Real Writing Instruction, from a Real Writer:

Dina Leacock, author of Elements Of The Short Story, has sold more than one hundred humor, horror, fantasy, and mystery short stories. Inside her new book she shares lessons learned from her vast writing, as well as teaching and inspiring other writers. With simple, straightforward techniques she helps guide aspiring and seasoned writers alike toward better, more sellable stories.

What the experts are saying:

"Elements of the Short Story reveals an author who is in touch with the inner workings of the short story genre in a lucid and readable way. Dina Leacock leads the writer from theory to application in the very practical writing assignments that follow each chapter. An important read for any inspiring short story writer."
--Dr. Fran Pelham, author, journalist, professor of communications at Holy Family University and the president of the Philadelphia Writers' Conference.

"With wit and style, Dina Leacock shares key insights into the writing of compelling short stories. An invaluable resource for anyone who has ever wanted to write fiction."
--Madeleine Costigan, former assistant fiction editor at McCall's and author of over seventy-five short stories.

Sample Selection:

When I wrote these columns I started with theme, and then covered the other elements of the short story in this order: character, plot, scene, dialogue and point of view. That is not necessarily how a story is created. Every writer will go about writing their story differently and may even approach stories mixing the elements in a different pattern each time they create. It doesn't really matter how you approach your story, by creating the plot, first or the characters or even the scene. Using all the elements in your story is the important thing.

The first element we will deal with in this book is theme. Ask yourself why are you trying to write your story, what is it you want to get across to the reader: Simply put, what is the theme? Many of us begin to write without actually thinking about the theme of the story; we just know it. But sometimes we don't have a point and the writing rambles.

Try to take a few minutes before you sit down and write to think of your theme. Once you begin writing, see if you've kept to your theme or if it has changed. Sometimes you can have a theme that is on several levels, or the reader may not get the same message that you thought you wrote. That's all right.

I once entered a short story in a contest. I remember thinking about the story for several days before I wrote it. The idea for the story, which is the theme, stemmed from the old adage, "you can't change human nature." From that concept, I created a story about an old woman, a teacher who was like one most of us has encountered at some point in our lives. She is unyielding and rigid in her thinking and way of life. I had her given three wishes by her fairy godmother. The story won first place and the judge explained to a group of us that the message of the story was, "You never get anything without paying." That wasn't the message I intended, but it was there in the story as well as my own overt theme.

When you think of the theme of your story, try to sum it up in one sentence, sort of like a Hollywood pitch. Tell yourself why you are writing this story. Many times you can use a familiar saying, proverb, or quotation.

Remember: - A short story needs to have a theme. - A story can have more than one theme. - Theme can change in the story as you develop it and write it - You should be able to sum up your theme in one sentence.

This chapter has three assignments for you:

1. Read several stories on both the adult and juvenile level, (I like to use a book by Dr. Seuss as an example when I'm teaching). Try to sum up the theme using a familiar saying. Tell what you think the author was trying to get across. Remember, you can't be wrong.

2. This part of the exercise is for those of you who have written or started one or more stories already. Reread what you have written and see if you can do the same thing as above and name the theme. Check to see if your story had a point to it. If it did, pat yourself on the back. If it didn't, think about why you wanted to write it and try to rewrite it using your new-found theme.

3. List ten familiar or favorite sayings. Once you've done that, look at the list, pick one quote and try to think of a story line to go with it. That story line, when developed, will be the plot. This is also the time to think about the characters you are going to write about. You can name them now for your storyline then develop them later in chapter two. Write down the idea you are developing in a few sentences and list your main characters next to each saying that has inspired you. When you are ready, turn that brief outline into a short story. Save this list and take it out when you want a new story to develop and write.