Writing Short Stories & Essay Writing

Writer’s Digest would like to congratulate the winners of the 18th Annual Short Short Story Competition. Each year, writers submit their very best short stories of 1,500 words or fewer.

Writer’s Digest would like to congratulate the winners of the 18th Annual Short Short Fiction Competition. Each year, writers submit their very best short stories of 1,500 words or fewer. This year, “Beneath the Cracks” by Nicole Disney bested more than 3,000 entries. Read a Q&A with her here.

Writer’s Digest would like to congratulate the winners of the 18th Annual Short Short Story Competition. Each year, writers submit their very best short stories of 1,500 words or fewer. This year, “Beneath the Cracks” by Nicole Disney bested more than 3,000 entries. Read the story here.

Sloane Crosley can coax humor from the unlikeliest of depths, whether it’s a good line from your locksmith or avenging a childhood slight during a pride parade.

In this episode of the Writer’s Digest Podcast, Gabriela Pereira talks with Windy Lynn Harris about writing and publishing short stories, personal essays and nonfiction articles.

Even if you’re focused on writing a novel, writing short stories can be a wonderful creativity tool to help you strengthen elements of your fiction, experiment with characters and simply stay loose.

How does a writer create a character unlike themselves and give it a living, breathing personality? I’ll walk through these six steps that worked for me--and perhaps they’ll work for you.

For writers of short form literature, submitting your work can mean a variety of positive things. Here are important questions (and answers) you need to know about the process.

What do short fiction editors really look for? What's the secret to great flash fiction? Are anthologies the most overlooked markets around? The answers may just jump-start your career.

When I wanted to write an essay about my difficult relationship with my brother I had to figure out a way to make it interesting to other people so I turned to these 10 elements to keep the story rolling.

Start your revision by addressing these five biggest fiction writing mistakes, and you'll immediately change your story for the better.

Small-circulation publications are often overlooked, but they offer big perks to writers who are willing to reach out.

Fiction publishing creds are a great way to build your bio and propel your career. Here’s how—and where—to get them.

The most important thing when when understanding how to publish short stories is to follow the publisher's writing guidelines carefully. Here are some general rules.

Is your manuscript stuck? Take a break from completing your fiction project and diagnose it. Here's how to take your manuscript into its next phase: completion.