I want to write a short story, but I only have about 4 pages so far. I'm struggling with how not to be monotonous. It's your basic serial killer type story. Any ideas on how to expand on it without becoming repetitive? Thanks
struggling
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mirandashell
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Monotonous with what? Description? Action? Afraid you're going to have to give us a bit more detail
Why does it need expanding? 4 pages is a perfectly respectable length for a short story, so there's no need to pad it out if it doesn't need it.
Dylan_Perry
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OJCade is right. You don't need to pad your story, if it works for you at four pages, leave it at four pages.
One of my favorite short story's is Other People by Neil Gaiman. It's about a man suffering in Hell for his sins. It's four pages long and wonderful. (It's in the collection, Fragile Things if you want to check it out)
One of my favorite short story's is Other People by Neil Gaiman. It's about a man suffering in Hell for his sins. It's four pages long and wonderful. (It's in the collection, Fragile Things if you want to check it out)
Where else are you on it? What I mean is, do you have the ending yet? Do you know what it's about? I know you said, serial killer, but that's what one of my favorite professors called the "outside" story--what happens. Do you have the "inside" story, what it means or what you want readers to take away?
If you have all that, you have the story. If you don't, you may just want to write and worry less about being monotonous for now, until you figure it out. Then you can revise or cut (mind you, I love revision and I'm ruthless. I love the satisfaction of cutting a story down by paragraphs or pages).
Good luck!
If you have all that, you have the story. If you don't, you may just want to write and worry less about being monotonous for now, until you figure it out. Then you can revise or cut (mind you, I love revision and I'm ruthless. I love the satisfaction of cutting a story down by paragraphs or pages).
Good luck!
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1. Pages are meaningless. How many words.
2. I don't have a clue what "your basic serial killer type story" is.
3. Without seeing the story, no useful response to your question is possible.
So, after you have 50 posts here, you become eligible to post things in the Share Your Work forum. That would be a good place to start, and start there by looking at and commenting on what other people have posted.
4. Read. Read a hell of a lot. Read widely. Read to find out what makes good stories work.
caw
The way to avoid being repetitive is to not keep repeating yourself.
The way to avoid being monotonous is to weave the story you're trying to tell into a set of words arranged in an absorbing sequence; use engaging words to lend flavour to your prose, and active examples of the vernacular to add spice to your dialogue.
Read James Ellroy to learn how crime/noir is done like a motherfucker.
matt marshall
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It sounds to me like you're having trouble with your style in general.
Put the serial killer short story to one side, and write something else. Even a one page story. Then come back to it and re-read it. If it's still no good, shelf it and write something that really excites you. Then put it out there and see what other's think.
Also bear in mind that monotony in a serial killer story may be effective if used correctly. Even though it's a novel, the first 100 pages of American Psycho is nothing but Patrick Bateman eating, working out and talking about clothes. I found it extremely banal. But then the killing starts, and the impact is immense.
Keep writing and good luck.
... instead of trying to lengthen it,
read it over and look for opportunities to elaborate.
Even if it's just a detail it may lead to something else.
And oddly that something else may turn out important to the story,
or character development.
If it isn't, delete it, and move on to another section.
And like others have said, it may be fine as is.
read it over and look for opportunities to elaborate.
Even if it's just a detail it may lead to something else.
And oddly that something else may turn out important to the story,
or character development.
If it isn't, delete it, and move on to another section.
And like others have said, it may be fine as is.
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Some of my favourite stories are very short. For me, a great short is able to convey a lot more than what is written down. The old iceberg philosophy. Good luck with it.
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One sub-plot is fine for any story, if it's a natural fit. More than this just means padding, especially in a short story. Complications make a story longer, not subplots, and not elaborating. Things go wrong, not right. One step forward, two steps back.
I wasn't aware that there were any rules about how short a short story might be. I am aware that there are quite a few very good short stories that are 4 or 5 pages in length.
Skippy
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This. Is. Awesome.
I assume from your description that it's genre and the conflict is about if the killer will 1)kill the victim and 2)get caught. If so, make each victim harder/riskier to kill.
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