Short Stories

What are short stories?

Early forms of short stories include fables, myths, and legends. Tall tales and modem short stories have become a more common form of the short story. Short stories have been used to tell stories to entertain, to pass on information, history, or traditions, or to provide moral lessons.

Each type of short story is unique. Common forms of modem short stories include; ghost stories, romance, science fiction, historical, and social or psychological. Compared to novels, modem short stories are limited to a single unified plot with few characters and limited description of the setting. Most short stories are less than 15000 words in length.

How to read short stories

Regardless of the type of short story, try to comment on the following items:

• Read the story once for fun
• Read the story a second time
• Highlight important details
• Highlight difficult or new words or phrases
• Determine the point of view (1st person, 3rd person limited, 3rd person omniscient)
• Find the major and minor characters
• Determine the theme or moral
• Determine the types of conflict (others, self, nature, fate)