the writer’s block

I found these helpful short story writing tips the other day, and I thought I would post them up:

1. Have a clear theme. What is the story about? That doesn’t mean what is the plot line, the sequence of events or the character’s actions, it means what is the underlying message or statement behind the words. Get this right and your story will have more resonance in the minds of your readers.


2. An effective short story covers a very short time span. It may be one single event that proves pivotal in the life of the character, and that event will illustrate the theme. 


3. Don’t have too many characters. Each new character will bring a new dimension to the story, and for an effective short story too many diverse dimensions (or directions) will dilute the theme. Have only enough characters to effectively illustrate the theme. 


4. Make every word count. There is no room for unnecessary expansion in a short story. If each word is not working towards putting across the theme, delete it. 


5. Focus. The best stories are the ones that follow a narrow subject line. What is the point of your story? Its point is its theme. It’s tempting to digress, but in a ’short’ you have to follow the straight and narrow otherwise you end up with either a novel beginning or a hodgepodge of ideas that add up to nothing.

This is a blog site designed to be a forum for creative expression; a place where one can post a literary creation of their own, be it a short story, poem, haiku etc. and receive feedback/encouragement through comments from the reader.

It’s an idea that I had the other night as I sat in my apartment here in Otterburne MB, a place which has a short list of ‘things to do in … ‘. We are here so that my wife can work on her Master’s degree at Providence Seminary, and while she has been doing school work, I have filled my evenings between reading some good books and playing video games. The latter had taken centre stage in recent days, and I had begun to spend some time lying on the floor and complaining of boredom.

I figured that maybe it was time to find a more meaningful hobby.

As the title suggests, however, I am short on ideas right now. I have not written anything creative or fictional since about the 5th grade; but I truly want to get into it, and hope to inspire others to do so as well.

This site is not just for me. I invite anyone to partake in sharing a creative work of their own. If you want to contribute, please email me at mclaren.ic@gmail.com.

I am trying to get some ideas together, and hope to have a story posted up in the next week or so.

Thanks for stopping by.