First Hand Knowledge on Writing Short Stories

As a writer my main focus is short stories that I publish on the internet. There are many times when I get an amazing story idea and hope that it will blossom into more than an idea. It seems that most of these ideas revolve around other countries, hospitals, or stories about detectives. As interesting as my stories might have been, I always hit the same road block. I would get a few paragraphs into the story and then I would be struck with a bad case of writer's block. At least, I thought it was writer's block.

The real problem was not writer's block at all. Instead, I had put myself in a piece of work that I was not equipped to write. I have no experience with other countries, have never even been admitted to the hospital, and my knowledge of a detective's job is limited to what I have watched on television. The problem was simply that my knowledge was not wide enough to successfully write this type of work and come out with an end result that would be enjoyable to my readers.

This is a common problem that many writer's have and there are two solutions to this problem. The first is to begin researching the topic in which you have selected to write about. This approach can be an educational experience and prove to be successful if you have the time, energy, and desire to really learn. When I finally decided to finish one of my short stories about a detective, I spent hours on the internet attempting to learn everything I could about the job. In the end I learned a lot, but it still felt like something was missing from my story because I lacked the first hand knowledge that was required to write my story.

The second approach is to tuck your story idea away, take out a new piece of paper, and begin writing something else. Instead of attempting to write a story outside of your field of knowledge, think about what you do know. Using first hand experience in your story makes the story writing process easier and more enjoyable for your reader. Because you have been in the sitatuion you are describing, you have a better understanding of the emotion that took place in the event.

You may be thinking that your life is boring and no one would be interested in reading about anything that you have experienced for yourself. This is not true. I realized that I wanted to write about detectives, hospitals, and other countries because I found those things exciting. I never thought that anyone would be interested in reading things that really came from my life.

I finally turned my attention to something I was all too familiar with. My short stories became focused around love stories that took place in southern towns. I grew up in the south and I was able to capture the setting and characters much better than when I wrote something I did not have experience with. I began splicing together bits and pieces of my love stories and love stories of friends. Before I knew it, I had a larger fan base and more readers than I could ever had when I was writing the 'exciting' stories.

Keep in mind that while you may not find your life very exciting, we all grow up in different places. What may seem average and every day to you could be something that your reader has never experienced.