From time to time, I'll share some creative writing techniques. This is one of those moments. As with anything in the business of the arts, these are tried and tested suggestions not hard and fast rules.
This wisdom comes from various sources. Mentorships with Margaret Weis, Bob Salvatore, and Wulf Moon. Courses with editors like Scot Noel of Dreamforge magazine and Jason Sizemore of Apex magazine, to name a few. Courses and meetings with literary agents. In short, what I share with you works.
Today's writing tips:
If we want our stories to make it past the slush pile and win awards or get bought, we need to ensure we have a few things in them right away. Readers in these positions look for several key items from us in the first few pages of a novel manuscript or in the first page or two of a short story. Yes, you read that right. Editors have all told me they can tell within a few pages whether they want to keep the story for further consideration or give it a rejection.
That said, we need to ensure we deliver a few things right up front:
A hook.
A character...
In a defined setting...
With a conflict.
For short stories, my advice is to get your main character named and introduced in the opening sentence, preferably with a nice hook included. We have to make things perform double or even triple duty in shorts. With novels, we can get away with introducing the character a bit later, but it should still be within the first few paragraphs. If any of these critical pieces to your story puzzle is missing or unclear right away, I'd expect a form rejection.
I can review each of these in more detail in separate posts if you like. Just let me know. I want to give back to the community that has done so much for me, but I don't want to waste anyone's time.