How To Write A Great Short Story For Work: A Step-by-step Guide

Corporate jobs can often be about storytelling. Passing a new product feature or getting a raise requires you to craft a story to tell your coworkers and managers. But not everyone is a good storyteller. This guide is created for beginners and experienced writers alike because it aims to organize your creative process and minimize the necessary effort while ensuring the best result possible. Keep reading if you want to know what steps to take while generating an impressive literary piece!

Step 1. Identify your topic and message

Short stories don’t require elaborate lore with multiple details and entire new languages besides English, like in “The Lord of the Rings.” This format is about creating a sharp and precise image in the readers’ minds, so here are several hints about shaping your initial idea into a message.

  • Begin with the topic. Ask yourself what you want to tell the readers about. Is it an evil corporation overtaking the world that’s masking itself as a nice business company? Could it be about creating something custom and dear to your heart, with autobiographical motives? There are no “too old” or “trivial” ideas–what matters is how you describe them! 
  • Proceed with the message. Treat your reader as a customer who shouldn’t leave empty-handed. They need a solid takeaway to remember your tale and feel what you felt while writing it. That’s what makes creative stories, unlike essays. Once again, your message can be as simple as it gets but it should be clear.
  • Select the foundational metaphor or symbol. These elements will guide you to uniqueness. For example, if the takeaway is “there’s no place like home,” you can skip expert knowledge and facts and just describe the protagonist’s life as one long path to happiness at the family hearth. That’s a metaphor that will reveal the message and make the text immersive.

Step 2. Construct memorable characters

Whether your character is wild and free or reliable and diligent, they definitely need memorable traits. Short stories don’t give you too much textual space and time to develop a deep personality for everyone you mention, so these tips might help you out.

  1. Less is more. One or two leads and several supporting characters make the maximum recommended quantity. Use personalized environments like flats to show the qualities and motivations of your protagonists without talking about those characteristics directly. That way, readers will know you respect them and get immersed into the story more easily. 
  2. Being professional isn’t everything. Remember–you’re not writing an academic paper or standardized research, so there’s no need to use long words and terms. Instead, focus on getting across the emotions that will help further your message, and you’re sure to get it right.
  3. Don’t be afraid to ask for a review. If you’ve been stuck for days, and no online data really helps out, it can be a good idea to tell the person you trust about your characters, their feelings and choices. An honest opinion from the potential reader can make your goals as clear as a restaurant order, so you just have to be ready to follow it.

Step 3. Create the plot

The plot doesn’t come by at once, so you might need this checklist and a couple more reviews from friends or family to make sure it’s fine. 

  • Make a rough description of the setting and the characters. Even if you’re not planning to mention the exact location, you should know if your plot is happening in the UK or in the USA, what kind of services the characters can or can’t access, and so on. That will make your tale authentic and realistic.
  • Briefly outline each event in the story. The best format for this activity is “top to bottom” or “in order of appearance.” You can use the experience from academic papers or any other written works to create a clear and understandable structure. 
  • Look for anything illogical or inappropriate for your story’s setting. Remember to ask why things happen in your story. A good writer can always explain the motivation of every character too. Think of it as a good service–your readers deserve the best!

Step 4. Plan and write the text

When it’s finally time to begin your writing, many more problems can arise. Students tend to overwork themselves, so here’s how to avoid burnout.

  • Identify your working mode. It can be a paragraph per day or one important plot point at a time. Remember to reward yourself for working on the original literary text–it’s no small achievement!
  • Emphasize quality. It’s clear that you want to show your work to friends or publish it as soon as possible, but remember how hard it can be to tell a story created from scratch in a unique way. Look for your true voice.
  • Move from draft to draft, editing out anything unneeded. To make a story really short, you’ll have to avoid “cheap effects” and lengthy descriptions. Try condensing your writing to the essence. 
  • Don’t be afraid to ask for help. If it’s your first experience with creative writing, it’s only natural to feel overwhelmed or lost at some points. Your friends or professors might offer reliable assistance, but a helpful website is also an option. For instance, professional writing services like Custom Writings can provide you with an example with explanations to learn the rules of storytelling easily.

Bottom line

So that’s the basic guide on how to write the best short story you’re capable of, whether you need it for a literature class, to impress your friends, or simply for personal development. Unfortunately, you can’t buy time to complete your work in a single attempt, but separating the creation process into equal parts is a great alternative. Moreover, you’ll get a reward for your effort because creative writing lets you gain the skills that don’t come easily and demand training. Most prestigious companies value non-standard thinking, attention to detail, and logical approach to every problem. That’s what you can develop if you write short stories thoughtfully, and this guide teaches you to do it right.