English P1 - Short Story notes

moviequoter

These are just a few notes I typed up and thought I'd share. I'm planning to do the short story in paper 1 on Wednesday and was studying for it, although there's not much you can do, other than practice with previous exam papers.

Short Story

Make a bubble plan.

Practice! Unless you become quite good at doing short stories I'd reccommend avoiding them in the exam. They can become quite messy. It looks like a nice question but can become meaningless and confusing for the examiner, unless written with clarity and imagination.

Important: * Plot - A main idea around your short story and convey it. (A beginning, a middle and an end)
* Crisis -- Something that conveys doubt / puts the plot in jeopardy.
* Conflict -- Between characters / a single character's personal state of mind. (indecision)

Do: * A decent 5 pages
* Keep it simple
* Keep the characters at a minimum
* Develop Characters
* Flashbacks or references to earlier
* Add some mystery to the story
* Use quotes or references (You may use quotes from a poem or from the previous 3 TEXTS but only if they are relevant to what you are trying to convey)
* Be descriptive
* Show and not tell. eg Instead of saying, "Tom was nervous," write "Tom's hands began to shake."
* It is often useful to include a moral
* Don't always give the story a 'happy ending'. It can be unrealistic.
* Use a snappy opening and closing line. Try to make it memorable.
* Include dialogue in the story. It is crucial that you remember to do this.


Don't: * Spend too long on something. It's only a short story.
* Spend pages describing everything that's happened before the story begins. It's pointless.
* Include big time gaps. It disrupts the story and is very confusing.
* Overcomplicate the story.
* Make your characters unrealistic. They must have human traits/qualities.
* Use clichés. Avoid them as much as possible.


Characters: You want your characters to be reasonably likable. The main character should be the one we sympathise with the most.
For example, if writing about 'the bad guy' - he must have some redeeming characteristics. Otherwise, he'll be very 2D and unrealistic.
Think about what sort of situation they are in and how most would react.
If you don't explain your character completely, it makes it easier for a reader to identify with them and they can fill in the gaps themslves.

Setting: Creating an appropriate setting for your story is important.
Make sure it is fairly relevant to the plot. (For instance, you wouldn't write a short story about life in the country and have it set in an urban area like a city. It wouldn't make sense.) You can use the setting and have the characters interact with it. (Taking notice of the weather and goings on around the character are all important. This is also how you'd go about making your story more descriptive.)

Climax: Make sure to have a climax in your story. This is a key event that changes the plot of the story. It would be wise to build up to this.

Reflection: This is where you take time to show the result of what has happened in your story. It is the same as doing a conclusion in all of your essay questions. You may use a moral and/or a catchy ending line here.

Lastly: Be extremely aware/concious of your language and writing skills throughout your story. Like in poetry, you use techniques that make the story more appealing. You can use some of the techniques used in poetry, like alliteration in your catchy opening/closing lines. Metaphor, onomotapeia and character hyperbole are also acceptable. (As long as they're not clichéd of course.) When your character comes to a crisis, use action writing and short sentences to make it exciting.Build tension to interest the examiner.


I hope that you found these notes useful.

LittleMissLost

Thats great! Thank you.

I'm planning on doing the story too.

I wrote a short story for my teacher last year and it was very, personal, for the want of a better word, although I wrote it in the third person. It wasn't totally based on personal experience but my teacher said she was shocked and unnerved when she read it and said that it was really worrying and disturbing how I got in to the mind of the character so effortlessly (woopsie :rolleyes: ).

It wasn't rude or sexual or anything but just wondering if you think it would be ok to write something like this in the exam? The examiner won't get back to you on it would they?

Only asking because it was a good essay (she gave me an A) and was wondering if it would be ok to write this sort of thing in the exam?

ChristinaIndigo

In regard to dialogue in the short stories, I always get confused as to how I should structure it... Myself, I'd tend to start on a new line when a new/different character is speaking. Much the same as most books... It's ends up making the length of the story seem very confusing though and can seem over complicated..

moviequoter

LittleMissLost wrote: »

Thats great! Thank you.

I'm planning on doing the story too.

I wrote a short story for my teacher last year and it was very, personal, for the want of a better word, although I wrote it in the third person. It wasn't totally based on personal experience but my teacher said she was shocked and unnerved when she read it and said that it was really worrying and disturbing how I got in to the mind of the character so effortlessly (woopsie :rolleyes: ).

It wasn't rude or sexual or anything but just wondering if you think it would be ok to write something like this in the exam? The examiner won't get back to you on it would they?

Only asking because it was a good essay (she gave me an A) and was wondering if it would be ok to write this sort of thing in the exam?

I'd say that'd be fine to be honest. If she gave you an A, then I don't see why it wouldn't be okay to do something like that. She didn't say that she recommended you not to be so personal did she?

ChristinaIndigo wrote: »

In regard to dialogue in the short stories, I always get confused as to how I should structure it... Myself, I'd tend to start on a new line when a new/different character is speaking. Much the same as most books... It's ends up making the length of the story seem very confusing though and can seem over complicated..

Honestly, I have the same problem. I'd say the safest bet though, is to do it like they do in books. They obviously know what they're talking about so, even though it makes it complicated and awkward, that's probably how you should do it. I'm going to do the same.

Salty

LittleMissLost wrote: »

Thats great! Thank you.

I'm planning on doing the story too.

I wrote a short story for my teacher last year and it was very, personal, for the want of a better word, although I wrote it in the third person. It wasn't totally based on personal experience but my teacher said she was shocked and unnerved when she read it and said that it was really worrying and disturbing how I got in to the mind of the character so effortlessly (woopsie :rolleyes: ).

It wasn't rude or sexual or anything but just wondering if you think it would be ok to write something like this in the exam? The examiner won't get back to you on it would they?

Only asking because it was a good essay (she gave me an A) and was wondering if it would be ok to write this sort of thing in the exam?

I had the same problem with my teacher, in that she found the feelings expressed by the main character very vivid. I could tell she was worried, because she questioned me a lot after it, where I got the idea etc. She then told me to "go easy on myself.":P Funny though, it wasn't based on experience at all. She still gave me an A, but I'm not going to use it in the real thing. The character dies tragically in it, and I get the impression that this happens in A LOT of the short stories which are handed up. I've come with something a little less action-based for Wednesday.:P

BubblesXD

I have an essay I have learned off basically about a young girl who wakes up not remembering the night before but goes to explain trouble in her life she is having! I'd love if I could fit it into any question. Anybody any ideas on a story line for an essay you could mpuld to fit various topics? Long shot I know

Iceboy

Is this the composing section you are refering to?

Fbjm

My plan: wing it. If it pops into my head and I find it interesting, chances are the examiner will too. If I find myself starting to waffle, I make it into a twist to make the waffle seem planned. I always get Bs in my essays so it's foolproof

J_E

I'm surprised more people don't do the speech style essays. I always find them a doddle and you can make a real impression on the examiner.

Meller

Thanks for this.

Probably not the best idea ever, but I'm planning on doing the short story, despite not having written one for school since Junior Cert. Hopefully all that pent-up creativity will be unleashed and lead to something great.:rolleyes:


What do you all think about 'age ratings', for lack of better phrasing? I wouldn't be planning to write anything gratuitously graphic, but what about being slightly abstract in order to convey a certain atmosphere? For instance if I was writing about a relationship (which I would love- it's simple, straightforward, but there's a lot to explore, and it's interesting to all people) and there were sexual undertones to it- not overt, but undeniable and unambiguous at the same time...?

J_E

I think as long as it's tasteful and doesn't seem forced in or cheesy it's okay.

Meller

Cydoniac wrote: »

I think as long as it's tasteful and doesn't seem forced in or cheesy it's okay.

That sounds good. Thanks.

Bbbbolger

Cydoniac wrote: »

I'm surprised more people don't do the speech style essays. I always find them a doddle and you can make a real impression on the examiner.

You have to be capable of powerful, moving writing. Every student is differnent. I know people who wouldnt dare even consider the speech and rightly so. It just doesn't fit their writing style. Speech is my second option if my short story plan doesn't fit one of the titles. I have a feeling that "Yes we can!" is going to be ridiculously over-quoted this year within the speeches!

LC2010HIS

For the short stories - Ive always done quite well in them and Im a firm believer it depends on the theme.
That pre, with the theme motivation was a pain in the ass!
Themes like change, the future, etc are way better

LC2010HIS

"In the End, we will remember not the words of our enemies, but the silence of our friends"
... - Martin Luther King Jr.


"No one can make you feel inferior without your consent" - E. Roosevelt

"A riot is at bottom the language of the unheard".
Martin Luther King, Jr.

"Be the change you want to see in the world" Mahatma Gandhi

"We must use time as a tool, not a crutch" JFK

"Our stories are singular but our destiny is shared" - Barack Obama

[FONT=Verdana, Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif]"The future depends on what we do in the present". - Mahatma Gandhi[/FONT]

moviequoter

Most likely, I'll either end up doing the short story or else an article if one comes up.