How to Structure Your Short Story (Write Better Stories)
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Күн бұрынLearn two easy ways to structure a short story--with examples!
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Credit to SkyDilen for my video intro.
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@WriterBrandonMcNulty 3 жыл бұрын
Want to listen to one of my short stories on the NoSleep Podcast? Click the link below and go to the 26-minute mark. It's called "Ten-Year Photo" and it's completely free to listen to. www.thenosleeppodcast.com/episodes/s15/15x23
@WriterBrandonMcNulty 3 жыл бұрын
@Denizen OfTheDepths Glad you liked it! And yep, this is where Ash originated from. Thought she'd be a fun addition to my organ-swapping demon book haha
@simplewrites 9 ай бұрын
I started writing a while back and the way I wanted to start is to write an anthology of short stories set in my fictional universe. Thanks for the help.
@Theimaginextguy 4 ай бұрын
I’m doing something similar only it’s with superhero’s
@brendanlowrance1325 2 ай бұрын
Dude this is a great idea and inspired me!
@simplewrites 2 ай бұрын
@@brendanlowrance1325 no problem 👍
@Kiiieeechiii 2 ай бұрын
Same here although it’s very hard for me because it’s metafiction so there’s a lot of fourth wall breaking and it’s also got some psychological thriller and horror/comedy elements
@ridleyformk1244 2 ай бұрын
7:48: You can say that. I once wrote a short story about a mother trying to get her son to enjoy the rain. As with most children, he was sacred of the rain, and even more so when the thunder slammed the drums, but eventually, he gets out if it. I originally intend for some backstory of how the mother developed her love of the rain, with her own parents coming into the picture, but I turned that down for this little story. I just add it later when I turned this I into a full on series.
@RC-qg6un Жыл бұрын
I love how to the point and concise the video is, made it easy to watch and learn. Thank you
@WriterBrandonMcNulty Жыл бұрын
Thrilled to hear it. Thanks!
@RichardRobertson Жыл бұрын
I have yet to write a short story, full stop. But, in this regard, this is the most helpful video I've watched to date. Thanks, Brandon.
@WriterBrandonMcNulty Жыл бұрын
Thanks for watching!
@colinmountford5476 2 ай бұрын
I had a dream one night and remembered all the details. As usual, I write down my dreams-well, the ones I remember-and turn them into a short story. It has become my favourite short story, soon to be entered into a competition, and as you asked to comment on it, it is heartwarming, comedic, and insightful, with a great deal of research. I would call it fictional/autobiographical or not. You never know what you will come up with at any time. Follow the steps and guidelines suggested to complete the task. Who, what, where, when and how. This is typical journalistic stuff. 101.Good information Brandon
@MyTubeofYouChannel 5 ай бұрын
SUPER HELPFUL! I've been writing 1 short story a month for my author newsletter and it's been such a fun and rewarding challenge! I have 4 short stories I'm very happy with so far but I came looking for this video today because my short romance for February had me totally stumped. I wasn't sure at the start of this video if this was going to help but I think I have my outline now!
@makeitcount8866 2 жыл бұрын
This is an amazing guide to getting started, especially running the steps against Indiana Jones clips!! Wish I had known earlier
@WriterBrandonMcNulty 2 жыл бұрын
Glad it helped! Best of luck with your writing
@coastalbeer 7 күн бұрын
Best short story is at end of book "The Kid Gallagher Story " by Robert C Bauer. Haddum had a harem! On Amazon today!
@GetReal521 4 ай бұрын
Great presentation! I am entering into the realm of short story writing and am eager to receive insight wherever I may find it. I just published an historical non-fiction and this is a real switch of gears for me. I’ll be back often! Thanks for your insights Brandon!
@winterrenes1249 5 ай бұрын
Super helpful and the example at the end really made it all come together, thank you!
@WriterBrandonMcNulty 3 жыл бұрын
Have you ever written a short story you were happy with? Let us know!
@WriterBrandonMcNulty 3 жыл бұрын
@@AIRIDAS.1 Haha the first story I ever wrote was a ripoff of Zelda where a Link-like swordsman runs up a hallway and kills a Ganondorf-like man sitting upon a throne. That was it. That was the entire plot haha
@professormayhem3080 Ай бұрын
A thief in a high fantasy setting hears of rare artwork hidden in an underground storage facility owned by the Queen. Our protagonist tricks the guards and is able to enter the storage facility undetected, but then finds the bones of other would-be thieves and realizes she is sealed in.
@annewelles23 Жыл бұрын
Such a good video. The info and examples were very helpful. I also liked the professional graphics, and you were a great host, charismatic, to the point.
@tmc1373 Ай бұрын
EXCELLENT VIDEO!! And the MOST HELPFUL video I've ever seen on the topic! THANK YOU SO MUCH!!!
@Writercatloverbakonn Жыл бұрын
I'm writing a short story as well! 😆 however, there's no antagonist ... instead it's an antagonis force... a theme that looms in a dark way to the character. Hope that made sense 😅 Thanks for the video!
@WriterBrandonMcNulty Жыл бұрын
Thanks for watching!
@Writercatloverbakonn Жыл бұрын
@@WriterBrandonMcNultyit really helped!
@jamescaruso6564 2 жыл бұрын
Just stumbled upon your channel while learning about story structure. Just wanted to say your vides are great and I picked up your audiobook.
@WriterBrandonMcNulty 2 жыл бұрын
Awesome, thanks! Hope you enjoy Bad Parts! Please consider leaving a review when you're done--reviews are a huge help
@mochiieekim 2 жыл бұрын
hello Brandon. I just stumbled upon you and found myself drowning in three of your videos. This one hit home. Thankyou so much for this. Your content is amazing! Glad i found you. To answer your question, no i have never written a short story that i was satisfied with, its rare for me to get to the ending or the book will be too long and i will get bored eventually, thus i just deep dived into novels recently. Almost done with my first one. I had an idea for a short story it seemed quite long (76-80 chapters) when i envisioned it. I'm going to give these steps a try. Hopefully it works out for me. Thankyou for this. Keep writing. :)
@WriterBrandonMcNulty 2 жыл бұрын
Thanks, and best of luck with your writing!
@Buchnerd_Souly Жыл бұрын
I'm happy with my last christmas short story, it is cute, heartwarming and delightful.
@CurriedBat 11 ай бұрын
It's funny, I was listening to your description of the Story Circle, while in my head I each plot point of the intro of one of my stories aligned with each point. I guess it does have its own little stand alone story. I found that neat.
@edxcal84 2 жыл бұрын
Found your channel about a week ago, I love it! I've been going through your whole archive and watching everything! Taking notes like I'm in college again! I have written one short story I was pleased with, with one exception, it was to short. I may visit it again in the future.
@WriterBrandonMcNulty 2 жыл бұрын
Welcome aboard! And glad to hear the videos are helping. I take requests, so reach out if there's ever a topic you'd like me to cover. Also, how did you find my channel? Just curious
@edxcal84 2 жыл бұрын
@@WriterBrandonMcNulty I was checking youtube for "horror writing tips", I can't recall which video popped up first.
@WriterBrandonMcNulty 2 жыл бұрын
@@edxcal84 No worries, thanks for letting me know!
@TheBluenyt09 3 жыл бұрын
Awzum tips and new perspective in writing a short stories. 😎👏👏
@WriterBrandonMcNulty 3 жыл бұрын
Glad it helped! As always, thanks for watching
@ianmartinezcassmeyer 7 ай бұрын
Huh. That's a good seven-point structure for short fiction. 👌 Well done, Brandon.
@victorbryan5482 3 жыл бұрын
Great tips! In particular the one abt ending the story abruptly. I recently wrote a short story that ended quite abruptly too 🤣... I find tho that some ppl end their stories too abruptly, with more questions than answers. With very little resolution.
@WriterBrandonMcNulty 3 жыл бұрын
One great quote I heard was (and I'm paraphrasing): A short story that ends neatly will be forgotten; a short story that ends abruptly will continue to grow within the reader's mind. But like you said, the trick is to end the story abruptly at the RIGHT moment.
@greencasestudy 2 жыл бұрын
I think the key word is "satisfying". The ending has to be satisfying. Unless the goal is to leave the reader with a question to take away, or something like that. That can also be satisfying.
@TXVETJEB 5 ай бұрын
I expected yo uto mention the Lester Dent Master Plot formula. It's simple and specific to short stories. If you ever do another short story plotting video, you may want to consider it.
@JiecinDumolang2011 Жыл бұрын
Thanks for reminding this... Y'know i'm an overcomplicated storyteller, but thanks...
@WriterBrandonMcNulty Жыл бұрын
Thanks for watching!
@lotsofsports2251 2 жыл бұрын
What was it called before The Dan Harmon Story Circle, since the example used predates the origin of the term by almost forty years?
@WriterBrandonMcNulty 2 жыл бұрын
I know he based it of Joseph Campbell's "Hero's Journey" structure, although I'm not sure how similar the two are. I imagine Harmon's is more simplified.
@JoelAdamson Жыл бұрын
Yes (I have written a short story I was happy with), and it was published.
@WriterBrandonMcNulty Жыл бұрын
Awesome. Keep it up man
@JoelAdamson Жыл бұрын
@@WriterBrandonMcNulty I plan on writing a couple in the next few months. I've spent so much time outlining novels that I feel like I haven't really been writing.
@bastiMMA 2 жыл бұрын
Hi Brandon this was a great video, I really like how you delivered the information. One question, I can’t settle on a idea my mind wanders from topic to topic and I can’t stay in one idea so to speak, so you have any advice or techniques to help with that please?
@WriterBrandonMcNulty 2 жыл бұрын
Pick your favorite idea and give yourself a concrete deadline to write a story by. Commit yourself to writing that story. Maybe even tell a friend that you want them to look at a story about [idea] by [your deadline date]. Then you'll have someone you don't want to disappoint.
@joyjitsinha9253 2 жыл бұрын
Excellent
@WriterBrandonMcNulty 2 жыл бұрын
Thanks!
@francesnordan2915 5 ай бұрын
I just wrote a short story that I am happy with. It's called Ink. It is based on the Illustrated Man by Ray Bradbury
@CarnivoreChris89 2 ай бұрын
Is it possible to read it somewhere?
@gossipgirl9026 2 жыл бұрын
Your video helped me a lot but I'm still confused about the verb tenses and how to link between the ideas. I have a large imagination but how to put them on paper
@WriterBrandonMcNulty 2 жыл бұрын
With verb tenses, stick to one (past or present) at all times unless you're doing flashbacks. Here's a video I did that should help: kzfaq.info/get/bejne/r5alq9eipsm-p40.html
@2003Kamber 2 жыл бұрын
It's very useful tips. I wonder how many words should be in short story. Can you please make a vidio about it. Thanks
@WriterBrandonMcNulty 2 жыл бұрын
Already did: kzfaq.info/get/bejne/lalzmtGHt6u7dHU.html To answer your question though, Short Stories range from about 1,000 words to 6,000 (sometimes 7,500 depending on who you ask)
@KammiLutz 3 жыл бұрын
What do they say about great minds and thinking alike? I am in the process of creating a flash fiction and short story template with an outline much like the one you have here, so that new writers can type their story into the section next to the explanation. It is definitly something for newbies, but I've had several people ask how to even start. I think it will help them become familiar with the practice and format of storytelling. To answer your question of the day, I am writing a short story and some flash fiction stories that I am excited about. The main character in my flash fiction is an 8-year-old Deaf boy. It is not easy to write visual thoughts and language in English, but it is definitely fun (I'm wondering if I might be a tough masochistic. Haha). And my short story is a Sci-Fi memoire where I am an abused marionette doll (think pinochio with a computer chip and an angry dad). Yep, definitely masochistic! Haha. Thanks for the great video!
@WriterBrandonMcNulty 3 жыл бұрын
Thanks for watching! And I love that you're cooking up a template for your audience. Plot structure makes the writing process much less intimidating. I really wish I had been taught plot structure earlier in my career. Would've spared me a lot of headaches and self-doubt. And your short story about the marionette sounds like it has a stealthy Horror vibe to it!
@sandraalex9312 2 жыл бұрын
Well this would be my beginning of writing a short story
@WriterBrandonMcNulty 2 жыл бұрын
Best of luck with your story!
@saadshayanahmed 8 ай бұрын
"THE ALCHEMIST" could be from the Dan Harmon's method
@sofiabecerra-wilson2094 Күн бұрын
I really have all these good ideas but i dont know how to make them into a story i am so mad at myself why cant i just do it
@williamdetweiler1933 2 жыл бұрын
Hey Brandon for a short story do you think a girl being bullied in high school would be a good idea or is that better as a longer story
@WriterBrandonMcNulty 2 жыл бұрын
It can go either way. Totally depends on the scope of the plot. Do you have a lot of characters/events in mind? If your story is built around one major event in a short time period, it's probably a story. If your story is built around several major events over multiple days, weeks, months, it's a novel.
@potatomanboooi3105 3 жыл бұрын
I learned this when studying screen writing
@WriterBrandonMcNulty 3 жыл бұрын
The Dan Harmon thing?
@potatomanboooi3105 3 жыл бұрын
@@WriterBrandonMcNulty before I left to study for exams aswell as get my pc taken away I was watching allot of videos from studio binder and they spoke about that method.
@WriterBrandonMcNulty 3 жыл бұрын
@@potatomanboooi3105 Cool, I'll have to check out Studio Binder
@Hangar1318 Ай бұрын
Hey man. Are you the guy who does the Philosophize This podcast on Spotify? Your voice sounds exactly the same as his
@williamdetweiler1933 2 жыл бұрын
Hey Brandon would you recommend writing short stories or novels first?
@WriterBrandonMcNulty 2 жыл бұрын
Short stories, because they're easier to finish and easier to get feedback on. You can learn a ton about writing from getting one of your short stories torn apart by a critique group (even if your end goal is to write novels)
@adrianmiddleton4049 2 жыл бұрын
Hey Brandon, great video, thanks for putting it together. I have a question though and it's about the horror genre. Can Dan Harmon's structure be used / adapted for this type of story? I ask because horror stories tend to (for the most part) end badly for the hero...
@WriterBrandonMcNulty 2 жыл бұрын
Thanks! And the story circle works for horror as well. If you have a horror story that ends badly for the hero, it's either because A) the hero changed and sacrificed themselves to stop the monster, protect someone, etc. or because B) your story is a Tragedy. In Tragedies, instead of changing and becoming a better person, they give in to their flaw and become worse. Sometimes this leads to death, disfigurement, damnation, etc. Hope this makes sense. If you want I can do a video on tragedies in the near future, just let me know.
@adrianmiddleton4049 2 жыл бұрын
@@WriterBrandonMcNulty Hi. Thanks for sharing. And yes, I think we could all benefit from a video about tragedy story types too. Have you written any short stories that focus on this type, out of interest? Or could you suggest any to read from others perhaps?
@WriterBrandonMcNulty 2 жыл бұрын
@@adrianmiddleton4049 I believe "The Yellow Wallpaper" by Charlotte Perkins Gilman would qualify as a tragedy, although it's been over a decade since I've read it. You should be able to find that one for free. "The Birthmark" by Nathaniel Hawthorne is a great example of a tragedy that's a short story. That one should be free too online
@adrianmiddleton4049 2 жыл бұрын
@@WriterBrandonMcNulty Brilliant, thanks. I will look into those. I just spotted your earlier comment about your 'Ten Year Photo' short too, so I'll give that a listen as well.
@WriterBrandonMcNulty 2 жыл бұрын
@@adrianmiddleton4049 Awesome, let me know what you think!
@n.b.2164 11 ай бұрын
I've only written one short story and while I liked it the ending just felt off to me. I could not end the story well, didn't feel satisfied with the ending.
@susansookan1382 Жыл бұрын
Hey sir I wrote a story...but am not pleased..can you grade my story?
@WriterBrandonMcNulty Жыл бұрын
Thanks for the offer, but I’m way too busy. Look on Facebook and Reddit for writing groups and critique partners who can give you feedback
@PuppetMaster-Blade 3 жыл бұрын
My first short story was about a guy whos soul was trapped inside of a womans dead corpse, and throughout the story her dead conscious mind would send visions through the guys brain. He later figured out that she was the dead corpse of Mary from the bible. Eventually the visions grew stronger and what he saw became reality sending ripples through time and having all 3 timelines co exist with one another essential having past present and future all in one world. It ended abruptly but that was the main plot. Was only about 20 pages long, and was written when i was in the 4th grade for a school project 🤣😂. I actually got an F on it because the school/teacher found it offensive to use Mary in a "Negative" way in my story 😅😅
@WriterBrandonMcNulty 3 жыл бұрын
If I were you, I would reboot that story and give it another shot. The "soul trapped in a corpse that receives visions" concept is dynamite.
@PuppetMaster-Blade 3 жыл бұрын
@@WriterBrandonMcNulty Thank you 😊. I actually have been playing around with the concept again for the last few months, but haven't found a great surrounding for it yet. But with due time I'll think of something, maybe even think of the story as I'm writing my main books 😅
@WriterBrandonMcNulty 3 жыл бұрын
@@PuppetMaster-Blade Just keep it in mind. Bad Parts was born from a bad fantasy novel I wrote in 2015. Just needed a change of scenery for the concept to work. I'm sure you can use that story idea with great success in the right scenario/setting/etc.
@PuppetMaster-Blade 3 жыл бұрын
@@WriterBrandonMcNulty Speaking of Bad Parts i finished it 2 days ago. Fantastic story, although i went in expecting it to be a horror story, but when i finally got the hard copy the front read "Supernatural Thriller", so i thought it was going to be horror and for about 75% of the way i was so confused as to why there hasnt been a scary scene yet 😂. But even with my different expectation going in i still really enjoyed it. I rated it a 5/5 on audible and Amazon.I will say though i feel it needed a bit more Cheeto screen time and some more Jake screen time towards the beginning/middle of the story. Mild spoilers about character descriptions- Also a bit more character description. This could've been easily be me not remembering properly or somehow missed it, but I still have no idea what race/skin tone Ashes is, probably just missed that. Also Ashes facial features weren't really described too much either, I kept just picturing Ashes to be Tatiana from Jinjer when she had dreads 🤣😂, which i doubt is the loom you were going for 😅. But other than some lack of character descriptions or my lack of memory or even somehow completely missing it I still really liked Bad Parts. Major spoilers. - Tbh when we first saw the fog and seen Cheeto and the others dead in the cars I thought Snare was going to use them as her own family by bringing them back to life in a twisted way and make up for all she had lost before, kindof like rebooting her tribe but with the townsfolks bodies.
@WriterBrandonMcNulty 3 жыл бұрын
@@PuppetMaster-Blade First of all, THANK YOU SO MUCH for reading BP and reviewing it on Amazon and Audible (I don't think it has any Audible reviews yet, so major thanks!). Second, I labeled BP as a supernatural thriller because I thought the suspense/thriller elements were stronger than the scare/horror elements. The main inspirations for BP were Salem's Lot, Needful Things, and HEX by Thomas Olde Heuvelt (all 3 are small town horror), but my writing style is better suited for thrillers. And everybody wants more of Cheeto! Haha he was a ton of fun to write, and I tried to incorporate him into the plot as much as I could. As for the lack of physical/facial descriptions, that was actually deliberate. Sometimes you're better off giving a minimalist description of your protagonist(s) because that allows readers to picture themselves (or someone they know) as the protag. It's kinda like when you start a videogame that lets you create your own character however you want. That said, I totally understand why some readers want a more detailed description of who they're following for 300+ pages. Thanks again for reading BP. So glad you took a chance on it and ended up enjoying it.
@melessabrowne582 Жыл бұрын
Is Ms. April, your sister?
@d.b.cooper2677 2 жыл бұрын
Correct me if I'm wrong, but according to this The Killers by Hemingway is not a (short) story...?! What am I missing?
@WriterBrandonMcNulty 2 жыл бұрын
I haven't read The Killers... What do you mean?
@dr.matthewhertert310 5 ай бұрын
no.
@lilmomma8285 11 ай бұрын
Poor choice as the main character doesn't influence the outcome of the plot at all.
@TheSauceBoss 3 жыл бұрын
Great content but seriously lose that intro it's not 2009
@WriterBrandonMcNulty 3 жыл бұрын
Thanks for watching! Any idea where I can get free video intros that are more modern?
@TheSauceBoss 3 жыл бұрын
@@WriterBrandonMcNulty imo you don't really need one, but if you just have it you could look up tutorials on how to make simple intros using AE or similar software
@WriterBrandonMcNulty 3 жыл бұрын
@@TheSauceBoss Thanks! I like having one for branding and video structure purposes
@TheSauceBoss 3 жыл бұрын
@@WriterBrandonMcNulty honestly, for how rich your content is, you don't really need anything stylish, just a cut with simple text and a solid color background would do lol But I understand
@TheSauceBoss 3 жыл бұрын
@@WriterBrandonMcNulty actually it just occurred to me that you could continue using it ironically Unless you ARE using it ironically in which case it flew over my head
@sushant1947 5 ай бұрын
this is the same as the hero's journey in different words. this is more suitable for a novel and not really a short story. useless video
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