 Short Stories: August 16, 2023 Issue [#12133] |
This week: Extra, Extra! Edited by: Leger~  
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2. A Word from our Sponsor
3. Letter from the Editor
4. Editor's Picks
5. A Word from Writing.Com
6. Ask & Answer
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The purpose of this newsletter is to help the Writing.com short story author hone their craft and improve their skills. Along with that, I would like to inform, advocate, and create new, fresh ideas for the short story author. Write to me if you have an idea you would like presented.
This week's Short Story Editor
Leger~
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Extra, Extra!
We all fight the word count when entering contests. Personally, my stories all fall short because I try to write in a more concise way than when I'm puttering in my novels. My count falls short, so I have to look back and see where I can add more description or juice it up with another character.
Sometimes we write too much! Okay, I know, there's so much to show the reader. All those fun things racing around in your head while you're writing. Of course, there's always that guy. The one that sneaks into your story when you're not looking and hangs around in his board shorts, smoking a cigar and just being extra.
What do we do with this extra guy? Well, ask yourself if the character helps advance the story. Does he add interest or flavor to your main characters? If you take him out, would it create a gap in the storyline? Is the character adding a red herring? Are they a "red shirt" character you'll kill off later?
Put all these things into consideration when you're editing and decide if it really helps or hinders your storyline.
This month's question: Do you end up adding more to your short stories or trimming them?
Send in your answer below!  Editors love feedback!
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AUGUST SITE CONTEST
Excerpt: The task is simple: Write a short story using the prompt above as inspiration!
Excerpt: Each day around 12pm NOON WDC time, one of our dedicated volunteer judges will judge the previous day's entries and post a new writing prompt. Entries for each new prompt must be posted by 11:59am WDC time the next day.
Excerpt: September 1-7 - How about Blogging in the week of WdC’s Twenty-Third Birthday? I will provide a prompt every day from September 1 till September 7 (WdC time). You make it a daily entry for seven days. Simple as that!
Excerpt: Can you excite in a few words? Or looking to create a quick bit of romance?
If so, this is the writing challenge for you. Your mission is to write a story based on the prompt in fewer than 690 words, that is either romance, erotica or a combination of the two genres.
Excerpt: One of the first things I think to myself when I begin a novel is what a fictional "character" could be like, how he or she feels, smells, touches, motivates me, loves me, hates me, gives me happiness or sadness. . . As with any icon, each character must stand out as a quality part of a piece of writing work when it comes to naming them and their interweavings with plot and dialogue.. They must be worthy to write about.
Excerpt: When reading through the many stories on this site, I'm struck by a common flaw in character development. While I've seen some well rounded protagonists, I've found the flip side of the coin lacking.
Excerpt: It might be a noble thought to surmise that William Shakespeare was so gifted, he needed only to sit and contemplate a worthy idea or two and suddenly the makings of a play strike him like a thunder-clap. However, Shakespeare’s talent for constructing intertwining plots and sub-plots smoothly and efficiently could not have possibly been complete in his “gems” (his dramatic writings) without first turning to previous sources which enhance and add meaning to each of his plays.
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Excerpt: No one knew how the boats got there; they just appeared overnight as if by magic. We were all stunned. We had been on this island for what seemed like an eternity, maybe it was an eternity….
Excerpt: This character has already been completely and utterly screwed over. If you’ve taken the Mary Sue test, you know exactly what I mean. The number one thing you never do to your characters is make them flat and static like this.
Excerpt: In this contest, the focus is on the female character/s. Her view, her perspective, her story! Male writers are welcome, of course, but you'll have to write from a female POV (point of view). It's about the confident female, the one who'll stand up for herself and won't require to lean on her companion for support - unless she wants to.
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Have an opinion on what you've read here today? Then send the Editor feedback! Find an item that you think would be perfect for showcasing here? Submit it for consideration in the newsletter!
https://www.Writing.Com/go/nl_form
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This month's question: Do you end up adding more to your short stories or trimming them?
Send in your answer below! Editors love feedback!
Last month's "Short Stories Newsletter (July 19, 2023)" question: What "fuzzwords" do you see or dislike?
NaNoNette  : You make a good point about the use of jargon in writing. The same can, and needs to be said, about acronyms. I never know what people are talking about. For instance, I don't know what WFR'd or RIF'd stand for. Another thing I noticed is how this type of slang doesn't even have the same meaning for everybody. For instance, when I read "out-of-pocket" I think that this is either in relation to a medical copay. Or it's describing a comment that one person made toward someone else that was rude. I never thought that "out-of-pocket" translates to unavailable.
tj-turkey-jobble-jobble-hard-J  : Well, I guess, but I'm not sure, but probably the ones that are not clean-shaven, yet not bristly, you know, or maybe not, but the ones, or twos, maybe even threes, that are fuzzy!
Is that clear enough for you?
TheBusmanPoet  : It's not a dislike, more like roll your eyes. As when people may do it to you...lol I'm thick skinned, having to be while driving the public for 30yrs. I've just about heard it all but not quite I would say.
I do have certain things that will trigger me. Saint, I am not. 
Paul  : “Woke.”
One party is making a dirty word out of it and the vast majority of them have no concept of what it means or where it came from.
Elle - on hiatus : Oh Paul , sounds like you would have fun answering the current prompt about being woke over at "JAFBG" [XGC] . Mind the rating though, that forum is rated XGC for language. 
NaNotatoGo! : “The four-one-one” or “the down low” or “ten-four”. The first two could be phrased “let me tell you about” the latter, “alright” or “okay” or “confirmed”. Would also like to point out that I am spelling these phonetically. Also, we should use thesauruses all the cool kids are doing it! 
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