how to write stories like a pro

How to Write Like a Pro

by Joe Bunting | 26 comments

Photo by Evil Erin

Earlier this week, my dad asked me for feedback on a story he wrote. The story is about a father figure who turned out to be something of a con man. Memoir is often boring, but this story was amazing, stranger than fiction.

You could also tell the story was written by an amateur. My dad is a good storyteller, but telling a story to a few people at a party and writing professionally are two very different things.

What's the difference between pro and amateur writing? How can you write a story as good as any professional writer?

The Secret to Writing Like a Pro

Of course, there are thousands of little lessons you need to learn before you can really write like a pro. But here's the mistake I see most amateur writers making:

They don't get close enough to their story.

It's not enough to tell us what happened. You have to embed your readers within your narrative. You have to get close enough that your readers can hear what you heard, see what you saw, and experience the emotions you felt.

You can call this showing instead of telling or being more specific, but it all comes down to how close you are to your story.

Getting closer can be difficult, especially if you're writing about your own life. It's hard to remember specific details when something happened thirty years ago. However, this is what separates amateur writing from pro writing, this distance.

How close can you get?

Challenge yourself to get closer.

Don't give us the gist, the “Reader's Digest” version. Instead, show us the color of her skin when she blushed while she laughed, describe the sound of the rain as it fell on the grass in the warm, summer evening, and tell us about the feeling of the worn wood on the stock of the gun as you pull the trigger.

In narrative, details don't distract from the story. They become the story. ( Tweet that? )

Be Professional AND Interesting

Just as my dad's story was interesting but poorly written, there are plenty of stories that are well written and completely boring. I'm not saying you will be a bestseller if you learn to write close. You still have to do the hard work of learning to tell a story that captivates your reader.

Here are a few books I've read recently do this particularly well (affiliate links):

• The Dog Stars   by Peter Heller
• The Dinner   by Herman Koch
• The Sense of an Ending   by Julian Barnes

What do you think separates professional writing from amateur writing?

Tell a story about a father figure of yours. Write as close to the story as you can.

Write for fifteen minutes. When you're finished, post your practice in the comments section. And if you post, please be sure to comment on a few practices by other writers.

Happy writing!

Joe Bunting

Joe Bunting is an author and the leader of The Write Practice community. He is also the author of the new book Crowdsourcing Paris , a real life adventure story set in France. It was a #1 New Release on Amazon. Follow him on Instagram (@jhbunting).

Want best-seller coaching? Book Joe here.

26 Comments

Thanks for this post. A great reminder as I help others write their memoirs. Really like your descriptions, especially: “the worn wood on the stock of the gun as you pull the trigger.” Great visual.

I was 16 when they told us they were divorcing. He was lighting a pipe, a prop he used to enhance his image. “It’s your mother who wants a divorce, not me.”

“Why?” I asked.

He assumed a pose of distinction and sucked slowly on the stem. “Because I’ve had affairs with women.”

“How many?” I asked.

He paused for dramatic effect. “Too many to count,” he exhaled and smiled.

I felt I was watching a well rehearsed scene from a play, not something happening to me and my family. These theatrics always made me crazy. I would look at my parents, and not be able to detect anything authentic, not a real word, gesture, or expression. I would search inside me and not be able to find a thought or emotion that was real. I couldn’t understand what was going on around me, or what I was feeling. No point of reference existed from which to make sense of anything or anyone. And there was no one to turn to. I was crazy. I wanted to explode. That night I took a bottle of bourbon from the parents’ cabinet, and in my bedroom, by myself, I drank it.

What a sad story! Funny how pipe-smoking Dads remain in our memory, “sucked slowly on the stem” Don’t know if this is truth or fiction, but Dad’s answer seems a bit casual to offer a sixteen yr. old? Thanks for sharing a thought-provoking story.

Definitely too casual, Eva. He was a con man, liar, manipulator, and proud of it. A sociopath. Thanks for reading and commenting.

Great story. enjoyed the details.

From the first line to the last, you had me. I was invested in the 16 year old and felt her pain when the dad spoke. Loved the line “I felt I was watching a well rehearsed scene from a play” . Me too. Sad, yet very real and believable. Good work.

thank you, Terry, for reading and responding.

Dad was a doer not a talker. You could find him anywhere by following the smell of his pipe. He was filling the bird feeder, pulling a few weeds, paying the bills, cleaning his tools in the garage. He built us a swing made of a simple plank and a piece of rope and we swung happily from the pear tree. He taught us how to jump ocean waves and how to float with our feet sticking out of the water. He raked up a huge pile of leaves to save for garden mulch, but allowed us to jump and play in them all during the fall. When he finished mulching, he burned the rest and that pungent smell is a rich memory.

When he left for work, he always wore a suit with a vest and a felt hat. He wore the same outfit to see the doctor or go shopping.

Dad loved a good meal with his family but he had a special weakness for mayo. You could catch him about midnight raiding the icebox for cold potatoes, the jar of Helmann’s in one hand. He loved a good cup of coffee or a mug of beer, a salami sandwich with a side of sardines.

One night I had a bad earache and he sat up with me most of the night. He told all of us to “stick together” wherever we were, and his favorite motto was, “Things will work out, they always do.”

I was with him during his final days, and he described beautiful birds he could see but none of us could. I miss him and hope he’s still filling a bird feeder somewhere.

A beautiful memory and piece of writing, Eva. Thank you.

Thank you all for great suggestions and feedback!

Such a fine job of characterization. And I love the ending, however I think the last paragraph would bring us closer if you told us how Dad described the birds, instead of just telling us that he did.

Agree with Karl. Great story, but wound up a little to quickly. Perhaps some direct speech in the last paragraph would have helped to draw us into that wonderful idea: “he described beautiful birds he could see but none of us could”. That is an absolutely marvelous image, that could really be developed.

What wonderful memories! If you had more time and more room, and example of how he demonstrated “sticking together” would be good.

Great job by showing us what kind of “doer” your dad was right after you told us. Building, filling feeders, paying bills, etc.,nice work. I agree with Karl about the ending – instead of telling us what he said, maybe paint the scene. It would be more intimate.

He was grumbling about Mom again as I drove him home from the hospital that afternoon. In as gentle a tone as I could manage I said, “Dad. You have a vision problem.”

He glared at me with his good eye. “Whaddaya mean, a VISION problem?

His other eye was bandaged, but the bandages didn’t completely cover the mess on that side of his face where cancer had chewed up his eye socket and was draining in open sores. He’d just had a dose of radiation to slow down the disease’s insidious spread into his brain. He did indeed have a vision problem.

Though I felt sorry for his suffering, now was as good a time as ever to face the truth. Who knows how many months he had left? “In all these year you’ve never been able to see in any good in Mom.”

I braced myself for his angry response, but he gave me the silent huff, one of his well-practised skills.

Before we’d left the city, heading for home, we had stopped at the grocery store and picked up a few things. Mother’s Day was two days ahead so I’d bought a spray of yellow carnations for my Aunt Sadie, who lived with Mom and Dad at this time. I was pleased to see Dad pick up a potted plant with a lovely flower. Mom would like that. In my recollection, Dad rarely gave her anything but grumbles and scowls.

Mom was looking at the mail when we got home and showed us a card from their son*, Verne. As we put our groceries away she read, “To a wonderful mother…”

“Wonderful!” Dad snorted. “Hmph. I’ve been married to you for forty years and I’ve never seen anything wonderful yet.”

I piped up, “Well, Dad, I told you that you had a vision problem.” He glared at me again.

I handed the bouquet to Aunt Sadie and she admired it. Mom was glad, too, and commended me for thinking of Sadie, since none of her children were nearby. Mom was always glad to see others get something nice. In spite of the unhappiness she lived with daily, in her old age she had a sweet, sensitive disposition that endeared her to everyone she met.

Two days later the neighbour lady, a woman about twenty years younger than Mom, phoned and invited us for tea, so Mom and I went. We chatted about this and that, then she happened to say to Mom so sweetly, “Your Fred is such a dear. He brought me this lovely plant for Mother’s Day. But that’s Fred, always thinking of others.”

I was stunned. I eyed the plant Dad had bought, innocently blooming its heart out. (Good thing there was no big knife around or I might have grabbed it and hacked that plant to pieces.) Neither Mom nor I responded to her remark. I wonder if she understood our silence?

Yeah, that was Dad. Even as he faced death he was still always thinking of somebody else rather than his own family. Especially other women.

(* I was raised by my Aunt Myrtle and Uncle Fred from the time I was three months old. Verne was their only child.)

I have always wondered what I could possibly say at his funeral. He is a man that not many people know well, although he has always had many friends. He is a brilliant raconteur and is often to be heard telling stories.

Our wedding, twenty years ago, was the occasion when I discovered that he made hilarious speeches, and I laughed so much I cried. This was a side to him I had never really seen before and I was amazed.

When we were young, Father’s Day was not really celebrated in the UK, and when I grew up, if I wished him a Happy Father’s Day he would just respond with a grumpy, “Why are you wishing me a Happy Father’s Day? You never celebrated it before.”

I can’t say that any of the things written in those cards would be applicable to him. He wasn’t the best dad in the world, nor was he particularly caring, neither can I say he was my hero.

The only time I remember him in a heroic light was when I was playing in the garden, aged about seven, and I fell over and started crying. He hurried from the other end of the garden, picked me up and ran in to my mother who would know what to do.

At weekends we would go sailing together, and these were the times when I felt closest to him. It was something that we could share in common. However, I can’t say that he took the time to show me how to sail, other than letting me take the tiller, while he went to sleep.

Years later, he told my mother that he’d had an affair, when we children were small. He didn’t seem sorry. Instead, his explanation was “I’m a flawed person,” and he added, “I didn’t think you’d mind after all these years.”

A flawed and frustrated person is a good description of my father. It’s no wonder he didn’t have a good relationship with his children, when his wife has never respected him, nor been publicly affectionate to him, and the only memories he has of his own parents are of being told to sit quietly and not disturb the adults.

My 82 year old dad is a crossing guard for St. Patrick’s school. He loves his job because he loves people and kids. He also loves to sing. Three times a day he holds his arms wide when he stops traffic and he sings old barber shop tunes to the kids as they skip across the street. The kids wave and smile and often ask what song he’s singing. They also tell their teachers about his songs.

One day when he arrived at my house for our weekly card game, he walked in carrying a large red cardboard STOP sign. The sign was a gift from the sixth grade class and was covered with signatures and notes. Dad set it down on my dining table. “Just look at this, look at what the kids made me.” He said as he choked up. “Read it!” I read a few notes. “You are Mr. Sunshine.” “Keep singing – maybe one day I’ll see you on The Voice!”

Dad had quit school in the ninth grade because his teachers had labeled him trouble. I was one of the few people who knew how much it bothered him that he hadn’t finished high school.

“Even the teacher signed it.” He exclaimed. “And look what he wrote across the top!” Dad’s eyes got all misty. I read it aloud. “To Don: a man of distinction.” Dad had worked as a crane operator at the steel company all his life. He’d come home from the factory every day and mom would remind him to shower and change before dinner because he smelled like the sticky tar that filled the potholes on our streets in summer.

“Why would they do this for me”? Dad asked. “Why would they make me this sign? I was just doing my job.” I felt like the parent at that moment. All I could do was smile and hug him. “That’s what grace is dad. You’ve been ambushed by grace…”

Beautiful story of a humble, happy and compassionate Dad. What a great example of living life fully through senior years. Thanks for sharing this.

Great story. The first paragraph really draws the reader in with its delightful quirky details and present tense.

thank you – he is pretty amazing – he has to work to make ends meet and never complains no matter what the weather!

‘Shit the old man is already coming!’ Mario alarmed his brother. He heard the car coming up the gravel path, which is always some distance. It took his father two minutes to get from the factory grounds to their home. They knew he came every lunch, and the drone of the old jalopy also contributed to the message of urgency that he was on his way. His mother, like all mothers at the time, took care of the household and of the upbringing of kids. His mom, maybe because she knew what life would throw at her, always wanted, as early as the first offspring, a girl. She still had stored, a pair of small, golden ball earrings they once found when scrutinizing her belongings as she was out. But as life is, they were four: all macho. So the task of upbringing them was a tough one. More so now since Mario, the eldest, was on his early puberty with all that testosterone driving him amok. It wasn’t that it was better before; it is only that now, he was growing out of his trousers and so was his energy. She couldn’t cope with him anymore. Or perhaps, she was too tired with punishing rogueries, or with reprimanding for ignoring her requests to do the chores. His brothers were not better, and they followed Mario on any new adventure he contrived. ‘What do we do now? Asked Rudy the succeeding brother. ‘I don’t know. He will wallop me again with the dust-beater.’ The first rattan dust-beater had given up, and now there was one made of green plastic that leaves strong urticating marks on the legs. Mario walked from one corner to the other in fast steps. Looking out of the window rubbing his ass with one hand and shaking the other hand as when you burn your fingers. Now almost running; looking into the corridor; now shaking the fingers of both hands. ‘Oh yeah! I remember. It looks like mum, when she dusts the rugs.’ Rudy said with malice and a schadenfreude face. ‘Let’s hide the beater!’ Said Mario almost shouting and ran out the bedroom door. ‘Yes, let’s do it before he arrives.’ Said Rudy following his steps, any new adventure was good, and he wouldn’t miss it. In any case, he was not so worried, in the end, he wouldn’t be punished; or at least, not as harsh as his brother. The old man always would say: ‘you are the older one, you should know better. Here, this is for what you’ve done. This is for encouraging your brothers! This is…’ and it would continue until he ran out of arguments or his mum begged him to stop. The dust-beater was in the cupboard behind the kitchen door. When they arrived, his mother was taking the meals to the table, and his father was coming through the main entrance. ‘Get ready for lunch and wash your hands now!’ She said juggling with a heavy and steaming soup tureen. The game was up. There was no escaping now. His only chance was to hide in the cupboard. But didn’t help much; his mum would tell his father about their feats as she promised she’d do, during the chat they’d have while taking lunch, and there was no way of dodging the family mealtime.

Really good blog Joe… helps quite a bit.

Thanks Joe. This was a helpful post!

Great story. Enjoyed it ^_^

Why is everything has to be so difficult? Even if i am born to ba unhappy why can ijust sit down, relax and talk shit for once in a while and be a king before my deaths comes and take my breath away? Life is so unfair and you could see it through my face, trust me its so appaling.

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How to Write a Professional Story

Last Updated: July 18, 2023 Fact Checked

This article was co-authored by Lucy V. Hay . Lucy V. Hay is a Professional Writer based in London, England. With over 20 years of industry experience, Lucy is an author, script editor, and award-winning blogger who helps other writers through writing workshops, courses, and her blog Bang2Write. Lucy is the producer of two British thrillers, and Bang2Write has appeared in the Top 100 round-ups for Writer’s Digest & The Write Life and is a UK Blog Awards Finalist and Feedspot’s #1 Screenwriting blog in the UK. She received a B.A. in Scriptwriting for Film & Television from Bournemouth University. This article has been fact-checked, ensuring the accuracy of any cited facts and confirming the authority of its sources. This article has been viewed 83,619 times.

Do you have a great plot for a story, but can't seem to make it sound good in words? Don't worry! This happens to a lot of people - but here's a few steps that could help you.

• What can the character(s) see? What does it look like? Describe color, lighting, movements, people and depth.
• What can they feel? What does it feel like? Describe texture, temperature, wetness/dryness and shape.
• What can they hear? What does it sound like? Describe the way people speak, background sounds (birds, wind) and other sounds.
• What can they smell? What does it smell like? Describe what it smells like, if it smells good or bad and what they are smelling.
• What can they taste? What does it taste like? Describe if it tastes good or bad and what they are tasting.
• Never overdo description. Readers have a good enough imagination to get most of a scene in their head. Use description as a base for action.

Community Q&A

• Ask others for their opinions as you go along. Thanks Helpful 2 Not Helpful 0
• Use your imagination! Anything can happen with a little creativity. Thanks Helpful 2 Not Helpful 0
• Play your story like a video in your mind. It will help you put it into words. Thanks Helpful 3 Not Helpful 0

• Don't put in too much dialogue. It's confusing! Thanks Helpful 26 Not Helpful 2
• Don't go crazy with the adjectives. It will sound silly. Thanks Helpful 24 Not Helpful 2
• If someone doesn't give you the opinion you wanted, don't get angry. Ask them what was wrong and edit. Thanks Helpful 21 Not Helpful 5
• Descriptions are good- beating a dead horse is bad. Only the most important scenes will require all five senses. Your reader has an imagination- let them fill in the blanks! Thanks Helpful 6 Not Helpful 2

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Expert Interview

Thanks for reading our article! If you’d like to learn more about writing careers, check out our in-depth interview with Lucy V. Hay .

• ↑ https://www.grammarly.com/blog/story-plot/
• ↑ https://www.csuchico.edu/slc/_assets/documents/writing-center-handouts/how-to-write-an-introduction.pdf
• ↑ https://www.grammarly.com/blog/how-to-write-a-story/
• ↑ https://grammar.yourdictionary.com/word-lists/list-of-descriptive-words.html

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How to Write Short Stories: 8 Steps for Success

POSTED ON Aug 17, 2023

Written by Gloria Russell

So, you’re trying to learn how to write short stories. You might be a brand-new writer, or an established novelist looking to try out a new medium. Maybe you’ve been trying to write a novel for a while and you’re finding it’s just not working for you. 

Whatever the case may be, learning how to write a short story takes some practice. That's because the process can be a bit different than learning how to write a novel !

Today I’m going to break down a streamlined process that’s guaranteed to turn you into a short story writing pro. But before we discuss how to write short stories in detail, let’s talk about what short stories are, and why they are important in the literary world.  Then, I'll give you a step-by-step guide to learn how to write short stories from the first page to the published copy.

This blog on how to write short stories covers:

What is a short story .

In order to learn how to write short stories effectively, you need to know what they are! A short story or novella is a piece of fiction generally ranging between 1,500 and 30,000 words. Anything much longer than that, and it's not a short story. It would be considered a novel vs novella .

The shorter word count of a short story lets you practice writing stories with varying levels of complexity and plot. A short story can be very short with one character and character arc, or it can be fairly long with a full cast and a few subplots. 

How can short stories help me as a writer?

Whether you’re an established pro or a brand new writer, learning how to write short stories is a great way to hone and develop your skills. Here are just a few reasons why learning how to write a short story can help you in your writing journey: 

Short stories are good practice for plot construction 

Even experienced writers will abandon a novel halfway in because it isn’t working out. Novels are LONG, and they can easily lead to burnout if you don't have a solid writing routine . You may be excellent at character setups, first chapters, and introductions, but weak when it comes to payoffs and finishing character arcs. 

Since short stories are shorter, it allows you to zero in on a small plot instead of worrying about an entire novel. This way, you get to practice every stage of plot development. Even if you want to write novels in the long run, practicing plot structure like this will be a surefire way to give you a jumpstart when you sit down to write that next draft of your manuscript. 

Short stories mean smaller stakes 

Like I said before, learning how to write short stories lets you work in a smaller space. This means the risks are way lower. Instead of throwing out an entire novel, which can feel like an anxiety-inducing endeavor, scrapping a short story or starting over often just means deleting a few pages. 

Plus, since it takes less time, you’ll feel rewarded by a complete project much sooner than you would if you started on a novel. This is especially great for new writers – it’s important to feel that satisfaction from a completed project! 

Short stories take you back to basics 

If you’re writing something short, then the basics need to shine. If you’ve only got a few thousand words to tell a story, then every word needs to matter.

Learning how to write short stories is the perfect activity for getting back to the basics of writing.

This is the chance to make every image pop, every plot point neat, everything tidy and sharp. There’s less space to worry about, but there’s also less margin for fudging with plot and character. When you learn how to write short stories and examine every word and paragraph with purpose, and really focus on the types of tones you are using, you’ll come out of it a better writer all around. 

Now that you understand what short stories are, and why it's helpful to learn how to write a short story, let's discuss the specific steps you should take to write short stories of your own.

How to write short stories in 8 steps

Here are the only steps you need to learn how to write short stories successfully:

1. Brainstorm ideas for your story

Before you practice how to write short stories, you need an idea! It’s time for a brainstorming session.

Get a writing prompt or a particularly inspiring album, go for a walk, or watch your favorite movie – whatever gets your creative gears turning. Write down whatever comes to mind, no matter how strange. 

For writing exercises, you can even take elements of your favorite stories and twist them. What if Frankenstein had fallen in love with his monster? 

If you’re having a hard time putting down words, try writing a stream of consciousness. Set a timer for a minute or two and write whatever comes to mind. 

2. Identify your short story's characters 

Now that you’ve got some ideas, the next step of learning how to write short stories is choosing your characters.

Before they’re drawn to anything else in your story, readers are drawn to characters, so it’s important to develop them first. If you can get your audience invested in your characters , they’ll follow your story to the last sentence every time. 

Take a look at your ideas. Who are the main characters? Who are the side characters, if any? What do they want, and how do they change? What are the character flaws, and how do they overcome them?

The answers to these questions will form your plot and make up your outline, which leads us to our next step. 

3. Outline your short story

Before we get into it, a disclaimer: outlining isn’t for anyone. Some people go straight from brainstorming into a first draft. But if you’re a new writer and you don’t have an established routine, outlining can be super helpful for making sure you’ve got a roadmap, even when learning how to write short stories.

A book outline should be a brief overview of the plot of your story. It can be bullet points, or index cards with each scene detailed on them. The idea is just to know where your story is supposed to go so that if you get stuck later, you’ve got something to refer back to. 

If you’re totally lost on how to approach this, circle back to your character. Who is your character at the start of the story? What do they want? How do they try to get this, and do they succeed? The answers to these questions make up an outline all on their own. 

4. Create your first draft

Once you have your outline, you're ready to start the next step of learning how to write short stories – actually writing them!

Writing sprints can be a great way to keep focused for short periods of time, and sprinting with friends can add some friendly competition to the work. 

Whatever your method, the most important thing for a first draft is that you don’t stop. Remember, we’re going to edit later, so not every word needs to be perfect. If you get stuck, refer to your outline. Push through scenes that aren’t working like you thought they might, or even skip them entirely. 

It’s totally fine to edit your outline as you go. If you think of a better idea than what you’d originally written down, go for it. Keep going until you hit the end, and then pat yourself on the back! You’ve got the first draft of a short story! 

5. Edit and edit again!

You may have heard the saying “all writing is rewriting.” That might be a bit of an exaggeration, but in any case, there’s a little truth to it. After you’ve written your first draft, you’ll need to go back and polish it to make sure it’s the best it can be. You’ll need to do two types of edits: developmental editing and copy editing . 

Developmental edits are structural changes to your work, and you should do this part first. Make sure your character motivations make sense.

Does your ending go as cleanly as it should, and does it tie up the plot?

Is there an extra scene that isn’t doing anything?

This is the place to cut all the extra stuff that isn’t serving the plot or characters. 

Some people recommend retyping a second draft entirely from scratch to catch these sorts of errors. That might not be necessary, but if you do decide to delete entire pages of your story, try keeping those snippets in an extra word document so you’re not worried about losing them forever. 

Copy edits are more technical, grammatical changes. Do this part last, since you don’t want to spend a bunch of time fixing commas on a section you’re just going to delete later anyway. Check your formatting and your dialogue tags. 

Basically, when you’re editing your short story, you want to make sure of two things: 

• You want everything to be clean. This means no loose plot threads, as few grammatical mistakes as possible, and no excess scenes, words, or pieces of dialogue that don’t add to the story. 
• You want everything to be consistent. Make sure your character’s motives make sense to them, and that their motives drive their actions. Make sure their interactions with other characters match their personalities. 

Once you’ve finished editing, you’ve got a second draft of your story, just like that! 

6. Get a second opinion

Learning to self-edit is a vital part of becoming a better writer, but no matter how good you get at finding the flaws in your own work, you’re always going to want to have someone else look at your work. The same is true when it comes to mastering how to write short stories!

Your editor can be a trusted friend or online writing partner. If you want to enlist a whole set of beta readers , all the better! But think of it like this: different people are going to bring different perspectives to your story and catch things you wouldn’t catch.

So, if you want to catch as many errors as possible, you want to show your story to as many people as you can, right? 

To get the most out of feedback, try asking your readers specific questions after they’ve read your story. What did they like about it, and why? If they didn’t like it, why didn’t it work for them? 

Not every person will love every story, and that’s okay. But getting constructive criticism on the parts that don’t work will help you grow your story into the best possible version of itself, so stay open to criticism. 

7. Craft the perfect title 

For some people, the title is the first thing to click into place. Sometimes the title is the brainstorming nugget from which the story came. More often, finding the perfect title for your story is one of the last things you do, and it can be tricky.

Here are a few things to consider when finding the perfect title for your story: 

• Imagery : Are there any specific images in your story that catch your eye? Any strong descriptions that stand out? Write down a list of these as a jumping-off point. 
• Theme : What are the overarching themes of the story? If your story is about death, maybe write down a list of words or phrases associated with death. Look for phrases in your story that speak to that theme and jot them down. 
• Tone : Once you’ve settled on something that’s sharp and conveys your theme, make sure it matches the tone . You wouldn’t want to give your serious drama a comedic title, nor would you want to give a foreboding title to your romantic romp. Make sure the title fits the overall vibe, and you’re good to go. 

8. Write some more short stories!

First of all, congratulations! If you’ve made it all the way here, that means you’ve successfully learned how to write short stories. But unless you are putting your short story up on a website, you probably won't be publishing it alone. You need other short stories to go with it!

The best thing you can do is practice.

Just like anything else, you’ll come up with your own process the more you grow and develop, and whether you’re sticking to short stories or hoping to move on to bigger projects, these skills will be there for you. 

To keep your new skills sharp, try setting up a workshop group with some friends. Set a regular turn-in date and write stories with one another. This will also double as a way to ensure you’ve got a group of people to get feedback from. 

If groups aren’t your thing, set your own schedule. If you’re working solo, make a resolution to draft a short story every day, week, or month, and stick to it!  

Maybe you will decide to combine your short stories with a friend's work and publish them together. Maybe you will decide your first story isn't as strong as your new ones, and you'll scrap it altogether! Just keep practicing and playing with your short stories and you're sure to come up with some winners.

Related: Short Story Contests: Why They Matter and 4 Tips to Enter

Get your short stories out in the world

Mastering how to write short stories is great, but having readers eat those stories up is even better. At selfpublishing.com, we help authors publish their books from start to finish. Need a flashy book cover, help with the editing process, or other authors to combine your short stories with? Reach out for guidance today!

Let us know: How does your process work for writing short stories?

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5 Surprising Tips to Help You Write Like a Pro

• Amantha Imber

Read your work out loud.

We’re all writers— whether we write emails, reports, blog posts, articles, or books. Our success at work depends on how well we’re able to communicate our thoughts through these mediums. Mastering the art of writing can help us persuade people more impactfully and be perceived by others as smarter and more insightful. Here are five ways to get better at it.

• Read your work out loud. As you read, you’ll begin to realize which sentences can be edited for brevity or clarity, or where you’ve said too much when one sentence is good enough to explain a concept.
• Edit other people’s work. While editing, ask yourself why something was written the way it is or why was a certain word used, for example. This will help you be more intentional in your own writing.
• Ask yourself whether you are adding value or saying something new. If you are simply repeating advice or ideas that already exist in the world, you might want to think more deeply to ensure the work you publish is adding new value.
• Clear your metaphorical throat. When you are editing your own writing, try this trick: Delete the first couple of paragraphs and see if that makes your piece sharper.
• Retype your work to get into a flow. Type out a rough draft of your work, print it out, and then type it back onto your computer. This will get you in a flow where you’ll make changes almost unconsciously.

Where your work meets your life. See more from Ascend here .

Whether you like it or not, you are a writer. Every day, your success at work is in part determined by how well you can communicate your thoughts through email, reports, instant message, and perhaps even blog posts, articles, or books.

• Dr Amantha Imber is the author of Time Wise and the host of How I Work , a podcast about the habits and rituals of the world’s most successful people. For more tips and tricks, check out Amantha’s musings at One Percent Better .

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How to Create Instagram Stories Like a Pro: 12 Essential Tips for 2019

So, you want to be an Instagram Stories pro?  You came to the right place!

Stories continue to rise in popularity with more and more companies using it to connect with users. In fact, there are 300 million daily active Story users.   

Originally launched as a direct play to win audiences back from Snapchat, Instagram Stories have quickly overtaken its predecessor .

Stories can be compelling, engaging, and create a true personal connection with your audience.

But how can you use it for marketing your business? And how can you take advantage of all those cool features you see other companies and influencers using?

We’ve got you covered. 

At the end of this post you’ll be on your way to being an Instagram Stories pro.

1. Opt for Natural Lighting

Like any video or photography, lighting can make or break the professional nature of your Instagram Story.

It doesn’t mean that you need to go out and buy professional lights and setup a fully-decked out studio. In fact, the best lighting typically comes from natural light.

Natural light tends to be  more flattering for all skin tones and allows you to avoid strange shadows.

The best time of day to get natural light is right after sunrise or an hour before sunset - also known as “the golden hour.”

You might be under the assumption that middle of the day would be best to capture all the sunlight, but it’s actually too bright and can often cause overexposure and shadows.

If most of your day is spent indoors and you don’t have much time to get outside, consider scoping out places in your office, or house that have big windows facing the light, so that you’re shot isn’t backlit.

So you live in a place that rarely has sun? I’m sorry, you should consider moving. Just kidding.

All jokes aside, there are other options for you and they don’t have to be expensive or difficult to use.

In fact, Wistia has a “Down and Dirty DIY Lighting Kit” that you can put together for under $100.

2. Use Your Phone’s Native Camera

You don’t have to shoot with a fancy camera to get professional quality. Thanks to smartphones, you can shoot great video with what’s already in your hand!

For the best video footage from your phone, make sure you use  your native camera, and not the one in Instagram when shooting. Videos taken directly in Instagram have lower resolutions and limited options for editing directly in the app.

If you happen to have it in your budget to invest in a camera we suggest going with a DSLR.

If you aren’t familiar with what that is, it’s short for digital single reflex lens. It differs from others cameras based on its technology and components.

A DSLR can give you high image quality as it records in raw image format (useful for getting a bunch of different file formats for post production) and does not apply compression.

It allows full manual control and interchangeable lenses for more cinematic looks.

Like I mentioned, this isn’t a must nor something I would recommend as you’re starting with Instagram video, but it’s a nice to have if you are a little further along in your video marketing or  have the means to get one.

3. Keep Video Length & Editing in Mind  

As you might already know, Instagram Stories only let you post videos up to 15 seconds long, so you’ll have to learn to keep things snappy. These videos can be shot in portrait or traditional landscape mode, but considering that Instagram users typically browse with their phones vertically, it’s best to stick to portrait.

One great way to ensure you’re able to appropriately fit your content into a 15 second snippet and allow Stories to flow nicely without awkwardly cutting you off during your recorded story is to use editing software.

Editing Software

With such a strict time limit to your Instagram Story videos, editing can be key! Luckily, there are many options at your fingertips and you don’t have to be a pro to use them!

Here are a couple options to get things off the ground.

This app is great for beginners due to its simplicity and ease of use. It gives you the ability to edit audio and video after the video has been created.

This comes from GoPro, but you don’t need GoPro to use it. You’re able to choose from a variety of filters, and it allows you to bring together multiple unedited videos into one fully edited one. You can also add in music and transitions. And it’s free!

This is also an easy to use video editing app. You have the ability to add in music, filters, subtitles, and more. The features you have access to depend on what plan you’re on. They do have a free version though that allows you to tackle basic editing features.

Adobe Premiere Clip

This is another great app that will allow you to edit the video, rearrange clips in a certain order, customize the speed, adjust lighting and music. This can also easily be effective without going into the paid plans.

There’s a ton of others too. We dive into a bunch more here .

4. Keep Branding Consistent

Alright, now that we’ve got the foundational pieces covered, let’s talk about the different features on Instagram and how to best use them.

Just as you’d keep the same branding on printed materials as you would on your website, you want to make sure that consistency spreads to your Instagram account  as well.

Think about your website - do you use more images of people or products? Do you use particular overlays on images? What is your color palette?

Make sure this all translates into what you’re producing for your Instagram Story.

Consistency should also be seen in  your messaging and content. Keep in mind your established audience, their likes, and expectations. Everything you create should be in line with these. 

Why is branding consistency on your Instagram Story important?

It strengthens brand recall, and doesn’t create confusion or division amongst followers. You want someone to have the same experience with your brand no matter the medium they are on.

A great example of strong brand consistency is the way HubSpot uses it in their Instagram Stories.

They show their real employees, always find a way to use the color orange, and use their Stories to educate followers on marketing and business tips.

5. Use Locations and Appropriate Hashtags

Using hashtags and locations in your Instagram Stories allow  users to more easily find your content (especially the ones that aren’t following you). This is one of the big reasons why Instagram Stories are beating Snapchat’s these day s so make the most of them!

If you’re struggling to put together hashtag ideas, consider doing a simple search on the platform.

Start with some words that your audience might be searching for. From there, you’ll se a list of the top hashtags around it and how many posts have been tagged with them.

Another option to consider is taking a look at some competitors to see what hashtags they are using.

Keep in mind hashtags (like keywords) can get competitive.

For instance, if you’re a travel company, you don’t want to just hashtag “travel.”

Think about the top destinations people are booking through your company and start tagging those specifically. It’s like long-tail keywords. You want to get as specific as possible.

Also include locations in your posts and Stories.

The perk of including the location on your story is your content will appear if someone does a location search. It will also appear when a user is on their general search page.

There are Stories at the top of the page based on the user’s nearest location.

Plus, how many times have you seen a cool photo or video on a friend’s Instagram Story and wondered where that was? Using location tags answers this question and builds buzz.

Invision does a great job incorporating location and hashtags into its Instagram story:

6. Add Animation & Music

Another really cool thing you can add to your stories is animation. This is a great way to switch things up and make your videos standout.

There are free tools that you can take advantage of to do this, but my favorite is Adobe Spark .

It’s as simple as downloading the app on your phone or computer, picking a rich visual template, colors palettes, saving it to your phone, and uploading to Instagram.

With the array of templates and colors available, you’re bound to find options that match your brand.

This YouTube video gives you a quick how-to of the app so you can get started in no time:

Another animation feature you can add to your Instagram story are GIFS - because who doesn’t like to have a little fun.

Go to your video, tap on the “stickers” feature, tap on GIF, and then you have the ability to sort within GIFs to find the one you’d like to use.

There’s a couple different options for adding music to your Instagram Story.

If you’re recording a story right in the platform, all you have to do is play music on another app within your phone. In other words,  if you’re already blasting music through Spotify while you record a video, it will be included.

If you’re looking to integrate music after you’ve recorded a video outside of the platform (which we recommend),a great third party app to consider is InShot .

It allows you to tap into music you have saved on your phone, or access their library.

InShot also allows you to trim music, select level of volume, crossfade, and add in fade in/out options.

Of course ,if you’re a more seasoned video professional, you can also always drop in music through your editing software of choice, then upload it back onto your phone.

7. Use the Native Effects to Enhance Your Story

Ever add text into a video and it’s just in an awkward place the whole time? It doesn’t have to be that way! Instagram allows you to pin text, @mentions, and graphics in your Story.

After you create the text you’d like to include on your Story, hold your thumb down on it until you see a pin option at the bottom right.

From there you’ll see a line that will allow you to go through the video clip and choose where you’d like to pin the text.

Font Options

As you’re writing text on a Story, you’ll see the option to change between neon, modern, typewriter, strong, and classic. That way you can choose something that is a bit more aligned with your brand (if you’re not ready to get fancy with editing text in through video software).

When you’re about to create a video right within Instagram, you’ll see many options at the bottom of the screen, one of them being super zoom.  

Super zoom is a lot of fun (arguably one of the best features). It allows you to dramatically zoom in on a person or object in a variety of different styles  - bounce, tv show, dramatic, beats.

TV Show for example, blurs slightly and adds a purple circle around the object in the center of screen, while also playing “dreamy” music that you might hear in an 80’s or 90’s sitcom.

Random? Yes, but they could be a great way to show of your sense of humor and team culture.

Try them all out and see which you like best. To see the options click on the music note which will allow you to filter through them. Once you’ve selected the one you want.  you’ll just click record and super zoom does its magic.

Who doesn’t like a good old boomerang shot? Ever since Instagram introduced this app and incorporated the feature into its Stories, I can’t get enough of them.

These quirky video loops are another option to switch up your video and show some personality in a unique way.

What you’ll do is select the option once you’re on the Instagram camera. Obviously, you don’t want to record something still - that would be boring.

Make sure that what you’re recording is moving in an interesting way to get the most out of it.

This one might be a little more difficult to strategize (or not if it's your jam), but when you find the right moment to use it, you’ll be glad you did.

Slo Mo can make any moment a little more dramatic and emphasize a specific action in a creative way.

You can also select this option when you’re on the Instagram camera mode.

Text Frames

Instead of having to clutter a photo with text, you can use a colored blank background and add a text frame to include more of a narrative to give video and photos more context.

Within text frames you also have the ability to add tags as well.

This also helps break up the photos and video and include an even different way of relaying a message.

8. Encourage Engagement with Polls & Mentions

Another unique feature to get more people interacting with your Instagram Story is polls.

Polls are a great way to not only get users engaged with your content, but it also provides an excellent way to see what your audience is interested in.

Consider asking questions that will help you craft future content. This should help with seeing engagement numbers increase as you’re posting content your audience has told you they are interested in.

You can also boost engagement with mentions. For example if someone hashtags or mentions your brand in a post, consider re-sharing it in your story and mentioning them.

To highlight our friends at Invision again, check out how the brand mentioned its team members and others they met an industry event in its Instagram story:

I’m sure you’ve seen celebrities and influencers do this to interact with their followers.

Going live on Instagram Stories lets you engage with your audience in real-time.

Use it to showcase something new and exciting at your company or to even invite someone in your industry who is well-known to do a Q&A on a trending topic and allow your audience to interact and ask questions.

You can also use Live as an opportunity to invite users to get a glimpse into your business.

For example, show what production looks like for a product - show them how it’s made and who is making it. This gives a more human element to your brand and allows people connect on an even greater level.

10. Link out!

Just as I’d recommend you provide conversion opportunities on your website, I highly recommend you take advantage of the “see more” CTA in Instagram.

This is a way for you to drive traffic from Instagram to your website or anywhere else you want them to go -- unfortunately, it’s only available to those with over 10,000 followers right now.

To add a link, you add/upload your video to stories and then you’ll see a chain link icon at the top of your story. From there, you can add in a URL and once you see the checkmark is green you’re good to click done.

Even though there will be the “see more” link at the bottom of the story or post you want to make sure that you provide CTA text on the post to encourage the user to swipe up.

If you don’t have 10,000 followers yet, you can always send people to the link in your bio as you would in a normal post.

One down side of Instagram is that it doesn’t track link clicks.

Thus to track actions you have to to use UTM parameters. These are short text codes added to a url that allow you to track visitor traffic sources. UTM parameters send information to Google Analytics to track how much traffic your social media posts are sending to your website and what the conversions are like.

11. Create Story Highlights

Story highlights allow you to pick videos and pics from your Story that you to feature on your Instagram profile.

Instagram Stories are great, but they disappear after 24 hours. With Highlights, you and your audience can enjoy them permanently.

As you’re creating  Highlights, consider breaking them up and organizing them into different topics. This makes it easy for the user to check out exactly what they are interested in.

Learn more about setting them up here .

Due to a recent Instagram update your Stories should automatically be archived so you can start doing this right now, if you haven’t already., Check your account settings to make sure this is turned on .

12. Plan Your Content

Last but not least, plan out your content!

Just as you would plan out an editorial calendar for blogs, decide the type of content you want to produce for your Story ahead of time.

This is a great opportunity to show people behind the scenes of your company and to introduce them to your team members.

When you’re planning out your Story content,  include strategic hashtags and calls-to-action  to drive users from the platform to your site to interact even more.

Do it for the ‘Gram!

See, Instagram Stories are that daunting. There are a lot of tools at your disposal that can take yours to the next level even right within the platform.

Something to always keep in mind is that these social media platforms are always changing which means as a marketer you should continue to keep an eye on the changes/updates and how you can integrate them into your strategy.

Also, remember to test what you’re doing. See what resonates most with your audience and optimize it. If there are strategies that just aren’t working - get back to the drawing board.

At the end of the day, the ultimate thing to remember is people don’t come to social platforms to get sold to - they come to connect, socialize and learn new things.

So, make sure as a business user you’re using it the same way.

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Let's Get Creative!

Write Like a Professional: Take Your Writing From Amateur to Pro

Can you tell the difference between a professional writer’s work and an amateur’s work? On the surface, you may quickly note grammar, spelling mistakes, and similar aspects that are quick to jump out. But below the surface lies a certain essence found in professional writing that ties it together. And, that’s the key to be able to write like a professional.

You may be able to tell the difference even if you can’t pinpoint it. But if you’re looking to write like a professional, knowing what sets it apart is critical.

And professional writing doesn’t mean essays and biographies (though it can); it applies to fiction writing, creative writing, in that you want your work to come across as though you were a best-selling author.

So, let’s take a look at what sets amateur and professional writing apart.

How To Write Like a Professional

Perfect the basics.

If you had to guess what sets professional writing apart, you’d probably say no spelling errors, proper grammar, etc. Mistakes happen to everyone, and even ‘professional’ writers can make them. However, to the reader, especially when there is an abundance of mistakes, it comes across as amateur.

Taking the time to edit and re-edit your work is a sure way to increase professionalism.

Create Uniformity By Setting a Specific Tone

To write in a cohesive, uniform way, it’s necessary to set a tone that encompasses the whole story. Without a solid tone, writing can seem pieced together or confusing.

The tone is the atmosphere you want to create with your writing. When the reader reads your work, do you want them to sense mystery, fear, etc.? To create a strong tone, you can rewrite sentences so they better convey the desired emotion.

• Example with no tone: The cool autumn wind blew past my back as I stepped closer to the window. I turned to see the bare trees that surrounded the house. And, as I peered through the window, I saw the lone rocking chair inside. It rocked back and forth and I felt the autumn wind sweep past me once more.
• Example with eerie tone: As I stepped closer to the dust-covered window, I felt my breath jump and a coldness swept past my back. I twisted my neck but I only saw the bare winter trees. I peered through the window to see an empty room. All that was inside was a lone rocking chair. It rocked back and forth, back and forth, and the coldness returned to my back.

In the above examples, you can see how slightly rewording the same information can create a more distinct tone.

Create Flow By Writing Sentences With Ease and Interest

Amateur writing can seem choppy, boring, and hard to read next to professional writing. So, to add professionalism to your writing, you need to create interest and add ease. But, how can you do that?

Perhaps most noticeably, having sentences with the same words and/or the same lengths can seem repetitive and choppy. Instead, you can create variety by differing sentence lengths and by using distinct words.

• Example: The track was long and circled around the park. The cones were already in place. It would be hard to win this race. vs. The cones were already in place around the lengthy track that circled the park. I knew it’d be hard to win this race.

As you can see, beginning sentences with the same word, and having similar sentence lengths continuously makes the writing seem choppy. Simply rewording the sentences so they are easier and more interesting to read is a small change but makes a huge difference. This takes practice, but once you get the hang of it, you’ll be able to write like a professional.

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9 Beginner-Friendly Tips to Write Like a Pro in 2023

May 17, 2022

Content marketing is one of the most effective ways to boost business growth. But it's also one of the most challenging.

There are times when you are brimming with motivation. And then there are times when it might take hours to even come up with decent ideas. It happens with every writer.

However, blogs remain the most effective channel asset for audience engagement and lead generation. As per a study, 82% of businesses actively employ content marketing to develop their company.

9 Most Effective Tips to Help you Write Like a Pro

Creating a blog post can be tricky, so we're recommending nine tips for writing a blog post more efficiently for beginners.

Let's get started!

1. Make a Reading Habit

If you want to write like a professional, you need to develop a reading habit.

By reading regularly, you will improve your writing skills and learn new techniques to use in your work. In addition, reading will help broaden your vocabulary and make you more familiar with the different writing styles.

So make some time for reading every day, and you'll soon see your writing improve.

2. Blend Enthusiasm and Emotion Into Your Writing

If you want to write like a professional, you need to blend enthusiasm and emotion in your work. This will make your writing more interesting and engaging for your reader and help you connect with your audience and communicate your message more effectively.

Remember, the best writers are the ones who have a passion for their subject matter. So, if you can infuse your writing with some emotion, you'll be well on your way to writing like a pro.

3. Write User-Friendly Content (And Search-Friendly Content)

If you want to write like a pro, you need to create user-friendly and search-friendly content. This means writing in a way that is easy for your readers to understand and find out. To do this, you need to use the right keywords and make sure your content is well-organized.

Always keep your audience in mind while creating a blog article. What information are they searching for? What exactly do they want to know? Answer these questions, and you'll be well on your way to creating helpful content for your readers. Create content with the view to solve user queries.

4. Create a Blog Outline Before Writing

Creating a blog outline will help you organize your thoughts and ideas and ensure that your blog post is cohesive and flows well.

A well-written blog post can help you attract new readers and keep your existing readers coming back for more. Plus, having an outline will help you write faster and more efficiently.

One trick you can deploy is looking at the outlines of the top blogs ranking on the SERP for that topic on the search engine. You can seek ideas for relevant subheadings from these articles to add to the outline.

5. Use AI Writing Assistants

In today's world, technology is advancing at an unprecedented rate. And one of the most exciting fields of this technology is Artificial Intelligence.

Using an AI writing assistant would be a great option to take your writing to the next level. LongShot AI is one of the best options if you're looking for a long-form writer that can help you improve your writing skills.

LongShot AI uses cutting-edge artificial intelligence technology to provide real-time feedback on your writing, including grammatical errors, style suggestions, etc. With LongShot AI, you'll be able to produce better quality content in less time. You can take advantage of LongShot's free forever plan and create long-form content for your blog.

6. Use Visuals Elements

'An image is worth a thousand words.'

Incorporating visuals is a great way to do it if you want to take your blog writing to the next level. Using elements like images, infographics, and videos can make your posts more engaging and visually appealing. This will help you stand out from other bloggers, but it will also help you attract more readers.

That's not all. Did you know that using visuals can also make you a better writer? When used correctly, visuals can help you communicate your ideas more effectively and connect with your audience deeper.

7. Write Clearly and Concisely

When it comes to writing, clarity and conciseness are key. If you can master these two elements, you'll be well on your way to writing like a pro.

Remember that clarity doesn't mean using big words or long sentences. Often the opposite is true. On the other hand, conciseness is all about using the fewest words possible to get your point across. This means choosing your words carefully and using short, simple sentences. It also means avoiding jargon and making sure your writing is easy to understand.

8. Proofread Your Content

One of the most important things you can do to improve your writing is to proofread your work. This may seem like a no-brainer, but many people don't take the time to do it.

Proofreading will help you eliminate typos and grammatical errors and ensures that your writing is clear and concise. It will also help you ensure that your writing sounds professional. You can eliminate typos and grammatical errors to improve your writing skills by proofreading.

So, once you've written the initial draft, it's wise to double-check your work to ensure there are no errors before publishing.

9. Add CTA (Call-To-Action)

Remember to add a call to action when writing a blog article. This feature guides readers to an action you want them to take after reading your article.

When creating a CTA, use strong terms that elicit action, such as 'join' or 'download.' Consider using phrases that convey a feeling of urgency, such as 'now' or 'today.'

This may take several forms, including buttons, text hyperlinks, and simple text without a link. Generally, you can find the following CTAs in blogs:

• Leave a comment
• Follow on social media
• Share the blog post
• Subscribe to the newsletter

In order to write like a pro in 2022, you need to start practicing now. These tips will help you create content that is user-friendly and search-engine-optimized, while still maintaining your unique voice. With a little bit of effort, you'll be writing like a pro in no time. But if you want an extra edge, consider using AI writing assistants like LongShot AI .

LongShot can help you generate SEO-rich content quickly and easily, so you can focus on what’s important – creating great content that engages your readers. Ready to give it a try? Y ou can explore by signing up and start writing .

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subtitle about anything you like

Write fiction like a pro (self-paced tutorial)   .

Learn how to use story outlines like a professional writer with lessons developed by a published author.

What's the single biggest difference between professional authors and novices? Professionals know how to structure novels and stories for maximum dramatic effect. This course helps you develop the same story structuring skills the pros use. You will understand how your passion, theme, premise, and characters help you create the structure of your story, and discover how viewpoint, dialogue, pacing, and many other techniques are used to build scenes and move your story from beginning to end.

Each assignment in this course helps you develop your own original novel or story. As you apply each technique, your story will take shape, with a clear path from beginning to end. Before you know it, you will be prepared to write fiction like a pro.

Requirements:

Hardware Requirements:

• This course can be taken on either a PC, Mac, or Chromebook.

Software Requirements:

• PC: Windows 8 or later.
• Mac: macOS 10.6 or later.
• Browser: The latest version of Google Chrome or Mozilla Firefox are preferred. Microsoft Edge and Safari are also compatible.
• Adobe Acrobat Reader .
• Software must be installed and fully operational before the course begins.
• Email capabilities and access to a personal email account.

Story Structure

For the duration of this course, you will learn the techniques that professional authors use to write effectively and create a story structure that delivers maximum impact. This first lesson explores the idea of story structure and fundamental rules that successful fiction follows. You will also learn the often-misunderstood difference between story and plot.

The Dramatic Elements

At the heart of every story are the dramatic elements of passion, theme, character, and premise. Your passion is what drives you to tell your story, and the theme is the underlying message it carries. To convey your theme, you will create characters who represent that theme—either positively or negatively. Put all of these together and you have your premise. This lesson focuses on all of these elements.

Character is what story is all about. Without a character, and a change in that character, there can be no story. In this lesson, you will discover why the best characters are flawed. You will see how this applies to your main character—the protagonist—and the opposition forces of the antagonist. And finally, you will map out the other characters who round out your story.

Act 1: Hook, Backstory, and Trigger

This lesson is the first of three that focus on constructing a story outline, act by act. In Act 1, you will learn how to hook your readers. Then you will fill them in with some character history called backstory. And finally, you will exit Act 1 with a bang by triggering a traumatic event in the life of your protagonist.

Act 2: Crisis, Struggle, and Epiphany

If Act 1 ends with a bang, Act 2 starts with a whimper. Your protagonist begins in crisis, an emotional state brought on by one of their flaws. And because of that flaw, your protagonist will struggle throughout Act 2, as the antagonist delivers setback after setback. Fortunately, at the conclusion of Act 2 your protagonist finally figures out the source of all this emotional distress and how to overcome it.

Act 3: Plan, Climax, and Ending

The epiphany that ended Act 2 has prepared your protagonist for triumph in Act 3. Now it's time to devise a plan. The result will be a final confrontation with the antagonist. This lesson focuses on the best way to confront your antagonist—it's not what you might guess. Then, with that climax behind you, you're ready to tie up loose ends in the ending.

The Story Idea

You have accomplished a lot in the last few lessons. By now you should be pretty comfortable with story structure. The next three lessons take concepts you have learned and apply them to the development of a real novel. This first of these lessons focuses on using dramatic elements to create a character, their flaw, and then put it all together into a formal story idea.

The Story Outline

This lesson expands the story idea for a novel into the nine checkpoints of our three-act outline. This is quite a challenge for just one lesson, but you're almost an expert at this story structuring by now.

The Long Form

Now that you have your outline, it's time for that magical moment when you begin expanding it into the long form. The actual novel is about to materialize. This lesson will teach you how to insert markers for the scenes that support and develop the outline.

Plan Like a Pro

One of the most important choices an author makes is viewpoint. It affects every aspect of the story—from theme, to pacing, to suspense. This lesson explores the three most common viewpoints—omniscient, third-person limited, and first person—and discover their advantages and disadvantages.

Plot Like a Pro

This lesson looks at techniques for refining your plot and controlling its pace. Then you will unravel the internal structure of various fiction pieces you've ever read, discovering a structure called scene and sequel.

Write Fiction Like a Pro

Now that your novel, play, or screenplay is well underway, it's time to think about polishing the finished product. This final lesson explores the techniques that make your writing sparkle, including tips on dialogue, imagery, and establishing your own unique voice.

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How to Write Short Stories like a Pro: Fiction Writing Guide (TBC Writer’s Toolkit Book 12) Kindle Edition

Who else wants to write a short story masterpiece?

Do you feel a story throbbing in your heart?

Do you want to learn how to write a story from start to finish?

Then this step-by-step guide to writing timeless tales is perfect for you!

Short story is one of the most difficult literary forms to master. But don’t let this frighten you. With my simple to follow tips and your talent, you can write a masterpiece too.

Learn how to find unique story ideas, how to start a story, set compelling plots, create memorable characters, and polish the story draft. Find out proven writing tips and easily convert your ideas into well-crafted stories.

‘How to Write Short Stories like a Pro’ is a complete writing course in a concise form. It does not just deliver writing lessons — it makes you write. If you follow its practice suggestions, you’ll have a beautiful short story ready before you finish reading the book.

So what are you waiting for? Get ‘How to Write Short Stories like a Pro’ and start your journey as a short story expert now!

The tips you learn from this book will also help when you write your bestselling novel.

• Book 1 of 1 How to Write Short Stories like a Pro
• Print length 73 pages
• Language English
• Sticky notes On Kindle Scribe
• Publication date July 28, 2020
• File size 246 KB
• Page Flip Enabled
• Word Wise Not Enabled
• Enhanced typesetting Enabled
• See all details

Product details

• ASIN ‏ : ‎ B08DV86CCP
• Publisher ‏ : ‎ Jyoti Arora (July 28, 2020)
• Publication date ‏ : ‎ July 28, 2020
• Language ‏ : ‎ English
• File size ‏ : ‎ 246 KB
• Text-to-Speech ‏ : ‎ Enabled
• Screen Reader ‏ : ‎ Supported
• Enhanced typesetting ‏ : ‎ Enabled
• X-Ray ‏ : ‎ Not Enabled
• Word Wise ‏ : ‎ Not Enabled
• Sticky notes ‏ : ‎ On Kindle Scribe
• Print length ‏ : ‎ 73 pages
• #622 in Editing Writing Reference (Kindle Store)
• #1,489 in Editing Writing Reference (Books)
• #22,548 in Fiction Writing Reference (Books)

About the authors

The book club.

A group of authors has come together to share their writing journey with you all. We have various topics from How to become an Indie author to the art of creative writing. If you have any questions you can reach out to Rubina Ramesh at [email protected] regarding these booklets.

Jyoti Arora

Jyoti Arora is an Indian novelist and blogger. She has Master's degrees in English Literature and Applied Psychology. Besides her intense and thought-provoking novels, Jyoti’s writing achievements include several wins in blogging competitions, over five years of freelance writing experience, developing books for kids and abridging 24 famous English novels like Jane Eyre, Adventures of Huckleberry Finn etc.

Due to certain medical problems, Jyoti had to quit school after class 8th. But she did not let this stop or discourage her. She continued her education on her own through correspondence courses and is a successful career woman now.

For her determination and achievements, Jyoti has received appreciation from several eminent dignitaries and her life story has been covered in various local and national TV shows, radio programs, newspapers, magazines and websites. In the year 2016, Jyoti was chosen as one of the 100 women achievers of India that were invited to witness India’s Republic Day parade as special guests.

Besides reading and writing novels, Jyoti also enjoys blogging and has won several blogging competitions. She loves checking out the latest technological innovations, watching movies, and listening to old Bollywood songs. Reach her at jyotiarora.com.

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Write Fiction Like a Pro

Learn how to use story outlines like a professional writer with the help of lessons developed by a published author. This course will show you how to apply narrative structure to lend your fiction writing the maximum dramatic effect.

Requirements

What's the single biggest difference between professional authors and novices? Professionals know how to structure novels and stories for maximum dramatic effect. This course helps you develop the same story structuring skills the pros use. You will understand how your passion, theme, premise, and characters help you create the structure of your story, and discover how viewpoint, dialogue, pacing, and many other techniques are used to build scenes and move your story from beginning to end.

Each assignment in this course helps you develop your own original novel or story. As you apply each technique, your story will take shape, with a clear path from beginning to end. Before you know it, you will be prepared to write fiction like a pro.

Enrollment Options:

Lesson 1 - story structure, lesson 2 - the dramatic elements, lesson 3 - character, lesson 4 - act 1: hook, backstory, and trigger, lesson 5 - act 2: crisis, struggle, and epiphany, lesson 6 - act 3: plan, climax, and ending, lesson 7 - the story idea, lesson 8 - the story outline, lesson 9 - the long form, lesson 10 - plan like a pro, lesson 11 - plot like a pro, lesson 12 - write fiction like a pro.

Prerequisites:

There are no prerequisites to take this course.

Requirements:

Hardware Requirements:

• This course can be taken on either a PC, Mac, or Chromebook.

Software Requirements:

• PC: Windows 8 or later.
• Mac: macOS 10.6 or later.
• Browser: The latest version of Google Chrome or Mozilla Firefox are preferred. Microsoft Edge and Safari are also compatible.
• Adobe Acrobat Reader .
• Software must be installed and fully operational before the course begins.
• Email capabilities and access to a personal email account.

Instructional Material Requirements:

The instructional materials required for this course are included in enrollment and will be available online.

Steve Alcorn

Steve Alcorn is the CEO of Alcorn McBride Inc., a leading theme park design company that creates products used in all the world's theme parks. He is a proponent of advance planning and has experience with wills, living trusts, advance directives, and power of attorney. His experience also includes arranging for in-home care, nursing home selection, retirement community evaluation, memory care facility selection, and the analysis of Medicare and other insurance paperwork. He is a counselor to his employees, possessing insight into the varieties of relationships, problems, opportunities, and legal issues that can arise in the field of eldercare.

Steve is the published author of a wide range of fiction and nonfiction works. During the past decade, he has helped more than 30,000 students turn their story ideas into reality, with many of his students publishing novels they developed in his classes. His books include A Matter of Justice, Everything In Its Path, Molly Builds a Theme Park, How to Fix Your Novel, Theme Park Design, and Write Your Life Story.

Instructor Interaction : The instructor looks forward to interacting with learners in the online moderated discussion area to share their expertise and answer any questions you may have on the course content.

To revisit this article, visit My Profile, then View saved stories .

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Estelle Erasmus

How to Resist the Temptation of AI When Writing

Whether you're a student, a journalist, or a business professional, knowing how to do high-quality research and writing using trustworthy data and sources, without giving in to the temptation of AI or ChatGPT , is a skill worth developing.

As I detail in my book Writing That Gets Noticed , locating credible databases and sources and accurately vetting information can be the difference between turning a story around quickly or getting stuck with outdated information.

For example, several years ago the editor of Parents.com asked for a hot-take reaction to country singer Carrie Underwood saying that, because she was 35, she had missed her chance at having another baby. Since I had written about getting pregnant in my forties, I knew that as long as I updated my facts and figures, and included supportive and relevant peer-reviewed research, I could pull off this story. And I did.

The story ran later that day , and it led to other assignments. Here are some tips I’ve learned that you should consider mastering before you turn to automated tools like generative AI to handle your writing work for you.

Identify experts, peer-reviewed research study authors, and sources who can speak with authority—and ideally, offer easily understood sound bites or statistics on the topic of your work. Great sources include professors at major universities and media spokespeople at associations and organizations.

For example, writer and author William Dameron pinned his recent essay in HuffPost Personal around a statistic from the American Heart Association on how LGBTQ people experience higher rates of heart disease based on discrimination. Although he first found the link in a secondary source (an article in The New York Times ), he made sure that he checked the primary source: the original study that the American Heart Association gleaned the statistic from. He verified the information, as should any writer, because anytime a statistic is cited in a secondary source, errors can be introduced.

Jen Malia, author of  The Infinity Rainbow Club  series of children’s books (whom I recently interviewed on my podcast ), recently wrote a piece about dinosaur-bone hunting for Business Insider , which she covers in her book Violet and the Jurassic Land Exhibit.

After a visit to the Carnegie Museum of Natural History in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania, Malia, whose books are set in Philadelphia, found multiple resources online and on the museum site that gave her the history of the Bone Wars , information on the exhibits she saw, and the scientific names of the dinosaurs she was inspired by. She also used the Library of Congress’ website, which offers digital collections and links to the Library of Congress Newspaper Collection.

Malia is a fan of searching for additional resources and citable documents with Google Scholar . “If I find that a secondary source mentions a newspaper article, I’m going to go to the original newspaper article, instead of just stopping there and quoting,” she says.

Julian Chokkattu

Brenda Stolyar

Scott Gilbertson

Your local public library is a great source of free information, journals, and databases (even ones that generally require a subscription and include embargoed research). For example, your search should include everything from health databases ( Sage Journals , Scopus , PubMed) to databases for academic sources and journalism ( American Periodical Series Online , Statista , Academic Search Premier ) and databases for news, trends, market research, and polls (t he Harris Poll , Pew Research Center , Newsbank , ProPublica ).

Even if you find a study or paper that you can’t access in one of those databases, consider reaching out to the study’s lead author or researcher. In many cases, they’re happy to discuss their work and may even share the study with you directly and offer to talk about their research.

For journalist Paulette Perhach’s article on ADHD in The New York Times, she used Epic Research to see “dual team studies.” That's when two independent teams address the same topic or question, and ideally come to the same conclusions. She recommends locating research and experts via key associations for your topic. She also likes searching via Google Scholar but advises filtering it for studies and research in recent years to avoid using old data. She suggests keeping your links and research organized. “Always be ready to be peer-reviewed yourself,” Perhach says.

When you are looking for information for a story or project, you might be inclined to start with a regular Google search. But keep in mind that the internet is full of false information, and websites that look trustworthy can sometimes turn out to be businesses or companies with a vested interest in you taking their word as objective fact without additional scrutiny. Regardless of your writing project, unreliable or biased sources are a great way to torpedo your work—and any hope of future work.

Author Bobbi Rebell researched her book Launching Financial Grownups using the IRS’ website . “I might say that you can contribute a certain amount to a 401K, but it might be outdated because those numbers are always changing, and it’s important to be accurate,” she says. “AI and ChatGPT can be great for idea generation,” says Rebell, “but you have to be careful. If you are using an article someone was quoted in, you don’t know if they were misquoted or quoted out of context.”

If you use AI and ChatGPT for sourcing, you not only risk introducing errors, you risk introducing plagiarism—there is a reason OpenAI, the company behind ChatGPT, is being sued for downloading information from all those books.

Audrey Clare Farley, who writes historical nonfiction, has used a plethora of sites for historical research, including Women Also Know History , which allows searches by expertise or area of study, and JSTOR , a digital library database that offers a number of free downloads a month. She also uses Chronicling America , a project from the Library of Congress which gathers old newspapers to show how a historical event was reported, and Newspapers.com (which you can access via free trial but requires a subscription after seven days).

When it comes to finding experts, Farley cautions against choosing the loudest voices on social media platforms. “They might not necessarily be the most authoritative. I vet them by checking if they have a history of publication on the topic, and/or educational credentials.”

When vetting an expert, look for these red flags:

• You can’t find their work published or cited anywhere.
• They were published in an obscure journal.
• Their research is funded by a company, not a university, or they are the spokesperson for the company they are doing research for. (This makes them a public relations vehicle and not an appropriate source for journalism.)

And finally, the best endings for virtually any writing, whether it’s an essay, a research paper, an academic report, or a piece of investigative journalism, circle back to the beginning of the piece, and show your reader the transformation or the journey the piece has presented in perspective.

As always, your goal should be strong writing supported by research that makes an impact without cutting corners. Only then can you explore tools that might make the job a little easier, for instance by generating subheads or discovering a concept you might be missing—because then you'll have the experience and skills to see whether it's harming or helping your work.

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Book Title: Write Like a PR Pro

Subtitle: Why writing is still crucial in a digital and visual world

Author: Mary Sterenberg

Download this book

• Digital PDF

Book Description: Print and electronic communication, social media and even visual messaging all require a core skill: writing. Learn how to write and develop messages in different formats from professionals with expertise in different areas of communication. NOTE: This textbook is currently under revision, so you may notice content moving or changing.

Book Information

Book description.

Print and electronic communication, social media and even visual messaging all require a core skill: writing. T his book is a practical guide to planning and writing strategically, concisely and effectively for many of the communication channels used in the current public relations environment. It connects students to professionals with expertise in different aspects of message creation and highlights the types of writing and other skills needed to be competitive in the current communication job market. NOTE: This textbook is currently under revision, so you may notice content moving or changing.

Write Like a PR Pro Copyright © 2023 by Mary Sterenberg is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial 4.0 International License , except where otherwise noted.

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If You Give a Kid a Notebook, He’s Going to Ask for Time to Write

John Schu is a best-selling author, a children’s librarian and a tireless evangelist for the power of a blank page.

By Elisabeth Egan

Elisabeth Egan is an editor at the Book Review and the author of “A Window Opens.”

When John Schu was admitted to Linden Oaks Hospital in Naperville, Ill., as a teenager, the staff gave him a gray notebook and encouraged him to write in it every day. “I would write a lot in the beginning, but I refused to share anything,” Schu said in a phone interview. “I would do some of the assignments, but I would always say, ‘Nobody can read it.’”

He spent more than two years in outpatient and inpatient programs, receiving treatment for anorexia, obsessive-compulsive disorder, anxiety and depression. “ Louder Than Hunger ,” Schu’s best-selling novel for middle graders, is a fictionalized account of this ordeal (including “the Voice” inside his head, spewing criticism).

But back to that gray notebook. In 1996, while Schu was still at Linden Oaks, he appeared via satellite on “The Oprah Winfrey Show” to talk about his struggles with eating. His mother was in the studio with Winfrey. On her lap, she held the volume containing Schu’s poetry, his goals for the future and a drawing of the inside of his heart.

“My psychiatrist had given my mom my notebook,” Schu said. “I don’t think I was ever honest in my writing after that because I felt betrayed. I became an unreliable narrator.” Thankfully, there was some catharsis in writing his protagonist, Jake Stacey: “Even though I’m not 100 percent Jake, I got to do the assignments I wish I had done when I was hospitalized.”

Now a frequent classroom visitor — he estimates that he speaks to around 1,500 students per week — Schu always emphasizes the importance of writing. “My favorite thing to tell kids is that I don’t write on the computer until I know the whole story,” Schu said. “Every draft is written in a notebook. I show them pictures of my notebooks. I always tell them that my notebook cost $4.83 and it was worth every penny.”

Throughout his 45-minute presentation, Schu scans the faces in front of him, looking for the student who needs a notebook more than anyone else in the audience. He has a certain radar for kids who are going through something, he explained; the ones who, like Jake, have a hard time taking up space. “I can see a heaviness,” Schu said.

Before he leaves, Schu tucks a pen into the spiral of a notebook and gives it to the child he’s chosen. He doesn’t make a big deal of it; he doesn’t want to overwhelm anyone: “I always say to them, ‘When I first start writing, it’s terrifying to fill that first page. I’ve already done that; I filled the whole page with a poem. So the notebook is ready for you, and it’s the most powerful tool.’”

Elisabeth Egan is a writer and editor at the Times Book Review. She has worked in the world of publishing for 30 years. More about Elisabeth Egan

WrestleMania 40 is here! What pro wrestling is all about

Characters, storylines and what’s real versus fake

⭐️HERE’S WHAT YOU NEED TO KNOW⭐️

• WWE’s WrestleMania XL takes place this weekend.
• It’s the 40th anniversary of the pro wrestling event.
• Meanwhile, for the first time in almost 20 years, there’s another pro wrestling show on television.
• Fun characters and dramatic storylines are part of the appeal. 
• But is it all just fake? Read on to learn more. ⬇️ ⬇️ ⬇️

It’ll be good versus evil, underdog versus champion and family legacy on the line when professional wrestlers take to the ring for WrestleMania XL this weekend.

World Wrestling Entertainment (WWE) will host the 40th edition of the event in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, on April 6 and 7.

First held in 1985, WrestleMania is the biggest show on the WWE calendar every year.

More than 90,000 fans bought tickets to this year’s WrestleMania on the first day of sale, breaking the previous record set in 2023, according to WWE’s parent company, TKO. 

And WWE isn’t the only wrestling franchise bringing in tons of viewership. 

Although WWE didn’t have a competitor for more than 20 years, rival pro wrestling company All Elite Wrestling (AEW) has broadcast a show since 2019 that brings in more than half a million viewers each week. 

So what makes pro-wrestling so exciting for so many fans out there, and what will the 40th installment of WrestleMania have in store? Let’s find out. 

First, what is pro wrestling and is it real or fake? 

Pro wrestling is a sport where athletes dress up in elaborate costumes and perform fighting moves in front of a live audience. 

The goal is to either pin your opponent (keeping their shoulders down for three seconds) on the mat or have them tap out (give a signal to the referee that they give up).

Pro wrestling is unique in the world of sports because it’s partially scripted, meaning some of what will happen is planned beforehand. 

RJ Skinner, a.k.a. RJ City, a pro wrestling broadcaster with AEW based in Toronto, Ontario, describes it like “a violent fourth grade play.”

The winners and losers are decided in advance, but the matches themselves are mostly improvised and the hits are usually real, said Brandon Thurston. 

He’s a journalist with Wrestlenomics.com who specializes in covering the business of professional wrestling. 

“It is a show. Having said that, it's probably the most physically painful show that there is,” said RJ City.

Nicolas Dansereau, better known as Evil Uno, said that despite the fact that match outcomes are predetermined, the sport comes with the same physical challenges as other sports.

“The pain and the impact of falling down is real,” said the pro wrestler from Gatineau, Quebec, who is signed to AEW.

Characters are a big part of the excitement

One thing everyone we spoke to agreed on was that big personalities are a key part of what makes pro wrestling so exciting.

• #YaNasty: WWE wrestler pulls stunt and Mountie plays along

For example, in AEW, Evil Uno is a member of the team Dark Order. He says fans like them because they’re childish and funny.

Evil Uno always wears a mask, partially inspired by Batman, his childhood hero. He credits the look as part of his appeal.

RJ City describes pro-wrestlers as “delightfully weird people” who we can relate to as we watch. 

“I feel like pro wrestlers are able to act how we all sometimes want to on the inside.”

• WWE star John Cena breaks record for most wishes granted to sick kids

WrestleMania 40 is bringing big storylines 

WrestleMania 40 is set to be the conclusion of two years of storytelling for WWE, Thurston said.

Cody Rhodes is hoping to defeat Roman Reigns for the WWE Universal Championship after losing to him last year.

The win would be symbolic for Rhodes, because it’s the one title his father, pro wrestler Dusty Rhodes, was never able to win.

In general, Evil Uno said pro wrestling stories are simple. They’re all about good versus evil, where good wins and evil loses.

In the case of their upcoming WrestleMania match, Rhodes is treated as a “face,” which is the pro wrestling term for a good guy. Reigns is playing a “heel,” the pro wrestling term for a bad guy.

• Looking back on WrestleMania 36

RJ City said these roles set the stage in the same way our favourite movies do.

“It's just heightened emotions and the physical embodiment of struggle,” he said.

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Ditch these 10 common crutch phrases, says Stanford expert—they ‘undermine our competence and intelligence'

You probably use the occasional crutch word or phrase without realizing it. Most people do.

But beware, says Stanford University communication expert Matt Abrahams: They can get you into trouble, by negatively impacting the way other people see you. Crutch phrases often include "hedging language" that water down your sentences and make you seem less smart , he says.

"[They] can actually undermine our competence and intelligence," Abrahams, a communication consultant and organizational behavior lecturer at the Stanford Graduate School of Business, tells CNBC Make It.

Here are 10 hedging phrases Abrahams says people should steer clear from, especially in professional settings:

• "I think"
• "Sort of"
• "Kind of"
• "It seems"
• "Perhaps"
• "It might be"
• "It looks like"
• "Possibly"
• "Maybe"
• "I feel like"

Instead, opt for "declarative statements," says Abrahams.

Say your boss asks you to take on a big project, for example. Responding, "I think I can pull it off," can make you sound like you lack confidence —  especially in comparison to a more confident "Yes, I'd be happy to take it."

Even more simply, you can swap "I think" out for "I know" or "I believe," Abrahams says: "If I say, 'I kind of think we should do this,' it's very different from, 'We should do this.' And [the latter] sounds more confident and strong."

If you really want to sound competent — particularly when someone is explaining a complex topic or subject to you — you can repeat what they said back to them, or ask them a question.

"Saying something like, 'So what I hear you saying is,' demonstrates that you've actually really listened to the person. It demonstrates understanding and builds your confidence in the eyes of other people," Abrahams says.

A 2015 study series from Harvard and Wharton researchers backs him up. Students were asked to solve a brain teaser with a partner, and given three options for communication: asking for advice, telling their partner, "I hope you did well," or saying nothing at all. Those who asked questions were viewed as more intelligent than those who didn't, the studies found.

"By showing that I've taken the time to listen to you [and ask questions], that makes you think, 'Well, he's smart enough to understand what I'm saying," says Abrahams.

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How to style a bed like a pro

D o you look at the beautifully made beds and wonder how it’s done? It seems so simple, but making a bed is almost an art – especially if you want it to look straight from the pages of a magazine. Enter Jordan Prainito, managing director of soft furnishing company Canningvale who takes us step by step, pillow by pillow, through styling a luxurious hotel-style bed you’ll never want to stop looking at.

1. Start from the bottom – with a top sheet that is

Once you’ve put your fitted sheet on the mattress, next is a flat sheet. It’s a contentious addition with some sleepers preferring to go sans top sheet, but if it’s a beautifully made bed you’re after then these sleepers will need to succumb. However a common mistake is to lay the flat sheet straight on top of your fitted sheet , the right face up… which is actually the wrong side up.

“If you use a flat sheet up a little higher up the bed and the wrong side up, you’ll have plenty of room at the top to fold it over the quilt cover,” explains Jordan.

2. Add height with softness

Even if you have a bedhead , it’s always a good idea to add height with pillows as these will frame the rest of your styling. Opt for two European square pillows. with a featured pattern or texture cover that matches your quilt cover. Stylist’s tip? Use the “hand chop” to create an indent in the top for added style. “I think it’s a bit of fun,” says Jordan.

3. Layers upon layers – of pillows

Next add standard pillowcases which will sit in front of the European pillows. Jordan prefers these pillowcases to have a three to five-centimetre sham (a fabric border) on them. “I think it gives a little more of a styled, opulent look rather than just plain pillowcases.”

He suggests matching the standard pillowcases to the flat and fitted sheets. If you have a queen or king -sized bed you can also add another set of standard pillows for even more luxury, and Jordan advises using pillowcases that have the same pattern or colour as the quilt cover for these.

4. Warm up with a quilt, blanket and throw

Cold where you live? Add a blanket on top of your flat sheet then place your quilt on top. Next fold the quilt and the blanket halfway down the bed for a stylised look.

“You can also fold your quilt cover in thirds at the foot of the bed – if you prefer a chunkier look,” says Jordan. “Then, in between the top of the bed and where the quilt cover is placed, you can introduce a new texture or colour, such as a throw. It’s a really nice way to get that three complementary layers that make a bed look stunning and opulent.”

1. Use two quilts inside the quilt cover, if you want an extra plush look. “That way the quilt cover looks really lofty,” explains Jordan. “Obviously, it’ll be a bit warm but if we’re talking purely about looks that’s a fantastic way to go.”

2. Oversize your quilt cover. For example, if you have a queen sheet set and queen mattress, go for a king-size quilt cover to have that extra drape around your mattress base.”

The best bedding to shop 2023

Linen duvet in natural, cultiver.

If colour scares you, this muted natural quilt cover is in a gentle hue that you can match and layer with white and neutral tones. Made from 100 per cent European flax, mix and match to your heart’s content with matching pillowslips.

Luxury velvet bolster in slate, Aura Home

If your space is lacking texture, this deep slate cushion will do the trick. This design is available in a selection of colourways to suit your scheme perfectly, and the bolster shape will bring a classic elegance to your bed.

Newport chunky knit throw in coal, Adairs

$139.99 (usually $199.99).

Soft to the touch, this moody-hued throw from Adairs would bring a modern, warm vibe to any bedroom. Drape it across the end of a white or neutral bed for a bold statement or combine with soft pastels for a sophisticated look.

400TC soft sateen sheet set in soft grey, Sheridan

From $209.97 (usually $349.95).

If you love a crisp look, Sheridan’s soft sateen sheets are a timeless choice. Their quality will make you feel like you’re slipping into a hotel bed every night.

Home Beautiful Pure European linen pillowcases, MyHouse

$39.99 (usually $69.99).

European pillows are a wonderful way to bring height to your pillow arrangement, with the added element of contrasting colour. Choose fabrics that match your bedlinen or make a statement with something different – velvet works beautifully.

Stonewashed cotton quilted coverlet in gumleaf, Adairs

Top your bed with a layer of comfort and warmth by investing in a good quality coverlet. Not only will it make your bed look ‘finished’, but if you want to keep it on while you sleep, the extra padding will certainly protect you against any chilly draughts during the night.

Citta Frieda cushion in natural, RJ Living

Curating a selection of your favourite cushions not only adds a touch of comfort to the bed, but also encourages you to foster a style of your liking.

The post How to style a bed like a pro appeared first on Home Beautiful .