User's+Guide+-+Jesser


 * How to Write Flash Fiction **

 Flash fiction, also known as sudden fiction, is very similar to short stories, with the elements they involve, except it is accomplished with very few words. Here are a few suggestions when writing flash fiction:

The most important structural element about flash fiction is its length. Although flash fiction does not have a designated length, you will typically find varying lengths between 55 and 1400 words. Most commonly you will find stories between 700 and 1000 words. Because flash fiction is so short, the story usually covers one specific event or moment or will encompass the events of one day. A time span larger than one day will lead to additional writing and length and then the story will no longer qualify as flash fiction.
 * Structure: **

- Develop a protagonist. What does he or she want in the story that will propel the story forward? - What details from the setting, dialog, and tone help you tell the story? Use unique adjectives to describe scenes down to the nitty-gritty level. You want your readers to “see” what you are describing.
 * Getting Started: **

- It is important to immediately engage the readers in a short story with the unusual, unexpected, an action, or a conflict. - Begin with an immediate built up tension within a character to entice a reader to dive further into the story.
 * Create a Catchy First Paragraph: **

In flash fiction, little details go a long way. Because the writer needs to stay under a certain word limit, physical adjectives are not as important as getting to know the character. - People don’t want to read about boring characters, what __quarks__ can you give the character that will want someone to read about he/she? - What characteristic can you emphasize that will lead the character to their actions?
 * Develop Characters: **

Because flash fiction is so short compared to most short stories, first person is preferred because more information can be relayed to the reader in a very short __ about __ of time and writing. - Choose between 1st, 2nd and 3rd person. <span style="font-family: 'Times New Roman','serif'; font-size: 16px;">- 1st person: The story is told from the protagonist’s point of view – “I” <span style="font-family: 'Times New Roman','serif'; font-size: 16px;">- 2nd person: The story is told with the reader as a participant – “You” <span style="font-family: 'Times New Roman','serif'; font-size: 16px;">- 3rd person: The story is told from an outside source – “He,” “She,” or “It”
 * <span style="font-family: 'Times New Roman','serif'; font-size: 16px;">Choose a Point of View: **

<span style="font-family: 'Times New Roman','serif'; font-size: 16px;">Dialogue is a stylistic preference that is typically used in flash fiction. Through dialogue, the writer can give his/her audience more information about the main and minor characters, as well as their surroundings without explicating __ or __<span style="font-family: 'Times New Roman','serif'; font-size: 16px;">explaining it them. <span style="font-family: 'Times New Roman','serif'; font-size: 16px;">- When writing dialogue, it is important to “show” the reader rather than “telling” the reader. <span style="font-family: 'Times New Roman','serif'; font-size: 16px;">- “Jimmy asked nervously” is an example of telling. “Where are you going? Jimmy stammered, staring at his sneakers” is an example of showing.
 * <span style="font-family: 'Times New Roman','serif'; font-size: 16px;">Write a Meaningful Dialogue: **

<span style="font-family: 'Times New Roman','serif'; font-size: 16px;">- Setting includes time, place, context and atmosphere of where the plot takes place. <span style="font-family: 'Times New Roman','serif'; font-size: 16px;">- Make sure to include enough detail to let your readers picture the scene but only details that actually add something to the story and are necessary. <span style="font-family: 'Times New Roman','serif'; font-size: 16px;">- Use two or more senses in your descriptions of the setting.
 * <span style="font-family: 'Times New Roman','serif'; font-size: 16px;">Use Setting and Context: **

<span style="font-family: 'Times New Roman','serif'; font-size: 16px;">- Conflict produces tension that makes the story begin. Tension is created by opposition between the character or characters and internal or external forces or conditions. By balancing the opposing forces of the conflict, you keep readers glued to the pages wondering how the story will end.
 * <span style="font-family: 'Times New Roman','serif'; font-size: 16px;">Create a Conflict: **

<span style="font-family: 'Times New Roman','serif'; font-size: 16px;">Typically, a climax is only fully developed within a longer flash fiction story, one that is closer to 1000 words. A story that is only 55 or so words should still have one, it just may not be as fully developed as others. <span style="font-family: 'Times New Roman','serif'; font-size: 16px;">- This is the turning point of the story, the most exciting or dramatic moment. <span style="font-family: 'Times New Roman','serif'; font-size: 16px;">- “The crisis may be a recognition, a decision, or a resolution. The character understands what hasn’t been seen before, or realizes what must be done, or finally decides to do it. It’s when the worm turns. Timing is crucial. If the crisis occurs too early, readers will expect still another turning point. If it occurs too late, readers will get impatient – the character will seem rather thick.” Jerome Stern
 * <span style="font-family: 'Times New Roman','serif'; font-size: 16px;">Develop a Climax: **

<span style="font-family: 'Times New Roman','serif'; font-size: 16px;">Not all flash fiction stories have a complete resolution. They can often leave the reader hanging and wondering what will happen next. However, they do not end right in the middle of the story, instead, there must be loose ends tied up when concluding the story no matter how vague they might be. <span style="font-family: 'Times New Roman','serif'; font-size: 16px;">- The resolution is the solution to the conflict. <span style="font-family: 'Times New Roman','serif'; font-size: 16px;">- In longer flash fiction, it is difficult to provide a complete resolution and you often need to just show that characters are beginning to change in some way or starting to see things differently.
 * <span style="font-family: 'Times New Roman','serif'; font-size: 16px;">Find a Resolution: **