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Short Story Writing Tips - Does Your Character Overcome Each Problem?
by: Nick Vernon
Think of a conflict you have been through.

Why was it hard to resolve?

Was it because, beside the conflict itself, there were other problems associated with it? There was a lot at stake for you, wasn¡¦t there? You weighed the consequences of each option and tried to come up with a solution, one that be satisfying, and in which you didn¡¦t stand to lose.

Let me tell you of my experience¡K

I once worked in a company where I clashed with a colleague. The conflict was created because of our personalities.

She was the bossy type ¡V I didn¡¦t like being bossed around.

The problems associated with this conflict were¡K.

„« We couldn¡¦t work together
„« Our dislike for each other disrupted the harmony of the workplace
„« Production suffered because we couldn¡¦t work as a team

So, in order to overcome the conflict, we had to meet half way. I had to take orders from her occasionally and she had to be less bossy.

How was the conflict resolved?

It wasn¡¦t.

She believed she had a right to order me around because she had been with the company for many years, where I had just started.

I believed she had no right because she was an employee of equal status as myself.

So the conflict ran up to the time when I decided to leave six months later for a better job. It was never resolved ¡V we simply kept out of each other¡¦s way.

This example is taken from real life and in real life conflicts at times don¡¦t get resolved. But if I were to write about this incident in a short story, I would have to come up with ways to solve the problems, which in turn would resolve the conflict.

Because a story that doesn¡¦t go anywhere, like my real life example didn¡¦t, isn¡¦t a story worth writing about.

So let¡¦s make this incident into a short story¡K

First, as I begin the story, I will introduce the conflict, stating what created it etc¡K Then I will introduce the problems associated with this conflict. I will introduce one problem at a time; solve it before going onto the next one. This will keep my story running till it¡¦s time to resolve the conflict.

So let¡¦s start with problem number one¡K

1) My two characters are unable work together

What can I do to solve this problem? I could throw them into a situation where they had to work together and would be unable to avoid each other. Perhaps give them a task that only they could perform. They wouldn¡¦t be happy with the arrangement but that doesn¡¦t matter.

What matters is that I solved the first problem in a believable manner.

Problem two¡K

2) Their dislike for each other is disrupting the harmony of the workplace and affecting the other employees.

I could show the employees taking sides with whichever character they believe is right. This will divide the employees and create disruption in the workplace.

How can I solve this problem? I could have the situation solved by the employees themselves. When things get too bad, I could have the employees realize that it¡¦s not worth fighting with each other.

I could have them realize how the atmosphere was pleasant before all this started, when everyone used to treat each other in a friendly manner. This realization would leave the two main characters to fight by themselves.


~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
Side Note -
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Just a special note here. It¡¦s okay for others to solve a few of the problems in your story. For instance, you can have another character solve a problem, or nature or luck or coincidence or whatever. But¡K

The conflict has to be solved by the main character himself.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
End Of Side Note
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~


3) Production suffered because they couldn¡¦t work as a team

I could have one of the managers tell them in no uncertain terms that they¡¦ll have to come up with an arrangement to work together or they will both be out of a job.


And now for the resolution of the conflict¡K

Because the conflict arose from the way they are, they will have to change in order to resolve the conflict. This doesn¡¦t mean that they will automatically start liking each other.

This won¡¦t be believable. But they could come to realize that their colleagues might be right.

After losing their support, the main characters can come to realize that it would be more beneficial for them to make an effort to work with one another, rather than have to come to work everyday and work in an unpleasant atmosphere.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Problems are like stepping stones, which your character has to overcome in order to reach the conflict.

The conflict will be running throughout the story. It will be the source of where other problems come from. During the story, the conflict, although still visible in light of the other problems, will be in the background and it will only come forth when the other problems are solved.

When we bring the conflict forth, it means that other problems have already been solved and we are now at a stage where we can pay full attention to it and resolve it.

Problems should be addressed as they occur.

You¡¦ll have to get each one out of the way before you can go to the next problem. We don¡¦t leave a whole heap of problems and solve then when we reach the stage of solving our conflict.

This will require too many words of explanation and our story will loose its intensity. Too much information at once also bogs down readers.

Your story will need to unfold in a logical manner, in a manner where readers can digest the information given, before we give them more.

Also, be selective with the problems you throw in the character¡¦s path. The problems should be ¡¥thrown,¡¦ in proportion to the story. Your skill as a writer will dictate how many problems the character has to face according to the length of your story.

If your skill hasn¡¦t reached such a level, then you¡¦ll be able to pick it up when you reach the final draft. If you see you have too many problems and the story drags on, cut them out.

If you see you have too many problems, which are left unresolved because you don¡¦t have the time to solve them, cut them out also.

Take into account the relevance of your problems. They have to be relevant to the conflict.

To give you an example¡K

If at any stage I introduced a problem, such as one of the character¡¦s taking the other character¡¦s parking space, this wouldn¡¦t be relevant to the conflict. The conflict is about their personalities clashing (because one is bossy and the other doesn¡¦t like being bossed.)

Problems are there to make things difficult for our characters, to keep our stories running.


About the author:
----------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Besides his passion for writing, Nick Vernon runs an online gift site where you will find gift information, articles and readers funny stories. Visit http://www.we-recommend.com



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Steps to a Writing an Effective Press Releases
 by: Diana Ennen

Want to get the most media attention and spotlight for your business? Then the first place to start is with a GREAT press release. Now I can almost see half of you leaving now, dreading the thought of having to write one of these. But wait!! I’m going to show you easy methods to make your press release work for you and get the attention it deserves. Ready? Let’s go.

We’ll briefly go over the basics because of their importance. Editors want to see things done the RIGHT way. I would bet that a lot of good releases simply get tossed out just because they aren’t set up properly. To a busy editor, that all too familiar “10 second glance” says a lot for you and your business; it let’s them know if you’ve done your research enough to warrant that release to be placed in their newspaper or magazine.

Here are your essentials:

"FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE" on the top left of the page.

Your contact name, phone number, e-mail address, and website follows.

Headline is next, normally in bold and centered on the page. Summarize what the release is about and capture their attention. Spend almost as much time on your headline as you do writing the release. It’s that important.

The press release body starts with the location of the release and the date (Margate, Florida, May 5, 2005.)

Most press releases are between 200-500 words, and no more than a page. The first paragraph has the most important information. Don’t save the best for last, it won’t get read. In this paragraph answer the questions, who, what, when, where and why?

It is recommended that you write press releases in the 3rd person and use short sentences and paragraphs. Do not go over board, trying to dazzle the editor, it won’t work.

Target your release. You will be sending your release to a specific audience so make sure that in your release you keep to what would appeal to that audience. What don’t they know that you can add? Nothing works better than getting an “AAH HAA” when an editor is reviewing your release.

Provide statistics. Do some research and find some relevant information that applies. You can easily do this through Google. Once you find your quote, do a Google search or Yahoo quote on that particular topic. However, don’t stop on the first Google link and take that for gospel. Research it a bit further. Have it come from a respectable company or magazine.

Include relevant quotes from experts in your field that will reinforce what you are saying. Approach authors, leaders in your Industry, and other experts that back up the facts you are stating in your release. They will normally appreciate the added publicity and you get the quote you’re looking for. For example, as an author I’ll often get asked to provide a quote for an article on home-based businesses or the virtual assistant industry. I welcome the opportunity as it provides me more publicity.

Also, if you have a satisfied client that you feel will add credibility to your Release, add a quote from them as well. The first time you mention the expert, write out their full name. Then list them by last name or Mr. and Mrs. Smith only. I normally prefer the last name.

The last paragraph should be your call to action. You’ve talked the whole release about your business or product, now tell them what to do with the knowledge they just acquired.

At the bottom of the release include ### to indicate you are done, followed by a short bio. Make sure if you include your website that you include http:// in front of it for search engine recognition.

Your bio should include your information, any books authored, etc. Double check this for accuracy. At this point, you’re tired and done with the Release. But if it goes out to the world with the wrong web address, the valuable time spent even writing the Release has been wasted.

That’s it; the basics for writing a press release! Now one other thing I’d like to add in, they work! They truly work. I’ve had a recent release get accepted by PRWeb (and yes they do reject bad ones!), and then go on to hit several other major newspapers and media outlines and the Google alert, which resulted in our paper in the area contacting me. You want to set up a Google news alert for your name so that you can follow the path and see when you make the news so you can follow up. Also, PRWeb at http://www.prweb.com has complete guidelines for setting up a good press release. Go with the extra money and spend $20.00. It’s worth it to get the additional exposure.

About The Author
 

Diana Ennen is the author of numerous books including Virtual Assistant: the Series, Become a Highly Successful, Sought After VA, Words From Home, Start, Run and Profit from a Home-Based Word Processing Business & the Home Office Recovery Plan. She specializes in publicity and book marketing and is president of Virtual Word Publishing http://www.virtualwordpublishing.com and http://www.Publicity-VA.com. Articles are free to be reprinted as long as the author’s bio remains intact

 

 



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