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STJ School Forum → Other → Short Story Idea Generators
1. Put a man up a tree
2. Throw stones at him
3. Get him down
http://www.write101.com/shortstory.htm
In recognition of "Pink Shirt Day 2012" ...
Add a jerk to your story.
Here are some suggestions ...
Jerks are mean - have the jerk get our attention by saying or doing things to your protagonist that are upsetting
Jerks ignore us - have your jerk ignore the protagonist but pay attention to someone else. Have the Jerk only pretend to listen and act like your protagonist doesn't even exist
Jerks make us feel stupid - have your jerk make comments about what your protagonist says that makes him/her feel stupid
Jerks are sneaky - have your jerk act all nice to others or around teachers or adults and then have the jerk do something that only the protagonist sees when no one else is looking
Jerks lie - have your jerk try and make someone look bad to make themselves look better by lying
Handout: How to punctuate narrative dialogue
http://www.douglas.bc.ca/services/learning-centre/pdf/gr/GR7_80_Punctuating_and_Formatting_Dialogue.pdf
Tips for writing a narrative essay:
1. Select an experience that had a strong impact on you and that you want to communicate.
2. Concentrate on engaging and entertaining your reader. Use detail and description to communicate your experience clearly and vividly. Remember, the narrative essayist is a keen observer, one on whom "nothing is lost."
3. Let the experience speak for itself. The reader should be enlightened, moved, or persuaded through the force of the narrative. If you wish to state your thesis explicitly, keep it brief. Avoid editorializing, offering asides to the reader, concluding with a paragraph that spells out what it all meant, or telling the reader how to feel.
4. Work your narrative toward a climax or "moment of truth" which crystallizes the experiences for both you and your reader. Remember that essentially you are telling a story and stories work best when they leave the reader feeling emotionally satisfied.
5. Polish, polish, polish. The narrative essayist reveals himself or herself not only through the telling of the experience, but also through the way in which it is told. Your voice should shine through the strength of your style and presentation. In the end, it is a picture of the world as you see it and live it that you are presenting to your reader.
Conventions of the Narrative Essay
Purpose: To communicate a significant experience in order to enlighten and perhaps persuade or move readers
Audience: Various
Tone: Often reflective and personal: may be either serious or humorous, subjective, or objective
Voice: Strongly individualistic
Response: A sense of intimacy or shared experience
Language: Level - Formal through informal and colloquial. Characteristics - Strongly expressive; images are often striking and individualistic
Structure: May be chronological, but often is altered for dramatic or emotional impact
Random Ideas for a short story:
fate vs free choice
a secret reason
a quiet sacrifice
betrayal of an old relative
flirting with a stranger
flirting with an old friend
predator vs prey
a symbolic object
jealousy
second language words or phrases
specialty jargon
animal captivity
symbol of good
symbol of evil
annoy your brother
regret a decision
choose safety over risk
something mythologically familiar
a song without words
a song with words
a passage from scripture
describe a colour
focus on hands somewhere
current piece of technology
a current event in the news
some natural phenomenon with infinite details
notice dirt, mud, dust, rust or decay in some small way
refer to a classic book by name
have a character cut something with scissors or a knife
have a character write something on a sticky-note
quit something
cuss but don't write the word
David Huebert: "How I won the 2016 CBC short story prize"
Choose character names carefully:
STJ School Forum → Other → Short Story Idea Generators