How to Write a Short Story (for BEGINNERS) | 4 Easy Steps

Do you want to learn how to write a short story (as a complete beginner)? This video is for you! In this writing advice video, I share my EASY 4-step method for writing bulletproof short stories!

QUESTIONS FOR YOU:
1. Have you written a short story before? How did it go? If you have not, would you? Why or why not?
2. What do YOU think the most important part of a short story is?
3. What's your favourite short story?

TIMESTAMPS:
0:00 - Intro
0:17 - 4 basic components of a short story
0:30 - 1. Character in particular predicament
1:02 - What is a theme?
1:46 - 2. Event unrolls that disrupts this predicament
2:40 - 3. Event peaks
3:25 - 4. Final revelation changes the predicament
5:41 - "But my character isn't SUPPOSED to change"
6:33 - Outro

CONNECT WITH ME:

MY STORIES:
→ “Eat Well” in CAROUSEL, forthcoming

MY POETRY:
→ "the drive-up microphone at burger king" in carte blanche:
→ “At night, I rest my limbs in water and search for my mother’s father’s mother’s mother’s tongue” in Augur Magazine, forthcoming
→ "My Wolf Lives on the Windowsill" in Grain Magazine: [print only]

ABOUT ME
Hi y'all! I'm Rachel, a 21-year-old writer from Toronto. I've been writing for eight years and am in my final year of my BA in creative writing. On my channel, rachel writes, I document my writing journey and try to post once a week (usually on Fridays).

DISCLAIMER:
I'm only one writer, and approach each video from my experience/expertise. While I make content like writing advice videos on this channel, it's important to me that my viewers ultimately write in the way that best resonates with them. :)

Outro: This is not a joke by Monplaisir

My equipment:
→ Camera: Sony ZV1
→ Vlog mic: Rode Video Micro
→ Sit-down mic: Blue Yeti OR Blue Snowball iCE
→ Editor: Premiere Pro

#authortube

[rachelwritesbooks]

Questions & timestamps below! I had so much fun making & editing this video, I hope you like the new style! If you did, it’d mean the world if you shared this! 🥺

QUESTIONS FOR YOU:
1. Have you written a short story before? How did it go? If you have not, would you? Why or why not?
2. What do YOU think the most important part of a short story is?
3. What's your favourite short story?

TIMESTAMPS:
0:00 - Intro
0:17 - 4 basic components of a short story
0:30 - 1. Character in particular predicament
1:02 - What is a theme?
1:46 - 2. Event unrolls that disrupts this predicament
2:40 - 3. Event peaks
3:25 - 4. Final revelation changes the predicament
5:41 - "But my character isn't SUPPOSED to change"
6:33 - Outro

[KittyBGaming]

My brain: let’s do a short story!
Few hours later….
Project is a novel

[julianmusic]

my exams finish tomorrow and i was planning to write a few short stories. YOU'RE A LIFE SAVER RACHEL. LOVE YOU TO THE MOON AND BACK!!!

[SportsBoss]

I took a short story class in high school, and your grade was basically determined by how well you're writing was in creating your own short story. I received a very good grade for the one I wrote, but internally I was very unsatisfied with how my story came out. I was very unhappy with the ending and it still bugs me even to this day. I'm feel I'm pretty good at writing and thought I'd do a good job on it, but I was frustrated because it didn't come out as well as I thought it would. Self-confidence was never a strength of mine, but going into this I thought hey, I can do this. When my final product was completed I was very very disappointed in myself. I vowed to one day write another one, but like most things, I didn't follow through. I'm 68 years old now, retired, and live alone. Deep inside me I still have a desire to prove - to myself only, no one else - that I can do better. This has taken me to your video. Hopefully some of your ideas will help me create a short story that I'm proud of.

[jayschmeezy]

I know this is a year old and I'm not sure if you'll see this, but I'm honestly super thankful for this. To be honest, starting off I felt like the types of stories that I want to create were WAY different, which I assumed meant this wouldn't work. I stuck with the video anyway and took your points and tried to apply them in my own way and was genuinely surprised at how happy I was with the result. I wouldn't call myself artist by any means, but this feels like a great beginner workflow to knock out some short stories to apply to some video games I'd like to make!

[j.o.]

This short, punchy editing held my poor attention span so well. Plus, there's something slightly Elle Mills-esque to this editing that feels very engaging. I will indeed now go rewrite that short story I left hanging because this video made me realize I'd placed an inciting incident too late and it would be a much better story if I fixed it

[Kavon]

I cannot get over this woman’s diction, so clear.

[arnabdas]

00:04 Writing a short story doesn't have to be hard.
00:56 Predicaments in a story can be internal or external and are linked by the theme
01:43 Identify a disruptive event that causes the story to happen.
02:40 Event Peaks are the climax of a short story, leading to a change in the character's predicament.
03:36 The ending of a short story is crucial as it recontextualizes the entire story for the reader.
04:29 Choosing to prioritize yourself is necessary as you age
05:16 In a short story, even if your character doesn't change, they might actually regress.
06:07 Short stories require characters to undergo change.
Crafted by Merlin AI.

[innocenthedgehog]

Can't believe YouTube didn't recommend this to me. So glad I finally saw it. I love the new style!

[AnnaSeale]

I've watched a lot of "how to write a short story" videos, but something about yours is different, fresh, and incredibly helpful. I love the way you use your own example to explain the 4 steps, as I often struggle with going too big while writing short stories and I can never think of subtle ways to show change in my characters as the story progresses. I feel like you keep the steps simple and clear which makes things easy to follow for beginner writers :) Thank you for breaking it down so well. I'm looking forward to checking out your other videos as well.

[MasonInTheDark]

This was a helpful and insightful video. I recently got done working on a short story and as you were outlining each point I was able to pinpoint that in the story. It gave me that extra bit of confidence that I've done a decent job. Can't wait to soak in more of your wisdom. I'm always looking for new authors to inspire me. I'm just a novice seeking the knowledge of those more experienced. Hope you're having a lovely day.

[tysonpop]

This video is the most helpful one I've found. You explain everything and provide clear examples.

[sobreezygt]

Super helpful guide to short story structure. Looking at my outline with this format helps with seeing the character's growth and change from a birds eye view (I'm a complete beginner btw!)

[hamzaalkerwi]

You nailed it right from the beginning. My same exact thoughts “I don’t have enough time for people to know the characters” .

Super helpful, thank you

[Trilogye]

I draw and I’ve been wanting to make a comic but I have no solid knowledge on writing the actual story so videos like this are very helpful! Thank you. And I liked this short story tbh. It felt wholesome and impactful.

[youparejo]

This video is so great! At the airport right, i will build my story. It's like i can't find a peaxe of my mind until i start working on this idea of a story I've had for months

[MissShinyLemon]

THANK YOU!!! I've been trying to write. I have an idea and already wrote some scenes for different chapters. However, I didn't know how to organize the events so they would not only progress in a way that made sense, but also in a way that would show the character's growth. So, again, thank you. :)

[daltonpatterson]

The video I needed to watch at exactly the right time! Your knowledge and wisdom is indeed a blessing. Keep up the outstanding work, you're amazing as always 💙

[Createreatereate-dw]

Thank you for this useful video! Inspiring and short 🤗

[laurenmanson]

Thank you so much, Rachel. This is the best guide that I have ever seen to writing a short story! Definitely using this...for myself and my students. Thanks again!