela K Couch is a writer of historical romance from Alberta, Canada. She grew up listening to her father read chapters from his novels and decided young she would follow his path. As a teenager, she began her first novel, evolving from her curiosity about World War II. Her interest has since spread to history in general. Besides writing, Angela has enjoyed training horses, martial arts (having earned her second-degree black belt), painting, spending time in eastern Russia spreading God's love, and finding a wonderful man to start a marriage and a family with. She is now the mother of three sweet munchkins, and still making time to write. You can follow her on www.angelakcouch.com, https://www.facebook.com/angelakcouch, and https://twitter.com/AngelaKCouch