How-to write short stories (list) by Leanne Dyck

photo by ldyck

I have dyslexia. Learning to read was a challenge. But my parents were avid readers. Before I could read, they read to me, and it was like they were opening a locked door and offering me glimpses of amazing worlds. When I learned to read, I felt like I'd been given the key to that door. I write short stories so everyone regardless of ability can enter the worlds I've created.

On this blog, by my some what  careful calculations, I've written and published approximately 100 short stories.

15 of my short stories have been published in magazines, anthologies and online (other than on this blog). I've also self-published one short story collection. For more information, please read my Publishing History page.

The following links will take you to some interesting places. Have fun.

Video:  Stephen King on the Craft of Short Story Writing

Articles: Why write short stories by Leanne Dyck

How to Write a Short Story That Captivates Your Reader by Jerry Jenkins

Writers, how do you end your story? by Leanne Dyck

What do editors do and why you should care? by Leanne Dyck

Why edit? by the Editor's Association of Canada

No MFA? Submit to these literary magazines by Leanne Dyck

Guest Post:  Room Magazine

Guest Post:  Submitting Manuscripts--an interview with Jami Macarty

Sending manuscripts to publishers--a workshop by Jami Macarty

Guest Post: Oak Tree Press' Acquisition Editor Sunny Frazier

Video:  How to Make Money Writing Short Fiction with Douglas Smith

And stuff to dream about...

Bryan Washington wins the 
Swansea University Dylan Thomas Prize 
for his debut short story collection, Lot

Calgary writer Brenda Damen wins 
2020 CBC Short Story Prize

Read Short Stories...

72 Canadian Short Stories available free online

Your Favourites:  a  free short story collection by Leanne Dyck

Free Short Story Collection:  the stories of my life by Leanne Dyck

The shortest short story

For sale:  Baby shoes, never worn --Ernest Hemingway

My attempts...

One sunny day a worm went for a wiggle. He met a robin.

Or

Lonely, she visited twitter; he commented

They meet face-to-face

Now he never leaves her

Or

He stepped off the curb.

Thinking quickly, she avoided hitting him.

Months later, they married.

Or 

He was born in the dark. He came to the light. He dwelled among the living. He died forgotten.

Or 

Starving, she searched the cupboards. All she found was an ax. So she chopped off her toe and ate it. She didn't stop until she was full--gone.

Next Sunday evening...

May 24th

short story

Discovery

inspired by cvoid 19

because sometimes in order to deal with a situation

 I have to write about it.

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New Releases by Mayne Island authors...

Everyone on Mayne Island heard the pens clicking and computer keyboards tapping and we thought, maybe, hopefully... 

What do editors do and why you should care? by Leanne Dyck

photo by Leanne Dyck

That editor took my story and she tore it apart. Then she forced me to make all these changes. In the end, it wasn't anything like what I wrote.

There are tons of horror stories out there. I think they exist because we, writers, don't really understand what an editor does.

Authors Phyllis Smallman and Kay Stewart interviewed editors Lenore Hietkamp and Frances Thorsen (bookstore owner:  Chronicles of Crime). Heitkamp and Thorsen answered questions like...

-How can I find the best editor?
-How can I work more effectively with an editor?
-What common errors do editors find and how can I avoid making them?
-What does an editor do?

Here's what I heard...

What does an editor do?
1)an editor reads your manuscript. While she's reading she's asking herself:  What is this author trying to say? Is it working?
2)After reading your manuscript, the editor writes a report -- she points out what is working and what isn't.
3)The editor then has a discussion regarding the manuscript with the writer. The editor is okay with a writer disagreeing with her, but she wants to know why the writer disagrees. 
4)Both the editor and the writer have a say as to what needs to be changed. Once this plan is finalized, the writer works on the changes.  5)The editor reviews the changes. 
6)The editor gives the writer a final draft of the manuscript.

Two types of editing
Micro (line) editing:  Is like looking through a microscope, the editor closely examines each sentence. She looks at sentence structure, grammar, spelling, punctuation, etc.
Macro (story) editing: Is like looking through a camera, the editor looks at the big picture. He looks at story structure,  plot, pacing, dialogue, etc.

Author - Editor relationship

-should be built on mutual respect
-authors should receive feedback on what is and isn't working
-editors should respect the author's voice

How can I find an editor?

-by networking
-by type the editor's name into a search engine
-through professional organizations (not all editors belong to professional organizations and this has nothing to do with their professionalism)

How can I evaluate an editor's work?

-read book reviews of books the editor has worked on
-ask for a sample of the editor's work

Authors can help editors by providing them with a story bible
(The Story Bible:  What It Is and Why You Need One by Jane Friedman)

Tip:  a good way to tell if your story is working is to read the first three and last three chapters of your manuscript. 

Common mistakes authors make
-introducing too many characters in the first few chapters
-not doing enough research
-repeating the same sentence throughout the book
-not putting the crime in the right place
-not reading the manuscript out loud or having someone else read it out loud and recording it
-the story isn't properly paced 
Tip:  you should have the reader on the edge of her seat; then let her breathe -- and repeat.
-too many consequences
-the story isn't properly plotted
-boring dialogue -- stick with what is important

Bottom line:  The editor and author have the same goal in mind -- to produce the best book possible. Authors shouldn't be defensive. Look at your work with the editor as conversations about your book.

More:  Why Edit?
This is a guest post written by Amy Haagsma on behalf of EAC-BC, the BC branch of the Editor's Association of Canada

Next post:  Word Vancouver is so cool. There's workshops, panel discussions, author readings and so much more. I'll be attending this Saturday and Sunday. And I'm looking forward to telling you all about it.

Sharing my author journey...

September was an emotions packed month for me. 

In writing...
I sent out more submissions this month than ever before -- 12 submissions. I also received a lot of rejection letters. In fact, one day I opened the mailbox and found seven. Let me write that again:  s-e-v-e-n. It took my breath away and set me reeling, like a boxer receiving an upper cut.

Quote from one of the rejection letters...
'This story is very sweet, but I think it could use some elaboration.'

But I know acceptance is coming. All I have to do is keep writing, submitting and revising.

In my personal life...

Writers, do you kill your darlings?

The way "darlings" was defined for me was...
Imagine yourself editing your manuscript, your gaze is sweeping across the page from phrase to phrase. But then ... But then you find a phrase so brilliant that is shines so brightly that it overwhelms the page. That's a 'darling'.

Do you need to kill it?

Sometimes darlings can be mistaken for a clever turn of phrase. It takes skill to properly distinguish between them. What helps me is asking myself, does this piece of writing add a key ingredient to my manuscript? If the answer is yes then it is a clever turn of phrase. If no, then it is a darling. Rather than killing it, you can simply remove it from the manuscript and store it in a file folder or computer document. Who knows, one day it may fit nicely -- as a clever turn of phrase -- in a future manuscript.

More ...

Sometimes "darlings" can be longer than a phrase. Erin Bowman has written an article about characters and entire "darling" scenes and her difficulties with killing them.

"Kill your darlings" is popular advice in writing circles. But which author was the first to offer this advice? Some say William Faulkner. Others say Stephen King. Still others say (fill in the blank with the name of your favourite gifted author). Forrest Wickman penned a clever article on the origins of the phrase.

Marcie Colleen wrote a helpful article on how-to kill your darlings.

R J Blain cautions writers to think carefully before the kill. A helpful checklist is included in this article. In conclusion, R J writes:  'But I do not believe that cutting for the sake of cutting, or because some internet quote told you to, is really an answer.'

I usually find my darlings at the beginning of my manuscript, when I'm attempting to get a feel for what I'm trying to write --
when I'm trying to find a way in. And it's interesting to note, that a darling doesn't always have to sparkle like diamonds -- sometimes they are dull like cheap rhinestones. But they never serve the story.

Gabriela Pereira concludes her article on this subject with:  'We must believe that the best is still in us, that if we sacrifice those darlings, it opens up room on the page for something better. Killing our darlings is an act of faith.'

Sharing my author journey...
Some of the best support (in terms of growing my author career) has come from other authors. One of the first authors to help me was Celia Leaman. Sunday, July 19th is a special day for Celia. She will be launching...

Guest Post: The Rewrite Meltdown by Sylvia McNicoll

Recently, I listened to my editor agree with a panel of two other editors that it was sometimes just one wonderful sentence that caused them to fall in love with a book.   Next day I asked her which sentence it was of Dying to Go Viral so that I would be certain that I didn’t take it out.

She hesitated.  Not a good sign. We had been working full out on a substantive edit.  (This is the major first edit that focuses the vision of your story.) and there had been extensive rewriting so there was that danger of destroying this one glorious, if imaginary, sentence. Maybe also I was just being a needy author in search of a compliment. Finally, to let her off the hook,  I suggested that it was the premise :  a 14 year-old girl gets a one week do over of her last week of life. She agreed quickly.

What I have learned about the editing process is that when the revision suggestions come in most writers’ first response is overly emotional because they’re overwhelmed with a sense of inadequacy.  “I’ll never be able to achieve all the editor’s asked of me.  I don’t even know where to begin.”

Best advice, think on it for a few days.  Go into a dark room, put a blanket over your head and weep, if you must.  But don’t call the editor to vent until you’ve really thought the suggestions over.

“If you know so much about how this book should be written, why don’t you do it yourself?” was one author’s reaction.   “If you thought so much was wrong with the story, why the heck did you buy it?”was another.

As you’re weeping in your dark space, you may find you suddenly think of a solution to one of the problems suggested in the rewrite notice. You’re anxious to try to see if this turn works. Suddenly excitement takes over your inadequacy. Next thing you know, the new bit added to show character development is your favourite scene .  Then you’re on to the next problem.  Sentence by sentence, chapter by chapter, you end up rewriting your book and it’s better for it.  One writer I know says she loves the to-and-from teamwork between her and  someone else so intimately connected with her story.

Editors, I have a suggestion too.  Just compliment the writer . Then she won’t have to fish and maybe the time in the dark space will be shorter.

To learn more about Sylvia McNicoll's author journey, please visit her website.