,,short ,,story ,,writing ,a ,practical ,treatise on the ,art of the ,short ,story ,by ,charles ,raymond ,barrett1 ,ph4 ,b4 ,illustration 7,,fourth ,,thousand7 ,new ,york3 ,the ,baker and ,taylor ,co4 #cc-cg ,e4 #agth ,street1 ,union ,square ,north ,copyrighted1 #ahih1 by ,charles ,raymond ,barrett ,copyrighted1 #aijj1 by ,charles ,raymond ,barrett ,,table ,,of ,,contents ,,preface ,,introduction ,i ,,the ,,short ,,story ,,ii ,,short ,,stories ,,classified ,,iii ,,the ,,plot ,,iv ,,titles ,,good ,,and ,,bad ,v ,,the ,,use ,,of ,,facts ,,vi ,,the ,,characters ,,vii ,,methods ,,of ,,narration ,,viii ,,the ,,beginning ,,ix ,,the ,,story ,,proper ,x ,,climax ,,and ,,conclusion ,,xi ,,the ,,style ,,xii ,,the ,,labor ,,of ,,authorship ,,xiii ,,the ,,quest ,,of ,a ,,market ,,appendix ,,the ,,ambitious ,,guest ,,preface ,this book is an attempt to put into definite form the principles observed by the masters of the short story in the practice of their art4 ,it is the result of a careful study of their work1 of some indifferent attempts to imitate them1 and of the critical examination of several thousands of short stories written by amateurs4 ,it is designed to be of practical assistance to the novice in short story writing1 from the moment the tale is dimly conceived until it is completed and ready for the editor's judgment4 ,the rules and principles here presented embody not what ,i conceive to be right1 but what the great masters of the short story have thought to be right1 and what they have proved to be at least successful4 ,i speak only as a delver into the secrets of other men2 and if ,i seem arrogant1 it is due to the influence of the company ,i keep4 ,my deductions are made not only from the artifices and triumphs of the successful1 but from the struggles and failures of the unfortunate as well2 and ,i have endeavored to make clear both the philosophy and the application of all the principles so deduced4 ,though in theory these rules are obligatory on all who essay the short story1 they are frequently and knowingly evaded or violated by the masters of the art1 whose genius is great enough to excuse their disregard of the conventions1 or whose skill is sufficient to smooth over their technical lapses2 but for the novice the only safe course is a careful observance of all conventions4 ,to the aspiring writer this book may seem to be merely a catalogue of ,don'ts1 the gist of which is1 ,don't write2 but that is to misread me4 ,short story writing is not easy1 and ,i cannot make it so1 even if ,i would2 but it is far from my purpose to discourage any person who feels the ,heaven-sent call to write1 and who has the will and ability to respond to it4 ,but that call is but a summons to labor--and to labor the severest and most persistent4 ,to one who comes to it but half-heartedly1 illy prepared1 shirking its requirements1 ,i can predict certain failure2 but to the earnest1 serious1 conscientious worker1 ,i would say a word of hope4 ,the promotion from the rank of amateur to the dignity of authorship may be long in coming1 but it will come at last4 ,fame1 like all else that this world has to give1 depends largely upon downright hard work2 and he who has the courage to strive in the face of disappointments will achieve success in the end4 ,throughout this book ,i have endeavored to give my statements definiteness by the employment of numerous examples1 both good and bad4 ,i have made no attempt to present an exhaustive analysis of the technique of individuals or of schools1 but have chosen my illustrations with a single view to their aptness2 ,i have1 however1 for the convenience of reference1 taken these paradigms chiefly from the published collections of stories by the older and better known writers4 ,my awful examples are verbatim excerpts from manuscripts which have passed through my hands2 their authorship is concealed for obvious reasons4 ,to the best of my knowledge there is no book extant which treats solely of the technique of the short story4 ,the nearest approach to it is ,how to ,write ,fiction1 an anonymous work published by ,bellaires ,co41 ,london2 but to my mind that is too slight1 too theoretical1 and too enamored of the artificial ,french school to be of practical value to the amateur4 ,far better1 as working guides1 are the frequent fragmentary articles on the short story1 many of them by successful short story writers1 published in current periodicals1 to which ,i am considerably indebted4 ,but my greatest obligation is to a course in ,the ,art of the ,short ,story--the first university course ever offered in that subject--conducted at the ,university of ,chicago in #ahif by ,dr4 ,e4 ,h4 ,lewis4 ,c4 ,r4 ,b4 ,,chicago1 ,august #a1 #aijj4 ,,introduction ,the short story was first recognized as a distinct class of literature in #ahdb1 when ,poe's criticism of ,hawthorne#a called attention to the new form of fiction4 ,short story writing had1 however1 been practiced for many years before that3 perhaps the narratives of ,homer and the tales of the first books of the ,bible may be considered as the first examples2 certainly the short story is closely associated in its early history with narrative poems1 allegorical tales1 and mouth-to-mouth traditions1 and it can be traced surely to the fabliaux of the thirteenth century4 ,later writers aided in its development3 ,mallory's ,morte ,d',arthur and ,caxton's popularization of old romances marked a further progress2 and some of the work of ,defoe and ,addison would almost stand the modern tests4 ,but the short story as we know it to-day is a product of the nineteenth century2 and it owes its position in literature1 if not its very existence1 to the work of ,irving1 ,hawthorne1 and ,poe4 ,they first recognized its possibilities and employed it seriously2 and the art and genius which they put into their tales assured the short story a permanent place in literature4 ,they differed in subject matter and style1 but they recognized the same requirements and limitations2 and the canons which they established then obtain to-day4 ,the modern short story is essentially an ,american product2 and our masters of its art have established precedents for literary workers of the old world4 ,in ,england1 ,stevenson1 ,kipling and ,haggard are considered the originators of the modern short story2 and ,zola1 de ,maupassant1 ,daudet and ,paul ,marguerite in ,france1 ,tolstoi in ,russia1 and other famous foreign authors have their claims for consideration2 but all of them1 admittedly or not1 are but disciples of the earlier ,american trinity4 ,this book will confine itself to the ,english-,american short story4 ,to-day the short story is so popular that we seem to be in a new literary epoch--the epoch of the short story--and there is no apparent cause to expect an early diminution in the demand for such literature2 so that to the young writer the short story offers the best opportunity to prove his mettle4 ,then1 too1 it has the additional value of being an excellent school for the novelist4 ,the short story and the novel have many radical differences2 but in material1 treatment and aim they are much the same1 and the same general training is necessary for both4 ,all short story writers do not become great novelists1 nor have all novelists been short story tellers2 but it is a fact that the majority of the present day novelists served their 'prenticeship in the ranks of the short story writers4 ,,footnotes3 ,footnote #a3 ,hawthorne's ',tales1' by ,edgar ,allan ,poe4 ,graham's ,magazine1 ,may1 #ahdb4 ,,short ,,story ,,writing ,i ,,the ,,short ,,story ,there is no modern literary form which is as little understood as is the short story4 ,the term short story is applied to every piece of prose writing of #cj1jjj words or less1 without regard to its matter1 aim1 or handling2 but our purpose demands a definition of some accuracy4 ,in the first place1 then1 what is1 and what is not1 a short story8 ,many things a short story may be4 ,it may be an episode1 like ,miss ,ella ,hepworth ,dixon's or like ,miss ,bertha ,thomas'2 a fairy tale1 like ,miss ,evelyn ,sharp's2 the presentation of a single character with the stage to himself 7,mr4 ,george ,gissing72 a tale of the uncanny 7,mr4 ,rudyard ,kipling72 a dialogue comedy 7,mr4 ,pett ,ridge72 a panorama of selected landscape1 a vision of the sordid street1 a record of heroism1 a remote tradition or some old belief vitalized by its bearing on our lives to-day1 an analysis of an obscure calling1 a glimpse at a forgotten quarter 444 but one thing it can never be--it can never be 'a novel in a nutshell'4#b ,a short story 444 must lead up to something4 ,it should have for its structure a plot1 a bit of life1 an incident such as you would find in a brief newspaper paragraph4444 ,he 7,richard ,harding ,davis7 takes the substance of just such a paragraph1 and1 with that for the meat of his story1 weaves around it details1 descriptions and dialogue1 until a complete story is the result4 ,now1 a story is something more than incidents and descriptions4 ,it is a definite thing4 ,it progresses constantly4 ,it arrives somewhere4 ,it must enforce some idea 7no matter what74 ,it must be such a reality that a man who read it would carry away a definite impression4#c ,it is evident1 then1 that the term short story is properly used only when it means a short prose narrative1 which presents artistically a bit of real life2 the primary object of which is to amuse1 though it may also depict a character1 plead a cause1 or point a moral2 this amusement is neither of that sthetic order which we derive from poetry1 nor of that cheap sort which we gain from a broad burlesque3 it is the simple yet intellectual pleasure derived from listening to a well told narrative4 ,the first requisite of a short story is that the writer have a story to tell--that is1 a plot4 ,he may present pretty scenes and word pictures if he will1 but he must vivify and humanize them by the introduction of certain characters1 patterned after the people of real life2 and these characters must move and act and live4 ,the presentation of still life pure and simple is not in the province of the short story4 ,the question of length is but relative2 in general a short story should not exceed #aj1jjj words1 and it could hardly contain less than #a1jjj2 while from #c1jjj to #e1jjj is the most usual length4 ,yet ,hawthorne's ,the ,gentle ,boy contains #ab1jjj words2 ,poe's ,the ,gold ,bug1 #ac1jjj2 and perhaps the majority of ,james' exceed the maximum1 while ,the ,lesson of the ,master requires #be1jjj1 and ,the ,aspern ,papers #cb1jjj4 ,indeed1 the length of any story is determined1 not so much by some arbitrary word limit1 as by the theme with which it deals4 ,every plot requires a certain number of words for its proper elaboration1 and neither more nor less will do4 ,just what the limit for any particular story may be1 the writer must decide for himself4 ,it seems to me that a short story writer should act1 metaphorically1 like this--he should put his idea for a story into one cup of a pair of balances1 then into the other he should deal out his words2 five hundred2 a thousand2 two thousand2 three thousand2 as the case may be--and when the number of words thus paid in causes the beam to rise1 on which his idea hangs1 then is his story finished4 ,if he puts in a word more or less1 he is doing false work4#d ,the short story does not need the love element that is generally considered necessary to the novel1 and many short stories disregard it altogether4 ,love usually requires time and moods and varying scenes for its normal development1 so that it is difficult to treat it properly within the limits of the short story2 and then only when some particular phase or scene admits of isolation4 ,then1 too1 many short stories are merely accounts of strange adventures1 wonderful discoveries or inventions1 and queer occurrences of all sorts--themes which amuse us from their mere oddity2 or they are verbal photographs of life1 which are interesting from their views of psychological and sociological problems2 and none of them requires love as the chief motive4 ,ingenuity and originality1 the principal constituents of such tales1 are the story teller's great virtues2 on them he bases his hopes4 ,therefore1 he must have strong individuality1 and the power of forcing his readers to view life through his eyes1 without perceiving him4 ,also1 and as if to compensate for the lack of the love interest1 the short story has a touch of fantasy which gives it a distinctive charm4 ,this quality is the hint of--not necessarily the supernatural1 but rather the weird2 it is a recognition and a vague presentation of the many strong influences that are not explainable by our philosophy of life4 ,it is the intrusion into our matter-of-fact lives of the uncanny element1 which the novice so grossly misuses in his tales of premonitory dreams and visions1 and of most unghostly ghosts4 ,it is not enough to catch a ghost white-handed and to hale him into the full glare of the electric light4 ,a brutal misuse of the supernatural is perhaps the very lowest degradation of the art of fiction4 ,but 'to mingle the marvellous rather as a slight1 delicate1 and evanescent flavor than as any actual portion of the substance1' to quote from the preface to the ',house of the ,seven ,gables1' this is1 or should be1 the aim of the writer of short-stories whenever his feet leave the firm ground of fact as he strays in the unsubstantial realm of fantasy4 ,in no one's writings is this better exemplified than in ,hawthorne's2 not even in ,poe's4 ,there is a propriety in ,hawthorne's fantasy to which ,poe could not attain4 ,hawthorne's effects are moral where ,poe's are merely physical4 ,the situation and its logical development and the effects to be got out of it are all ,poe thinks of4 ,in ,hawthorne the situation1 however strange and weird1 is only the outward and visible sign of an inward and spiritual struggle4 ,ethical consequences are always worrying ,hawthorne's soul2 but ,poe did not know there were any ethics4#e ,the short story usually treats of the lighter and brighter side of life4 ,it is seldom in deadly earnest2 it tends somewhat to superficiality2 and it prefers cleverness to profundity1 in both conception and treatment4 ,naturally1 then1 comedy rather than tragedy is its usual sphere2 and though the tale may end in gloom1 it more frequently suggests a possible tragedy in order to heighten the effect of the happy denouement4 ,for similar reasons the short story avoids the didactic tone1 either presenting its lesson in clever disguise1 or limiting its moral efforts to providing innocent amusement for an idle hour4 ,in the strife between realism and romanticism the short story adopts the middle course1 taking advantage of the better phases of both1 but siding with neither2 for every life is subject to both influences1 often at the same time1 and the short story aspires to present life as it is4 ,without true realism and genuine romanticism--actuality and ideals--good work was never done1 nor did any writer ever rise to be an author4#f ,no worthy work of fiction may properly be labelled romantic1 realistic or symbolic1 since every great work of art contains all these in some proportion4 ,love and fighting are not necessarily romance2 nor are soup-kitchens and divorce courts necessarily realism4444 ,malice1 futility and ugliness--the dreadful monotony of existence--are not necessarily real life2 nor the tales of summer love and marriage ceremonies1 successful fightings1 or sacrifice and chivalry necessarily romance4#g ,in its technique a short story demands the utmost care2 it lacks the bulk of the novel1 which hides minor defects4 ,it must have a definite form1 which shall be compact1 and which shall have its parts properly proportioned and related2 and it must be wrought out in a workmanlike manner4 ,it requires extreme care from its conception to its completion1 when it must stand forth a perfect work of art2 and yet it must reveal no signs of the worker's tools1 or of the pains by which it was achieved4 ,from what has been said it is evident that the short story is artificial1 and to a considerable degree unnatural4 ,it could hardly be otherwise1 for it takes out of our complex lives a single person or a single incident and treats that as if it were complete in itself4 ,such isolation is not known to nature3 ,there all things work together1 and every man influences all about him and is influenced by them4 ,yet this separation and exclusion are required by the conventions of the short story2 and after all1 there is always the feeling1 if the characters are well handled1 that they have been living and will continue to live1 though we have chanced to come in contact with them for only a short time4 ,it is this isolation1 this magnifying of one character or incident1 that constitutes the chief difference between the novel and the short story4#h ,in the novel we have a reproduction of a certain period of real life3 all the characters are there1 with their complex lives and their varying emotions2 there are varied scenes1 each one the stage of some particular incident or semi-climax which carries the action on to the final chapter2 and there are persons and scenes and conversations which have no reason for being there1 except that just such trivial things are parts of life4 ,with the short story it is very different3 that permits of but one scene and incident1 one or two real characters1 with one predominant emotion3 all else is a detriment to the interest and success of the story4 ,a book may be called a novel even if it is composed of a series of incidents1 each complete in itself1 which are bound together by a slender thread of common characters2 but a story cannot properly be called a short one unless it has simplicity of plot1 singleness of character and climax1 and freedom from extraneous matter4 ,in a short story the starting point is an idea1 a definite notion1 an incident1 a surprising discovery2 and this must have a definite significance1 a bearing on our view of life2 also it must be applied to the development of one life course1 one character4 ,the novel1 on the other hand1 starts with a conception of character1 a man1 a woman1 a human heart1 which under certain circumstances works out a definite result1 makes a world4444 ,lastly it develops a group of characters1 who together make a complete community1 instead of tracing the life course of one4#i ,to prove that these various requirements are recognized and observed by masters of the art1 ,i would ask you to consider the following list1 which ,the ,critic selected from nearly five hundred submitted in competition for a prize which it offered for a list of the best twelve ,american short stories3 ,the ,man ,without a ,country1 ,edward ,everett ,hale4 ,the ,luck of ,roaring ,camp1 ,bret ,harte4 ,the ,great ,stone ,face1 ,nathaniel ,hawthorne4 ,the ,snow ,image1 ,nathaniel ,hawthorne4 ,the ,gold ,bug1 ,edgar ,allan ,poe4 ,the ,murders in the ,rue ,morgue1 ,edgar ,allan ,poe4 ,the ,lady1 or the ,tiger8 ,frank ,r4 ,stockton4 ,the ,legend of ,sleepy ,hollow1 ,washington ,irving4 ,rip ,van ,winkle1 ,washington ,irving4 ,marse ,chan1 ,thomas ,nelson ,page4 ,marjorie ,daw1 ,thomas ,bailey ,aldrich4 ,the ,revolt of ,mother1 ,mary ,e4 ,wilkins4#aj ,,footnotes3 ,footnote #b3 ,the ,short ,story1 by ,frederick ,wedmore4 ,nineteenth ,century1 ,mar41 '#ih4 ,footnote #c3 ,how to ,write ,short ,stories4 ,an interview with ,f4 ,hopkinson ,smith in the ,boston ,herald4 ,current ,literature4 ,june1 '#if4 ,footnote #d3 ,robert ,barr in ,how to ,write a ,short ,story2 ,a ,symposium4 ,the ,bookman4 ,mar41 '#ig4 ,footnote #e3 ,the ,philosophy of the ,short-story1 by ,brander ,matthews4 ,lippincott's4 ,oct1 '#he4 ,footnote #f3 ,magazine ,fiction and ,how ,not to ,write ,it1 by ,frederick ,m4 ,bird4 ,lippincott's4 ,nov41 '#id4 ,footnote #g3 ,the ,art of ,fiction1 by ,gilbert ,parker4 ,the ,critic1 ,dec41'#ih4 ,footnote #h3 ,in many respects the art of the short story and the novel are so closely allied that ,i have been able to reenforce my observations with magazine articles which were meant to apply primarily to the novel4--,,the ,,author4 ,footnote #i3 ,how to ,write ,fiction4 ,published anonymously by ,bellaires ,co41 ,london4 ,part ,i1 ,chapter ,i4 ,footnote #aj3 ,the ,best ,twelve ,american ,stories4 ,the ,critic4 ,apr4 #aj1 '#ig4 ,,ii ,,short ,,stories ,,classified ,the treatment demanded by any particular story depends more upon its class than upon the tale itself2 a story which recounts an actual occurrence is much less exacting than one which attempts to depict manners2 and1 in general1 the more the writer relies on his art1 the more difficult is his task4 ,it is therefore both possible and profitable to separate short stories into definite groups and to consider them collectively rather than as units4 ,this classification is based chiefly upon the necessity of a plot1 the purpose or aim of the narrative1 and the skill and care required for its successful treatment4 ,it is crude and arbitrary from a literary standpoint1 for a good short story is capable of being listed under several different classes1 but it serves our practical purpose4 ,each story is placed according to its dominant class2 and the classes are arranged progressively from the simplest to the most difficult of treatment4 ,the examples are presented only as definite illustrations2 there is no attempt to classify all short stories1 or all the stories of any particular author4 ,i4 ,,the ,,tale is the relation1 in an interesting and literary form1 of some simple incident or stirring fact4 ,it has no plot in the sense that there is any problem to unravel1 or any change in the relation of the characters2 it usually contains action1 but chiefly accidents or odd happenings1 which depend on their intrinsic interest1 without regard to their influence on the lives of the actors4 7a7 ,it is often a genuine ,true ,story1 jealously observant of facts1 and embellished only to the extent that the author has endeavored to make his style vivid and picturesque4 ,such stories are a result of the tendency of the modern newspaper to present its news in good literary form4 ,the best illustrations are the occasional contributions of ,ray ,stannard ,baker to ,mc,clure's ,magazine4 7b7 ,it may1 however1 be an ,imaginative ,tale1 which could easily happen1 but which is the work of the author's imagination4 ,it is a straightforward narration of possible events2 if it passes the bounds of probability1 or attempts the utterly impossible1 it becomes a ,story of ,ingenuity4 7,see ,class ,,viii47 ,it has no love element and no plot2 and its workmanship is loose4 ,the best examples are the stories of adventure found in the better class of boys' and children's papers4 ,,ii4 ,,the ,,moral ,,story1 in spite of the beautiful examples left us by ,hawthorne1 is usually too baldly didactic to attain or hold a high place in literature4 ,its avowed purpose is to preach1 and1 as ordinarily written1 preach it does in the most determined way4 ,its plot is usually just sufficient to introduce the moral4 ,it is susceptible of a high literary polish in the hands of a master2 but when attempted by a novice it is apt to degenerate into a mess of moral platitudes4 7a7 ,the ,fable makes no attempt to disguise its didactic purpose1 but publishes it by a final labelled ,moral1 which epitomizes the lesson it conveys4 ,in ,fables the characters are often animals1 endowed with all the attributes of men4 ,it early lost favor because of its bald didacticism1 and for the last century has been practiced only occasionally4 ,to-day it is used chiefly for the purpose of burlesque and satire1 as in ,george ,ade's ,fables in ,slang4 sop is of course the immortal example of this sort of story4 7b7 ,the ,story with a ,moral attempts to sugar-coat its sermon with a little narrative4 ,it sticks rather closely to facts1 and has a slight plot1 which shows1 or is made to show1 the consequences of drinking1 stealing1 or some other sin4 ,usually it is either brutally realistic or absurdly exaggerated2 but that it can be given literary charm is proved by ,hawthorne's use of it4 ,maria ,edgeworth is easily the awful example of this class1 and her stories1 such as ,murad the ,unlucky and ,the ,grateful ,negro1 are excellent illustrations of how not to write4 ,many of ,hawthorne's tales come under this head1 especially ,lady ,eleanor's ,mantle1 ,the ,ambitious ,guest1 and ,miss ,bullfrog4 ,the stories of ,miss ,wilkins usually have a strong moral element1 but they are better classed in a later division4 7,see ,class ,,iv47 ,contemporary examples of this style of writing may be found in the pages of most ,sunday ,school and ,temperance papers4 7c7 ,the ,allegory is the only really literary form of the ,moral ,story1 and the only one which survives to-day4 ,it has a strong moral purpose1 but disguises it under the pretense of a well-told story2 so that it is read for its story alone1 and the reader is conscious of its lesson only when he has finished the narrative4 ,it usually personifies or gives concrete form to the various virtues and vices of men4 ,examples3 ,hawthorne's ,the ,birthmark1 ,rappaccini's ,daughter1 and ,feathertop4 ,allegories which deserve the name are sometimes found in current periodicals4 ,,iii4 ,,the ,,weird ,,story owes its interest to the innate love of the supernatural or unexplainable which is a part of our complex human nature--the same feeling which prompts a group of children to beg for just one more ghost story1 while they are still shaken with the terror of the last one4 ,it may have a definite plot in which supernatural beings are actors2 but more often it is slight in plot1 but contains a careful psychological study of some of the less pleasant emotions4 7a7 ,the ,ghost ,story usually has a definite plot1 in which the ghost is an actor4 ,the ghost may be a really truly apparition1 manifesting itself by the conventional methods1 and remaining unexplained to the end1 as in ,irving's ,the ,spectre ,bridegroom1 and ,kipling's ,the ,phantom ',rickshaw2 or it may prove to be the result of a superstitious mind dwelling upon perfectly natural occurrences1 as in ,irving's ,the ,legend of ,sleepy ,hollow1 and ,wilkins' ,a ,gentle ,ghost4 ,it requires art chiefly to render it plausible2 particularly in the latter case1 when the mystery must be carefully kept up until the denouement4 7b7 ,the ,fantastic ,tale treats of the lighter phases of the supernatural4 ,its style might be well described as whimsical1 its purpose is to amuse by means of playful fancies1 and it usually exhibits a delicate humor4 ,the plot is slight and subordinate4 ,examples3 ,hawthorne's ,a ,select ,party1 ,the ,hall of ,fantasy1 and ,monsieur du ,miroir2 and most of our modern fairy tales4 7c7 ,the ,study in ,horror was first made popular by ,poe1 and he has had almost no successful imitators4 ,it is unhealthy and morbid1 full of a terrible charm if well done1 but tawdry and disgusting if bungled4 ,it requires a daring imagination1 a full and facile vocabulary1 and a keen sense of the ludicrous to hold these two in check4 ,the plot is used only to give the setting to the story4 ,most any of ,poe's tales would serve as an illustration1 but ,the ,pit and the ,pendulum1 and ,the ,fall of the ,house of ,usher are particularly apt4 ,doyle has done some work approaching ,poe's1 but his are better classed as ,stories of ,ingenuity4 7,see ,class ,,viii47 ,,iv4 ,,the ,,character ,,study is a short story in which the chief interest rests in the development and exposition of human character4 ,it may treat of either a type or an individual4 ,good character delineation is one of the surest proofs of a writer's literary ability4 7a7 ,when the character depicted is inactive the resultant work is not really a story4 ,it usually has no plot1 and is properly a ,sketch1 in which the author makes a psychological analysis of his subject4 ,it inclines to superficiality and is liable to degenerate into a mere detailed description of the person4 ,it demands of the writer the ability to catch striking details and to present them vividly and interestingly4 ,examples3 ,hawthorne's ,sylph ,etherege and ,old ,esther ,dudley2 ,poe's ,the ,man of the ,crowd2 ,james' ,greville ,fane and ,sir ,edmund ,orme2 ,stevenson's ,will o' the ,mill2 ,wilkins' ,the ,scent of the ,roses and ,a ,village ,lear4 7b7 ,when the character described is active we have a ,character ,study proper1 built upon a plot which gives the character opportunity to work out his own personality before us by means of speech and action4 ,the plot is subordinated to the character sketching4 ,the psychological analysis is not presented by the author in so many words1 but is deduced by the reader from his observation of the character4 ,such studies constitute one of the highest art forms of the short story1 for the characters must live on the printed page4 ,the short stories of ,henry ,james and of ,miss ,wilkins could almost be classed in toto under this head2 ,miss ,wilkins' characters are usually types1 while those of ,james are more often individual1 though rather unusual4 ,other good examples are ,hawthorne's ,edward ,randolph's ,portrait2 ,irving's ,the ,devil and ,tom ,walker1 and ,wolfert ,weber2 ,stevenson's ,markheim and ,the ,brown ,box2 and ,davis' ,van ,bibber1 as depicted in the several stories of ,van ,bibber and ,others4 ,notice that in both subdivisions nearly every title embodies a reference to the character described1 showing that the author intentionally set out to sketch a character4 ,v4 ,,the ,,dialect ,,story might be considered as a subdivision of the preceding class1 since it is in effect a ,character ,study2 but its recent popularity seems to warrant its being treated separately4 ,its chief distinction is that it is written in the broken ,english used by the uneducated classes of our own country1 and by foreigners4 ,its plot is either very slight or hopelessly hackneyed1 and it is redeemed from sheer commonplace only by its picturesque language4 ,it is usually told in the first person by some ,english-murdering ignoramus4 ,it is simple1 and sometimes has a homely pathos4 ,it may present character as either active or inactive1 though usually the former4 ,its excuse for existence is that it gives truthful expression1 in their own language1 to the thoughts of certain classes of society2 but as written by the amateur the dialect is a fearful and wonderful combination of incorrect ,english that was never heard from the mouth of any living man4 ,joel ,chandler ,harris' ,nights with ,uncle ,remus contains genuine dialect2 other varieties correctly handled may be found in almost any of the stories of ,george ,washington ,cable1 ,ian ,maclaren1 and ,miss ,wilkins4 ,the ,dialect ,story as literature and as a field for the novice is considered at length in ,chapter ,,vi4 ,,vi4 ,,the ,,parable ,,of ,,the ,,times is a short story which aims to present a vivid picture of our own times1 either to criticise some existing evil1 or to entertain by telling us something of how the other half of the world lives4 ,it is in a sense a further development of ,the ,tale 7,class ,i471 though it has a more definite plot4 ,it is the most favored form of the short story to-day1 and its popularity is responsible for a mess of inane commonplace and bald realism that is written by amateurs1 who think they are presenting pen pictures of life4 ,for since its matter is gathered from our everyday lives1 it requires some degree of skill to make such narratives individual and interesting4 7a7 ,the ,instructive ,story of this class may be further subdivided as 7#a7 that which puts present day problems in concrete form1 with no attempt at a solution2 and 7#b7 that which not only criticises1 but attempts also to correct4 ,in either case1 it aims to reform by education2 it deals with actual problems of humanity rather than with abstract moral truths2 and it seeks to amuse always1 and to reform if possible4 ,it must not be confused with the ,moral ,story of ,class ,,ii4 ,octave ,thanet writes this style of story almost exclusively1 and any of her work selected at random would be a good illustration2 her ,sketches of ,american ,types would be listed under 7#a71 and such stories as ,the ,scab and ,trusty ,no4 #di under 7#b74 ,under 7#a7 would come also ,brander ,matthews' ,vignettes of ,manhattan2 and under 7#b7 ,edward ,everett ,hale's ,the ,man ,without a ,country and ,children of the ,public4 7b7 ,the most usual story of this class is the ,story of ,to-day1 which uses present day conditions as a background1 and which endeavors only to amuse and interest the reader4 ,naturally1 however1 since the scenes and persons described must be new to the reader1 such a story is also educating and broadening in its influence4 ,its plot may seem trivial when analyzed1 but it is selected with a view more to naturalness than to strength or complexity4 ,here we should list nearly all of our modern so-called society stories1 and stories of manners4 ,any of ,richard ,harding ,davis' short stories will serve as an excellent illustration1 and most of the stories in current periodicals belong in the same category4 ,,vii4 ,,the ,,story ,,of ,,ingenuity is one of the most modern forms of the short story1 and1 if ,i may be pardoned the prolixity1 one of the most ingenious4 ,it might be called the fairy tale of the grown-up1 for its interest depends entirely upon its appeal to the love for the marvelous which no human being ever outgrows4 ,it requires fertility of invention1 vividness of imagination1 and a plausible and convincing style4 ,yet it is an easy sort of story to do successfully1 since ingenuity will atone for many technical faults2 but it usually lacks serious interest and is short lived4 ,poe was the originator and great exemplar of the ,story of ,ingenuity1 and all of his tales possess this cleverness in some degree4 7a7 ,the ,story of ,wonder has little plot4 ,it is generally the vivid description of some amazing discovery 7,poe's ,some ,words with a ,mummy1 ,hale's ,the ,spider's ,eye71 impossible invention 7,adee's ,the ,life ,magnet1 ,mitchell's ,the ,ablest ,man in the ,world71 astounding adventure 7,stockton's ,wreck of the ,thomas ,hyde1 ,stevenson's ,house with ,green ,blinds71 or a vivid description of what might be 7,benjamin's ,the ,end of ,new ,york1 ,poe's ,the ,domain of ,arnheim74 ,it demands unusual imaginative power4 7b7 ,the ,detective ,story requires the most complex plot of any type of short story1 for its interest depends solely upon the solution of the mystery presented in that plot4 ,it arouses in the human mind much the same interest as an algebraic problem1 which it greatly resembles4 ,poe wrote the first1 and probably the best1 one in ,the ,murders in the ,rue ,morgue2 his ,the ,mystery of ,marie ,roget and ,the ,gold ,bug are other excellent examples4 ,doyle1 in his ,sherlock ,holmes stories1 is a worthy successor of ,poe4 ,,viii4 ,,the ,,humorous ,,story almost belongs in the category of ,stories of ,ingenuity1 so largely does it depend upon the element of the unusual2 but for that fact it should have been listed earlier1 because it has little care for plot4 ,indeed1 these stories are the freest of all in their disregard for conventions2 with them it is anything to raise a laugh1 and the end is supposed to justify the means4 ,in general they are of transient interest and crude workmanship1 little fitted to be called classics2 but ,mark ,twain1 at least1 has shown us that humor and art are not incompatible4 7a7 ,the simplest form is the ,nonsense ,story1 as it may be justly called4 ,usually it has the merest thread of plot1 but contains odd or grotesque characters whose witty conversation furnishes all the amusement necessary4 ,if the characters do act they have an unfortunate tendency to indulge in horse play4 ,the work of ,john ,kendrick ,bangs well illustrates this type of story4 ,his books1 ,the ,house ,boat on the ,styx and ,the ,pursuit of the ,house ,boat1 are really only collections of short stories1 for each chapter can be considered as a whole4 7b7 ,the ,burlesque has a plot1 but usually one which is absurdly impossible1 or which is treated in a burlesque style4 ,the amusement is derived chiefly from the contrast between the matter and the method of its presentation4 ,most of ,stockton's stories are of this type3 notably his ,the ,lady1 or the ,tiger8 ,mark ,twain1 too1 usually writes in this vein1 as in ,the ,jumping ,frog and ,the ,stolen ,white ,elephant4 ,,ix4 ,,the ,,dramatic ,,story is the highest type of the short story4 ,it requires a definite but simple plot1 which enables the characters to act out their parts4 ,in its perfect form it is the bit of real life which it is the aim of the short story to present4 ,it is the story shorn of all needless verbiage1 and told as nearly as possible in the words and actions of the characters themselves2 and it possesses a strong climax4 ,therefore it demands the most careful and skillful workmanship1 from its conception to its final polishing4 ,it is the most modern type of the short story4 7a7 ,the short story has ,dramatic ,form when the author's necessary comments correspond to the stage directions of the drama4 ,such a story is1 in fact1 a miniature drama1 and is often capable of being acted just as it stands4 ,it has a definite plot1 but it is developed by dialogue as frequently as by action4 ,it is the extreme of the modern tendency toward dramatic narrative1 and is just a little too stagey and artificial to be a perfect short story4 ,it is1 however1 in good literary standing and in good favor with the public1 and it is most excellent practice for the tyro1 for in it he has to sink himself completely in his characters4 ,examples3 ,hope's ,the ,dolly ,dialogues2 ,kipling's ,the ,story of the ,gadsbys2 and ,howells' one act parlor plays1 like ,the ,parlor ,car1 ,the ,register1 ,the ,letter1 and ,unexpected ,guests4 7b7 ,a short story has ,dramatic ,effect when it deals with a single crisis1 conveys a single impression1 is presented chiefly by the actors themselves1 and culminates in a single1 perfect climax4 ,it may1 or may not1 be capable of easy dramatization4 ,it is less artificial than the story of pure ,dramatic ,form1 but is just as free from padding and irrelevant matter1 and just as vivid in effect4 ,it allows of greater art and finish1 for the writer has wider freedom in his method of presentation4 ,examples3 ,poe's ',thou ,art the ,man6' and ,berenice2 ,james' ,the ,lesson of the ,master and ,a ,passionate ,pilgrim2 ,wilkins' ,a ,new ,england ,nun and ,amanda and ,love2 ,stevenson's ,the ,isle of the ,voices2 and ,irving's ,the ,widow and ,her ,son and ,rip ,van ,winkle4 ,but1 indeed1 every good short story belongs in this class1 which is not so much a certain type of the short story1 as the honor class to which each story seeks admittance4 ,every story cited in this book1 unless otherwise located1 can be found in one of the appended published collections of short stories3 ,george ,ade3 ,fables in ,slang4 ,john ,kendrick ,bangs3 ,the ,bicyclers2 ,ghosts ,i ,have ,met2 ,the ,houseboat on the ,styx2 ,mantel-,piece ,minstrels1 and ,other ,stories2 ,paste ,jewels2 ,the ,pursuit of the ,houseboat2 ,the ,water-,ghost and ,others4 ,j4 ,m4 ,barrie3 ,an ,auld ,licht ,manse2 ,auld ,licht ,idyls4 ,george ,washington ,cable3 ,old ,creole ,days2 ,strange ,true ,stories of ,louisiana4 ,samuel ,l4 ,clemens 7,mark ,twain73 ,merry ,tales2 ,the ,stolen ,white ,elephant4 ,richard ,harding ,davis3 ,cinderella and ,others2 ,the ,exiles and ,other ,stories2 ,gallegher1 and ,other ,stories2 ,the ,lion and the ,unicorn2 ,van ,bibber and ,others4 ,charles ,dickens3 ,christmas ,books2 ,christmas ,stories2 ,sketches by ,boz4 ,a4 ,conan ,doyle3 ,the ,adventures of ,sherlock ,holmes2 ,the ,captain of the ,pole ,star2 ,the ,exploits of ,brigadier ,gerard2 ,memoirs of ,sherlock ,holmes2 ,my ,friend the ,murderer2 ,round the ,red ,lamp4 ,maria ,edgeworth3 ,popular ,tales4 ,alice ,french 7,octave ,thanet73 ,a ,book of ,true ,lovers2 ,the ,missionary ,sheriff2 ,stories of a ,western ,town4 ,h4 ,rider ,haggard3 ,allan's ,wife4 ,joel ,chandler ,harris3 ,daddy ,jake1 the ,runaway2 ,nights with ,uncle ,remus2 ,tales of ,home ,folks in ,peace and ,war4 ,bret ,harte3 ,colonel ,starbottle's ,client2 ,in the ,hollow of the ,hills2 ,the ,luck of ,roaring ,camp2 ,mrs4 ,skagg's ,husbands2 ,tales of the ,argonauts2 ,thankful ,blossom2 ,the ,story of a ,mine4 ,nathaniel ,hawthorne3 ,mosses from an ,old ,manse2 ,twice ,told ,tales4 ,anthony ,hope3 ,the ,dolly ,dialogues4 ,william ,dean ,howells3 ,a ,fearful ,responsibility and ,other ,stories2 ,the ,mouse-,trap and ,other ,farces2 ,the ,sleeping ,car and ,other ,farces4 ,washington ,irving3 ,the ,sketch ,book2 ,tales of a ,traveler4 ,henry ,james3 ,the ,aspern ,papers2 ,the ,author of ,beltraffio2 ,the ,lesson of the ,master2 ,a ,london ,life2 ,a ,passionate ,pilgrim2 ,the ,real ,thing4 ,rudyard ,kipling3 ,the ,day's ,work2 ,in ,black and ,white2 ,indian ,tales2 ,the ,jungle ,book2 ,life's ,handicap2 ,many ,inventions2 ,the ,phantom ',rickshaw2 ,plain ,tales from the ,hills2 ,the ,second ,jungle ,book2 ,soldiers ,three and ,military ,tales2 ,soldier ,stories2 ,under the ,deodars4 ,brander ,matthews3 ,outlines in ,local ,color2 ,tales of ,fantasy and ,fact2 ,vignettes of ,manhattan4 ,guy de ,maupassant3 ,the ,odd ,number4 ,thomas ,nelson ,page3 ,the ,burial of the ,guns2 ,in ,ole ,virginia4 ,scribner's series3 ,short ,stories by ,american ,authors4 ,robert ,louis ,stevenson3 ,the ,island ,nights' ,entertainments2 ,the ,merry ,men2 ,new ,arabian ,nights4 ,frank ,r4 ,stockton3 ,amos ,kilbright2 ,the ,lady1 or the ,tiger8 ,rudder ,grange2 ,a ,story ,teller's ,pack4 ,john ,watson 7,ian ,maclaren73 ,auld ,lang ,syne2 ,beside the ,bonnie ,brier ,bush4 ,mary ,e4 ,wilkins3 ,a ,humble ,romance2 ,the ,love of ,parson ,lord2 ,a ,new ,england ,nun2 ,the ,pot of ,gold2 ,silence2 ,young ,lucretia4 ,,iii ,,the ,,plot ,the plot is the nucleus of the story1 the bare thought or incident upon which the narrative is to be builded4 ,when a child says1 ,grandma1 tell me the story of how the whale swallowed ,jonah1 he gives the plot of the story that he desires2 and the grandmother proceeds to elaborate that primal idea to suit the taste of her auditor4 ,in like manner1 before you put pen to paper1 you must have in mind some interesting idea which you wish to express in narrative form2 the absence of such an idea means that you have no plot1 no story to tell1 and therefore have no business to be writing4 ,if you undertake to tell a short story1 go about it in a workmanlike manner3 don't begin scribbling pretty phrases1 and trust to ,providence to introduce the proper story1 but yourself provide the basic facts4 ,if you do not begin correctly1 it is useless for you to begin at all4 ,a plot implies action--that is1 something must happen2 at the conclusion of the story the characters must be differently situated1 and usually differently related one to another1 from what they were at the beginning4 ,the event need not be tragic1 or even serious2 but it must be of sufficient importance1 novelty and interest to justify its relation in narrative form4 ,in general the plot of a short story involves an incident or a minor crisis in a human life1 rather than the supreme crisis which makes or mars a man for good4 ,the chief reason for this is that the supreme crisis requires more elaborate preparation and treatment than is possible in the short story4 ,there may be a strong tragic element which makes it seem that the denouement must be tragic1 but that is usually to obtain the effect of contrast4 ,yet the short story may be a supreme crisis and a tragedy1 as are ,stevenson's ,markheim1 ,hawthorne's ,the ,ambitious ,guest#aa and ,the ,birthmark1 and many of ,poe's tales2 but these are stories of an exceptional type1 in which the whole life of the chief actor comes to a focus in the crisis which makes the story4 ,the short story plot must be simple and complete4 ,the popular idea of a plot1 derived from the requirements of the novel and the drama1 is that it should be a tangled skein of facts and fancies1 which the author shall further complicate in order to exhibit his deftness in the final disentanglement4 ,such a plot is impossible for the short story1 which admits of no side issues and no second or under plot4 ,it must not be the synopsis of a novel1 or the attempt to compress into the tiny compass of the short story a complicated plot sufficient for a novel1 as are so many of the ,short ,stories of the ,day now published by newspapers4 ,as nearly as possible it must deal with a single person1 in a single action1 at a single place1 in a single time4 ,more than any other modern form of literature1 the short story requires the observance of the old ,greek unities of time1 place and action3 its brevity and compactness do not admit of the proper treatment of the changes wrought by the passage of time1 the influences of different scenes1 or the complications resulting from the interrelation of many characters of varied importance4 ,if the plot chosen requires the passage of ten years' time1 if it involves a shift of scene from ,new ,york to ,timbuctoo1 or if it introduces two or three sets of characters1 it may by some miracle of ingenuity make a readable story1 but it will never be a model one4 ,in ,the ,ambitious ,guest the time is less than three hours1 the place is a single room1 and the action is the development of the guest's ambition4 ,yet the plot is only relatively important4 ,it must always be present or there is no story2 but once there it takes second place4 ,the short story is not written to exploit the plot1 however clever that may be1 but to give a glimpse of real life2 and the plot is only a means to that end4 ,this is well illustrated by the ,character ,study1 in which the real interest centers in the analysis and exposition of a character1 and the plot is incidental4 ,in many classes of stories1 as we have already observed1 the plot is used only to hold the narrative together1 and the interest depends on the attractiveness of the picture presented4 ,the plot must not be allowed to force itself through the fabric of the story1 like the protruding ribs of a half-starved horse2 but must be made to give form and substantiality to the word-flesh which covers it4 ,in ,detective ,stories1 however1 the plot is all-important1 for the interest depends entirely upon the unraveling of some tangle2 but even here it must contain but a single idea1 though that may be rather involved4 ,such stories are really much simpler than they appear1 for their seeming complexity consists in telling the story backwards1 and so reasoning from effect to cause1 rather than vice versa as in the ordinary tale4 ,the plot itself is simple enough1 as may be proved by working backward through ,poe's ,the ,murders in the ,rue ,morgue4 ,this is1 by the way1 a method of plot-making which is often1 and incorrectly1 employed by novices in the construction of any story4 ,it has been aptly called building the pyramid from the apex downward4#ab ,it results from an exaggerated conception of the importance of the plot4 ,but it is not so much what the characters do that interests us1 but how they do it4 ,the true method for the making of a plot is the development of what may be called a plot-germ4 ,take two or three characters1 strongly individualized morally and mentally1 place them in a strong situation and let them develop4444 ,there are hundreds of these plot-germs in our every-day life1 conversation and newspaper reading1 and the slightest change in the character at starting will give a wide difference in ending4444 ,change the country and the atmosphere is changed1 the elements are subjected to new influences which develop new incidents and so a new plot4444 ,change any vital part in any character and the plot must be different4 ,one might almost say two plots thus developed from the same plot-germ can have no greater resemblance than two shells cast up by the ocean4#ac ,in the evolution of a plot the main things to be considered are that it shall be reasonably interesting1 that it shall not violate probability1 and that it shall possess some originality either of subject or of treatment4 ,not the possible1 but the probable1 should be the novelist's guide4#ad ,the surest test of a usable plot is1 ,is it natural8 ,every plot is founded upon fact1 which may be utilized in its original form1 or so skillfully disguised or ingeniously distorted that it will seem like a product of the imagination4 ,in the first case the resulting story would be termed realistic1 in the second case romantic4 ,a story built on a plot that is an unvarnished fact will be of course a ,true ,story2 and there are incidents and events in real life that need little more than isolation to make them good stories4 ,there is1 however1 a danger that the novice may consider any matter usable which is true to life4 ,do not forget that the short story is a form of art4#ae ,the best plot is derived from the action of an artistic imagination on a commonplace fact2 the simpler and better known the fact is1 the better will it serve the purpose1 for it must be accepted without question3 then it must be built up and developed by imaginative touches1 always with a view to plausibility1 till it attains the dignity of a distinct and interesting plot4 ,recent discoveries and the attainments of modern science have introduced us to so many strange things that we have almost ceased to doubt any statement which we may see in print2 and writers have become so ingenious in weaving together fact and fancy that their tales are sometimes more plausible than truth itself4 ,this was done with peculiar skill by ,poe4 ,his story1 now known as ,the ,balloon ,hoax1 originally appeared in the ,new ,york ,sun as a correspondent's account of an actual occurrence4 ,the tale gained credence through its remarkable accuracy of detail in regard to recognized scientific principles1 and the fact that at that time the world was considerably agitated by similar genuine feats of aerostation4 ,as ,poe makes one of his characters to say1 the feat is only so feasible that the sole wonder is why men have scrupled to attempt it before--at least on paper4 ,yet in spite of the many curious and interesting things that happen daily1 and in spite of the inventive faculty of the mind1 it is impossible to find a new plot4 ,history repeats itself in small affairs as well as in great1 and the human mind has not changed materially since the first days of story telling4 ,indeed1 some one has said that all the stories ever told can be traced to less than a dozen original plots1 whose origin is lost in obscurity4 ,but if we can neither find nor invent a new story we can at least ring the changes on the old ones1 and in this lies our hope to-day4 ,each one of these old plots is capable of an infinite variety of phases1 and what we are constantly hailing as an original story is merely one of our old friends looked at from a different point of view4 ,how many good1 fresh stories have you read that were based on the ancient elemental plot of two men in love with one woman1 or on that equally hoary one of fond lovers severed by disapproving parents8 ,irving's ,the ,legend of ,sleepy ,hollow is derived from the first1 yet few readers would so recognize it on first perusal2 for unless you stop and analyze it1 it seems distinct and new4 ,for further illustration of this reworking of old ideas1 ,i have carefully searched the leading ,american magazines for ,march1 #aijj1 for short stories based upon the old1 old elemental plot of two men in love with one woman1 and append herewith rough synopses of such stories4 ,note that this one number of ,the ,munsey contains no less than three stories with this basic plot4 ,the ,munsey4 ,the ,folly of ,it1 by ,ina ,brevoort4 ,fred ,leighton and ,john ,marchmont are in love with ,angela4 ,she loves ,leighton1 but they have agreed that he is too poor to make their married life happy4 ,marchmont1 who is rich1 proposes to her4 ,she and ,leighton calmly discuss the situation at their last dinner together and confirm their former decision2 but when the matter is logically settled they decide to defy poverty and marry4 ,with a ,second to ,spare1 by ,tom ,hall4 ,labarre and ,i both love ,nellie1 but ,nellie marries me4 ,labarre leads a big strike on the railroad by which we are both employed as engineers2 ,i refuse to join4 ,one noon ,labarre overpowers me1 binds me on the rails between the wheels of my engine1 and starts it moving slowly so that it will crush me by twelve1 when ,nellie always brings my dinner4 ,after my death he expects to marry her4 ,nellie arrives and releases me just in the nick of time4 7,this story is really a scene from an amateur melodrama47 ,mulligan's ,treachery1 by ,david ,h4 ,talmadge4 ,mulligan and ,garvey love ,ellen ,kelly4 ,they agree not to take advantage of each other in wooing her1 and go to the ,philippines together as soldiers4 ,there ,garvey1 leading a charge1 is shot through the head1 but ,mulligan goes on and receives a medal for his bravery4 ,garvey recovers1 but is blind for life4 ,on their return to ,america ,mulligan finds ,ellen's face terribly mutilated by an accident4 ,he would still gladly marry her2 but he makes ,garvey believe he won the medal1 tells him nothing of ,ellen's disfigurement1 and brings about their marriage4 ,then he is conscience stricken at the manner in which he has taken advantage of his friend's disability4 ,the ,cosmopolitan4 ,the ,pilot of the ',sadie ,simmons1' by ,joseph ,mills ,hanson4 ,tommy ,duncan1 a ,mississippi ,river pilot1 is engaged to ,tillie ,vail4 ,her affections are alienated by ,jack ,cragg1 a disreputable steamboat engineer1 whom ,duncan1 believing he is deceiving the girl1 threatens to kill on sight4 ,cragg kills a man in a drunken brawl on shore1 and ,duncan assists the sheriff to save him from would-be lynchers1 and swears to protect him1 before he knows who the prisoner is4 ,when he learns he refuses to be bound by his oath1 but as he is about to carry out his threat he is led to believe that ,cragg honestly loves the girl4 ,cragg is attacked by a mob1 and1 though he cannot swim1 jumps into the river to escape4 ,duncan rescues him and loses his own life4 ,cragg reforms and marries ,tilly4 ,ainslee's ,magazine4 ,mr4 ,sixty's ,mistake1 by ,chauncey ,c4 ,hotchkiss4 ,william ,lewis loves ,lillian ,blythe4 ,his brother ,tom comes between them and ,william shoots him and flees west to ,pleasant ,valley1 where he goes by the name of ,cockey ,smith4 ,one night he tells his story to his companions4 ,harry ,blythe1 brother to ,lillian1 ,lewis' old friend1 and now sheriff of his home county1 who arrived that night1 overhears him4 ,blythe reveals his identity to ,sixty1 the butt of the camp1 and tells him that ,tom did not die and that ,lewis can go back home1 where ,lillian is still waiting for him4 ,sixty breaks the news to ,lewis while the latter is mad with drink1 and ,lewis1 thinking the sheriff has come for him1 kills him4 ,later he shoots himself4 ,a ,kentucky ,welcome1 by ,ewan ,macpherson4 ,edmund ,pierce1 a ,new ,yorker1 is in love with ,lucy ,cabell1 a ,kentucky belle2 and hearing that her cousin1 ,brook ,cabell1 is endangering his chances1 he sets out to pay ,miss ,cabell a visit4 ,he gets off at the wrong station and in his confusion is arrested by the local marshal as a ,russian diamond robber4 ,he telegraphs to the ,cabells1 and ,brook rescues him at the point of the revolver1 though he knows that the ,northerner is ,miss ,cabell's favorite4 ,these stories1 even in this crude1 condensed form1 robbed of all the beauties of imagery and expression1 reveal the virtues which won for them editorial approval and which contribute to the enjoyment of their readers4 ,their apparent freshness is due to the treatment of a thread-bare plot in a new phase1 and the phase1 in turn1 depends upon the introduction of some new element1 unimportant in itself1 perhaps1 which presents the old story in the new light4 ,the ,folly of ,it is the best illustration1 for though its plot is old and apparently hopeless1 the brightness and naturalness of the conversation which constitutes almost the entire story makes it most readable4 ,in ,mulligan's ,treachery the personality of ,mulligan gives the necessary freshness4 ,the ,pilot of the ',sadie ,simmons' depends on local color and the interest in ,duncan's struggle to distinguish right from wrong4 ,and so some little freshness of treatment makes each of the others a good story4 ,these vivifying elements are by no means extraordinary1 or difficult to find4 ,they are new ideas concerning old subjects1 such as you are continually meeting in your everyday life and reading4 ,a new character1 a new scene1 a new invention or discovery1 or merely a new mental bias on the part of the writer1 will work wonders in the revivifying of an old plot4 ,think how many new phases of old plots have been produced recently by the incorporation of the ,x ray1 or by the influence of the war with ,spain4 ,try1 then1 to get a new light on the plot that you purpose to use1 to view it from an unexpected side1 to handle it in an unusual manner--in short1 try to be original4 ,if you have not the energy or the ability to do this1 you would better cease your literary efforts at once1 for you will only waste your time4 ,but 444 there are some themes so hackneyed--such as the lost will1 the glorified governess1 or the persecuted maiden who turns out to be an earl's daughter--that they would not now be tolerated outside the pages of a 'penny dreadful1' where1 along with haughty duchesses1 elfin-locked gypsies and murderous abductors1 they have become part of the regular stock-in-trade of the purveyors of back-stairs literature4 ,the only theme that never grows trite or commonplace is love4#af ,another offense 444 is the light theme that1 being analyzed1 amounts to nothing4 ,it may be so cleverly handled that we read with pleasure--and then at the end are disgusted with ourselves for being pleased1 and enraged at the writer for deluding us2 for we thought there would be something beneath his graceful manners and airy persiflage1 and lo1 there is not4#ag ,the plot of a short story should allow of expression in a single short1 fairly simple sentence2 if it cannot be so compressed there is something radically wrong with it4 ,this may be called the elemental or true plot4 ,it will be in general1 perhaps vague1 terms1 and will permit differing treatment by different writers2 yet its trend and its outcome will be definitely fixed4 ,this true plot1 in turn1 can be expressed in yet more general terms1 often as the primal truth which the story illustrates2 this may be called the theme of the story4 ,thus in ,the ,ambitious ,guest1 the theme is ,the futility of abstracted ambition2 or1 in its most general terms1 ,the irony of fate4 ,the true plot is3 ,an unknown but ambitious youth stops at a mountain tavern and perishes with its inmates4 ,in the development of a plot from this germ into the completed story1 it is often of advantage to make what may be called a skeleton or working plot4 ,this skeleton is produced by thinking through the story as it has been conceived1 and setting down on paper in logical order a line for every important idea4 ,these lines will roughly correspond to the paragraphs of the finished story1 but in a descriptive paragraph one line will not suffice1 while a line may represent a dozen paragraphs of dialogue2 then1 too1 paragraphing is partly logical and partly mechanical1 and varies considerably with the person4 ,working ,plot of ,the ,ambitious ,guest4 #a4 ,the scene is a tavern located at the ,notch in the ,white ,hills4 ,the time1 a ,september night4 ,the place is in danger from landslides and falling stones4 ,the family--father1 mother1 grandmother1 daughter and children--are gathered happily about the hearth4 #b1 #c4 ,the tavern is on a well-frequented road4 #d-g4 ,a young stranger enters1 looking rather travel-worn1 but quickly brightens up at his warm reception4 #h1 #i4 ,a stone rolls down the mountain side4 #aj4 ,the guest1 though naturally reticent1 soon becomes familiar with the family4 #aa4 ,the secret of the young man's character is high and abstracted ambition4 #ab4 ,he is as yet unknown4 #ac1 #ad4 ,he is sensible of the ludicrous side of his ambition4 #ae4 ,the daughter is not ambitious4 #af-ai4 ,the father's ambition is to own a good farm1 to be sent to ,general ,court1 and to die peacefully4 #bj-bc4 ,the children wish for the most ridiculous things4 #bd-bg4 ,a wagon stops before the inn1 but drives on when the landlord does not immediately appear4 #bh-ca4 ,the daughter is not really content4 #cb4 ,the family picture4 #cc-cg4 ,the grandmother tells of having prepared her grave-clothes4 ,fears if they are not put on smoothly she will not rest easily4 #ch1 #ci4 ,she wishes to see herself in her coffin4 #dj1 #da4 ,they hear the landslide coming4 #db4 ,all rush from the house and are instantly destroyed4 ,the house is unharmed4 ,the bodies are never found4 #dc1 #dd4 ,even the death of the ambitious guest is in doubt4 ,you will notice that this working plot omits many little details which are too trivial to set down1 or which probably would not occur to one until the actual writing2 and all the artistic touches that make the story literature are ruthlessly shorn away1 for they are part of the treatment1 not of the plot4 ,this method of permitting you to study your crude material in the concrete will prove of value to you4 ,it enables you to crystalize into ideas what were mere phantasms of the brain1 to arrange your thoughts in their proper order1 and to condense or expand details with a ready comprehension of the effect of such alterations upon the general proportions of the story4 ,it makes your purposed work objective enough so that you can consider it with a coolness and impartiality which were impossible while it was still in embryo in your brain2 and it often reveals the absurdity or impossibility of a plan which had seemed to you most happy4 ,i believe that the novice can do no better than to put his every story to this practical test4 ,the use of this skeleton in the further development of the story depends upon the methods of the writer1 or the matter in hand4 ,many short story writers waste no time in preparations1 but at once set down the story complete2 and to my mind that is the ideal method1 for it is more apt to make the tale spontaneous and technically correct4 ,but if the story is not well defined in your mind1 or if it requires some complexity of plot1 like the ,detective ,story1 this plan can be followed to advantage in the completion of the work4 ,it may be used as a regular skeleton1 upon which the narrative is built by a process of elaboration and expansion of the lines into paragraphs2 or it may be used merely as a reference to keep in mind the logical order of events4 ,usually you will forget the scheme in the absorption of composition2 but the fact of having properly arranged your ideas will assist you materially1 if unconsciously1 in the elaboration4 ,,footnotes3 ,footnote #aa3 ,the ,ambitious ,guest1 because of its technical perfection and its apt illustration of the principles discussed1 will be used throughout as a paradigm4 ,it can be found in full in the ,appendix4--,,the ,,author4 ,footnote #ab3 ,have the ,plots ,been ,exhausted8 ,editorial ,comment4 ,current ,literature4 ,june1 '#if4 ,footnote #ac3 ,have the ,plots ,been ,exhausted8 ,editorial ,comment4 ,current ,literature4 ,june1 '#if4 ,footnote #ad3 ,rudimentary ,suggestions for ,beginners in ,story ,writing1 by ,e4 ,f4 ,andrews4 ,cosmopolitan4 ,feb41 '#ig4 ,footnote #ae3 ,for a complete discussion of the proper use of facts in fiction see ,chapter ,v4--,,the ,,author4 ,footnote #af3 ,rudimentary ,suggestions for ,beginners in ,story ,writing1 by ,e4 ,f4 ,andrews4 ,cosmopolitan4 ,feb41 '#ig4 ,footnote #ag3 ,magazine ,fiction and ,how ,not to ,write ,it1 by ,frederick ,m4 ,bird4 ,lippincott's4 ,nov41 '#id4 ,,iv ,,titles ,,good ,,and ,,bad ,too often the novice considers the title of his story a matter of no import4 ,he looks upon it as a mere handle1 the result of some happy afterthought1 affixed to the completed story for convenience or reference1 just as numbers are placed on the books in a library4 ,the title is really a fair test of what it introduces1 and many a ,,ms4 has been justly condemned by its title alone2 for the editor knows that a poor title usually means a poor story4 ,think1 too1 how often you yourself pass a story by with but a casual glance1 because its title does not interest you3 experience has shown you that you seldom enjoy reading a story which bears an unattractive title4 ,a book's name often has an astonishing influence on its first sale4 ,a title that piques curiosity or suggests excitement or emotion will draw a crowd of readers the moment it appears1 while a book soberly named must force its merits on the public4 ,the former has all the advantage of a pretty girl over a plain one2 it is given an instantaneous chance to prove itself worth while4 ,a middle aged1 unalluring title 7',in ,search of ,quiet1' for instance7 may frighten people away from what proves to be a mine of wit and human interest4 ,a book headed by a man's name unmodified and uncommented upon--such as ',horace ,chase'--is apt to have a dreary1 unprepossessing air1 unless the name is an incisive one that suggests an interesting personality4 ,fragments of proverbs and poems are always attractive1 as well as ,biblical phrases and colloquial expressions1 but the magic title is the one that excites and baffles curiosity4 ,the publishers of a recent ',primer of ,evolution' received a sudden flood of orders for the book simply on account of a review which had spoken of it under the sobriquet1 ',from ,gas to ,genius4' ,many copies were indignantly returned when the true title was revealed4#ah ,in #ahej ,dr4 ,o4 ,m4 ,mitchell1 ,director of the ,astronomical ,observatory in ,cincinnati1 gave to the press a volume entitled ',the ,planetary and ,stellar ,worlds4' ,the book fell dead from the press4 ,the publisher complained bitterly of this to a friend1 saying1 ',i have not sold a single copy4' ',well1' was the reply1 'you have killed the book by its title4 ,why not call it ,the ,orbs of ,heaven8' ,the hint was accepted and acted upon1 and #f1jjj copies were sold in a month4#ai ,the title might almost be called the text of the story2 it should be logically deduced from the plot2 so a poor title usually indicates a poor plot and a poor story4 ,this name line should grow out of the phase of the plot1 rather than the basic theme1 else it will be too abstract and general4 ,it is so closely allied to the plot that they should be born synchronously--or if anything the title should precede the plot2 for the story is built up around the central thought that the title expresses1 much as ,poe said he wrote ,the ,raven about the word nevermore4 ,at least1 the title should be definitely fixed long before the story is completed1 and often before it has taken definite form in the writer's mind4 ,that this is the practice of professional writers may be proved by a glance at the literary column of any periodical1 where coming books are announced by title when scarcely a word of them has been written4 ,so if you have difficulty in finding an appropriate title for your story1 first examine your plot1 and make sure that the cause does not lie there4 ,in case you are unable to decide among a number of possible titles1 any one of which might do1 you may find that your plot lacks the definiteness of impression required by the short story2 but a fertile intellect may suggest a number of good titles1 from which your only difficulty is to select the best4 ,a good story may be given a bad title by its author1 and so started toward failure4 ,novices are peculiarly liable to this fault1 usually through allowing themselves to be too easily satisfied4 ,they go to infinite pains to make the story itself fresh and individual1 and then cap it with a commonplace phrase that is worse than no title at all4 ,a good title is apt1 specific1 attractive1 new1 and short4 ,a title is apt if it is an outgrowth of the plot--a text1 as ,i have said4 ,it stands definitely for that particular story1 and gives a suggestion of what is to come--but only a suggestion1 lest it should anticipate the denouement and so satisfy the curiosity of the reader too soon4 ,an apt title excites and piques the curiosity almost as much as does the story itself4 ,examples3 ,hawthorne's ,the ,wedding ,knell2 ,poe's ',thou ,art the ,man6' ,wilkins' ,the ,revolt of ,mother4 ,each of these titles conveys an idea1 though a vague one1 of the theme of the story1 and so its aptness is apparent2 but frequently the relevancy of the title is evident only after the story has been read1 as in the case of ,james' ,the ,real ,thing and ,the ,lesson of the ,master4 ,such a title is almost ideal4 ,this suspension of aptness1 carried to the extreme1 produces such vague and weak titles as3 ,happiness ,won4 ,almost ,too ,late4 ,after ,all4 ,reorganized4 ,the title must be specific or it is seldom apt4 ,it is in this particular that the novice generally fails4 ,he deduces his title rather from the original plot1 or even from the theme1 than from the particular phase which he presents2 but its title should distinguish his story from the host of tales builded upon the same basic plot1 just as the ,christian name of a ,smith distinguishes him from the rest of the great family of which he is a member4 ,thus we have such titles as the following1 which are more appropriate for essays in psychology1 moral philosophy1 or some kindred subject1 than for fiction3 ,how ,dreams ,come ,true4 ,moral ,vision4 ,sorrow and ,joy4 ,the ,straight ,path4 ,more often the unspecific title is simply a vague reference to the general style of the story3 ,a ,wedding in a ,texas ,jail4 ,a ,frightful ,night ,ride4 ,a ,unique ,rescue4 ,a ,lynching ,incident4 ,nature's ,freaks4 ,a ,valuable ,discovery4 ,the ,widow4 ,a ,valued ,relic4 ,a ,strange ,case4 ,the ,old ,clock4 ,the ,office ,boy4 ,none of these titles represents any definite idea1 and in nearly every case it served to introduce a story which was equally vague1 ordinary1 and uninteresting4 ,several of them1 too--notably the first four--were not stories at all1 but were simply bits of description by narrative1 as their titles would suggest4 ,in general a phrase1 otherwise indefinite1 becomes specific when united with the name of a character1 as in ,hawthorne's ,howe's ,masquerade and ,lady ,eleanor's ,mantle2 but such titles are usually ordinary and unattractive4 ,some words frequently found in these compound titles are so vague in meaning or so worn from use that their total avoidance is the only safe course4 ,such are ,christmas1 ,adventure1 ,romance1 ,story1 ,vision1 and ,dream4 ,a ,dream or a ,vision is usually the relation of some commonplace incident with absurd adornments2 and an ,adventure is more often a piece of description than of narration4 ,i know that these words may be found in combination in many happy titles1 but it is best that the novice let them severely alone4 ,that such titles are really a serious impediment to the success of their stories is shown by the action of the ,chicago ,record4 ,for some years it was the custom of the ,record to offer substantial cash prizes for the best ,christmas stories written by school children2 and prominent among the rules governing the competition was the announcement that stories bearing such titles as ,johnnie's ,christmas1 ,nellie's ,christmas1 ,mary's ,christmas1 would not even be read4 ,the following titles show how fond is the novice of these objectionable words in their baldest combinations3 ,sarah's ,christmas ,present4 ,adventures with a ,bear4 ,nettie's ,romance4 ,lee's ,romance4 ,a ,woman's ,love ,story4 ,the ,captain's ,story4 ,a ,true ,story4 ,the ,story of a ,vision4 ,the ,dream at ,sea4 ,viola's ,dream4 ,mabel's ,dream4 ,eleanor's ,dream4 ,the title should be attractive because it will be the test of the story1 and it must be sufficiently interesting to arouse at a glance the curiosity of the reader1 and induce in him a desire to peruse the narrative that it offers4 ,commonplaceness is the chief cause of the unattractive title1 and that fault is usually traceable to the plot itself4 ,it may1 however1 be due to a conventional expression of the dominant idea of the story1 as in the list just given2 and also in the following3 ,how ,amy ,won the ,prize4 ,fred ,norton1 the ,artist4 ,or it may be unattractive through comprising only the name of the chief character3 ,lucy ,bonneville4 ,lester ,rice4 ,the use of a name for a title is a matter which it is difficult to settle4 ,if the story is dominated by one character1 and particularly if it is a genuine ,character ,study1 the writer naturally feels that he cannot do better than to name it after the character it depicts2 and he has good authority for so doing in the example of ,poe 7,berenice1 ,elenora1 ,morella71 ,hawthorne 7,sylph ,etherege1 ,ethan ,brand1 ,wakefield71 ,irving 7,wolfert ,webber1 ,rip ,van ,winkle71 ,james 7,sir ,dominic ,ferrand1 ,nona ,vincent1 ,greville ,fane71 ,stevenson 7,olalla1 ,thrawn ,janet1 ,markheim71 ,wilkins 7,louisa71 ,davis 7,gallegher1 ,cinderella71 ,kipling 7,lispeth1 ,namgay ,doola71 etc41 etc4 ,a good rule to observe would be this3 ,if the name of the chief personage gives a hint of character1 or if it is sufficiently unusual to attract attention1 it may be used as a title2 but in general it will be stronger if used in combination4 ,in the endeavor to make his title distinctive and attractive the novice is liable to fall into the error of making it cheap and sensational4 ,a title which offends against good taste must not be used1 no matter how desirable it may appear in the matter of attractiveness4 ,the newspaper caption writer who headed an account of a hanging ,jerked to ,jesus6 attained the acme of attractiveness1 but he also committed an unpardonable sin against good taste4 ,the short story writer seldom descends to such depths of sensationalism3 his chief offense consists in the use of double titles1 connected by the word or4 ,often either title alone would be passable1 if not really good2 but their united form must be placed in the category of bad titles4 ,such titles are rated as bad chiefly through the effects of association4 ,it used to be common for a story to bear a double title2 but to-day the custom has been relegated to the cheap1 sensational tale of the penny dreadful order1 and the conjunctive title is a recognized mark of yellow literature4 ,this fault in a title can usually be corrected by the use of either of the titles alone1 as may be seen from a study of the following3 7#a7 ,the ,story of ,dora2 or1 ,innocence ,triumphant4 7#b7 ,jessie ,redmond2 or1 ,the ,spider and the ,fly4 7#c7 ,outwitted2 or1 ,the ,holdup of ,no4 #d4 7#d7 ,the ,battle of the ,black ,cats2 or1 ,a ,tragedy ,played with ,twenty ,thousand ,actors and ,only ,one ,spectator4 7#e7 ,fate2 or1 ,legend of ',say ,au ,revoir1 but not ,goodbye4' 7#f7 ,the ,romance of a ,lost ,mine2 or1 ,the ,curse of the ,navajos4 7#g7 ,a ,little ,bunch of ,rosebuds2 or1 ,two ,normal ,graduates4 7#h7 ,her ,silk ,quilt2 or1 ,on the ,crest of the ,wave4 7#a7 ,neither part is particularly happy4 ,the ,story of ,dora is too general1 and conveys an idea of largeness and time that is better suited to the novel than to the short story2 ,innocence ,triumphant is cheap1 sensational and trite4 7#b7 ,jessie ,redmond is too commonplace a name to be a good head line2 ,the ,spider and the ,fly was worn out years ago4 7#c7 ,either title alone is good2 ,the ,holdup of ,no4 #d is preferable because of its definiteness4 7#d7 ,the ,battle of the ,black ,cats alone would pass1 in spite of its hint of sensationalism2 but the second part is of course ludicrously impossible4 7#e7 ,fate is too indefinite2 the second title is cheap and old4 7#f7 ,either would do1 though the first is somewhat vague1 and ,curse savors of sensationalism4 7#g7 ,either would do1 though the first sounds rather silly4 7#h7 ,the first is good2 the second is vague and rather old4 ,that a title should be new is so obvious that offenses against this rule are usually unconscious2 yet in some cases stories have been capped with stolen headings1 where the theft was so apparently intentional that it seemed as if the writer wished to fail4 ,lapses in this regard are usually due to the writer's ignorance of the value of a title2 or to the too ready use of the abstract theme1 as mentioned before4 ,of such titles are ,all's ,well that ,ends ,well1 ,love's ,labor ,lost1 and ,the ,irony of ,fate1 all of which are great favorites with the beginner4 ,like charity1 they will cover a multitude of sins1 but they constitute so great a literary sin in themselves that they should be rigorously eschewed4 ,to this class belongs also such a title as ,cuba ,libre6 which is so very old1 and which during the last few years has been so twisted and mishandled in every conceivable way that its mere use is an irritation4 ,such a title will frequently be apt1 specific1 attractive1 and1 in application1 new2 but it will so exasperate the reader that its use will be perilous4 ,for self-evident reasons the title should be short4 ,aptness and specificness do not require an epitome of the story2 and a title like ,why ,tom ,changed ,his ,opinion of ,me1 or ,what the ,rabbit ,drive ,did for ,me is prosy as well as long4 ,it used to be the custom to make the title of a writing a regular synopsis of the matter contained therein2 but modern readers object to being told in advance exactly what is to happen4 ,no ruling concerning the proper length of a short story title is possible2 but generally speaking1 the shorter the title the better it is4 ,compound titles connected by or1 like those previously mentioned1 are as offensive in their length as in their sensationalism4 ,to illustrate further these several points ,i introduce here a few good titles used by successful short story writers4 ,they are roughly divided into three classes according to their derivation4 ,the title may be the text of the story3 ,edgeworth3 ,murad the ,unlucky4 ,hawthorne3 ,the ,wedding ,knell2 ,the ,prophetic ,pictures4 ,james3 ,the ,real ,thing2 ,the ,lesson of the ,master4 ,poe3 ,the ,masque of the ,red ,death2 ',thou ,art the ,man6' ,stockton3 ,the ,transferred ,ghost4 ,wilkins3 ,the ,revolt of ,mother2 ,two ,old ,lovers4 ,the title may represent the principal character by name or by some apt appellation3 ,davis3 ,gallegher4 ,hawthorne3 ,the ,ambitious ,guest2 ,feathertop4 ,irving3 ,the ,spectre ,bridegroom2 ,rip ,van ,winkle4 ,poe3 ,morella2 ,ligeia4 ,stevenson3 ,markheim4 ,wilkins3 ,a ,modern ,dragon2 ,a ,kitchen ,colonel4 ,the title may mention the principal object3 ,adee3 ,the ,life ,magnet4 ,burnett3 ,the ,spider's ,eye4 ,hawthorne3 ,the ,great ,stone ,face2 ,the ,great ,carbuncle4 ,james3 ,the ,aspern ,papers4 ,kipling3 ,the ,phantom ,rickshaw4 ,poe3 ,the ,black ,cat2 ,the ,gold ,bug4 ,stevenson3 ,the ,bottle ,imp4 ,,footnotes3 ,footnote #ah3 ,literary ,chat4 ,munsey's ,magazine4 ,may1 '#ih4 ,footnote #ai3 ,misleading ,titles of ,books1 by ,william ,mathews4 ,the ,saturday ,evening ,post4 ,apr4 #ba1 #aijj4 ,v ,,the ,,use ,,of ,,facts ,all fiction is founded upon fact1 for the boldest imagination must have some definite point from which to take its flight2 but the ungarnished truth is seldom literature in itself1 though it may offer excellent material for literary embellishment4 ,the amateur1 content with knowing that he is recounting what did actually happen1 falls into the most inartistic ways1 because he does not understand that facts are properly only crude material for the fictionist4 ,the one place where the average short story writer should not seek his material is the world of literature4 ,almost from the time when men first began to dabble in letters they have drawn on their predecessors for their subject matter2 but this practice has produced a deal of unconscious plagiarism1 which is responsible for most of the conventional and stereotyped stories with which we are afflicted to-day4 ,of any one hundred average stories submitted for sale1 probably seventy-five are damned by their hopelessly hackneyed conception and treatment2 and they suffer because the writer1 reading some attractive story built upon a similar plot1 has attempted to go and do likewise1 and has unconsciously used all the conventional parts while omitting the essential individuality4 ,it is safe for the novice to go only to the world for literary material4 ,the matter so obtained will be intrinsically the same as that gained from the writings of others1 but the fact that you get your information through your own senses will considerably obviate the danger of adopting the conventional view in the matter4 ,i do not mean to say that you should deliberately set out to search for new types and incidents as ,dickens did1 though ,i would certainly commend such a course2 ,i mean rather that you should be content to write of what you personally and intimately know1 and not attempt to treat of matters of which you have only a vague superficial knowledge1 or of which you are totally ignorant4 ,excellent stories have been written by men who were personally unacquainted with the matters with which they dealt1 but they were in every case masters of their art1 who knew how to gain and use second-hand information and how to supplement insufficient data with literary skill4 ,too many novices have the mistaken idea that only those things which are dim and distant are fit for artistic treatment4 ,they have not cultivated their powers of perception1 and have failed to grasp the truth that human nature is in most respects the same the world over1 and that persons and places1 apparently the most ordinary1 have stories to tell4 ,before ,mary ,e4 ,wilkins began to write her ,new ,england tales few thought to look to those bleak hills and commonplace people for literary material2 and doubtless many ,new ,englanders1 feeling the impulse to write1 viewed with scorn their unpoetic surroundings and longed for the glamour of some half-guessed clime2 ,miss ,wilkins1 appreciating her environment1 won fame and fortune through her truthful depictions of those things which others1 equally able to write but less able to see1 had despised4 ,it is a common trick of aspiring writers to locate their stories in ,england1 to speak proudly but uncertainly of grand estates1 noble castles1 and haughty lords and ladies1 and to make mistakes which would be ridiculous were they not so inexcusable4 ,there is a certain half-feudal glamour about ,england yet which appeals strongly to the callow author3 it lends that rosy haze of romance and unreality which is popularly associated with fiction2 but it was long ago done to death by mediocre writers and laughed out of good literary society1 and to-day ,america will not suffer any such hackneyed fol-de-rol4 ,similarly the amateur will locate his story in the best society of some ,american metropolis1 when he has never been out of his native village1 and knows nothing of the class with which he deals except through the society column of his newspaper4 ,therefore he will of course fall flat when he attempts to delineate manners4 ,it is too evident that he has not had the entree to the circle he would describe3 his gentlemen commit too many blunders1 his ladies are from the wrong side of the town1 the love-passages are silly and vulgar1 the whole result is stupid and offensive--to those who know4 ,the thing hopelessly lacks tone2 it might pass below stairs1 but not in the drawing-room4#bj ,it is not only those of wealth and leisure who are eligible for literary purposes2 indeed1 their lives1 apparently so gay and exciting1 are often a dull and regular series of attempts to kill the dawdling time4 ,if the young writer would look into the lives of his own simple neighbors he would find much better matter for his intended stories4 ,again1 the novice1 in his search for something different1 will place his tale in the dim and distant past1 when all men were brave and all women lovely2 and in so doing will expose himself to ridicule and contempt for his evident ignorance of the matters of which he pretends to treat4 ,it is very probable that any age seems dull and commonplace to those who live in it1 for familiarity breeds contempt for almost anything2 but though we of to-day have no valiant knights1 armed cap-a-pie1 riding forth to the jousts to do battle for their ladies fair1 we have men just as brave and deeds fully as valorous and far more sensible2 and the world is1 and always will be1 full of noble and romantic and marvelous things4 ,if1 however1 you feel that you must write of times and scenes and peoples which are either past or foreign1 it is your first duty to inform yourself to the best of your ability concerning them4 ,i do not believe that any writer can successfully locate his story in a foreign country unless he has personal knowledge of the scenes and persons that he describes1 or unless he is thoroughly versed in the language and literature of the country--and in the latter case he would probably be too pedantic to write readable stories4 ,at first thought it does not seem so difficult to handle ,english subjects1 for there we have the advantage of a common language and1 to a considerable extent1 of common racial traits2 but even that common language1 as spoken on the other side of the ,atlantic1 has an every-day vocabulary differing from ours1 and the ,english government and social system present difficulties almost insurmountable to one who cannot study them face to face4 ,in dealing with themes of the past there is more opportunity4 ,there we are all on the common ground of an absolute dependence on such books as may preserve for us pictures of those times1 and complete information--complete1 at least1 in the sense that no one knows more--can be had at the price of a certain number of hours of painstaking study4 ,if1 then1 you desire to write of the days that are gone1 see to it that you first thoroughly acquaint yourself with the history of those times4 ,there are few towns too small to possess a library1 and few libraries too small to contain such historical books as you may need4 ,in these days when all things come to ,mohamet1 the writer may gain a valuable though impersonal insight into the world at large through the medium of the public press4 ,the newspapers of to-day are full of incipient plots1 needing only the skillful pen to make them literature4 ,reporters go everywhere and see everything1 and they place the result of their multifarious labors in your hands every morning4 ,they recount actual happenings accurately enough for literary purposes1 they strain for the unusual side of things1 and their purpose is too different from yours to make you liable to the charge of plagiarism if you rework their material4 ,the receptive perusal of any newspaper ought to furnish the reader with a fresh stock of literary material4 ,such matter is particularly valuable to the short story writer because of the present and ever increasing demand for stories of the day1 plots1 characters1 situations1 and local color for which may be culled from any newspaper4 ,but short story writing is an art1 and all facts may not be capable of literary treatment4 ,even actual occurrences may be improper subjects for fiction4 ,nature can take liberties with facts that art dare not--a truth that has passed into a proverb4444 ,art may fill us with anger1 fear1 terror1 awe1 but the moment it condescends to excite disgust1 it passes out of the realm of art4#ba ,there seems no reason why the artist should not choose any subject1 if the production itself contributes to the satisfaction of the world1 making a picture of life1 or of a phase of life1 in compliance with the demands of art1 beauty1 and truth4 ,taste is the arbiter of the subject1 for taste is always moral1 always on the side of the angels4 ,there are certain things which are only subjects for technical reform1 for the sanitary inspector1 and for the physician--not for the novelist4#bb ,the carnage of a battle-field1 the wrecked caf or theatre after dynamite has done its work1 had best be handled sparingly4444 ,a good many things that happen on this planet are not good subjects for art3 the pathetic 7within limits7 is always in order1 but not the shocking4 ,moral are worse than physical horrors4#bc ,even genius may waste itself on an unmanageable theme2 it cannot make the cleaning of fish interesting1 nor the slums of ,new ,york or ,paris attractive4#bd ,it is rare indeed that a fact can be used without embellishment4 ,mere facts are frequently most unliterary1 though they may be susceptible of a high literary polish4 ,the sub-title ,a ,true ,story1 which young writers think so valuable a part of the tale1 is too often the trademark of an unreadable mess of conventional people1 ordinary incidents and commonplace conversation4 ,we find few genuinely true stories1 and when we do find them we seldom care to read them through4 ,i have read many stories which ,i knew to be literally true1 because they contained so much of the hackneyed and the irrelevant4 ,life itself is a very conventional affair2 it abounds with dull events and stupid people2 and for that reason alone fiction would demand something out of the common4 ,commonplace persons and commonplace things do appear in literature1 but they must have something more than their commonplaceness to recommend them4 ,the novice in story telling 444 has heard that truth is stranger than fiction1 and supposes that the more truth he can get into his tale the stronger and more effective it will be4444 ,truth1 i4 e41 reality1 is very seldom strange2 it is usually tame and flat and commonplace2 and when it is strange it is apt to be grotesque and repulsive4 ,most of the experiences of daily life afford material only for a chronicle of dulness2 and most of the 'strange' or unusual happenings had better be left to the newspaper and the records of the police courts4 ,this statement may be strengthened4 ,does not the able reporter select and decorate his facts1 suppressing some1 emphasizing others1 arranging his 'story' with reference to picturesqueness and effect8 ,in other words1 verisimilitude1 not verity1 is wanted in fiction4 ,the observer notes his facts1 and then the artist seizes on the ideas behind them1 the types they represent1 the spiritual substances they embody4 ,the result1 when all goes well1 is as lifelike as life itself1 though it is not a copy of anything 7in detail7 that really lives4444 ,the budding writer of fictitious tales must be familiar with facts1 at least in his own range3 he must know life and nature1 or his work is naught4 ,but when he has this knowledge1 he must put the facts in the background of his mind4444 ,real incidents1 dragged against their will into an 7alleged7 imaginary narrative1 are apt by no means to improve it1 but to sound as 'flat and untunable' as our own praises from our own mouths4#be ,there must be no misconception about great fiction being a transcript of life4 ,mere transcription is not the work of an artist1 else we should have no need of painters1 for photographers would do2 no poems1 for academical essays would do2 no great works of fiction1 for we have our usual sources of information--if information is all we want--the ,divorce ,court1 the ,police ,court1 the ,stock ,exchange1 the ,young ,ladies' ,seminary1 the ,marriage ,register1 and the ,house of ,parliament--those happy hunting-grounds of sensation-mongers and purveyors of melodrama4 ,all these things certainly contain the facts of life which one must know for the constructive work of the imagination1 for they are the rough material1 the background of knowledge from which the illusion of real life must proceed4 ,but they are not life1 though they are the transcription of life4 ,the human significance of facts is all that concerns one4 ,the inwardness of facts makes fiction2 the history of life1 its emotions1 its passions1 its sins1 reflections1 values4 ,these you cannot photograph nor transcribe4 ,selection and rejection are two profound essentials of every art1 even of the art of fiction1 though it be so jauntily practised by the amateur4#bf ,and even if the facts which you purpose to use are of undoubted value for artistic treatment1 there may be other reasons which make their use questionable4 ,in the first place1 people do not really prefer truth to fiction4 ,they require plausibility1 but they are all too familiar with life themselves1 and in the idle hours in which they turn to fiction they desire to be lifted out of reality into the higher realm of fancy4 ,nor will they1 even in the form of fiction1 tolerate what seems like too gross an invasion of the privacy of the home1 or the sanctity of the soul of a man4 ,they must always feel vaguely that the suffering characters are really only puppets created for their amusement1 or their pity for the characters will develop into anger and disgust for the author4 ,in using facts1 then1 the first thing to learn is what to suppress and what to elaborate1 and that involves that most necessary possession of the story teller1 a sense of proportion4 ,because a conversation about the weather occupies two dull people for ten minutes is no reason that it should receive an equal number of pages2 and because an important event is almost instantaneous is no excuse for passing it with a single line4 ,again1 the fact that you are relating what actually occurred does not relieve you of the necessity of making it plausible4 ,painters acknowledge that there are color combinations in nature which they dare not reproduce1 lest they be dubbed unnatural2 and similarly things exist which the writer may present only after he has most carefully prepared the way for their credence4 ,the truth is that we have declared that even nature shall conform to certain conventions1 and we reject as impossible any deviations from our preconceived ideas4 ,the facts upon which ,hawthorne built ,the ,ambitious ,guest are these3--,the ,white ,hills of which he speaks 7 #a7 are the famous ,white ,mountains of ,new ,hampshire2 the ,notch 7 #a7 is the real name of a real mountain pass1 which is just as he describes it2 the ,flume 7 #bb7 is a waterfall not far from the ,notch2 the valley of the ,saco 7 #a7 is really where he places it4 ,the references to ,portland 7 #c71 ,bartlett 7 #e71 ,burlington 7 #g71 ,bethlehem and ,littleton 7 #ah7 are all references to real places in the vicinity4 ,at the point where ,hawthorne locates his story there actually was a mountain tavern called the ,willey ,house1 and a modern inn stands on the spot to-day4 ,concerning the catastrophe which he describes ,i found the following account3 ,some time in ,june--before the great 'slide' in ,august1 #ahbf--there came a great storm1 and the old veteran1 ,abel ,crawford1 coming down the ,notch1 noticed the trees slipping down1 standing upright1 and1 as he was passing ,mr4 ,willey's he called and informed him of the wonderful fact4 ,immediately1 in a less exposed place1 ,mr4 ,willey prepared a shelter to which to flee in case of immediate danger2 and in the night of ,august #bhth1 that year1 he was1 with his family1 awakened by the thundering crash of the coming avalanche4 ,attempting to escape1 that family1 nine in number1 rushed from the house and were overtaken and buried alive under a vast pile of rocks1 earth1 trees and water4 ,by a remarkable circumstance the house remained uninjured1 as the slide divided about four rods back of the house 7against a high flat rock71 and came down on either side with overwhelming power4#bg ,the book goes on to state further that the family consisted of the father and mother1 five children--the eldest a girl of thirteen--and two hired men4 ,the bodies of the parents1 the oldest and youngest children1 and the two hired men were found4 ,it is probable that ,hawthorne derived his information from the newspapers1 though he may have heard the story by word of mouth1 for there is little doubt that he actually visited the spot where the catastrophe occurred4 ,but the bald facts of the case1 however gained1 are essentially as we have them here1 and that is sufficient for our purpose4 ,in writing his story ,hawthorne took several liberties with the facts4 ,he made no change in the location because even he could not improve upon the scene for such a story4 ,he changed the month from ,august to ,september 7 #a7 to make plausible1 perhaps1 the rain necessary for such a slide1 and to make seasonable the bitter wind which he introduces4 ,he omitted all names to add to the air of unsolved mystery that haunts the story4 ,he introduced the guest 7 #d7 and the grandmother 7 #a71 increased the age of the daughter 7 #a71 retained the parents and younger children 7 #a7 and omitted the hired men to suit the requirements of his story4 ,he omitted the warning but retained the establishment of a place of refuge 7 #i7 to heighten the climax4 ,he used the flight from the house 7 #db7 because it just suited his purpose4 ,he retained the strange preservation of the house 7 #db7 to increase the air of mystery1 and to intensify the tragedy by making it appear in a manner unnecessary4 ,he suppressed the finding of any of the bodies 7 #db7 to aid the plausibility of his narrative1 and to increase the pathos of the guest's death4 ,compare carefully the account given by ,spaulding and the story of ,hawthorne1 for you have here an excellent illustration of the difference between the commonplace recital of facts and their transformation into a work of art4 ,spaulding's relation is a true story1 but ,hawthorne's is literature4 ,,footnotes3 ,footnote #bj3 ,bad ,story-,telling1 by ,frederick ,m4 ,bird4 ,lippincott's4 ,oct41 '#ig4 ,footnote #ba3 ,rudimentary ,suggestions for ,beginners in ,story ,writing1 by ,e4 ,f4 ,andrews4 ,cosmopolitan4 ,feb41 '#ig4 ,footnote #bb3 ,the ,art of ,fiction4 ,a lecture by ,gilbert ,parker4 ,the ,critic4 ,dec41 '#ih4 ,footnote #bc3 ,magazine ,fiction and ,how ,not to ,write ,it1 by ,frederick ,m4 ,bird4 ,lippincott's4 ,nov41 '#id4 ,footnote #bd3 ,bad ,story-,telling1 by ,frederick ,m4 ,bird4 ,lippincott's1 ,oct41 '#ig4 ,footnote #be3 ,fact in ,fiction1 by ,frederick ,m4 ,bird4 ,lippincott's1 ,july1 '#ie4 ,footnote #bf3 ,the ,art of ,fiction4 ,a lecture by ,gilbert ,parker4 ,the ,critic4 ,dec41 '#ih4 ,footnote #bg3 ,historical ,relics of the ,white ,mountains1 by ,john ,h4 ,spaulding4 7,boston1 #ahee47 ,destruction of the ,willey ,family1 page #eh4 ,,vi ,,the ,,characters ,it is the tritest sort of a truism to say that the characters in a story are important1 for stories are stories only in so far as they reflect life1 and life is impossible without human actors4 ,it is the hopes and fears1 the joys and sorrows1 the sins and moral victories of men that interest us4 ,we men are a conceited lot1 and find nothing of interest except as it relates to us4 ,thus in the most ingenious stories1 where some marvelous invention or discovery is introduced1 the interest centers1 not in the wondrous things themselves1 but in their influence on the people of the story2 and in the few stories where a beast or a thing plays the hero1 it is always given human attributes4 ,fictitious characters1 like the plots that they develop1 are based primarily on fact1 and they further resemble the plots in being different phases of a primal idea1 rather than intrinsically diverse4 ,we find many characters in fiction--,miss ,wilkins' stories are full of them--which are evidently meant to be realistic1 and which impress us as word photographs of existing persons2 yet it is improbable that they are exact reproductions4 ,a real person ordinarily has too much of the commonplace and conventional about him to serve in fiction1 where--despite the apparent paradox--a character must be exaggerated to appear natural4 ,a person in fiction is at the best but a blur of hieroglyphics on a sheet of paper1 and can be comprehended only through the mentality of the author2 therefore his description1 his actions1 his words1 his very thoughts must be made so unnaturally striking that through the sense of sight alone they will stimulate the imagination and produce the effect which actual contact with the real person would induce4 ,the character which seems most real is usually a composite of the most striking characteristics of several real persons4 ,to this source of fictitious characters is due the fact that a literary puppet is often thought to be the reproduction of several very different real persons2 for the reader1 recognizing a particular trait which is characteristic of some one of his acquaintance1 thinks that he recognizes the character4 ,while the popular idea that every creature of the novelist's imagination has a definite original somewhere among his acquaintances is1 of course1 egregiously false1 it has yet this much of truth1 that they are1 to a large extent1 suggestions from life4 ,not one person1 but half a dozen1 often sit as models for the same picture1 while the details are filled out by the writer's imagination4 ,there are few people in real life sufficiently interesting or uncommonplace to suit the novelist's purpose1 but he must idealize or intensify them before they are fit subjects for art4 ,dickens intensified to the verge of the impossible1 yet we never feel that ,dick ,swiveller and ,sam ,weller and ,mr4 ,micawber1 and the rest of them1 are unnatural2 they are only1 if ,i may coin the word1 'hypernatural4' ,it is the business of art to idealize4 ,even at its best art is so inferior to nature1 that in order to produce the same impression it has to intensify its effects2 to deepen the colors1 heighten the contrasts1 omit an object here1 exaggerate an outline there1 and so on1 until it has produced the proper picturesque effect4#bh ,a careful description of the appearance of the characters may be necessary to the understanding of the story1 as in ,irving's perfect picture of ,ichabod ,crane in ,the ,legend of ,sleepy ,hollow2 but in our model the people are rather typical than individual1 and ,hawthorne devotes but little space to their external characteristics4 ,a word or a phrase suffices to tell us all that is necessary to enable our minds to body them forth4 ,even the hero is outwardly distinguished only by a melancholy expression--a slight of which no school-girl authoress would have been guilty4 ,it is more often necessary to give the mental characteristics of the puppets1 and in ,the ,ambitious ,guest we have a deal of such detail concerning the young stranger2 but here1 too1 you must exercise forbearance1 as ,hawthorne did in his partial analysis of the other characters4 ,it is by no means essential that the personages of a short story be attractive in person or in character4 ,the taste of readers used to be so artificial that no romancer would have dared to present a heroine who was not perfect in face and figure1 or a hero who was not an ,apollo for manly beauty2 but in these more practical days we have substituted good deeds for good looks and have made our characters more human--our men more manly and our women more womanly2 and we exalt them now for heroic acts1 rather than heroic mould4 ,a mistake which it seems hard for the novice to avoid is that of telling everything possible about a character and leaving nothing to the imagination of the reader4 ,this exhaustive method leads to a multiplicity of detail which verges on baldness1 and which is very apt to contain considerable irrelevant matter2 the details are usually arranged with little regard for their true value2 and the intended description becomes a mere catalogue of personal charms4 ,for example1 in these three descriptions1 detailed though they are1 there is nothing to distinguish the particular person described from the scores of other people possessing the same general traits3 ,he was a tall1 deep-chested1 broad-shouldered man1 having a light complexion1 dark moustache1 hair and eyes4 ,we will take a look at our heroine1 as she sits lazily rocking1 the sunshine touching her hair4 ,she is of medium height1 with black hair and eyes and a winning smile that makes friends for her everywhere4 ,lura was yet but a slight school girl2 she was now fifteen and equally as large as ,grace4 ,she looked very beautiful as she came out to meet ,grace and ,mrs4 ,morton1 on their return from the village4 ,her dark brown hair had been carefully combed back1 but the short locks had fallen and formed in ringlets about the snowy neck and face4 ,her large gray eyes were bright4 ,her full curved lips were red1 and in laughing and talking revealed two rows of small1 even1 pearly white teeth4 ,her cheeks were round and well formed2 although at the present time they bore no marks of roses1 they were generally rosy4 ,the gray eyes1 by the changing of the expression1 often became almost black and greatly completed her beauty4 ,clever character depiction consists in selecting and presenting only those salient details which will serve to body forth rather a vague image1 which shall yet possess a definite personality1 to which the reader may give such distinctness as his imagination may impart to the hints offered4 ,it is in a manner building a complete character upon a single characteristic1 after the familiar method of ,dickens4 ,it is this impressionistic method which is most used by masters to picture those characters which seem to us real persons4 ,in ,the ,legend of ,sleepy ,hollow1 ,irving thus describes the hero 7871 ,ichabod ,crane1 and the heroine1 ,katrina ,van ,tassel3 ,the cognomen of ,crane was not inapplicable to his person4 ,he was tall1 but exceedingly lank1 with narrow shoulders1 long arms and legs1 hands that dangled a mile out of his sleeves1 feet that might have served for shovels1 and his whole frame most loosely hung together4 ,his head was small1 and flat at the top1 with huge ears1 large green glassy eyes1 and a long snipe nose1 so that it looked like a weather-cock1 perched upon his spindle neck1 to tell which way the wind blew4 ,to see him striding along the profile of a hill on a windy day1 with his clothes bagging and fluttering about him1 one might have mistaken him for the genius of famine descending upon the earth1 or some scarecrow eloped from a cornfield4 ,she was a blooming lass of fresh eighteen1 plump as a partridge1 ripe and melting and rosy-cheeked as one of her father's peaches1 and universally famed1 not merely for her beauty1 but her vast expectations4 ,she was withal a little of a coquette1 as might be perceived even in her dress1 which was a mixture of ancient and foreign fashions1 as most suited to set off her charms4 ,she wore the ornaments of pure yellow gold which her great-great-grandmother had brought over from ,saardam1 the tempting stomacher of the olden time1 and withal a provokingly short petticoat to display the prettiest foot and ankle in the country round4 ,here are ,hawthorne's pictures of ,beatrice and her father in ,rappaccini's ,daughter3 ,on again beholding ,beatrice the young man was even startled to perceive how much her beauty exceeded his recollection of it--so brilliant1 so vivid in its character1 that she glowed amid the sunlight1 and1 as ,giovanni whispered to himself1 positively illuminated the more shadowy intervals of the garden path4 ,her face being now more revealed than on the former occasion1 he was struck by its expression of simplicity and sweetness--qualities that had not entered into his idea of her character1 and which made him ask anew what manner of mortal she might be4 ,nor did he fail again to observe or imagine an analogy between the beautiful girl and the gorgeous shrub that hung its gem-like flowers over the fountain--a resemblance which ,beatrice seemed to have indulged a fantastic humor in heightening both by the arrangement of her dress and the selection of its hues4 ,his figure soon emerged into view1 and showed itself to be that of no common laborer1 but a tall1 emaciated1 sallow and sickly-looking man dressed in a scholar's garb of black4 ,he was beyond the middle term of life1 with gray hair1 and a thin gray beard and a face singularly marked with intellect and cultivation1 but which could never1 even in his more youthful days1 have expressed much warmth of heart4 ,and this is the way ,dickens sets forth ,scrooge1 the old miser1 in ,a ,christmas ,carol3 ,oh6 ,but he was a tight-fisted hand at the grindstone1 ,scrooge6 a squeezing1 wrenching1 grasping1 scraping1 clutching1 covetous1 old sinner6 ,hard and sharp as flint1 from which no steel had ever struck out generous fire2 secret1 and self-contained1 and solitary as an oyster4 ,the cold within him froze his old features1 nipped his pointed nose1 shrivelled his cheek1 stiffened his gait1 made his eyes red1 his thin lips blue2 and spoke out shrewdly in his grating voice4 ,a frosty rime was on his head1 and on his eyebrows1 and his wiry chin4 ,he carried his own low temperature always about with him2 he iced his office in the dog-days2 and didn't thaw it one degree at ,christmas4 ,there is very little of the catalogue style of description here2 indeed1 the characters can hardly be said to be described3 the author gives rather the sensations which they produced on observers and so excites similar sensations in the mind of the reader4 ,when once introduced the characters should be allowed to work out their identities with the least possible interference from the author4 ,their characteristics must not be listed like invoices of goods3 they must themselves display the psychological powers with which they were endowed by their creator4 ,their speeches and actions must seem the results of mental processes1 and must appear natural1 if not logical2 indeed1 it is an open question if they can be both at once1 for there are few people who are always logical4 ,one good method of presenting the characteristics of a fictitious personage is to indulge in a bit of mind reading1 and give his thoughts as he thinks them2 another and better way is to show the man actuated by his dominant mental qualities4 ,in ,the ,cask of ,amontillado ,poe builds a whole story on an elaboration of the latter method1 and presents the picture of a man temporarily mastered by the spirit of revenge4 ,it is only by thus allowing the characters to work out their own destinies that you can make them real2 otherwise they will appear as mere painted puppets1 without life or volition4 ,on account of the technical limitations of the short story the number of characters which may have principal or speaking parts is very small--in general only two1 and frequently but one4 ,there are usually other characters present to help out the action1 but they are merely supernumeraries1 without form1 life or influence4 ,there are many violations of this rule1 ,i admit1 among them such stories as ,hawthorne's ,the ,great ,stone ,face1 ,the ,seven ,vagabonds1 and ,the ,great ,carbuncle2 but analysis shows them to be panoramic or episodic in effect1 and really violating the unity of action which the short story demands4 ,for similar reasons the characters presented must be unnaturally isolated1 with little past and less future1 and most strangely lacking in relatives2 for the few thousand words of the short story permit but a cursory treatment of the ancestry1 birth1 breeding and family of the one or two important characters4 ,if by any trick they can be made the last of a long line1 and be snatched from obscurity into the momentary glare of the lime light1 so much the better for author1 reader and character2 but if some portion of their history bears upon the story1 let it be presented by subtle touches1 preferably by references in the dialogue1 so that the reader obtains the necessary knowledge without being conscious of the means4 ,the few real characters in the story must be made unusually interesting on account of their loneliness4 ,they compose the story1 they represent the human race1 and if they fail us we are in sad straits4 ,they must be individual2 they must stand out sharply from the page1 clear and attractive1 and leave no doubt of their personalities4 ,more than any other form of fiction1 the short story depends upon its hero and heroine1 who have star parts and monopolize the stage of action4 ,we must see them so vividly that when they speak and act we shall perceive them as actual personages4 ,it is such accuracy of depiction that makes ,rip ,van ,winkle1 ,sherlock ,holmes1 ,van ,bibber1 and a host of others enter into our thoughts and speech as if they had really lived4 ,the names with which we label these dolls may be of importance4 ,in these days names have little significance1 yet we still feel that a name from its very sound may be appropriate or otherwise1 and no careful writer would give to his characters appellations selected at random4 ,names are frequently used to good advantage as aids to character depiction or to enhance humorous effects1 as in the case of ,hawthorne's ,feathertop and ,monsieur du ,miroir1 and ,irving's ,ichabod ,crane1 and in many other instances familiar to readers of ,dickens4 ,dickens's names are marvelously apt1 as we see from the passing into common phrase of so many of them4 ,not a few have become synonyms for the kind of character to which they were attached4444 ,if a name is to hint at character it should do so in the subtlest manner possible--in a manner so subtle as to escape all but the quickwitted1 who will forgive the inartistic method in their pride at being so clever as to detect the writer's intention4444 ,in these days1 when craftsmanship is cared for and looked for more than ever1 444 novelists must sacrifice nothing that will lend a trick of reality to their imaginings4 ,if they take any pains to select names for their characters they should hit upon such as will be seen to suit them when their books have been read 7like ,sir ,willoughby ,patterne or ,gabriel ,oak72 names that attempt with clumsy impertinence to give a clew to character at the outset are best left to the inept amateur of letters who has not wit enough to dispense with such aid4 ,to be avoided1 also1 are out-of-the-way names that may have living owners in the real world4 ,no ,john ,smith or ,tom ,jones can complain if writers christen their characters after them2 but if a man owns a peculiar name he dislikes having it borrowed and attached to some figure in fiction whose proceedings very likely do it little credit4444 ,every writer must know the satisfaction that comes when an 'exquisitely right' name is hit upon4 ,but it is just as well to take reasonable precautions to avoid indignant protests such as that which ,hawthorne drew upon himself#bi for his use of the name ,judge ,pyncheon in ,the ,house of the ,seven ,gables4 ,the dramatic trend of the short story is responsible for its tendency to advance action by speech4 ,good short stories have been written and will be written which contain little or no dialogue2 they succeed through vividness of plot1 skill in character depiction1 ingenuity of construction1 or some such quality2 but they would be more interesting and more natural if they held more conversation4 ,a short story should be full of talk of the proper kind2 there are few people who preserve silence at all times1 and in the exciting moments which a short story usually presents1 most persons would find tongue to voice their teeming thoughts4 ,speech adds naturalness and vividness to the actors1 it lends them a personal interest1 it gives insight into character1 and it aids the development of the plot4 ,this is a modern tendency1 for the stories of ,kipling1 ,stevenson1 ,wilkins1 ,davis and ,doyle contain much more of the conversational element than those of ,poe1 ,hawthorne or ,irving4 ,where the latter would present a mental struggle or a crisis by some paragraphs of description1 the former express it in the short exciting words of the actors themselves2 even soliloquies and asides and other of the most mechanical devices of the drama are forced into the service of the short story1 to replace the long explanatory passages such as were used by ,irving4 ,it has been predicted that in the short story of the future the characters will be briefly introduced and then will be allowed to speak for themselves2 if this prophecy comes true we shall have stories similar to ,hope's ,the ,dolly ,dialogues1 or ,howells' little dramas1 where there is almost no comment by the author4 ,it is more probable1 though1 that there is something of a fad in the present liking for pure dialogue1 and that the short story will never attain the absolute purity of the drama4 ,if these fictitious personages are to talk1 however1 they must talk naturally and interestingly--and there's the rub6 ,as in real life a man often shows himself to be a fool when he begins to talk1 so in fiction a character frequently proves to be but a poor puppet of straw when he opens his mouth4 ,the only way to make your characters talk naturally is to imitate the speech of the persons whom they in some degree represent4 ,people in general do not talk by book3 they use colloquial language1 full of poor grammar1 slang1 and syncopated words2 and their sentences are neither always logical nor complete4 ,in reproducing this1 however1 you must edit it a little1 using your own judgment as to which are the characteristic idioms2 for the speech of the people in books is admittedly a little better than in real life--except in dialect stories1 where it is usually worse2 and you must avoid equally the heavy rhetorical style of the extreme romantic school1 and the inane commonplaces of the radical realists4 ,conversation like the following is commonly termed bookish2 it is painfully correct and laboriously profound--but it is not natural4 ,if it were meant for a burlesque upon polite and cultured society it would be exquisite1 but it is the manner in which the writer believes people really talk1 though it is easy to guess that he himself is far from such absurd affectations in his familiar speech4 ,by way of preliminary1 ,i have to say that my name is ,athlee--,felix ,athlee1 and yours is ,miss ,india ,lemare4 ,i've seen you before4 ,in the flesh1 ,i hope1 she answered4 ,yes1 ,i like you better that way1 though you now wear the expression of one older in years and experience4 ,wherefore1 may ,i ask8 ,shadows fall on the young as well as the old4 ,one is fortunate1 indeed1 to keep always in the sunshine4 ,and flit like the butterfly1 without volition or effort8 ,human appointments are different4 ,work is the inevitable1 and with the proper tools1 it is pleasant enough4 ,they must1 long ago1 have rusted1 for the want of use4 ,no1 we have simply to consider our specialty and we find them ready at hand4 ,have you done so8 ,i am dazed1 and my brain works capriciously4 ,except in the interest of your desires4 ,what are they8 ,wealth for independence1 leisure for indulgence1 and fame1 the outcome of talent4 ,his luminous eyes looked out over the water1 as he said3 ,the universal hunt of mankind is for happiness1 and he searches for it in as many ways as there are peculiarities of disposition4 ,does he ever really find it8 ,many weary hearts are covered with the soft down of wealth4 ,mischief lurks in indulgence1 and fame dazzles but to elude4 ,it is wiser to accept what the gods give1 and use the gifts for the betterment of others as well as ourselves4 ,meaningless words1 when one is at enmity with the gods for withholding4 ,what fine spun theories we mortals have6 ,to the listener every conversation contains a deal of commonplace3 it may be that the speakers really have nothing interesting to say1 and it may be that their conversation is so personal as to interest themselves only4 ,the reader occupies the position of a listener1 and it is the duty of the author to suppress all commonplace dialogue1 unless1 as sometimes happens1 it assists in plot or character development4 ,conversation like the following is--let us hope--interesting to the parties concerned1 but the reader would be delivered from it as from a plague4 ,i am so glad to get one desire of my heart4 ,and that is8 said ,al4 ,snow6 ,so glad that is all4 ,i thought you had spied my new tie and was planning some 'crazy design' upon it4 ,oh1 let me see6 ,now1 really1 that is becoming to your style1 but ,i think it would suit mine better4 ',brown eyes and black hair should never wear blue--that is for grey eyes1 the tried and true4' ,see8 ,neither the eyes nor the tie1 said ,al1 as he turned his back and looked up at the ceiling4 ,the real difficulty with this dialogue is that the writer attempted to make his characters smart and so permitted them to indulge in repartee2 but as they were only commonplace people the privilege was too much for them and they merely twaddled4 ,they did succeed in being humorous1 but the humor is unconscious4 ,yet unconscious humor is preferable to the forced and desperate attempt at fun-making which we have in this extract3 ,i don't believe he is proud1 said ,joe to ,tom1 his younger brother4 ,but you know he has been to the ,holy ,land and cannot now associate with such wicked sinners as we are4 ,or else he has turned ,jew and thinks we are ,samaritans4 ,you two are getting no better fast1 said the doctor1 after a hearty laugh4 ,wait until you get sick1 ,i'll give you a pill that will make you repent4 ,we are never going to get sick1 said ,joe1 but expect to live until we are so old that we will dry up and blow away with the wind1 or go to heaven in a ',chariot of ,fire4' ,turning to the doctor ,joe continued3 ,you know ,will has a girl1 and he is awful pious4 ,if one looks off his book in church1 even to wink at his best girl1 he thinks it an awful sin4 ,and that the guilty one should be dipped in holy water1 or do penitence for a week4 ,it is a common trick for the novice to put into the mouths of his characters just such stale jokes and cheap jests1 with the idea that he is doing something extremely funny4 ,he is1 but his audience is laughing at him1 not at his characters4 ,but most exasperating of all is the author who1 while making his characters suffer the most dreadful afflictions1 lets them think and talk only commonplaces still1 like the poor sawdust dolls that they are3 ,what is the matter with you1 ,annie8 ,i said one day1 about five months after she had come home4444 ,you will know some time1 ,cicely1 she answered4444 ,why can't you tell me now8 ,i asked4 ,you will know soon enough1 she answered4 ,by the by1 she went on1 ,i am going to ,mr4 ,denham's to-morrow4 ,alone8 ,no1 ,i am going with ,cousin ,ivan4 ,when will you be back8 ,i asked1 for ,mr4 ,denham lived twenty miles away4 ,i don't know1 she answered sadly4 ,the next morning ,i went over to see ,annie off4 ,i had been there but a few minutes when her cousin1 ,ivan ,carleon1 came4 ,he was about six feet high1 with dark1 brown eyes1 and black hair and moustache4 ,he was a quiet man and ,i liked him4 ,when they got ready to start1 ,annie came and kissed me4 ,i am ready now1 ,ivan4 ,and then he helped her into the buggy1 and they drove off4 ,two days afterwards1 as ,i was sitting under the shade of a tree1 where ,annie and ,i had played when we were small1 ,miss ,jones1 an old school fellow1 came along4 ,have you heard the news8 she asked1 before she had got up to me4 ,what news8 ,why1 ,ivan ,carleon has killed ,annie4 ,explain yourself1 ,daisy1 ,i answered anxiously4 ,well1 she said1 we ain't sure ,ivan killed her2 but every one thinks so4 ,you know that big gate1 about a mile this side of ,mr4 ,denham's8 ,well1 day before yesterday ,ivan came running up to ,mr4 ,denham1 and said that ,annie had shot herself1 down at the big gate4 ,they all went down and found ,annie stone dead4 ,a note in her pocket merely stated that she was tired of life4 ,but every one thinks ,ivan killed her1 and that he wrote the note himself4 ,i hope ,ivan didn't do it1 she said1 as she started off1 for ,i liked him4 ,the evening of the third day1 as ,i was sitting under the same tree1 ,i was startled to feel a hand on my shoulder4 ,looking up1 ,i saw ,ivan ,carleon standing by my side4 ,i gave a low cry1 and shrank from him4 ,he turned pale to his lips4 ,surely you don't think ,i murdered her8 he said4 ,i don't know what to think1 ,i answered1 bursting into tears4 ,sit down and tell me all about it1 ,i continued1 moving for him on the bench4 ,he sat down beside me2 and laid his head in his hands4 ,imagine1 if you can1 the bearer of terrible news who would unburden herself with as little excitement as ,miss ,jones exhibits2 or a real girl who1 on hearing of the tragic death of her bosom friend1 would be merely anxious and bid her informant ,explain yourself6 ,the author of this could not have had the slightest conception of the tragedy which he had created1 or even his poor lifeless puppets must have been galvanized into some show of real feeling4 ,it is neither necessary nor desirable that you should report every conversation at length1 even though it bear upon the story4 ,do not reproduce long conversations simply to say something or to air your views on current topics4 ,it is just as much a fault to introduce useless chatter as it is to fill page after page with descriptions of unused places4 ,if the hero and the heroine1 by a brief bright conversation1 can put the reader in possession of the facts concerning the course of their true love1 they should be given free speech2 but if they show a tendency to moralize or prose or talk an infinite deal of nothing1 shut them up and give the gist of their dialogue in a few succinct sentences of your own4 ,note how in #aj1 #aa ,hawthorne has condensed the conversation which doubtless occurred at the supper table1 and has given us the salient points without the commonplaces that it must have contained3 ,he was of a proud yet gentle spirit1 haughty and reserved among the rich and great1 but ever ready to stoop his head to the lowly cottage door and be like a brother or a son at the poor man's fireside4444 ,he had traveled far and alone2 his whole life1 indeed1 had been a solitary path1 for1 with the lofty caution of his nature1 he had kept himself apart from those who might otherwise have been his companions4444 ,the secret of the young man's character was a high and abstracted ambition4 ,he could have borne to live an undistinguished life1 but not to be forgotten in the grave4 and how in #ac he has given us the trend of the young man's rhapsody1 instead of wearying us with what was probably rather a long and tiresome speech3 ,there was a continual flow of natural emotion gushing forth amid abstracted reverie which enabled the family to understand this young man's sentiment1 though so foreign from their own4 ,one form of the talkative short story that forms a serious stumbling block to the novice is the dialect story4 ,if you have an idea of trying that style of composition1 let me warn you3 ,don't6 ,dialect stories never were very artistic1 for they are a paradoxical attempt to make good literature of poor rhetoric and worse grammar4 ,they have never been recognized or written by any great master of fiction4 ,they are a sign of a degenerate taste1 and their production or perusal is a menace to the formation and preservation of a good literary style4 ,they are merely a fad1 which is already of the past2 and to-day public and publisher turn in nausea from a mess of dialect which yesterday they would have greedily devoured2 so that now there is even no pecuniary excuse for dialect stories4 ,they were doomed to an ephemeral existence1 for what little charm they ever possessed was based upon the human craving for something odd and new2 the best stories of ,barrie and ,maclaren live because of their intense human feeling1 and they would have succeeded as well and endured longer if they had been clothed in literary ,english4 ,that there is good in dialect none may deny2 but that good is only when it chances1 as rarely1 to be good dialect2 when it is used with just discretion and made the effect of circumstances naturally arising1 not the cause and origin of the circumstance itself4 ,when the negro1 the 'cracker' or the mountaineer dialect occurs naturally in an ,american story1 it often gives telling effects of local color and of shading4 ,but the negro or 'cracker' story per se can be made bearable only by the pen of a master2 and even then it may be very doubtful if that same pen had not proved keener in portraiture1 more just to human nature in the main1 had the negro or the 'cracker' been the mere episode1 acting on the main theme1 and itself reacted on by that4#cj ,study carefully1 as models of good character analysis and presentation1 ,stevenson's ,markheim2 ,hawthorne's ,the ,great ,stone ,face2 ,ichabod ,crane in ,irving's ,the ,legend of ,sleepy ,hollow2 ,poe's ,william ,wilson2 ,louisa ,ellis in ,wilkins' ,a ,new ,england ,nun2 ,van ,bibber in ,davis' ,van ,bibber and ,others2 ,henry ,st4 ,george in ,james' ,the ,lesson of the ,master4 ,,footnotes3 ,footnote #bh3 ,rudimentary ,suggestions for ,beginners in ,story ,writing1 by ,e4 ,f4 ,andrews4 ,cosmopolitan4 ,feb41 '#ig4 ,footnote #bi3 ,names in ,fiction1 by ,h4 ,h4 ,f4 ,literature4 ,jan4 #ai1 '#ii4 ,footnote #cj3 ,the ,day of ,dialect1 by ,t4 ,c4 ,de ,leon4 ,lippincott's4 ,nov41 '#ig4 ,,vii ,,methods ,,of ,,narration ,not only must you have a story to tell1 but you must tell it well4 ,the charm and interest of a story come not from the plot itself but from your handling of it4 ,the question of the proper method of narration is to a considerable extent a matter of suitability--of giving the narrative an appropriate setting2 it is also a matter of the point of view of the narrator--whether he is to tell the story as one of the actors1 or simply as an impersonal observer4 ,a dozen master story writers would tell the same tale in a dozen different ways1 and each of them would seem to be the right way2 for each writer would view the events from a particular angle1 and would make his point of view seem the natural one4 ,but the novice is not always happy in his choice of a view point2 or rather1 he lacks the knowledge and experience that would teach him how to treat his subject from the particular side from which he has chosen to consider it4 ,yet a capable and clever writer may sometimes find himself puzzled to choose between a number of methods1 any one of which seems appropriate and any one of which he feels himself competent to handle satisfactorily3 the question is which one will be for him the most successful method of exploiting his thoughts4 ,that question should be settled with regard to the suitability of the method to the matter of the story--and here suitability is synonymous with naturalness4 ,it must not be forgotten that story writing is only a modern phase of the world-old custom of story telling1 and that the printed page should appear as natural and easy to the eye as the voice would to the ear4 ,when in the twilight the grandmother gathers the children about her knee for a story1 whether it be a bit of her own life or a tale from a book1 she does not strive after effect1 but tells the story simply and naturally1 just as she knows it will best suit the children4 ,and so the story writer should tell his tale--so naturally and easily that the reader will forget that he is gazing at the printed page1 and will believe himself a spectator at an actual scene in real life4 ,the great difficulty of the novice is to subordinate his own personality4 ,he knows that he must individualize his story1 and that that is best done by putting something of himself into it2 and he does not always understand that it is only his spirit that is wanted1 and that his body will be very much in the way4 ,then1 too1 he is apt to be a little self-conscious1 if not actually self-conceited1 and he rather likes the idea of putting himself into his work so thoroughly that the reader must always be conscious of his presence4 ,he likes to show his superior knowledge and to take the reader into his confidence2 so he indulges in side remarks1 and criticisms1 and bits of moralizing1 and in general exhibits an exasperating tendency to consider himself and his personal opinion of far greater importance than the story which he is expected to tell4 ,but above all things else the author must keep himself out of sight1 and must refrain from interpolating his opinions4 ,he is supposed to be an impersonal person1 a human machine through the medium of which the story is preserved1 and he has no proper place in his narrative4 ,one no more expects or desires a speech from him than a sermon from a penny-in-the-slot phonograph which has been paid for a comic song4 ,he may stand behind the scenes and manipulate the puppets and speak for them1 but his hand must be unseen1 his voice carefully disguised1 and his personality imperceptible2 no one cares for the man who makes the ,punch and ,judy show--he is judged by the success of his imitation of life1 and his own appearance will speedily disillusionize his public4 ,every time you address your public as dear reader1 gentle reader1--or1 as ,mark ,twain has it1 savage reader--you force upon that public a realization of your presence which is as disagreeable and inartistic as the appearance of the ,punch and ,judy man1 hat in hand1 seeking a few coppers in payment of the amusement he has provided4 ,in the short story no personal confidences1 moralizing comments1 or confessions are allowed4 ,if you must express your opinions and make your personality felt1 write lectures1 sermons1 essays1 books1 letters for the public press--but don't write short stories4 ,men read short stories to be amused1 not instructed2 and they will quickly revolt at any attempt on your part to introduce into your narrative a sugar-coated argument or sermon4 ,there are certain methods of story telling much affected by the amateur which are particularly difficult to do well4 ,he should especially eschew stories related in the first person1 those told by letters1 and those in the form of a diary4 ,notice1 ,i do not say that these methods are absolutely bad3 they have been successfully used by masters2 but they are at least questionable1 and they contain so many pitfalls for the unwary that it is far better for the uninitiated to let them severely alone4 ,narrative in the first person gives a certain realism through the mere use of the pronoun ,i1 and so excites some measure of the desired personal interest2 but the same result may be secured1 without the accompanying disadvantages1 by making the characters do a good deal of talking4 ,that method escapes the danger of getting the narrator between the story and the reader2 for the puppet who ,i's his way through the narrative is apt to be rather an important fellow1 who intrudes on the most private scenes1 and who prefers moralizing and philosophizing to the legitimate furthering of the plot2 thus he runs no small risk of making himself unpopular with the reader1 and so proving of detriment to the success of the story and of the author4 ,then1 too1 when the author is speaking in his own proper person the reader cannot help wondering at times how one man could know so much about what was going on1 even if he were a veritable ,paul ,pry2 while we have become so used to granting the omniscience and omnipresence of the invisible third person author that we never question his knowledge4 ,if1 however1 the hero-narrator attempt natural modesty and profess to but slight information concerning the story1 he is usually a most dull and uninteresting fellow1 who is endeavoring to relate a matter of which he has missed the most essential parts4 ,and at all times1 though he be a model in all other respects1 the very fact that the hero is telling the story lessens its interest1 since no matter what harrowing experiences he has suffered1 he has come safely through2 thus the narrative lacks that anxiety for the hero's welfare which is so large a factor in the delights of fiction4 ,it 7first person narrative7 is better adapted1 no doubt1 to adventure than to analysis1 and better to the expression of humour than to the realization of tragedy4 ,as far as the presentation of character is concerned1 what it is usual for it to achieve 444 is this3 a life size1 full length1 generally too flattering portrait of the hero of the story--a personage who has the limelight all to himself--on whom no inconvenient shadows are ever thrown2 444 and then a further graceful idealization1 an attractive pastel1 you may call it1 the lady he most frequently admired1 and1 of the remainder1 two or three ,kit-,cat portraits1 a head and shoulders here1 and there a stray face4#ca ,stories written in the epistolary or diary form suffer all the disadvantages of first person narrative2 but they are also liable to others1 equally serious1 which are peculiarly their own4 ,they are seldom natural1 in the first place1 for granted that people really do keep interesting diaries or write literary letters1 it is rare in either case that a story would be told with technical correctness4 ,and such narratives are usually poor in technique1 for their form necessitates the introduction of much that is commonplace or irrelevant1 and it also requires the passage of time and causes breaks in the thread of the plot4 ,these forms are favorites with the inexperienced because they seem to dodge some of the difficulties that beset the way of the literary aspirant4 ,their form is necessarily loose and disjointed1 and their style rambling and conversational1 and these qualities are characteristic of the work of novices4 ,but if fictitious letters are so seldom anything but tiresome1 is this because 'the age of letter writing is past8'444 ,the unpopularity of the epistolary form as a method of authorship is1 in fact1 due quite as much to a change of taste as to the decay of letter writing4 ,the old practice was of a piece with the unrealities of the eighteenth century1 both in art and letters4 ,it necessitated an abundance of superfluous detail1 and it was a roundabout1 artificial way of doing what the true artist could do much better1 simply and directly4 ,it gave1 of course1 an opportunity of exhibiting subjectively many 'fine shades' of feeling4 ,but it is certainly much more difficult to carry conviction in inventing letters for fictitious persons than in making them converse4 ,in the latter case there is a background2 there is the life and movement of the various characters1 the spontaneity of question and reply1 and the running interchange of talk1 all helping to keep a spell upon the reader4 ,the letter gives much less chance of illusion1 and we may very soon become conscious of the author--instead of the suffered correspondent--beating his brains for something to say next4#cb ,another poor method1 indicative of callowness1 is making the hero1 so to speak1 an animal or a thing1 and permitting it to tell its own story4 ,this has peculiar charm for the tyro because of its supposed originality1 but it is really as old as story telling itself4 ,it offends greatly against naturalness1 for however one may believe in the story of ,balaam's ass1 or delight in sop's talking brutes or ,greece's talking statues1 one cannot restrain a feeling of skepticism when a dog or a coin is put forward1 given human attributes1 and made to view the world through man's eyes4 ,on the other hand1 if the writer attempts to read the thoughts of the brute or the thing1 the difficulty at once presents itself that he can only guess at the mental processes of the one1 and that the other is incapable of thought2 so that in either case the result is unsatisfactory4 ,one exception to this statement must be made3 ,kipling1 in his ,jungle ,book stories1 seems to have achieved the impossible and read for us the very thoughts of the brute creation4 ,unfortunately it is not given us to know how nearly he has hit their mental processes2 but his animals certainly do not think with the thoughts of men and their cogitations1 as he interprets them1 appear to us perfectly logical and natural4 ,yet the success of ,kipling does not at all lessen the force of my general statement1 for there are few writers who would care to cross pens with him here4 ,even our own ,joel ,chandler ,harris1 in his delightful ,uncle ,remus stories1 has succeeded only in giving his animals human ideas and attributes4 ,the whole endeavor to endow the rest of creation with man's intelligence is too thoroughly artificial to offer a profitable field to the short story writer4 ,again1 novices err frequently through introducing a multiplicity of narrators1 either writing a patchwork story in which all take a hand1 or placing narration within narration as in the ,arabian ,nights4 ,the method of allowing a number of persons consecutively to carry on the plot is very attractive1 since it offers a way of introducing a personally interested narrator without making him preternaturally wise2 and it also affords opportunity for the author to exhibit his skill in viewing events from all sides and through the minds of several very different persons4 ,it is1 however1 open to most of the first person objections1 and it is liable to produce a disjointed narrative2 but it is particularly unhappy in the short story because it necessitates the introduction and disposition of a number of important people4 ,the use of narration within narration is more objectionable4 ,it is of little importance who tells the story1 or how it came to be told2 the less the narrator appears the better4 ,it is seldom that more than one narrator is necessary1 yet two1 three1 or even more are often introduced1 with full descriptions of persons and circumstances4 ,it is a frequent device of the unpractised to cover pages with useless explanations of how they heard a tale which is thus elaborately put too far off from the reader to appeal to his sympathies4 ,one writer1 after describing a rural station1 his waiting for the train1 its appearance when it arrives1 the companions of his journey1 and so on1 is wrecked1 and spends the night on a log with an old farmer1 who spins him a domestic yarn that has nothing to do with what went before4 ,why not give the tale direct1 in the character of the old farmer8 ,there is no law against that4#cc ,this practice is due to the fact that amateurs usually begin by writing strictly true stories1 and they always consider it of prime importance that they had the tale from grandmother1 or that it actually occurred to ,john's wife's second cousin's great aunt2 forgetting1 in their unconscious egotism1 that the reader cares only for the narrative1 and nothing for the narrator4 ,stories told to interested listeners by grandma1 an old hunter1 or some loquacious stranger1 usually need to be so revised that the intrusive relater will disappear1 merged in the unobtrusive author4 ,indeed1 it is policy so to revise them1 for the editor usually considers the author who begins thus too amateurish for him3 ,your turn now1 ,captain1 was the exclamation of several gentlemen who were seated around a table1 telling stories1 narrating adventures1 playing cards and drinking each others' healths4 ,what will you have1 gentlemen8 inquired ,captain ,r----1 a tall1 handsome man of middle age1 who had been in command of a large ocean steamer many years4 ,oh1 one of your adventures1 said one of the party2 for surely you must have had some4 ,ah1 very well1 gentlemen--,i remember one that will no doubt interest you2 here it is3 ,for at the outset he knows1 and he knows that his readers will know1 that the tale ends thus3 ,so ends my story1 gentlemen2 now let us have a drink to the health of the young sailor's wife1 the dearest woman in the world4 ,and why not the sailor's health1 too8 asked one of the gentlemen4 ,all right1 sir1 just as you please1 gentlemen1 for ,i was that sailor4 and that the intervening story is apt to be every whit as stale and conventional as its beginning and its end4 ,irving's ,tales of a ,traveller show how this method may be used successfully2 yet it required all of ,irving's art to make the extra-narrative passages readable1 and it is an open question if the stories would not have been improved by isolation4 ,the best method of narration1 the simplest and most natural1 is to tell the story in the third person1 as if you were a passive observer2 to make the characters active and conversational2 and to permit nothing1 not even your own personality1 to get between the reader and the story4 ,,footnotes3 ,footnote #ca3 ,the ,short ,story1 by ,frederick ,wedmore4 ,nineteenth ,century4 ,mar41 '#ih4 ,footnote #cb3 ,the ,epistolary ,form4 ,literature4 ,apr4 #g1 '#ii4 ,footnote #cc3 ,magazine ,fiction and ,how ,not to ,write ,it1 by ,frederick ,m4 ,bird4 ,lippincott's4 ,nov41 '#id4 ,,viii ,,the ,,beginning ,the crucial test of the short story is the manner in which it begins4 ,of three-fourths of the ,,mss4 submitted to him the editor seldom reads more than the first page1 for he has learned by experience that if the story lacks interest there1 it will in all probability be lacking throughout4 ,therefore it behooves you to make the beginning as attractive and correct as possible4 ,the beginning of a good short story will seldom comprise more than two or three paragraphs1 and often it can be compressed into one4 ,if it cannot get to the story proper in that space there is something radically wrong--probably in the plot2 for the conventional brevity of the short story requires particular conciseness in the introduction4 ,in every story there are certain foundation facts that must be understood by the reader at the outset if he would follow the narrative easily4 ,these basic truths differ greatly in different stories1 so that it is difficult to give a complete list2 but they are usually such details as the time and scene of the story1 the names1 descriptions1 characteristics1 and relationships of the different characters1 and the relation of events prior to the story that may influence its development4 ,you must make sure that the details which you select are fundamental and that they do have a definite influence which requires some knowledge of them4 ,any or all of these facts1 however1 may be introduced later in the narrative when their need appears2 or they may be left in abeyance to enhance the element of suspense or mystery4 ,but because they are necessary these facts need not be listed and ticketed like the dramatis personae of a play bill4 ,they should be introduced so deftly that the reader will comprehend them involuntarily2 they must seem an intrinsic part of the warp and woof of the narrative4 ,in themselves they are commonplaces1 tolerated only because they are necessary2 and if they cannot be made interesting they can at least be made unobtrusive4 ,to begin a story thus is to make a false start that may prove fatal3 ,this happy family consisted of six2 a father1 mother1 two sons1 and two daughters4 ,clara1 the eldest1 had completed a course at college1 and during the past few months had been completing one in cooking1 guided and instructed by her mother4 ,bessie1 the youngest1 was five years old4 ,she sat rocking ,amanda1 her new doll1 and was asking her all manner of questions4 ,john and ,henry1 aged respectively ten and fourteen years1 were helping their father4 ,grandma and grandpa were expected to dinner2 also ,mr4 ,draco1 or ,harry1 as every one called him4 ,he was a friend of the family's1 and ,clara's lover4 ,note how ,hawthorne handles a very similar family group in the initial paragraph of ,the ,ambitious ,guest4 ,he inserts his details without apparent effort2 and yet he makes the persons individual and distinct4 ,he does not say3 ,this family was happy1 and comprised father1 mother1 grandmother1 daughter of seventeen1 and younger children4 but3 ,the faces of the father and mother had a sober gladness2 the children laughed4 ,the eldest daughter was the image of ,happiness at seventeen1 and the aged grandmother1 who was knitting in the warmest place1 was the image of ,happiness grown old4 ,sometimes1 in stories which consist largely of conversation1 as so many of our modern stories do1 the author never directly states the situation to the reader3 it is made sufficiently plain either directly in the conversation itself1 or indirectly in the necessary comments and descriptions4 ,or it may be presented as a retrospect indulged in by one of the characters4 ,on the stage this takes the form of a soliloquy2 but since few men in their right minds really think aloud1 in the short story it is better for the author to imagine such thoughts running through the mind of the character1 and to reproduce them as indirect discourse4 ,we are so used to consider the author as omniscient that we experience no surprise or incredulity at such mind-reading4 ,such stories approach very nearly to the pure ,dramatic ,form4 ,these are at once the most natural and the most artistic methods of introducing essential facts1 and they are methods which can be advantageously employed to some extent in almost any story4 ,with this method in mind read carefully any one of ,hope's ,dolly ,dialogue stories and note how cleverly the facts are presented through the words and actions of the characters4 ,in the novel essential details are frequently held in suspense for some time1 in order that the opening pages may be made attractive by the introduction of smart conversation or rapid action4 ,a similar method is often followed in the short story1 and it cannot be condemned offhand1 for if used skillfully it is a clever and legitimate device for immediately fixing the reader's attention2 but it holds danger for the uninitiated1 for the amateur is liable to postpone the introduction of the details until the story is hopelessly obscure1 or until he is reduced to dragging in those essential facts in the baldest manner4 ,even if he is otherwise successful1 he runs the risk of destroying the proportion of his story by practically beginning it in the middle and endeavoring to go both ways at once4 ,the conventions of the short story allow of little space for the retrospection necessary to such an introduction2 and when the writer begins to say1 ,but first let me explain how all this came about1 the reader begins to yawn1 and the charm of the opening sentences is forgotten in the dreariness of the ensuing explanations4 ,this method is of the modern school of short story writers1 but ,hawthorne1 in ,the ,prophetic ,pictures1 gives us an excellent example of how it may be used to advantage2 and the following well illustrates the absurd lengths to which it may be carried1 and the desperate means to which the writer must then resort to patch up the broken thread of the narrative3 ,joseph ,johnson was a young man whose name appeared in the list of the dead heroes who had fallen at ,santiago4 ,when ,mamie ,williams read the startling fact1 her eyes filled with tears1 as past history was unfolding itself in her mind1 presenting one event after another4 ,she thought about their early love1 how she had clasped his hand and how his lips lingered long upon hers when last they parted before he started to the cruel war4 ,with a wounded heart and tear-stained eyes1 she sank into a chair1 and with her hands over her face1 many reflections of the past chased each other through her mind4 ,she tried to console herself and smooth out the wrinkles in her troubled mind with the thought that ,god knows and does all things well4 ,she was an intelligent girl1 and reasoned farther with herself1 ,as all hope for ,joseph has fled1 ,i ought to marry some one else1 and make most of what ,i have4 ,there is ,thomas ,malloy1 who loves me almost as well2 however1 my affection for him is not very great1 but ,i think ,i shall unite my life with his1 and do my best to make myself and the world around me happy4 ,her mind1 moved by an emotion of a noble heart1 caused her to make the last remark4 ,soon they were married1 but there was no happiness in life for her2 for the one she lived for was gone1 and had carried off her affection with him4 ,returning to the war we find that ,joseph was not killed in the battle but was taken prisoner by the enemy4 ,there is a questionable sort of beginning1 which might be called dilatory1 that consists in carrying the literary aspect of the essential facts to the extreme1 and making them occupy a deal more valuable space than is rightly theirs4 ,this is generally the method of a past school of short story writers1 or of the writers of to-day who are not yet well versed in the technique of their art4 ,of this class ,washington ,irving is a great example4 ,in ,rip ,van ,winkle and ,the ,legend of ,sleepy ,hollow he devotes to the introduction almost as much space as a writer to-day would give to the whole tale4 ,he is so skillful in gently urging the narrative along1 while he introduces new essentials and interpolates literary but non-essential matter1 that in neither story can one exactly fix the bounds of the beginning2 but in each a modern story teller would combine the first ten paragraphs into one introductory paragraph4 ,i do not mean to say that this is a fault in ,irving3 if it is a fault at all it belongs to his time2 then1 too1 these tales were supposed to be written by the garrulous antiquarian1 ,diedrich ,knickerbocker2 but their discursive style is not in vogue to-day1 and is therefore to be avoided4 ,as an awful example of the extent to which this dilly-dallying may be carried1 let me introduce the following3 ,the train rolled onward with a speed of twenty-five miles an hour1 the great iron engine puffing and screeching as if its very sides would burst4 ,in the rear car of the six coaches which seemed to follow the monstrous iron horse with dizzy speed1 sat an aged man holding a pretty child of four summers1 who was fast asleep4 ,the grandfather gazed on the sleeping face and deeply sighed4 ,his thoughts returned to the long ago when his only child was the same age as the little one he held so fondly clasped in his dear old arms4 ,he thought how years ago he had held his own darling thus2 how happy and bright his home had been in those sweet bygone days4 ,he recalled how she had been reared in a home of plenty1 how she had everything which constitutes the happiness of a young girl4 ,the ,story4 ,the time was a warm summer evening in ,august1 the place one of those quiet little towns west of the great ,mississippi1 and the scene opens in a neat little parlor where a number of young folks had gathered to tender a fitting reception to a newly married couple4 ,a few days previous a stranger had arrived in the town to visit some former friends2 these friends attended the reception and were accompanied by their guest4 ,the stranger was formally introduced to the crowd of merry-makers as ,elmer ,charleston4 ,he was a tall1 splendidly formed1 intelligent looking young man4 ,among the young women present was one ,jennie ,shelby1 who was but little more than twenty2 she was a blonde1 of graceful figure1 with a peculiarly animated expression of countenance4 ,her complexion was beautiful1 her dimples deep and mischievous1 her large blue eyes full of latent fire1 and her features would pass muster among sculptors4 ,suitors had she by the score4 ,at last she had met her fate4 ,elmer ,charleston accepted a position in the town and at once began to court the only daughter of ,squire ,shelby4 ,it seems almost incredible that any writer1 however inexperienced1 should begin his narrative in this fashion4 ,the introductory paragraph is of course entirely unnecessary--even the author had some inkling of that fact1 for he takes pains to specify when the story proper actually begins2 but even after he is supposed to be in the midst of his narration1 he stops to give us wholly gratuitous information concerning the time of day1 the state of the weather1 and the occasion when ,elmer ,charleston first met ,jennie ,shelby--all of which was apparently introduced for the purpose of discouraging further interest3 at least1 that is what it certainly accomplishes4 ,the short story has no space for the glittering generalities with which young writers delight to preface their work4 ,a tale which requires a page or even a paragraph to elucidate its relation to life and things in general is seldom worth the perusal1 much less the writing4 ,these introductory remarks are usually in the nature of a moral1 or a bit of philosophizing2 but if the story has any point it will be evident in the narrative itself1 and no preliminary explanation will atone for later neglect to make it of human interest4 ,there is no good reason1 unless it be the perversity of human nature1 why you should begin a story by making trite remarks about things in general1 as this writer did3 ,love is a very small word1 but the feeling that it expresses bears the richest and choicest fruit of any vine that curls its clinging tendrils around the human heart4 ,and a bosom without it is a bosom without warmth2 a life without it is like a honeysuckle without its nectar2 a heart that has never felt its sweet emotions is like a rosebud that has never unfolded4 ,but in some people it remains latent for a number of years1 like an apple which remains green and hard for a time1 but suddenly ripens into softness1 so when love flashes into the human breast1 the once hard heart is changed into mellowness4 ,mary ,green was just such a character as the one last described1 etc4 ,it would be wrong1 however1 to say that the prefatory introduction is the sign of a poor story1 for many good writers produce such stories1 and many critical editors accept and publish them4 ,a large majority of ,poe's tales begins so2 yet in nearly every case the beginning could have been cut and the story improved4 ,kipling1 too1 has a liking for this method of beginning2 usually he states his abstract idea1 as a preacher announces his text1 and then proceeds to make the practical application4 ,with these masters the transition from the general to the specific is usually easy and gradual1 but in the following example from ,kipling's ,on the ,strength of a ,likeness the line of demarcation is well defined3 ,next to a requited attachment1 one of the most convenient things that a young man can carry about with him at the beginning of his career is an unrequited attachment4 ,it makes him feel important and business-like1 and blas1 and cynical2 and whenever he has a touch of liver1 or suffers from want of exercise1 he can mourn over his lost love1 and be very happy in a tender1 twilight fashion4 ,hannasyde's affair of the heart had been a godsend to him4 ,it was four years old1 etc4 ,there is no real abruptness here1 and the author's observations are apt and sound2 but the fact remains that they are not essential and so a strict observance of conventions requires their elimination4 ,the background of a story should always be the last thing to be chosen1 but it is the first thing to consider when one comes to actual writing out4 ,a story is much like a painting4444 ,in story writing it appears to be simple portraits that need least background4#cd ,scenes may play an important part in a story by influencing the actors or by offering a contrast to the events2 in such cases they must be made specific1 but rather after the broad free manner of the impressionist4 ,the employment of the contrast or harmony of man and nature is one of the oldest devices of story telling1 but also one of the most artistic and effective4 ,it is not an artificial device1 though it occasionally appears so from its misuse3 it is a fact that all of us must have experienced in some degree1 for we are all1 though often unconsciously1 influenced by the weather or by our environments2 and though our emotions may be so intense as to counteract that influence1 we are sufficiently self-centered to think it strange that all nature should not be in harmony with us4 ,you should1 however1 take care that the scene is important before you attempt to present it4 ,unless it does influence the action of the story or is necessary for the understanding of what is to come it has no place in the narrative1 no matter how great may be its beauties or how artistic your description of them4 ,above all things1 never clutter your story with commonplaces and details which would serve to picture any one of a hundred different places4 ,when a tale begins1 ',the golden orb of day was slowly sinking among the hills1 shedding an effulgent glory over the distant landscape1' the discerning reader1 whether official or volunteer1 is apt to pause right there4 ,he knows exactly what happens when the orb of day finds it time to disappear1 and he does not care for your fine language unless it conveys a fact or an idea worth noting4#ce ,the best method of procedure is to suggest the scene1 as you do the character1#cf by the few specific features which distinguish it from other similar scenes1 and to permit the reader's imagination to fill in the details4 ,hawthorne gives a very distinct idea of the setting of ,the ,ambitious ,guest2 and yet1 from his description alone1 no two persons would draw the same picture4 ,it suffices that they would all possess the essential elements of loneliness1 bleakness and haunting terror4 ,at the same time he effects a sharp contrast between the wildness and discomforts of the night and the peace and cheer of the tavern4 ,in locating the story it is absurdly shiftless to designate the place by a dash or a single letter1 or a combination of the two4 ,one of your first objects is to make your story vivid1 and you will not further that end by the use of impossible or indefinite substitutes for names4 ,if you are relating a true story and desire to disguise it1 adopt or invent some appellation different enough to avoid detection2 but never be so foolish as to say3 ,the story ,i am about to relate occurred to my friend ,x41 in the little village of ,z----1 during the latter part of the year #ah--4 ,it would be just as sensible to go through the rest of the story and substitute blanks or hieroglyphics for the important words4 ,specificness in minor details is a great aid to vividness1 and you cannot afford to miss that desirable quality through sheer laziness4 ,the safest way to begin a story is to begin at the beginning1 state the necessary facts as succinctly as possible1 and lead the reader into the quick of the action before he has had time to become weary4 ,for it must be remembered that the object of the short story is always to amuse1 and that even in the introductory paragraphs the reader must be interested4 ,if he is not he will very likely cast the story aside as dry and dull2 if he does read it through he will be prejudiced at the outset1 so that the result will be about the same4 ,in ,the ,ambitious ,guest the introduction occupies #a-d1 or one-eleventh of the entire story1 measured by paragraphs4 ,in that space ,hawthorne locates the scene1 introduces and individualizes the characters1 determines the atmosphere of the tale1 and recounts the necessary preliminaries2 and all this he does in the easiest way1 while skillfully leading up to the story proper4 ,a writer of to-day would probably condense these four paragraphs into one1 without neglecting any essentials2 but he would hardly attain the literary finish of ,hawthorne's work4 ,to prove further that the beginning of a story does influence its success1 ,i would ask you to consider the following1 which is typical of the style of introduction most affected by the novice3 ,it was a bright1 crisp1 twilight evening1 and two young girls sat together in a richly furnished parlor of a splendid country house4 ,one1 tall and slender1 with a richly moulded figure2 handsome brunette features1 and raven tresses--,edith ,laingsford1 the daughter of the house2 the other1 a girl of medium height1 with a figure perfectly rounded1 and a fair ,grecian face4 ,her eyes were of a soft gray1 and her hair a waving chestnut4 ,she was ,marion ,leland1 a dependent cousin of ,miss ,laingsford's4 ,now1 frankly1 do you care to read further8 ,surely there is nothing in the glimpse of the plot here presented that encourages you to hope that the tale may improve upon further perusal4 ,from these three paragraphs you can construct the whole story3 you know that the dependent cousin and the girl with the handsome brunette features will be rivals for the affections of some nice young man of corresponding conventionality1 and that the poor relation will finally win him--chiefly because it always happens so in stories and seldom in real life4 ,and you know from these specimen paragraphs that there will be nothing in the handling of this poor old hackneyed plot that will repay its perusal4 ,of course there is always a chance that you may be mistaken in your surmises2 but the chance is too slight1 and you cast the story aside with a yawn1 even as the editor would do4 ,see to it1 then1 that your own stories do not deserve like treatment4 ,,footnotes3 ,footnote #cd3 ,how to ,write ,fiction4 ,published anonymously by ,bellaires ,co41 ,london4 ,part ,i1 ,chapter ,,vii4 ,footnote #ce3 ,magazine ,fiction and ,how ,not to ,write ,it1 by ,frederick ,m4 ,bird4 ,lippincott's4 ,nov41 '#id4 ,footnote #cf3 ,see ,chapter ,,vi4 ,,ix ,,the ,,story ,,proper ,the correct short story possesses unity of form as well as unity of plot4 ,in the novel there may be wide gaps of time and scene between adjacent chapters2 but the short story allows of no such chasms of thought1 much less of chapters4 ,parts or chapters in a short story are uncanonical4 ,a short story is essentially a unit1 and the necessity of divisions indicates the use of a plot that belongs to some larger form of literature2 but the indicated parts or chapters may be false divisions introduced through the influence of the conventions of the novel4 ,the various divisional signs to be avoided are the separate entries or letters of the diary or epistolary forms1 the introduction of stars or blank spaces to indicate a hiatus1 and the division of the narrative into parts or chapters4 ,the evils of the diary and epistolary forms have already been discussed and need no further comment4 ,the use of stars or spaces either is due to an improper plot1 or is entirely unnecessary4 ,in the first instance the fault is radical1 and the only remedy is complete reconstruction2 in the second case the difficulty resolves itself into an ignorance or a disregard of rhetorical conventions4 ,often the story is deliberately divided and forced to appear in several chapters when its plot and treatment make its unity very evident2 and solely because the amateur has an idea1 caught from his novel reading1 that such divisions are essential to a well told story4 ,they are not necessary to many novels1 though they may be convenient2 and they have no place in the scheme of the short story4 ,there are stories1 short at least in length1 in which divisions are necessary to indicate breaks which do not seriously interrupt the coherency of the narrative2 they may be readable stories1 but they can never be models4 ,the ideal short story1 from the point of unity1 is one which requires the passage of the least time and presents the fewest separate incidents4 ,it is the relation of a single isolated incident1 which occupies only the time required to tell it4 ,the ,ambitious ,guest impresses the reader as a single incident and would seem to approach this perfection1 but a careful analysis of it resolves it into a number of minor incidents1 so closely related and connected that at first glance they appear to form a perfect whole4 ,the component incidents of the body of ,the ,ambitious ,guest 7 #e-ci7 are3 #e-g4 ,the stranger praises the fire and reveals his destination4 #h1 #i4 ,a stone rolls down the mountain side4 7,lapse of time indicated here47 #aj1 #aa4 ,the characters are described1 as they reveal themselves through their conversation4 #ab-bc4 ,they converse rather frankly of their several ambitions4 #bd-bg4 ,a wagon stops before the inn1 but goes on when the landlord does not immediately appear4 #bh-ca4 ,a touch of sentimental byplay between the stranger and the maid4 #cb4 ,a sadness creeps over the company1 caused1 perhaps1 by the wind wailing without4 #cc-ci4 ,the grandmother discusses her death and burial4 ,none of these incidents1 except those containing the rolling stone and the passing travelers1 possess sufficient action or identity to be called an incident1 except for some such analytical purpose4 ,they are rather changes in the subject under discussion than separate happenings4 ,with the exception already noted1 it may be said that there is no time gap between these incidents1 for each one begins at the expiration of its predecessor4 ,the connection and relation of the sub-incidents is not always as close as this4 ,in a longer story they could be more distinct and definite and yet preserve the unity of the work2 but they should never disintegrate into minor climaxes1#cg nor into such a jerky succession of disassociated scenes as the following3 ,on a fair sweet spring morning in the lovely month of ,may1 ,squire ,darley finishes an important letter4 ,he reads it over the second time to see that there is no mistake4 ,there1 that'll do1 ,i think1 he soliloquizes4 ,and that'll fetch him1 ,i think4 ,peculiar diseases require peculiar remedies4 ,and he chuckled to himself4 ,then with deliberate care he addressed it to ,mr4 ,h4 ,c4 ,darley1 ,new ,york ,city4 ,a few words to my reader1 and we will then follow this important letter4 ,five years before the time of which we write1 ,abner ,vanclief1 a poor but honorable gentleman1 had died1 leaving his motherless daughter to the sole care of his lifelong friend1 ,horace ,darley1 a wealthy country gentleman1 a widower1 with only one son4 ,squire ,darley was quite at a loss to know what to do with this1 his new charge4 ,he did not think it fit and proper to take her to ,darley ,dale1 with only himself and servants as companions4 ,then1 too1 she was sadly in need of schooling4 ,at last after much worry on his part1 it was satisfactorily arranged between himself and a maiden sister1 that resided in ,albany1 that ,violet was to remain with her1 attend the best college1 pay strict attention to her studies and music1 and when her education should be completed1 she1 if she wished1 was to make ,darley ,dale her future home4 ,four years passed swiftly by1 and then ,dear ,aunt ,molly1 as ,violet had learned to call her1 was taken violently ill2 and before her brother came her sweet spirit had flown away and poor ,violet was again alone4 ,but after she became fairly installed as mistress at ,darley ,dale1 she soon learned to love the place and also to love the dear old man that had been to her so staunch a friend4 ,as for his son ,harley1 she had heard his praises sung from morning until night4 ,she had never seen him1 for at the time of her father's death he was attending college1 and before she returned to ,darley ,dale he had hied himself off to ,new ,york ,city1 there to open a law office and declare that his future home4 ,many times the ,squire had written him beseeching him to return1 but always met with a courteous refusal4 ,when ,violet had been at ,darley ,dale a year she was surprised beyond measure by an offer of marriage from ,squire ,darley4 ,he had enlarged upon the fact that his son was a most obstinate young man1 that he himself was growing old1 and that he wished to see her well cared for before he died4 ,she had assured him that she could work1 and that she was willing to work when the time came1 but the old ,squire proved himself to be as obstinate as his wilful son4 ,and at last ,violet1 with a white drawn face1 and dark frightened eyes1 consented to become his wife at some future time4 ,and the letter addressed to ,mr4 ,h4 ,c4 ,darley contained the announcement of the engagement of ,squire ,horace to ,miss ,violet ,vanclief4 ,it is seldom that even a model short story plot will be a perfect unit1 for in the story1 as in the life which it pictures1 some slight change of scene and some little passage of time are inevitable4 ,thus in any short story there is usually a slight hiatus of thought1 due to these causes1 which must be bridged over4 ,the tyro will span the chasm by means of stars or some such arbitrary signs1 but the master will calmly ignore such gaps and preserve the unity of his narrative so deftly that even the lines of the dovetailing will be scarcely visible4 ,thus in ,the ,ambitious ,guest 7 #i1 #aj7 ,hawthorne had need to indicate the passage of some little time1 during which the guest had his supper2 but the breach is passed in so matter-of-fact a manner that there is no jolt1 and yet the sense of time is secured3 ,let us now suppose the stranger to have finished his supper of bear's meat1 and by his natural felicity of manner to have placed himself on a footing of kindness with the whole family2 so that they talked as freely together as if he belonged to their mountain-brood4 ,when the plot comprises a series of closely related episodes the story should be located in the time of the most important one1 and all necessary preliminary matter should be introduced as briefly and casually as possible in one of the several ways already given4#ch ,indeed1 the whole difficulty is usually due to a poor beginning1 and properly belongs to the preceding chapter4 ,next to the use of divisions comes the error1 also caught from the novel1 of making the short story a carryall for divers bits of wisdom1 moralizing1 description1 and literary small talk1 which have no part in the narrative1 but which the clever and self-appreciative author has not the heart to withhold from the public4 ,the art of omission is an important branch of the art of authorship4 ,it is seldom necessary to tell the novice what to put in2 but it is frequently necessary to tell him--and oh6 so hard to persuade him6--that to introduce an irrelevant idea is worse than to omit a necessary detail4 ,the young writer must learn early and learn once for all the absolute necessity for the exclusion of non-essentials4 ,selection of details plays an important part in any literary work1 but in the short story extreme care is indispensable1 for the short story has too little space to sacrifice any to pretty but useless phrases4 ,such irrelevant matter is usually called padding1 and its presence is a serious detriment to the success of any story1 however clever in conception4 ,one of the chief causes of padding is the desire for local color--a term by which we characterize those details which are introduced to make a story seem to smack of the soil4 ,these details must be eminently local and characteristic--possible of application to only the small community to which they are ascribed--or they are mere padding4 ,the need of local color depends much upon the character of the story3 it varies from a doubtful addition to the story of ingenuity or adventure1 to a necessary part of the story portraying human life and character4 ,without blindly indulging in local color one must be accurate in indicating facts4 ,a work of art must not be crowded with so-called local color1 but certain facts must be known and used to give the effect of a true relation4444 ,the atmosphere1 the feeling and idiosyncrasy--a word or a phrase which reveals character--are the only true local color1 not passing phrases of unkempt speech4#ci ,the stories of ,miss ,wilkins1 ,octave ,thanet1 ,bret ,harte1 and ,joel ,chandler ,harris are full of excellent examples of local color4 ,every perfect short story will contain a strong argument for good1 through its subtle exposition of the earning of the wages of sin1 but any attempt to make it a medium for the spreading of ethical and spiritual truths will entail ridicule upon the writer and failure upon his work4 ,the only legitimate purpose of the short story is to amuse1 and didacticism in literature is always inartistic4 ,novels with a purpose may find publishers and readers2 but no one1 except the author1 cares for polemic stories--such as set forth the wickedness of ,free ,trade or of ,protection1 the ,wrongs of ,labor and the ,rights of ,capital1 the advantages of one sect over another1 the beauties of ,deism1 ,agnosticism1 and other unestablished tenets4444 ,genius will triumph over most obstacles1 and art can sugar-coat an unwelcome pill2 but in nineteen cases out of twenty the story which covers an apology for one doctrine or an attack upon the other has no more chance than if it were made up of offensive personalities4#dj ,though ordinary dramatic short stories do not have a moral which shows itself1 still under the surface in every story is something which corresponds to the moral1 and which we shall call the soul of the story4#da ,the short story cannot properly be a mere sermon1 such as are so often penned under the caption of ,the ,drunkard's ,wife1 ,the ,orphan's ,prayer1 ,the ,wages of ,sin1 and other similar titles4 ,it must teach its moral lesson in its own way--its artistic presentation of the great contrast between the sort of men who work deeds of nobility and of shame4 ,if it be saddled with didacticism or tailed with a moral1 it ceases to be a story and becomes an argument2 when it no longer concerns us4 ,indirectly1 and perhaps unintentionally1 the short story is a great factor for good4 ,the world is weary of the bald sermons of the ,puritans1 and of their endeavor to point a tale by every ordinary occurrence2 it is rather inclined to a ,pharisaical self-righteousness2 and needs to have its sins1 and the practical benefits of goodness1 cunningly insinuated2 but it can never fail to admire and strive to emulate the noble deeds of noble men1 whether creatures of flesh or phantoms of the brain4 ,to be sure1 many of our best short stories deal with events so slight and really unimportant that they might be said to have no moral influence2 yet1 if they simply provide us with innocent amusement for an idle hour1 their ethical value must not be overlooked2 and when they do involve some great moral question or soul crisis their influence is invariably on the right side4 ,the point is that religion is not literature4 ,the mere fact that the heroine of a story is a poor milk and water creature1 full of bald platitudes and conventional righteousness1 does not make that narrative correct or readable2 indeed1 it is very apt to make it neither1 for the platitudes will be irrelevant and the righteousness uninteresting4 ,when this old world of ours becomes really moral we may be content to read so-called stories in which goody-good characters parade their own virtues and interlard their ordinary speech with prayers and hymns and scriptural quotations2 but while a tithe of the present sin and crime exists our fiction will reflect them with the other phases of our daily life4 ,now by this ,i do not at all mean that religion has no place in literature4 ,such a ruling would not only be contrary to the practice of our best writers1 but would also deprive us of a recognized and important element in human life4 ,the religious influence is one of the most powerful to which man is subject1 and as it plays so great a part in our lives it must necessarily figure largely in our stories4 ,but it must be treated there because of the manner in which it influences human life and action1 and not from the ethical standpoint3 it must be made literature and not religious dogmatism4 ,that it can be so treated and yet retain the full strength of its power for good is best illustrated in the works of ,miss ,wilkins4 ,nearly every one of her stories possesses a strong element of ,new ,england ,puritanism1 but there is no attempt to preach or moralize4 ,the short story must be well proportioned3 those parts which are essential differ materially in their importance1 and they must be valued and handled in accordance with their influence upon the plot4 ,no scene1 however cleverly done1 must be allowed to monopolize the space of the story1 except in so far as it is necessary to an understanding of what follows2 and no incident which furthers the plot1 however trivial or ordinary it may seem to you1 must be slighted4 ,the preservation of the balance of the story is not wholly a matter of the number of words involved3 often a page of idle chatter by the characters makes less impression on the reader than a single terse direct sentence by the author himself2 but in general the practice is to value the various parts of the story by the word space accorded them4 ,this rule will not1 however1 hold good in the case of the climax1 which is estimated both by its position and by the manner in which it is worked up to4 ,the story proper is really only the preparation for the climax4 ,most stories depend for their interest upon the pleasure with which we follow the principal characters through various trying episodes1 and the great desire which we all experience to know how it all comes out4 ,it is this innate sense1 which seems to be a phase of curiosity1 that affords the pleasure that the average reader derives from fiction4 ,one seldom stops to consider how a story is written1 but judges it by its power to keep him absorbed in the fortunes of its hero and heroine4 ,this is the element of suspense4 ,however1 there finally comes a point when the suspense cannot be longer continued1 and the strained attention of the reader is on the verge of collapsing into indifference1 when the curiosity must be gratified by at least a partial revelation2 and so the element of surprise enters4 ,too long a strain on the interest is invariably fatal1 and the thing is to know when to relieve the tension4 ,just when this relief should occur depends upon the plot and the length of the story1 so that the question must be settled separately for each particular case4 ,as has already been said1 the plot of a short story should not be involved2 yet it may be permitted some degree of complexity4 ,in such a case it is probable that there must be some preliminary relief of suspense before the final relief which the climax offers4 ,however1 because of the usual simplicity of the plot1 the length of the story has greater influence in regulating the relief of the suspense4 ,in a story of #c1jjj words or less there is neither room nor necessity for any preliminary surprise1 and the most effective method is to withhold all hints at the outcome until the actual climax1 as ,hawthorne did in ,the ,ambitious ,guest4 ,but when the story approaches or exceeds #aj1jjj words it is probable that there must be some lessening of the tension previous to the climax1 as in ,henry ,james' ,the ,lesson of the ,master4 ,this story1 which contains #be1jjj words1 is divided into six parts1 each representing a separate scene in the progress of the story2 and yet1 so skillful is ,james1 there is no hiatus between the parts1 and the story as a whole has unity of impression4 ,at the end of each part the reader has made a definite advance toward the point of the story1 through the preliminary relief of suspense afforded by that part1 as a study of this brief outline will show3 ,i ,at the end ,paul ,overt first sees ,henry ,st4 ,george1 and the reader receives a definite picture of the great author1 who has hitherto been only a name4 ,,ii ,at the end the two meet1 and the picture is given life4 ,,iii ,all through this division ,st4 ,george reveals to ,overt his real character1 so that when the end comes ,overt has a less exalted idea of the master than that which he had cherished4 ,,iv ,at the end ,marion ,fancourt tells ,overt of ,st4 ,george's declared intention to cease visiting her4 ,this relieves suspense by making ,overt's position toward her more definite1 but also involves matters because of ,st4 ,george's failure to give any good reason for his action4 ,v ,at the end ,overt1 by the advice of ,st4 ,george1 sacrifices in the cause of true art all his natural desires for love and domestic joys4 ,,vi ,in the first part ,overt learns of ,st4 ,george's engagement to ,miss ,fancourt4 ,at the end ,st4 ,george tells ,overt that he has given up writing to enjoy those very things which he advised ,overt to renounce4 ,a study of this outline will show you the necessity1 in the case of this story1 of these preliminary reliefs of the suspense4 ,it would have been absurdly impossible to have tried to hold in abeyance until the climax all these matters2 nor does the solving of any of these minor perplexities at all lessen the interest in the denouement4 ,each bit of information comes out at the proper time as a matter of course1 just as it would come to our knowledge if we were observing a similar drama in real life4 ,when the outcome of the writer's meanderings is finally revealed1 it should be a veritable surprise--i4 e41 be unexpected4 ,this is a matter that is rather easily managed1 for it is a poor plot that does not afford at least two settlements--either the heroine marries the hero1 or she marries the villain2 and often there is a third possibility1 that she marries neither4 ,if he has provided a proper plot1 the author has but little to do with making the surprise genuine1 and that little is rather negative4 ,he opens the possibility of the hero doing any one of a number of things1 and he may even give rather broad hints1 but he should take care never to give a clue to the outcome of the story1 unless he purposely gives a misleading clue4 ,the most artistic method is to make these hints progressive and culminative1 so that though each one adds to the knowledge of the reader1 it is only when they all culminate in the climax that the mystery is completely solved4 ,this preparation for the climax is one of the most delicate tasks required of the short story writer4 ,the climax must seem the logical result of events and personal characteristics already recited4 ,if it is too startling or unexpected it will be a strain on the credulity of the reader1 and will be dubbed unnatural2 for though fiction allows great license in the employment of strange people and situations1 it demands that they be used with some regard for plausibility4 ,the ending must appear inevitable--but its inevitableness must not be apparent until the end has come4 ,it is only after the story has been read that the reader should be able to look back through the narrative and pick out the preparatory touches4 ,they must have influenced him when first he read them and prepared him for what was to come1 but without his being conscious of their influence4 ,the novice usually prepares the way for his climax so carefully that he gives it away long before he should4 ,this he does either by means of anticipatory side remarks1 or by making the outcome of his story so obvious at the start that he really has no story to tell1 and a climax or surprise is impossible4 ,the first fault is much the easier to correct3 most of the side remarks can be cut out bodily without injury to the story1 and those which are really necessary can be so modified and slurred over that they will prepare the way for the climax without revealing it4 ,the other fault is usually radical3 it is the result of a conventional plot treated in the conventional manner4 ,it is beyond help so far as concerns that particular story1 for it requires a new plot handled in an original manner2 but its recurrence can be prevented if the writer will be more exacting in his selection of plots1 and more individual in his methods4 ,it can usually be detected in the beginning1 as in the case of the last example quoted in ,chapter ,,viii4 ,in ,the ,ambitious ,guest the climax is led up to most skillfully by ,hawthorne2 indeed1 his preparation is so clever that it is not always easy to trace4 ,throughout the story there are an air of gloom and a strange turning to thoughts of death that seem to portend a catastrophe2 and ,i believe the following passages are intentional notes of warning3 #a 444 a cold spot and a dangerous one4444 stones would often rumble down its sides and startle them at midnight4 #b 444 the wind came through the ,notch and seemed to pause before their cottage1 444 wailing and lamentation4444 ,for a moment it saddened them1 though there was nothing unusual in the tones4 #c 444 whose fate was linked with theirs4 #h 7,entire47 #i 7,entire47 #aj 444 a prophetic sympathy 444 the kindred of a common fate4444 #ab 7,entire47 #ad 444 a noble pedestal for a man's statue4 7,doubtful47 #af 444 things that are pretty certain never to come to pass4 #ag 444 when he is a widower4 #ah ,when ,i think of your death1 ,esther1 ,i think of mine too4 ,but ,i was wishing we had a good farm 444 round the ,white ,mountains1 but not where they could tumble on our heads4444 ,i might die happy enough in my bed4444 ,a slate gravestone would suit me as well as a marble one4444 #bj ,they say it's a sign of something when folk's minds go a-wandering so4 #bb 444 go and take a drink out of the basin of the ,flume4 7,doubtful2 unless regarded as the result of some subtle warning to fly the spot47 #bf 444 though their music and mirth came back drearily from the heart of the mountain4 #bh 444 a light cloud passed over the daughter's spirit4444 #cb 444 it might blossom in ,paradise1 since it could not be matured on earth 444 the wind through the ,notch took a deeper and drearier sound4444 ,there was a wail along the road as if a funeral were passing4 #cf 7,entire47 #ch 7,entire47 #ci 7,entire47 ,a novice writing the same story would hardly have refrained from introducing some very bald hints concerning the fate of the ambitious stranger2 for the novice has a mistaken idea that wordy and flowery exclamations make sad events all the sadder1 forgetting that silent grief is the keenest4 ,thus the novice would have interlarded his narrative with such exclamations as3 #ab4 ,ah6 could the unfortunate stranger but have guessed the culmination of his bright dreams1 how would he have bewailed his fate6 #ai4 ,unhappy youth6 his grave was to be unmarked1 his very death in doubt6 #bh4 ,poor girl6 had she a premonition of her awful death8 ,such interpolations are very exasperating to the reader1 for he much prefers to learn for himself the outcome of the tale2 and they also greatly offend against the rhetorical correctness of the story1 for they are always utterly irrelevant and obstructive4 ,the only stories which may properly anticipate their own denouements are what might be called stories of premonition1 in which the interest depends upon comparing actual events to the prophecy of dreams or some other mystical agency4 ,in such tales the real interest is usually in the weirdness of the whole affair--though1 to be sure1 they do not always turn out as they are expected to4 ,for1 after all1 this introduction of surprise into fiction is simply an imitation of nature1 and it is the unexpected that always happens4 ,,footnotes3 ,footnote #cg3 ,see ,chapter ,x4 ,footnote #ch3 ,see ,chapter ,,viii for the best methods of introducing foundation facts4 ,footnote #ci3 ,the ,art of ,fiction4 ,a lecture by ,gilbert ,parker4 ,the ,critic4 ,dec41 '#ih4 ,footnote #dj3 ,magazine ,fiction and ,how ,not to ,write ,it1 by ,frederick ,m4 ,bird4 ,lippincott's4 ,nov41 '#id4 ,footnote #da3 ,how to ,write ,fiction4 ,published anonymously by ,bellaires ,co41 ,london4 ,part ,i1 ,chapter ,v4 ,x ,,climax ,,and ,,conclusion ,if the overworked editor1 hastily skimming the heap of ,,mss4 before him1 comes upon one which promises well in the opening paragraphs1 he will turn to its conclusion1 to learn how well the author has kept his promise2 and if he finds there equal evidence of a good story1 he will put the ,,ms4 by for more careful reading and possible purchase4 ,experience has taught him that the end of a story is second only to the beginning as a practical test of the narrative2 and therefore to the author as well the conclusion is of extreme importance4 ,the end of a short story comprises the climax and the conclusion4 ,the climax is the chief surprise1 the relief of the suspense1 or the greatest relief1 if there is more than one2 it is the apex of interest and emotion2 it is the point of the story2 it is really the story4 ,the conclusion is the solving of all problems1 the termination of the narrative itself1 and the artistic severing of all relations between narrator and reader4 ,the climax1 in spite of its importance1 is but a small part of the story1 so far as mere words are concerned4 ,in a properly constructed narrative its influence is felt throughout the whole story1 which1 as already stated1 is but one long preparation for it4 ,but in itself the climax is usually confined to a single paragraph of ordinary length2 and the climax proper1 the real point of the story1 is usually conveyed in a half dozen words4 ,for the climax1 and particularly the climax proper1 is the story concentrated in a single phrase4 ,it must have been prepared for carefully and worked up to at some length2 but when it does come it must be expressed so directly and so forcefully that it will make the reader jump mentally1 if not physically4 ,it is the desire to produce this startling effect that leads some writers to endeavor to gain artificial force by printing their climax proper in italics1 or even in capitals4 ,in ,the ,ambitious ,guest we have an unusually strong and perfect climax in #dj1 #da3 444 a sound abroad in the night1 rising like the roar of a blast1 had grown broad1 deep and terrible before the fated group were conscious of it4 ,the house and all within it trembled2 the foundations of the earth seemed to be shaken1 as if this awful sound was the peal of the last trump4 ,young and old exchanged one wild glance and remained an instant pale1 affrighted1 without utterance or power to move4 ,then the same shriek burst simultaneously from all their lips3 ,the slide6 ,the slide6 while the climax proper--the climax of the climax--occurs in the four words which compose #da4 ,the slide6 ,the slide6 ,it is hardly necessary to say that the climax should be very near the end of the story1 for even those stories which attempt to begin in the middle and go both ways at once place the climax properly4 ,but there is a danger that the climax will come too soon4 ,after they have reached what is properly a central point in their story1 amateurs often become lazy or in too great a hurry1 and rush the latter part of the narrative through unceremoniously4 ,in the first part they may have been inclined to go into needless detail2 but when once they come in sight of the finish1 they forget everything except that their task is nearly ended2 they plunge ahead regardless1 treat important matters most superficially1 neglect those skillful little touches which go to make a story natural and literary1 and reach the end to find that they have skeletonized an important part of the narrative4 ,in such a case the reader is very apt to come upon the climax unexpectedly1 and so to find it forced and illogical2 whereas if the author had preserved the proportions of his narrative1 and led up to his climax properly1 it would have been accounted strong and inevitable4 ,the climax of a story must be a genuine climax--that is1 it must be the culmination of the interest of the story1 and it must definitely end and eliminate the element of suspense4 ,the climax1 or its immediate consequences1 must decide the destinies of all your characters1 and the fate of all their schemes4 ,if the heroine is hesitating between her two lovers she must decide in the climax or on account of it2 if the hero is in a position of great danger he must be killed or saved4 ,the revelation need not be couched in the bald phrase1 ,and so ,john married ,kate2 but it may be hinted at or suggested in the most subtle manner2 but settled in some way it must be4 ,stockton did otherwise in ,the ,lady1 or the ,tiger8 but he sought for humorous effect1 and all things are fair in the funny story4 ,stories which are meant to be serious1 but which leave the reader still puzzling over the possibilities of the plot1 are likely to get their author into serious difficulties with the reading public1 even if the editors can be persuaded to overlook his idiosyncracies4 ,the amateur is prone to the conviction1 deduced1 ,i fear1 from the practice of the cheap melodrama and the cheaper novel1 that climax and tragedy are synonymous terms1 and that he is violating sacred traditions unless he ends his tale with a violent death4 ,but it is by no means necessary that the climax of a short story should be or should contain a catastrophe or a tragedy4 ,its nature depends entirely upon the character of the tale in which it appears1 and it may be just as strong and just as thrilling if it consists only of the ,yes with which the heroine answers the hero's wooing4 ,indeed1 it not infrequently happens that the tragedy or the catastrophe which appears in the climax is only an accessory to the real climax1 a cause or a result of it4 ,the climax of ,the ,ambitious ,guest is a tragedy2 but the climax of ,irving's ,the ,legend of ,sleepy ,hollow1 though certainly a catastrophe1 is anything but tragic1 if read in the ironic spirit in which it was written3 ,another convulsive kick in the ribs1 and old ,gunpowder sprang upon the bridge2 he thundered over the resounding planks2 he gained the opposite side2 and now ,ichabod cast a look behind to see if his pursuer should vanish1 according to rule1 in a flash of fire and brimstone4 ,just then he saw the goblin rising in his stirrups1 and in the very act of hurling his head at him4 ,ichabod endeavored to dodge the horrible missile1 but too late4 ,it encountered his cranium with a tremendous crash2 he was tumbled headlong into the dust1 and ,gunpowder1 the black steed1 and the goblin rider passed by like a whirlwind4 ,while in ,poe's ,the ,black ,cat1 one tragedy is a preliminary of the climax and another is in a manner the result of it2 but the real climax is the discovery of the cat3 444 a dozen stout arms were toiling at the wall4 ,it fell bodily4 ,the corpse1 already greatly decayed and clotted with gore1 stood erect before the eyes of the spectators4 ,on its head1 with red extended mouth and solitary eye of fire1 sat the hideous beast whose craft had seduced me into murder1 and whose informing voice had consigned me to the hangman4 ,i had walled the monster up within the tomb6 ,nor does the mere introduction of a tragedy make a climax1 for though the following paragraphs contain two tragedies1 there is no climactic force3 ,joseph1 who had been sitting with his head on his knees1 and wondering what in the world was going to happen1 raised his head1 and exclaimed1 on seeing his brother1 ,you have come after me-- ,at this instant some one struck him on the head with a pistol1 which brought him to the floor4 ,but ,harry1 hearing the familiar voice1 and seeing the man also1 knew too well who it was4 ,he shouted at the top of his voice1 ,stop6 ,wait6 ,this thing must be investigated6 ,telling them who the prisoner was1 and pleading with them1 he was finally able to disperse the mob1 though against their own will4 ,the next morning1 when ,mamie was brought to consciousness again1 she begged that he should not be punished4 ,on learning the truth he was immediately released1 but the bitter grief1 mingled with so much excitement1 was more than he could endure4 ,he died that night at ten4 ,the bitterness occasioned by this catastrophe remained in the bosom of ,mamie1 and she too died of a broken heart4 ,the plot of a certain type of story requires subordinate and preliminary climaxes to relieve the tension or advance the action1 as already stated4#db ,such periods1 when given genuine climactic force1 are antagonistic to the spirit of the short story1 in that they violate the unity1 and a story containing them is usually faulty otherwise2 but such stories have been written by good writers and so must be recognized here4 ,the preliminary climaxes must be sufficiently few1 sufficiently subordinate and sufficiently distant not to detract from the force of the chief climax4 ,the main point is to see that one of the preliminary climaxes is not really the climax1 for inexperienced writers sometimes allow their stories to run on longer than they should2 or they confuse what is merely an incident with what should be made the main crisis4 ,in ,the ,ambitious ,guest there is only one climax2 but in ,hawthorne's ,mr4 ,higginbotham's ,catastrophe ,i find no less than five critical points1 which ,i here subpend with the numbers of the paragraphs in which they occur3 #g4 ,old ,mr4 ,higginbotham of ,kimballton was murdered in his orchard at eight o'clock last night by an ,irishman and a nigger4 ,they strung him up to the branch of a ,st4 ,michael's pear tree where nobody would find him till the morning4 #ad4 444 if squire ,higginbotham was murdered night before last ,i drank a glass of bitters with his ghost this morning4 ,being a neighbor of mine1 he called me into his store as ,i was riding by1 and treated me4444 #ba4 ,no1 no6 ,there was no colored man4 ,it was an ,irishman that hanged him last night at eight o'clock2 ,i came away at seven4 #cf4 ,i left ,kimballton this morning to spend the vacation of commencement-week with a friend about five miles from ,parker's ,falls4 ,my generous uncle1 when he heard me on the stairs1 called me to his bedside and gave me two dollars and fifty cents to pay my stage-fare1 and another dollar for my extra expenses4 #di4 ,he rushed forward1 prostrated a sturdy ,irishman with the butt-end of his whip1 and found--not1 indeed1 hanging on the ,st4 ,michael's pear tree1 but trembling beneath it with a halter round his neck--the old identical ,mr4 ,higginbotham4 ,these several climaxes form a perfect series1 each a little higher than its predecessor1 and all logically culminating in the chief climax of the story in #di2 and by this progressive and culminative effect they go far to preserve the sense of unity which their presence endangers4 ,such real if minor climaxes are entirely different from the several stages of the story illustrated in ,chapter ,,ix by ,james' ,the ,lesson of the ,master4 ,the novice usually has some hazy conception of the importance of a climax1 and endeavors according to his lights to attain the desired effect1 but he is seldom successful4 ,most frequently he is handicapped by his plot1 which is not designed to produce a successful climax4 ,if he has escaped that danger he is liable to ruin a possible good climax by too abrupt an introduction4 ,his nearest approach to success is what may be called a false or technical climax1 in the use of which he is very skillful--too skillful1 indeed1 for his own good4 ,this false climax is produced by breaking off the narrative abruptly the moment the suspense of the story is terminated4 ,it is really an abrupt conclusion1 and not a climax at all2 and it produces the jump in the reader's mind by its suddenness1 and not by its concentrated force4 ,it is sometimes made more pointed by the use of italics or capitals4 ,thus the following final paragraphs1 which are typical of the work of the novice1 have no hint of a climax as they stand3 444 ,mrs4 ,moore sat gazing into the glowing grate4 ,well1 truants1 where have you been all this time8 ,i-- ,she stopped suddenly as she saw ,nettie's blushes1 and the happy look on ,guy's face4 ,mother1 ,nettie has made me the happiest man in existence1 by consenting to be my wife4 ,and we have come to ask your blessing4 ,it is heartily given1 my dear children4 ,nothing could give me more pleasure than to see you two happily married1 said she1 kissing them4 ,by the way1 how did you young people happen to make this wonderful discovery8 ,well1 mother1 ,i have had some serious thoughts about the matter ever since ,i surprised you and ,nettie last ,september1 but ,i never dared to put my thoughts into words till to-day4 ,i don't remember that you surprised ,nettie4 ,she was out in the orchard1 she told me1 when you arrived4 ,yes1 ,i believe ,i remember finding her in the orchard1 and he gave a ludicrous description of their first meeting4 ,that accounts for ,nettie's blushes when ,i introduced you that day4 ,you won't go west now1 will you1 ,guy8 ,i shall have to1 mother2 but ,i'll sell out at the first opportunity4 ,in the meantime ,i think we had better notify aunt ,adams that she is doomed to have a son-in-law4 ,i have thought of an excellent plan1 said ,nettie4 ,let's all go east for the holidays4 ,only1 for goodness' sake1 don't tell ,edith and ,maud about my exploits in the apple tree4 ,they would be so shocked at my lack of dignity4 ,so the following week they started for ,nettie's home4 ,guy soon won ,mrs4 ,adams' consent to her daughter's marriage1 which was arranged to take place the following ,september4 ,that is the month in which the old apple tree bears its most delicious fruit1 ,guy whispered to ,nettie4 ,if1 however1 the author had stopped with the third paragraph1 he would have had at least a false or technical climax4 ,this false climax must not be confused with the coincident real climax and abrupt ending discussed further on4 ,when the climax has come the story has reached its end and the quicker you terminate it the better your reader will be pleased4 ,with the passing of the climax interest ceases1 and you have only to gather up and explain the few unsettled points1 and round off your narrative gracefully4 ,any further interest in your characters is little more than a sense of politeness due to old acquaintances2 or1 at most1 a psychological desire for complete impressions4 ,so when you have told your tale1 end it4 ,for the conclusion1 as for the beginning1 one paragraph is about the average length4 ,the practice differs1 of course1 with different writers and different stories1 but there is not so much variance as in the beginnings4 ,an effective climax often completes a story in the most satisfactory way4 ,in ,the ,ambitious ,guest ,hawthorne employs three paragraphs 7 #db-dd71 exclusive of the climax itself1 to conclude the story4 ,each of these three paragraphs contains matter necessary to the completion of the tale in ,hawthorne's style4 ,it is probable that a modern writer would have condensed them into a single paragraph1 because of the modern demand for extreme compression2 but with the possible exception of the last two sentences of #dd there is nothing irrelevant in the conclusion4 ,in ,the ,birthmark1 and ,young ,goodman ,brown1 ,hawthorne uses but a single paragraph for his conclusion4 ,the conclusion and the climax should be as nearly simultaneous as possible4 ,the present tendency is to make them coincide1 and so increase the effect of the climax by making it the actual end of the story1 as it is the end of the interest4 ,it is not always that the coincidence can be perfect1 but many a story could be cut short immediately after the climax1 and be much improved thereby4 ,for example1 if ,hawthorne had written ,the ,ambitious ,guest to-day it is probable that he would have ended it with #dd3 ,the slide6 ,the slide6 ,had he done so he would certainly have given additional force to his climax1 strong though it is now2 and ,i believe that any reader would have understood perfectly all that is contained in #db-dd4 ,you must be careful1 however1 in the use of this style of conclusion1 lest your supposed climax is merely an abrupt ending--a false climax--which leaves unsettled some things which a further conclusion should make clear4 ,not every plot allows an abrupt ending1 even though it may have a good climax1 and you must suit your method to your matter4 ,in any case1 the story must convey a complete impression4 ,but the conclusion must not be padded with irrelevant matter to make it appear rounded1 or to please the perverted taste of the writer4 ,the end is allowed scant space and has even less room for sage observations1 or pointing of morals1 or lamentations over the sins or misfortunes portrayed than have the other parts of the story4 ,in the example already quoted the narrative drags on for some nine paragraphs after the story is really ended1 without adding anything of interest or value4 ,happily such conclusions are infrequent1 but the best of writers are occasionally dragged into them through their reluctance to quit forever scenes and people that have grown dear to them through close association4 ,a somewhat similar method of padding out the conclusion to the detriment of the story is to end with a catch word referring to the beginning1 as in the following example1 where the blackberry girl is a reminder of the title3 ,i hope these few surprises of mine may serve as a lesson to some young man1 and help to teach him to prove true to his first love1 though she may appear to be only a poor girl--yes1 even a blackberry girl4 ,of all poor conclusions the conventional is most to be feared by the novice1 for it is surely fatal to the story to which it is attached4 ,if the story is conventional in plot and treatment it is inevitable that its ending should be conventional1 so here again we see the necessity of originality of plot4 ,but too often a writer1 after having successfully carried his story past the climax1 will grow weary or careless and end it with the conventional ideas and phrases which were worn threadbare ages ago4 ,the inexperienced writer of the gentler sex is peculiarly liable to be guilty of using conventional endings4 ,to her mind1 apparently1 the chief end of man is marriage1 and the proper end of a story is a wedding4 ,it must be acknowledged that this is the only logical conclusion to her stories1 for from the moment they appear in the opening paragraphs the reader knows that in the last the hero will marry the heroine1 willy nilly1 at the behest of the matchmaking authoress4 ,to the author1 who has suffered with and on account of his characters more intensely than any reader can suffer1 there is something amusing in this anxiety to have the old formula1 ',and they all lived happy ever afterwards1' repeated at the end of every tale4 ,a tiny bonne bouche of happiness is so inadequate after some stories of sorrow that it seems almost an irony to offer it to the readers2 and yet1 like children who have taken a bitter medicine1 they are very likely to complain that they have had no taste of sweetness1 if it is not offered to them4444 ,the common feeling that death is inevitably sad is responsible for much of the stress which is laid upon the endings of books4 ,that1 and the belief that people who love each other can have no joy or benefit of life if they must live apart1 have set up two formal and arbitrary conditions which a story must fulfil in order to be considered cheerful4 ,the principal characters may go through fire and water if necessary1 but they must get rid of their smoke stains and dry their costumes in time to appear alive and smiling in the final chapter2 and the hero and the heroine must marry each other1 or1 if the writer has allowed their affections to wander further afield1 they must at least marry the people of their choice4 ,these1 of course1 are not the standards of the most thoughtful readers1 and yet1 like all conventionalities1 they extend further than an author likes to believe4#dc ,the fact is1 however1 that if real people were constantly thrown at one another's heads so determinedly it would take a stronger power than even the omnipotent literary aspirant to force them into matrimony4 ,nor are weddings1 or descriptions thereof1 particularly delectable reading when they desert the society column for the short story4 ,they are usually very much alike--though one original writer did perform her ceremony up a tree--and the bride always wears the same dresses and smiles the same smiles and weeps the same tears4 ,so if you must have a wedding1 let the reader off with the classic formula1 ,and so they were married and lived happily ever after2 but don't inflict on him such cheap sentimentalism as this3 ,christmas morning was clear1 cold and bright1 just such a morning as had marked ,fred's first departure from the ,blanford's some three years before4 ,grace's sisters had come home to take charge of affairs for the day and evening so ,grace did not have much to see after but herself4 ,fred1 supposing he would rather be in the way1 did not arrive until about an hour before the ceremony was to take place1 which was in the evening4 ,a good many guests were invited and as they had already begun to arrive1 ,grace but barely had time to greet ,fred1 when she found she must withdraw and don her wedding garment4 ,if ,grace had looked pretty with her gown held up about her a few weeks ago1 she now looked handsome indeed as she came into the well crowded room4 ,her rich silk gown fell in deep soft folds at her dainty feet4 ,the soft creamy lace fell about her well shaped neck in clusters2 the color of the gown made her hair and eyes look black as jet2 and the excitement still kept the roses in her cheeks4 ,fred did not look so handsome1 but no one could help admire the manly form as he stood beside ,grace answering the questions that were to acknowledge them man and wife4 ,as soon as the ceremony was over and congratulations had been extended to the bride and groom1 they were ushered in to a nicely prepared supper4 ,a merry ,christmas evening was spent4 ,grace's brothers did not lose their housekeeper1 as she and ,fred made their home with them4 ,they spent their days not like the hurrying brook1 but grasped all the sunshine that was meant for them4 ,and in general it is much better--better art and better manners--for you to draw the reader politely aside as soon as the heroine has whispered the inevitable ,yes2 for what follows should not be spied upon by any third party4 ,,footnotes3 ,footnote #db3 ,see preparation for the climax in ,chapter ,,ix4 ,footnote #dc3 ,the ,problem of ,endings1 by ,mary ,tracy ,earle4 ,the ,book ,buyer4 ,aug4 '#ih4 ,,xi ,,the ,,style ,the method of presentation of the short story is a matter of import4 ,its very artificiality calls for skilled workmanship2 it must be made pleasant and readable by all known devices2 its brevity1 too1 permits and demands a higher finish than is necessary in the novel4 ,and altogether the short story offers a writer who is not exactly a genius a rare chance to show his ability as an artist in words4 ,hence the question of style is of serious moment4 ,style is so much a matter of individuality1 and the short story comprises so broad a range of subjects1 that it is not easy to lay down general rules concerning the proper style4 ,no two masters would or could treat the same plot in precisely the same way1 and yet the method of each would be correct4 ,however1 certain generalizations concerning the style of the short story may be made without being arbitrary4 ,as always in literature1 the style should be appropriate to the matter4 ,this may seem entirely gratuitous1 yet the examination of the work of amateurs will justify the remark4 ,they are apt to treat serious subjects with the most unbecoming levity1 and to dress commonplaces in an absurdly ornate style2 and at times they so far disregard propriety that they offend against good taste4 ,the style of the short story should be simple1 easy and concise4 ,usually the matter is not of great moment2 it is incidental rather than critical2 and it offers little reason for exaggerated expressions1 or rotund periods4 ,above all it should be natural1 for the short story1 despite its many conventionalities1 is very near to nature4 ,the extreme sensationalism affected by many amateurs is most absurd1 for nature and things true to nature can never be really sensational--a fact which is unconsciously recognized by the offending writer in his resort to artificial means to make his narrative sensational4 ,i say extreme sensationalism because ,i believe a certain amount of what is commonly designated sensationalism is permissible in the short story to sustain the interest1 and to produce that delightful thrill which accompanies a clever scene4 ,the best rule for the novice is to stick close to nature--that is1 to fact4 ,he may present what startling effects he will so that he can prove them copies of nature1 and so that they do not offend against art2 but it is not permitted him to harrow the feelings of his readers by unduly dwelling upon exciting topics4 ,any undue exaggeration of this style1 or any attempt to create excitement by sheer force of italics1 capitals and exclamation points1 is in extremely bad taste4 ,it at once disgusts the intelligent reader1 and it will soon so weary even the ignorant that he will yawn drearily over the most startling display of scare lines4 ,the necessity for a simple style must not be made an excuse for commonplaceness2 and here the author confronts rather a serious question1 for everyday life abounds in commonplaces1 which literature will not tolerate4 ,if we make our stories readable we must1 in some degree1 represent life2 if we represent life we cannot wholly avoid commonplaces2 if we do not avoid commonplaces we become unliterary4 ,however1 the difficulty is more easily solved than at first appears1 and the solution lies in the very life which we portray4 ,life certainly is full of the baldest facts1 but they are so subordinated to the relatively few but important events by which our lives are checkered that we shortly forget the commonplaces and remember only the striking occurrences4 ,in like manner we should so preserve the proportion of our stories that the necessary commonplaces1 while they properly perform their parts1 shall be carefully subjugated to the interesting happenings4 ,this is largely a matter of the handling1 for in fiction events seem great or small in accordance with the space and treatment that they receive4 ,the way1 then1 to dispose of commonplaces is to slight them as much as possible3 to crowd them into the least possible space1 and to couch them in ordinary language2 for thoughts that are rendered unusual by their expression become conspicuous4 ,by ordinary language ,i do not mean the stereotyped phrases which the mentally lazy employ in the expression of their thoughts1 but the simple1 correct and rather colorless speech which is heard among the truly cultured4 ,indeed1 sensationalism is preferable to the deadly monotony of the writer who is wont to clothe his ideas in the ready-made garments of conventional phrases2 for sensationalism has at least the merit of vividness4 ,the writer who penned the following could hardly have been more absurdly commonplace and stereotyped in his phraseology if he had been ridiculing some popular author of cheap literature1 but he wrote in serious earnest2 the story throughout is a perfect gold mine of such hackneyed expressions4 ,i have italicized the most offensive1 though it is hardly necessary4 ,faint rumors of a church scandal permeated the very atmosphere in ,frankton1 and every one was on the alert to catch the faintest whisper in regard to the matter2 as the minister was a social favorite1 and it was known by an inside few that he was the one most seriously involved4 ,for a long time the matter was suppressed1 and then first one hint after another leaked out that ,mrs4 ,daniels1 the minister's wife1 was a most unhappy woman1 and that there was another woman in the case4 ,at first the members of the congregation hooted at the idea2 but when item after item of scandal came to their notice they begun to take a little notice1 and it was noticeable that a good many enquiries were going the rounds1 just to satisfy themselves as to the ridiculous part of it1 so the curiosity seekers explained4 ,other writers attempt to make their commonplaces literary by couching them in stilted language1 and then we have what is technically termed fine writing4 ,it is to this tendency that we owe such phrases as1 ,after the customary salutations he sought the arms of ,morpheus1 and ,upon rising in the morning he partook of an abundant repast1 when the author meant merely to say1 ,after saying good night he went to bed1 and ,he breakfasted4 ,this error is due to the mistaken idea that things which are common are necessarily vulgar1 and to an absurd squeamish objection to call a spade1 a spade4 ,it is the worst possible way to handle commonplaces1 for it attracts particular attention to the very things which it is supposed to hide4 ,but the writer may purposely subordinate commonplace facts1 and yet suffer from a commonplace style1 if he fails to give his narrative character4 ,it is then that the young writer resorts to the use of poetry1 quoted and original1 with which he interlards his stories and the speeches of his characters4 ,the poetry may be good1 even if it is original1 and it may be very apt1 but few people in real life quote poetry in their ordinary speech4 ,you may be well read in poetry and the kindred arts1 but it is hardly the part of modesty or discretion for you to force your quotations upon a reader who very likely cares neither for your erudition nor the poets themselves4 ,it is bad technically1 too2 and usually1 as in the case of the following specimen1 shows that the author has a wider acquaintance with the poets than with the rhetoricians4 ,algernon ,long was not a person of unbalanced mind1 nor was he superstitious in his interpretations of signs1 visions and dreams to which so many attach supernatural importance2 he was simply a successful man of the world1 full of life and buoyancy1 devoted to his occupation1 that of a stock-broker1 and to his domestic and social relations4 ,and yet he believed with ,lord ,byron1 that ,our life is twofold2 sleep hath its own world1 ,and a wide realm of wild reality1 ,and dreams that in their development have breath1 ,and tears and tortures and the touch of joy2 ,they leave a weight upon our waking thoughts1 ,they take a weight from off our waking toils4 ,they do divide our being1 ,they speak like sibyls of the future4 ,a number of his most cherished friends had recently passed away into that undiscovered country1 from whose bourne no traveller returns4 ,the loss to him was intolerable2 the experience the most painful he had ever known4 ,each case seemed more cruel than its predecessor2 to himself personally most suggestive4 ,he was now in mature manhood1 and could thoroughly appreciate the poet's lines3 ,life is real1 life is earnest1 ,and the grave is not its goal4 ,so strong is the tendency of the short story toward simplicity that even figures of speech are to be avoided4 ,this does not mean that we are carefully to discard any expression which savors of the figurative3 such a thing would be absurd1 for literature and everyday speech abound in figurative language which passes current unquestioned4 ,but figures which are introduced simply for literary effect are unnatural1 and so are to be avoided4 ,they are really digressions1 excrescences--beautiful enough in themselves1 perhaps1 but assuredly adding no beauty to the narrative4 ,principal among such figures employed by amateurs are the long complex metaphors and similes in which epic poetry delights2 the figure of apostrophe1 too1 is much affected by tyros1 because it affords them opportunity to coin orotund phrases concerning the irony of fate1 the haplessness of true lovers1 and kindred favorite topics4 ,foreign words and phrases form another sad stumbling block in the way of a simple natural style4 ,they have their uses1 of course--and one is to betray the novice4 ,he fondly imagines that a sprinkling of ,french phrases gives his narrative a delightful air of cosmopolitanism2 and that as an evidence of culture a line from ,horace or ,homer is equal to a college degree4 ,so he thumbs the back of his dictionary1 culls therefrom trite quotations with which to deck his writing1 and never uses an ,english word when he knows a similar ,french one4 ,the employment of a foreign word or phrase to express an idea which can be equally well couched in ,english is the cheapest sort of a literary trick1 and it is the unmistakable badge of hopeless mediocrity and self-complacency4 ,expressions from other languages may be judiciously and legitimately used to give local color1 and they are1 of course1 indispensable in the speeches of certain character types2 but as a rule there is no better medium for your thoughts than good wholesome ,english4 ,you will notice that ,i specify the sort of ,english you should use1 for many who avoid foreign idioms fall into the equally bad habit of using poor and incorrect ,english4 ,i am not referring to the speeches of the characters1 whose privileges in this respect ,i have already discussed2 but in the necessary introductory and connective phrases you should take exquisite pains to keep your ,english pure4 ,the use of slang is of course absolutely inexcusable1 for it offends against good taste as well as good rhetoric2 but the employment of words in a careless or perverted meaning is equally condemnable4 ,it is also a mistake to use too many adjectives1 to throw every adjective and adverb into the superlative degree1 and in other ways to exaggerate every expression which you use4 ,much of this misuse of words is due to ignorance1 but more to carelessness or laziness2 in any case you can detect your faults if you seek for them1 and you should take immediate steps to correct them1 with the help of a dictionary1 or a rhetoric1 or both4 ,the style of the short story should be easy and flowing1 so that it shall be pleasant reading4 ,good ideas may be expressed in good language and still be afflicted with a nervousness or stiffness of style that will make the work difficult of perusal1 and so lessen its power to hold the reader4 ,one of the first requisites for this desired ease is a lightness of phrasing which is at once a matter of thought and of rhetorical construction4 ,try to avoid heaviness and austerity of thought as much as you would similar qualities in writing4 ,get at the lighter1 brighter1 perhaps more frivolous side of things2 do not take your work too seriously1 you are seldom writing tragedies2 permit yourself to be humorous1 witty1 a little ironical2 do not plunge too deeply into dark abysses of metaphysics or theology4 ,i do not mean that you should not treat of serious things1 or that you should make light of serious subjects2 but there are several ways of looking at any matter1 and the atmosphere of intense and morbid gloom which ,poe casts over so many of his weird tales is not characteristic of the short story in general4 ,at the same time ,i am far from advocating flippancy or superficiality1 for both are deadly sins in literature4 ,i merely wish to impress upon you the absurdity of the solemn tone which some amateurs seem to think a mark of depth of thought or feeling4 ,an apt1 simple phrase is the most forceful means of expression known to literature4 ,your bright thoughts should be expressed in words and sentences which are in themselves light and easy4 ,there is a good deal of difference between words which may mean the same thing1 and it is not altogether a matter of length4 ,words which are heavy and lumbering1 or harsh1 or suggestive of unpleasant thoughts1 should be used with care1 for their thoughtless introduction will often injure the ease of a passage4 ,tone color in words is of almost as much importance in prose as in verse4 ,similarly the sentence structure should be carefully tested for ease4 ,the periodic style should be practically tabooed3 it is seldom appropriate to the matter of the short story1 and it is always heavy and retarding4 ,the very short sentence1 which is so typical of the ,french1 may be used only in moderation1 for its excessive employment gives a nervous jerky style which is tiresome and irritating4 ,among ,american writers ,stephen ,crane is an awful example of this bumpety-bump method of expression1 though his later works show a tendency to greater ease4 ,the exclamatory and interrogative sentences1 of which amateurs use so many1 under the mistaken impression that they lend vivacity and vividness1 should be totally eschewed4 ,they offend against almost every principle of the short story1 and they have nothing to recommend them4 ,usually they are irrelevant and inartistic asides by the author4 ,the proper sentence structure for the bulk of the short story is the simple straightforward declarative sentence1 rather loose1 of medium length1 tending to short at times to avoid monotony and give vividness4 ,exclamation points must be used sparingly3 a row of three or four of them at the end of a sentence is a sign of amateurism4 ,the mere presence of a point of punctuation will not make a thrilling sentence or produce a climax4 ,punctuation marks are designed to draw attention to what already exists1 and they have no inherent power to create interest4 ,very few sentences really need or merit a mark of exclamation2 and if they are properly constructed the reader will feel the exclamatory force1 whether the point is expressed or not4 ,italics1 as a method of emphasis1 are seldom necessary in a well-written story4 ,they1 too1 are signs of what has already been expressed1 and not the expression of a new force4 ,a word or a phrase which needs sufficient emphasis to excuse italics should be so placed that the reader will involuntarily give it the proper stress2 and an expression thus brought into notice far exceeds in importance one which owes its prominence to a mere change in type4 ,words in still more staring type--small capitals or capitals--are entirely out of place4 ,finally1 the style of the short story should be concise4 ,one of the difficulties of the short story1 the short story shares with the actual drama1 and that is the indispensableness of compression--the need that every sentence shall tell4#dd ,it is not sufficient that all irrelevant ideas be carefully pruned away2 all unnecessary fullness of expression must likewise be cut1 that the phrasing of the story may always be crisp and to the point4 ,this is sometimes a matter of the expunging of a superfluous word or phrase2 but it is fully as often a recasting of a sentence so as to avoid redundancy4 ,the object of this conciseness is twofold3 to waste as little as possible of the valuable and abridged space of the short story1 and to make the movement of the language as quick as the action of the plot4 ,the fault to be avoided here is commonly called padding4 ,briefly speaking the term padding1 as applied to a piece of literature1 denotes the presence of irrelevant matter4 ,it may consist of the introduction of scenes1 persons1 episodes1 conversations or general observations which have no part in advancing the action2 or1 more dangerous still1 it may consist of the presence of occasional words and phrases which lengthen and perhaps round out the sentences without adding to their value4 ,irrelevant scenes1 persons1 episodes1 conversations and general observations have already been discussed at length1 and need no further treatment here4 ,but ,i must warn the novice against that most insidious form of padding which is responsible for so many long and dreary sentences1 cluttered with repetitious words and phrases which retard the narrative and exasperate the reader4 ,this redundancy is a rhetorical fault1 which is best corrected by a return to the old school day methods of testing a sentence for coherence4 ,it must be corrected1 and that vigorously and radically1 for it is fatal to a good short story style4 ,an instance of how much stress editors lay upon procuring only the concentrated extract of the story-teller's art may be found in a letter received by a young writer from the editor of a prominent publication3 ,we will pay #ajj for your story as it is4 ,if you can reduce it a third1 we will pay you #aej2 if a half1 #bjj4 ,concise must not be understood to mean exhaustive1 for it is bad policy to leave nothing to the imagination of the reader4 ,the average person is fond of reading between the lines1 and usually prides himself upon his ability in this respect2 accordingly he is easily exasperated with the exhaustive style which leaves no chance for the exercise of his subtle power1 while he takes huge delight in expanding the sly hints which the knowing writer throws out for his benefit4 ,such a reader never stops to consider that he has fallen into a skillfully laid trap2 he compliments the author upon his artistic method and turns from the story well pleased with himself and with the writer4 ,there is1 however1 something more than a pampering of pride in the charm of this suggestive method3 it enables the writer to cast a light veil of uncertainty over rather bald facts1 and thus to maintain that romantic glamour of unreality which plays so important a part in fiction4 ,a good style can be acquired by the exercise of knowledge1 patience and labor4 ,the first requisite is a practical working knowledge of rhetoric and ,english composition4 ,it seems absurd to suppose that any one would attempt to write stories without being able to write correct ,english1 but at least two-thirds of the stories submitted to editors contain inexcusable grammatical and rhetorical errors2 and many of the faults which ,i have found it necessary to discuss in the first part of this chapter are matters of rhetoric4 ,if you cannot write correct ,english now1 set about perfecting yourself in that respect before you dare to essay story telling4 ,there are books and correspondence courses galore which will assist you4 ,if you won't do that you had better turn your energies in some other direction1 for you have neither the courage nor the spirit necessary for a successful short story writer4 ,your next duty is to cultivate your individuality4 ,style is the personal impress which a writer inevitably sets upon his production4 ,it is that character in what is written which results from the fact that these thoughts and emotions have been those of the author rather than of any other human being4 ,it is the expression of one man's individuality1 as sure and as unique as the sound of his voice1 the look from his eye1 or the imprint of his thumb4#de ,every person who has any call to write has a strong personality--an original manner of looking at life and of treating its problems4 ,he wishes so to influence the world by this personality that it will consent to see through his eyes1 or will at least listen patiently to what he sees4 ,it is this ego1 this that is the man himself1 that he really desires to show through his writings4 ,his first step1 then1 is to cultivate this individuality1 to train his originality1 so to speak1 in order that he may see everything in a new and distinctive light4 ,he should also give attention to the expression of his personality4 ,it is not sufficient that he shall see life at a new angle1 but he must so train himself that he shall be able to put in an original way the new phases which his individuality has discovered4 ,it is this expression of the individuality which causes so much trouble1 for hundreds of stories are written which show originality in conception1 but which fall into conventionality in the execution4 ,the best way to express your personality is to be perfectly natural1 and say exactly what you think2 any labored striving after effects will produce an artificial style which will be fatal to success4 ,it is a great aid to the attainment of a good style thoroughly to understand your own mind before you put pen to paper4 ,it may seem odd that you should be ignorant of your own ideas on a subject1 but often difficulty of expression is due to indecision of mind4 ,vagueness or confusion of ideas in a writer's mind is always the precursor of a poor style4 ,too often1 struck by a happy thought1 he attempts to put it on paper before it has yet sufficient definiteness of form to justify expression1 and when he would project it into writing he loses the thought in a mass of the very words in which he seeks to voice it4 ,again1 the writer's mind may contain several jumbled ideas1 each one good in itself but totally independent of the others2 and if he attempts to express any particular one before it has had time to disentangle itself1 it is bound to bring with it portions of other and distinct ideas4 ,clear thinking is the basis of clear writing2 and clear writing prevents the chief errors that threaten your style4 ,study the stories of great writers2 you know what parts most trouble you--compare your work with that of others and see how they have obtained the effect that you desire to produce4 ,it is not wise to limit your study to any one writer4 ,your style should possess a certain flexibility1 to enable it to adapt itself readily to your varying themes1 and you should master the methods of all good writers2 if you have sufficient individuality to have any excuse for writing you need have little fear of imitating them too closely4 ,for style alone it is better to confine yourself to the more modern writers4 ,there is always a change in style1 if not exactly a progression1 from one literary generation to the next1 and you should aim at conformity to the canons of your own age4 ,those early masters of the short story1 ,irving1 ,hawthorne and ,poe1 had a tendency toward a diffuse1 almost discursive style1 which is not much in vogue now4 ,their ease and elegance are most commendable1 but they lost somewhat more in force and conciseness than is thought correct to-day4 ,,footnotes3 ,footnote #dd3 ,the ,short ,story1 by ,frederick ,wedmore4 ,nineteenth ,century4 ,mar41 '#ih4 ,footnote #de3 ,talks on ,writing ,english1 by ,arlo ,bates4 ,chapter on ,style4 ,,xii ,,the ,,labor ,,of ,,authorship ,because literature is an art and you have a leaning toward it1 do not therefore consider yourself a genius and so exempt from work4 ,there is no royal road to success1 and no one ever yet won a high place in the world of letters who did not earn it by the sweat of his brow4 ,in these days literature is just as much a trade as boilermaking3 it has its tools and its rules2 and if one likes his occupation1 he will naturally make better stories--or boilers4 ,that is all there is to genius--the matter of aptitude for a certain thing2 and even that can be to a great degree cultivated4 ,if a man1 with absolutely no knowledge of the tools and methods of the craft1 attempt to make a boiler1 he will create a deal of noise but no boilers1 though he may be well pleased with his own efforts2 and so it is with writing4 ,so even if your literary efforts are praised by friends and published by local editors1 don't get the idea into your head that the world at large is sighing for the products of your pen3 it is far more likely that your friends' encouragement is prompted rather by regard for you than by any real merit in your work1 and that the editor's chief desire is to get cheap copy4 ,you will learn later that the truest estimate of your work comes from those who know you the least1 and that usually criticism is valuable in inverse proportion to the regard which the critic has for you4 ,if1 however1 you feel that1 whatever the real worth of your present work1 there is that within you which demands utterance1 you will modestly accept this early adulation as prophetic of the true fame to come1 and will go about your writing in all humility and seriousness1 with that careful1 plodding application which alone succeeds4 ,since as a story writer you purpose handling life in all its varied phases1 it is necessary that you should acquire an intimate knowledge of it4 ,this you may do in several ways1 as already indicated in ,chapter ,v41 but do it you must1 and seriously4 ,you must have in your possession and ready for instant use a large and varied assortment of facts1 incidents1 odd characters1 impressions1 and all the other miscellaneous details that go to the making of a good story4 ,however you may gain this material it is best not to depend too much on your memory to retain it and to produce it promptly at the proper time4 ,the human memory is apt to be treacherous and unreliable4 ,it will very likely fail to retain the important details of a usable actual occurrence1 as well as the bright idea in connection with it which flashed across your mind when first you found it4 ,the only safe way is for you to keep a scrap book and a note book1 or perhaps a combination of the two1 in which you may preserve crude material1 bright ideas1 and all sorts of odds and ends which you think may be of use to you at some future day4 ,much that you carefully preserve will never be of service to you1 but you cannot afford to risk losing possible good matter through failure to make note of it4 ,i would counsel the young writer to keep a note book1 and to make1 as regards the use of it1 nulla dies sine linea his revered motto4 ,it is a great deal better that he should have his notes too copious than too meagre4 ,by filling page after page with jottings of thoughts1 fancies1 impressions1 even doubts and surmises of the vaguest kind--of a kind which he himself can only understand at the time and perhaps may afterward fail to recollect when re-reading them--he will never1 in the long run1 account himself a loser4#df ,when finally putting your ideas into concrete form do not depend too much on the moment of inspiration4 ,it is not my intention to ridicule this most valuable incentive to artistic work4 ,i believe in it thoroughly when it is genuine1 and ,i would advise you to take all advantage of it4 ,dash off your story as swiftly as you will--the swifter the better1 for if it runs easily from your pen it stands a better chance of being spontaneous4 ,but we are not all of us gifted with the ability to work in this manner1 nor will all themes permit of such treatment4 ,a short story that you can rush through at a sitting should be viewed with skepticism3 either it is a perfect work of genius1 and you have a ,heaven-sent call to write2 or1 and more probably1 it is too trite and trivial to justify the expenditure of serious labor upon it1 and your inspiration was merely a flush of vanity4 ,as for trusting to the 'inspired moment1' or waiting for it1 or deploring its delay1 he 7the young author7 should take heed how he permits any such folly or superstition to clutch him in its vitiating grasp4 ',inspiration' either means1 with a writer1 good mental and physical health1 or it has no meaning whatever4444 ,late hours and stimulants are especially fatal to the young writer when both are employed in the sense of literary co-adjutors4#dg ,there is1 ,i believe1 no greater fallacy than trusting to inspiration1 except that of believing that a certain mood is necessary for writing4 ,ninety-nine hundredths of the best literary work is done by men who write to live1 who know that they must write1 and who do write1 whether the weather is fine or rainy1 whether they like their breakfast or not1 whether they are hot or cold1 whether they are in love1 happily or unhappily1 with women or themselves4 ,of course1 a man who has lived by his pen for years1 finds out by experience the hours for working which suit him best2 but a beginner should be methodical4 ,he should go to his desk as any other workman goes to his work1 after breakfast2 rest and eat in the middle of the day1 and work again in the afternoon4 ,he should never begin by writing at night1 unless he is obliged to do so4 ,he will1 of course1 often sit at the table for an hour or more without writing a word1 but if he will only think conscientiously of what he meant to do1 he will find the way to do it4 ,the evening is the time to read1 and the night is the time to sleep4#dh ,this dependence on genius and inspiration is one of the reasons why the world is so full of unliterary writers1 and why so many of real talent fail of success4 ,it is very easy1 in the flush of composition1 to consider yourself gifted above your fellows1 and to go on writing reams of bosh that even you would despise1 if you could view it with an unprejudiced eye2 and it is equally easy to persuade yourself that anything that comes from your pen must be incapable of improvement1 and that if your writings sell1 you have reached the goal4 ,but either delusion is fatal4 ,in short1 inspiration and all its attendant follies are but the conventional accompaniments of literary toil1 which may be affected by the dilettante for the furthering of his pretense at art1 but which have no place in the thoughts or plans of the serious worker4 ,such inspiration as you may need to keep your work fresh and artistic will come to you from the zeal and interest with which you approach your task4 ,if you go to it half-heartedly1 lazy in body and mind1 and ready at the first opportunity to put it all off till the morrow1 you will accomplish little1 then or ever2 but if1 on the contrary1 you will square yourself to your writing as to a physical labor1 and will concentrate all the powers and energies of your mind upon the work in hand1 the very force of your will and your desire will create within you an enthusiasm which will be of far more practical value to you than any cheap inspiration drawn from some ,parnassian spring4 ,you can1 in fact1 by this very business-like method of working1 create on demand a species of inspiration1 or mental vigor1 which will enable you1 not exactly to dash off a masterpiece with no real effort on your part1 but to achieve by actual labor those things which you desire to do4 ,there is much1 too1 in going to your work regularly1 even as a carpenter to his bench2 for the mental processes that produce good short stories are capable of cultivation and control2 and1 like all functions of the brain1 they approach the nearest to perfection when they fall into something of a routine of habit4 ,indeed1 they may be so far regulated that at the usual hour for their exercise they will be not only active but urgent1 so that you will go to your work with an appetite as hearty as that with which you welcome the dinner hour4 ,do not be afraid of the manual labor of authorship--the writing and rewriting1 the testing and correcting1 the persistent and thorough licking into shape which gives the final polish to your work4 ,never send an editor a penciled1 smutched1 and disorderly ,,ms41 with a note saying1 ,i just dashed this off last night and send it right on4 ,such work is foredoomed to failure4 ,but when your story is finished lay it away without even reading it over and let it get cold2 leave it for a week1 or two weeks1 or even longer if possible--don't even think of it2 then bring it forth and read it over carefully and critically1 take your blue pencil1 harden your heart1 and rework it ruthlessly4 ,in the first draft you are bound to slight certain places or to make certain errors1 which you would correct in the course of a careful revision4 ,there will be some half-formed thought which will need elaboration1 or some word which was not quite the right one1 but which you let pass lest you lose your train of thought2 and there is almost sure to be some wordiness which will need cutting away4 ,for1 if the practice of composition be useful1 the laborious work of correcting is no less so3 it is indeed absolutely necessary to our reaping any benefit from the habit of composition4 ,what we have written should be laid by for some little time1 till the ardor of composition be past1 till the fondness for the expressions we have used be worn off1 and the expressions themselves be forgotten2 and then reviewing our work with a cool and critical eye1 as if it were the performance of another1 we shall discern many imperfections which at first escaped us4 ,then is the right season for pruning redundances2 for weighing the arrangement of sentences2 for attending to the junctures and connecting particles2 and bringing style into a regular1 correct1 and supported form4 ,this ',limae ,labor' must be submitted to by all who communicate their thoughts with proper advantage to others2 and some practice in it will soon sharpen their eye to the most necessary objects of attention1 and render it a much more easy and practicable work than might at first be imagined4#di ,it is this last careful1 minute testing and polishing which will determine whether or no you are serious in your endeavor to break into literature1 for here the real labor of authorship begins4 ,all that went before was simply child's play compared to this grubbing1 plodding1 tinkering1 and patching1 and pottering2 so if you have no stomach for this1 you had better learn a trade4 ,whatever you do1 take pains with it4 ,try at least to write good ,english3 learn to criticise and correct your work3 put your best into every sentence4 ,if you are too lazy and careless to do that1 better go into a trade or politics3 it is easier to become a ,congressman or millionaire than a real author1 and we have too many bad story-tellers as it is4#ej ,if you will pursue this labor of revision courageously you will speedily find an improvement in the quality of your finished work4 ,you will also find that your manuscripts need less after attention1 for the lessons learned in these careful re-workings will be unconsciously applied during composition4 ,from the alphabetic slovenliness which will not form its letters legibly nor put in its commas1 to the lack of self-acquaintance which results in total disability to judge one's own products1 it is too constantly in evidence that those who aspire to feed other minds are themselves in need of discipline4444 ,it is within bounds to say that not one accepted manuscript out of ten is fit to go to the printer as it stands4#ea ,do not be so lazy or so careless as to slight the little things1 the mere mechanical details1 which go to make a perfect story and a presentable manuscript4 ,there are several distinct classes of errors to look for3 faults of grammar1 such as the mixing of figures of speech4 ,faults of agreement of verbs and participles in number when collective nouns are referred to4 ,faults of rhetoric1 such as the mixing of moods and tenses1 and the taste1 such as the use of words with a disagreeable or misleading atmosphere about them1 though their strict meaning makes their use correct enough4 ,faults of repetition of the same word in differing senses in the same sentence or paragraph4 ,faults of tediousness of phrasing or explanation4 ,faults of lack of clearness in expressing the exact meaning4 ,faults of sentimental use of language1 that is1 falling into fine phrases which have no distinct meaning--the most discordant fault of all4 ,faults of digression in the structure of the story4#eb ,faults in grammar and rhetoric are too easily corrected to be allowed to stand in the way of your success1 and ,i have already showed you how you may perfect yourself in these essentials4 ,for they are essentials1 and so much more important than many young writers think1 that ,i believe ,i am perfectly safe in saying that no one who makes glaring rhetorical or grammatical errors has ever written a successful short story4 ,in spelling1 too1 there is absolutely no excuse for errors2 you surely know if you are weak in this respect1 and the use of even a small dictionary will enable you to avoid mistakes4 ,every magazine has its own rules for punctuation and paragraphing1 in accordance with which an accepted ,,ms4 is edited before it is given to the compositor2 but that is no good reason why you should neglect to prepare your ,,ms4 properly4 ,the general rules are few and easily understood1 and they enable you to give your work definite form and arrangement1 and make it much more easy to read4 ,an editor who finds a ,,ms4 lacking in these lesser essentials will be apt to throw it aside with but a superficial perusal1 naturally judging that it will also lack the higher attributes4 ,finally1 just before sending your story out for editorial consideration1 go over it once more with the utmost care and painstakingly test every paragraph1 every sentence1 every word1 to see first if it is necessary1 and second if it is right4 ,if at any point you find yourself questioning what you have written1 do not call your work complete until you have revised it1 not only to your own satisfaction1 but so that you honestly feel that the reader1 too1 will be satisfied4 ,if you cannot at the time arrive at a satisfactory expression of your thought1 put the story aside for the time being and try again later when you can come to it afresh4 ,it is this unwearied labor which in the end spells success4 ,,footnotes3 ,footnote #df3 ,some ,advice to ,young ,authors1 by ,edward ,fawcett4 ,the ,independent4 ,may #ad1 '#if4 ,footnote #dg3 ,some ,advice to ,young ,authors1 by ,edgar ,fawcett4 ,the ,independent4 ,may #ad1 '#if4 ,footnote #dh3 ,the ,art of ,authorship4 ,edited by ,george ,bainton4 ,chapter by ,f4 ,marion ,crawford4 ,footnote #di3 ,lectures on ,rhetoric and ,belles ,letters1 by ,hugh ,blair4 ,lecture ,,xix4 ,footnote #ej3 ,bad ,story-,telling1 by ,frederick ,m4 ,bird4 ,lippincott's4 ,oct41 '#ig4 ,footnote #ea3 ,ibid4 ,footnote #eb3 ,how to ,write ,fiction4 ,anonymous4 ,bellaires ,co41 ,london4 ,part ,,ii4 ,chapter ,,iv4 ,,xiii ,,the ,,quest ,,of ,a ,,market ,even when his story is complete the writer has not yet come to the end of his difficulties1 for he has still to find a market for his work4 ,since he is writing for publication1 and not for the mere love of composition1 this quest of a market is an important matter1 for by his success in this respect the writer must judge his chances of ultimate and material success as a short story writer4 ,there is no disputing the fact that good work will find acceptance eventually1 but sometimes the delay is so long that the writer almost loses hope4 ,he usually goes about marketing his wares in a haphazard fashion2 and a warning word or two at this point may enable him to remedy some of the mistakes which may retard if not prevent the success of really meritorious work4 ,in the first place1 then1 consider your story honestly and without prejudice1 and make sure that it does deserve publication4 ,get an unbiased opinion on it from some real critic1 if you can1 and give some weight to what he says4 ,never1 like many novices ,i have known1 send out a ,,ms4 with an accompanying note saying that you know your story is not quite up to standard1 and that you could improve it if you had the time1 but that you hope the editor will make an exception in your favor in order to encourage you4 ,editors are not paid to do that sort of thing2 and if you yourself have not complete confidence in your story you have no business to inflict it upon an editor4 ,if you enter the profession of story writing in that spirit you will fail1 absolutely and deservedly1 to gain aught but rebuffs by your labors2 and indeed1 your labor will be so slight and half hearted that you cannot honestly expect any satisfactory return from it4 ,emerson's advice1 ,hitch your wagon to a star1 is an excellent rule for the young writer4 ,with you literature may be a profession as well as an art1 but you should not permit yourself to be too easily satisfied with material success4 ,do not be content just because you get your work published1 or because you are sure you write as well as some of your contemporaries2 always try to rise above the crowd and to be one of the few who set the standard for the multitude4 ,if your stories are accepted by one magazine1 try to break into another that is a little more particular2 if you succeed in one style of literature1 try to win laurels in a higher class of work4 ,it is this constant striving that brings ultimate success--financial and artistic4 ,if you allow yourself to be easily content with your work and your receipts therefrom1 you will speedily fall into a rut1 become old fogy and dull1 and one day will find yourself with a desk full of rejected ,,mss41 and no hope for a brighter future4 ,at the same time1 there are almost as many grades of stories as there are publications using them1 and with but few exceptions you may endeavor to satisfy all tastes4 ,a story which is too slight for a high class magazine may be well adapted to the needs of a newspaper syndicate2 and though it would be fatal for you to take the newspaper story for your standard1 there can be no objection to your making occasional contributions to that class of literature4 ,indeed1 it is probable that at the outset you will be forced to content yourself with writing for syndicates and minor magazines1 though you may aim for the pages of the best monthlies3 those old established publications are both conservative and overstocked1 and though they are ready enough to examine ,,mss41 they are slow to accept the work of a young writer4 ,but even among the few magazines which can be called first class there are wide differences of opinion as to what constitutes a good story1 and a ,,ms4 which one will reject decidedly another may accept gladly4 ,it is your first business to acquaint yourself with the general style of the magazine to which you desire to contribute2 or1 if your story is already written1 to make sure that its acceptance is not forbidden by the policy of the publication to which you submit it4 ,it is a waste of time and postage to send a story of adventure to a magazine which publishes only tales of love4 ,the timeliness1 or seasonal appropriateness1 of a story may have much influence upon its success in the market4 ,each season of the year has its peculiar literature1 and editors in general place so much stress upon timeliness that a glance at the contents of a magazine will often tell you within a month of its date of issue4 ,there are the blizzard stories1 which are due about ,january2 and the vacation stories1 which begin to appear in ,july1 and the stories of holly and mistletoe and stockings1 which come with the ,christmas season4 ,likewise1 we have special stories for ,new ,years'1 ,st4 ,valentine's ,day1 ,washington's ,birthday1 ,easter1 ,may ,day1 ,memorial ,day1 ,fourth of ,july1 ,thanksgiving1 and a host of minor special occasions4 ,the plot and matter for these stories of occasions are so trite and conventional that it is a wonder that the reading public did not rebel against them long ago2 but there is a constant demand for such stories1 and the writer who can give the old plots some freshness is sure of a good market4 ,such stories should always be submitted at least three months before they are to be used1 for special editions are compiled far in advance2 but a story of this character is always a marketable commodity and may be carried over from year to year without deterioration4 ,of a more ephemeral type are the stories whose timeliness depends upon their coinciding with the current fashion in short stories4 ,for there are fashions in literature just as surely as in matters of dress1 and short stories are peculiarly subject to such changes4 ,a few years ago dialect was all the cry1 and a story was judged and valued according to the amount of unintelligible gibberish that it contained2 before that romantic adventure was most in demand2 and still earlier it was bald realism2 at the time of writing 7,spring of #aijj7 war stories hold first place in popular esteem4 ,the reason for the present style is obvious1 but in general these modes are difficult to explain and almost impossible to forecast4 ,such stories contain no new plot1 and for their timeliness depend entirely upon the introduction of the current fashion1 whatever it may be2 but they afford a grateful variety to the rather monotonous run of light fiction4 ,they also offer the up-to-date writer unusual opportunities to gain editorial favor1 for a story observant of the current mode is sure of serious consideration4 ,you should make it a rule from the start never to give away a story for the mere sake of seeing your name in print4 ,what is worth writing and publishing is worth being paid for4 ,don't let a publisher persuade you that the appearance of your work in his journal will bring you a fame and a name that will enable you to sell ,,mss4 elsewhere4 ,every editor knows how such a man gets his matter1 and values his contributors accordingly2 and every publication which can assist you in your career pays for whatever matter it uses4 ,besides1 by giving away your stories you injure the literary market1 both for yourself and for your fellow workers4 ,if all writers resolutely declined to part with their work except for a cash equivalent1 those scheming editors would soon be brought to time and forced to pay for matter to fill their columns4 ,spare no pains to make your ,,mss4 neat and legible4 ,the fact that you are as yet little known is undoubtedly against you2 your mere name has no power to exact a careful perusal of your story1 and a judgment in accordance with its merits2 so it is your business to gain that favor by making it easy for the editor4 ,the question of legibility sums up the whole tale4 ,the average editor always has his desk piled high with unsolicited ,,mss4 from unknown writers which he must worry through after a fashion1 lest something really good should escape him4 ,he is conscientious enough1 but he is always overworked1 and he has learned by experience to judge a ,,ms4 almost at a glance4 ,if he reads beyond the first page of your story1 it is good evidence that he found there something of merit1 even though he finally reject it4 ,a penciled ,,ms41 or one that is written on both sides of the paper1 will hardly get a passing glance4 ,even a neat pen-written ,,ms4 will fare little better1 for to the editor a typewritten story means not only easy reading but probably some experience on the part of the author4 ,have your story typewritten1 then1 by some one who can put it in presentable shape1 so that it will look business like4 ,for mailing it is best to fold it as little as possible2 the large legal envelope1 requiring two folds1 is most used4 ,unless the ,,ms4 is bulky or is on unusually small sheets1 it is best to fold it at least once1 for if sent flat it usually arrives in a crumpled state4 ,never roll it1 under any circumstances1 for a ,,ms4 once rolled can never be smoothed out1 and no editor will bother with it4 ,make the letter accompanying your story as short and business like as possible4 ,don't tell the editor your family history or relate how you came to write the story2 don't ask him for criticisms or suggestions2 say that you submit such a ,,ms4 subject to his approval1 and give your name and address4 ,that is all he cares to know about you4 ,always enclose stamps for return of ,,ms4--or1 better yet1 a stamped and self-addressed envelope2 never be so small or so careless as to underpay the postage4 ,it is of course your privilege to put a price upon any matter that you may submit for publication2 but unless the magazine editorially requests a set price ,i should advise you to leave that matter to the editor1 and to submit your work at the usual rates4 ,it is a peculiarity of the literary business that usually the buyer rather than the seller makes the terms1 and until your name has a value you are hardly in position to run counter to custom4 ,nor is it likely that you have had sufficient experience to enable you to estimate your work justly4 ,you need have no fear of being cheated1 for a reputable publishing house is always willing to pay a fit price for suitable ,,mss4 ,it will do you no good to get a letter from some well known author or public person recommending your work to the publisher2 and it will often do harm4 ,matter from novices is accepted on its merits alone1 and no amount of praise from a man of letters or an influential friend will make your story one whit better than it was when you gave it the finishing touches4 ,the most such intercession can accomplish is a perusal of your ,,ms41 and that you can yourself obtain if you will make it presentable4 ,if you imagine that an editor will be influenced in his judgment by the words of an outsider1 you are sadly mistaken--he is far more apt to be prejudiced against you4 ,he is an experienced and competent man1 who knows exactly what he wants1 and who may naturally be expected to resent any such impertinent interference with his work4 ,it seems a small thing for you to ask an editor to give you a criticism on your work1 and many a young writer has long cherished a grudge against some editor who has totally ignored his urgent and flattering request for a candid opinion4 ,there is no question that even a word from an editor would be of untold value to the novice2 but the novice has no idea what his request means4 ,every magazine is at great expense for the employment of trained readers to pass upon the unsolicited ,,mss4 submitted to it1 and the according of even a word of criticism to each would at least double that expense4 ,then1 too1 three-fourths of the ,,mss4 submitted to any editor are such that he could not honestly say anything good of them1 and no editor cares to go out of his way to hurt the feelings of the writer2 nor would it be policy for him to do so4 ,every time you submit a ,,ms4 to an editor you are in a manner imposing on him1 so be as easy on him as possible4 ,if you feel that you must have an expert opinion on your work1 send it to one of the literary bureaus which have been established for just that purpose4 ,they will give you a careful and just criticism for the payment of a nominal fee4 ,do not rest your hopes of success upon the fate of one ,,ms4 ,if you never write a new story until its predecessor has been placed you cannot possibly live long enough to win success4 ,you should be constantly turning out new stories1 each one better than the last2 or reworking an old one whose faults you have just discovered2 and you should keep the mails loaded with your work4 ,you can never have too many good stories on the road4 ,do not become impatient if you do not receive a check for your story within a week after sending it out4 ,the largest magazines usually require three months and sometimes longer to report on a ,,ms4 ,if you attempt to hurry the editorial decision you will probably receive your ,,ms4 by return mail1 unread4 ,it is advisable that you keep a ,,ms4 memorandum book of some sort1 in which you may record the journeyings of your ,,mss41 so that you may know where they have been and how long they have been away4 ,you do not want to send the same ,,ms4 to the same editor twice1 nor to continue submitting matter to a magazine which is already overstocked1 or which is careless in returning your work4 ,if you trust to your memory1 or to some slip shod method1 you will regret it in the end1 for you will not only lose many ,,mss41 but you will be submitting your work in a hit-or-miss fashion that is little likely to get it into the proper hands4 ,there are several books of this sort on the market1 or you can easily make one for yourself from an ordinary blank book4 ,it may take any form you please1 but ,i would suggest that it should include spaces for the number of words in the story and the postage required to carry it1 besides the publishers to whom it is submitted and the dates when it is mailed and returned4 ,the rejection of your ,,ms4 by one or two editors should not discourage you3 you may try twelve editors and have the thirteenth accept it4 ,it is seldom indeed that it finds place where it is first submitted3 it may not just meet the ideals of that editor2 or he may already have too much matter on hand4 ,if you believe the story is good1 keep it going till it has been the rounds3 you may find that the dawn of success comes from the point whence you least expected it4 ,,appendix ,,the ,,ambitious ,,guest 7,from ,nathaniel ,hawthorne's ,twice-,told ,tales47 ,i4 ,one ,september night a family had gathered round their hearth and piled it high with the driftwood of mountain-streams1 the dry cones of the pine1 and the splintered ruins of great trees that had come crashing down the precipice4 ,up the chimney roared the fire1 and brightened the room with its broad blaze4 ,the faces of the father and mother had a sober gladness2 the children laughed4 ,the eldest daughter was the image of ,happiness at seventeen1 and the aged grandmother1 who sat knitting in the warmest place1 was the image of ,happiness grown old4 ,they had found the herb heart's-ease in the bleakest spot of all ,new ,england4 ,this family were situated in the ,notch of the ,white ,hills1 where the wind was sharp throughout the year and pitilessly cold in the winter1 giving their cottage all its fresh inclemency before it descended on the valley of the ,saco4 ,they dwelt in a cold spot and a dangerous one1 for a mountain towered above their heads so steep that the stones would often rumble down its sides and startle them at midnight4 #b4 ,the daughter had just uttered some simple jest that filled them all with mirth1 when the wind came through the ,notch and seemed to pause before their cottage1 rattling the door with a sound of wailing and lamentation before it passed into the valley4 ,for a moment it saddened them1 though there was nothing unusual in the tones4 ,but the family were glad again when they perceived that the latch was lifted by some traveler whose footsteps had been unheard amid the dreary blast which heralded his approach and waited as he was entering and went moaning away from the door4 #c4 ,though they dwelt in such a solitude1 these people held daily converse with the world4 ,the romantic pass of the ,notch is a great artery through which the life-blood of internal commerce is continually throbbing between ,maine on the one side and the ,green ,mountains and the shores of the ,st4 ,lawrence on the other4 ,the stage-coach always drew up before the door of the cottage4 ,the wayfarer with no companion but his staff paused here to exchange a word1 that the sense of loneliness might not utterly overcome him ere he could pass through the cleft of the mountain or reach the first house in the valley4 ,and here the teamster on his way to ,portland market would put up for the night1 and1 if a bachelor1 might sit an hour beyond the usual bedtime and steal a kiss from the mountain-maid at parting4 ,it was one of those primitive taverns where the traveler pays only for food and lodging1 but meets with a homely kindness beyond all price4 ,when the footsteps were heard1 therefore1 between the outer door and the inner one1 the whole family rose up1 grandmother1 children and all1 as if about to welcome some one who belonged to them1 and whose fate was linked with theirs4 #d4 ,the door was opened by a young man4 ,his face at first wore the melancholy expression1 almost despondency1 of one who travels a wild and bleak road at nightfall and alone1 but soon brightened up when he saw the kindly warmth of his reception4 ,he felt his heart spring forward to meet them all1 from the old woman who wiped a chair with her apron to the little child that held out its arms to him4 ,one glance and smile placed the stranger on a footing of innocent familiarity with the eldest daughter4 #e4 ,ah6 this fire is the right thing1 cried he1 especially when there is such a pleasant circle round it4 ,i am quite benumbed1 for the ,notch is just like the pipe of a great pair of bellows2 it has blown a terrible blast in my face all the way from ,bartlett4 #f4 ,then you are going toward ,vermont8 said the master of the house as he helped to take a light knapsack off the young man's shoulders4 #g4 ,yes1 to ,burlington1 and far enough beyond1 replied he4 ,i meant to have been at ,ethan ,crawford's to-night but a pedestrian lingers along such a road as this4 ,it is no matter2 for when ,i saw this good fire and all your cheerful faces1 ,i felt as if you had kindled it on purpose for me and were waiting my arrival4 ,so ,i shall sit down among you and make myself at home4 #h4 ,the frank-hearted stranger had just drawn his chair up to the fire when something like a heavy footstep was heard without rushing down the steep side of the mountain as with long and rapid strides1 and taking such a leap in passing the cottage as to strike the opposite precipice4 ,the family held their breath1 because they knew the sound1 and their guest held his by instinct4 #i4 ,the old mountain has thrown a stone at us for fear we should forget him1 said the landlord1 recovering himself4 ,he sometimes nods his head and threatens to come down1 but we are old neighbors1 and agree together pretty well1 upon the whole4 ,besides1 we have a sure place of refuge hard by if he should be coming in good earnest4 #aj4 ,let us now suppose the stranger to have finished his supper of bear's meat1 and by his natural felicity of manner to have placed himself on a footing of kindness with the whole family2 so that they talked together as freely as if he belonged to their mountain-brood4 ,he was of a proud yet gentle spirit1 haughty and reserved among the rich and great1 but ever ready to stoop his head to the lowly cottage door and be like a brother or a son at the poor man's fireside4 ,in the household of the ,notch he found warmth and simplicity of feeling1 the pervading intelligence of ,new ,england1 and a poetry of native growth which they had gathered when they very little thought of it from the mountain-peaks and chasms1 and at the very threshold of their romantic and dangerous abode4 ,he had traveled far and alone2 his whole life1 indeed1 had been a solitary path1 for1 with the lofty caution of his nature1 he had kept himself apart from those who might otherwise have been his companions4 ,the family1 too1 though so kind and hospitable1 had that consciousness of unity among themselves and separation from the world at large which in every domestic circle should still keep a holy place where no stranger may intrude4 ,but this evening a prophetic sympathy impelled the refined and educated youth to pour out his heart before the simple mountaineers1 and constrained them to answer him with the same free confidence4 ,and thus it should have been4 ,is not the kindred of a common fate a closer tie than that of birth8 #aa4 ,the secret of the young man's character was a high and abstracted ambition4 ,he could have borne to live an undistinguished life1 but not to be forgotten in the grave4 ,yearning desire had been transformed to hope1 and hope1 long cherished1 had become like certainty that1 obscurely as he journeyed now1 a glory was to beam on all his pathway1 though not1 perhaps1 while he was treading it4 ,but when posterity should gaze back into the gloom of what was now the present1 they would trace the brightness of his footsteps1 brightening as meaner glories faded1 and confess that a gifted one had passed from his cradle to his tomb with none to recognize him4 #ab4 ,as yet1 cried the stranger1 his cheek glowing and his eye flashing with enthusiasm--as yet ,i have done nothing4 ,were ,i to vanish from the earth to-morrow1 none would know so much of me as you--that a nameless youth came up at nightfall from the valley of the ,saco1 and opened his heart to you in the evening1 and passed through the ,notch by sunrise1 and was seen no more4 ,not a soul would ask1 ',who was he8 ,whither did the wanderer go8' ,but ,i cannot die till ,i have achieved my destiny4 ,then let ,death come3 ,i shall have built my monument4 #ac4 ,there was a continual flow of natural emotion gushing forth amid abstracted reverie which enabled the family to understand this young man's sentiments1 though so foreign from their own4 ,with quick sensibility of the ludicrous1 he blushed at the ardor into which he had been betrayed4 #ad4 ,you laugh at me1 said he1 taking the eldest daughter's hand and laughing at himself4 ,you think my ambition as nonsensical as if ,i were to freeze myself to death on the top of ,mount ,washington only that people might spy at me from the country roundabout4 ,and truly that would be a noble pedestal for a man's statue4 #ae4 ,it is better to sit here by this fire1 answered the girl1 blushing1 and be comfortable and contented1 though nobody thinks about us4 #af4 ,i suppose1 said her father1 after a fit of musing1 there is something natural in what the young man says2 and if my mind had been turned that way1 ,i might have felt just the same4--,it is strange1 wife1 how his talk has set my head running on things that are pretty certain never to come to pass4 #ag4 ,perhaps they may1 observed the wife4 ,is the man thinking what he will do when he is a widower8 #ah4 ,no1 no6 cried he1 repelling the idea with reproachful kindness4 ,when ,i think of your death1 ,esther1 ,i think of mine too4 ,but ,i was wishing we had a good farm in ,bartlett or ,bethlehem or ,littleton1 or some other township round the ,white ,mountains1 but not where they could tumble on our heads4 ,i should want to stand well with my neighbors and be called squire and sent to ,general ,court for a term or two2 for a plain1 honest man may do as much good there as a lawyer4 ,and when ,i should be grown quite an old man1 and you an old woman1 so as not to be long apart1 ,i might die happy enough in my bed1 and leave you all crying around me4 ,a slate gravestone would suit me as well as a marble one1 with just my name and age1 and a verse of a hymn1 and something to let people know that ,i lived an honest man and died a ,christian4 #ai4 ,there1 now6 exclaimed the stranger2 it is our nature to desire a monument1 be it slate or marble1 or a pillar of granite1 or a glorious memory in the universal heart of man4 #bj4 ,we're in a strange way to-night1 said the wife1 with tears in her eyes4 ,they say it's a sign of something when folk's minds go a-wandering so4 ,hark to the children6 #ba4 ,they listened accordingly4 ,the younger children had been put to bed in another room1 but with an open door between2 so that they could be heard talking busily among themselves4 ,one and all seemed to have caught the infection from the fireside circle1 and were outvying each other in wild wishes and childish projects of what they would do when they came to be men and women4 ,at length a little boy1 instead of addressing his brothers and sisters1 called out to his mother4 #bb4 ,i'll tell you what ,i wish1 mother1 cried he3 ,i want you and father and grandma'm1 and all of us1 and the stranger too1 to start right away and go and take a drink out of the basin of the ,flume4 #bc4 ,nobody could help laughing at the child's notion of leaving a warm bed and dragging them from a cheerful fire to visit the basin of the ,flume--a brook which tumbles over the precipice deep within the ,notch4 #bd4 ,the boy had hardly spoken1 when a wagon rattled along the road and stopped a moment before the door4 ,it appeared to contain two or three men who were cheering their hearts with the rough chorus of a song which resounded in broken notes between the cliffs1 while the singers hesitated whether to continue their journey or put up here for the night4 #be4 ,father1 said the girl1 they are calling you by name4 #bf4 ,but the good man doubted whether they had really called him1 and was unwilling to show himself too solicitous of gain by inviting people to patronize his house4 ,he therefore did not hurry to the door1 and1 the lash being soon applied1 the travelers plunged into the ,notch1 still singing and laughing1 though their music and mirth came back drearily from the heart of the mountain4 #bg4 ,there1 mother6 cried the boy1 again2 they'd have given us a ride to the ,flume4 #bh4 ,again they laughed at the child's pertinacious fancy for a night-ramble4 ,but it happened that a light cloud passed over the daughter's spirit2 she looked gravely into the fire and drew a breath that was almost a sigh4 ,it forced its way1 in spite of a little struggle to repress it4 ,then1 starting and blushing1 she looked quickly around the circle1 as if they had caught a glimpse into her bosom4 ,the stranger asked what she had been thinking of4 #bi4 ,nothing1 answered she1 with a downcast smile2 only ,i felt lonesome just then4 #cj4 ,oh1 ,i have always had a gift of feeling what is in other people's hearts1 said he1 half seriously4 ,shall ,i tell the secret of yours8 ,for ,i know what to think when a young girl shivers by a warm hearth and complains of lonesomeness at her mother's side4 ,shall ,i put these feelings into words8 #ca4 ,they would not be a girl's feelings any longer if they could be put into words1 replied the mountain-nymph1 laughing1 but avoiding his eye4 #cb4 ,all this was said apart4 ,perhaps a germ of love was springing in their hearts so pure that it might blossom in ,paradise1 since it could not be matured on earth2 for women worship such gentle dignity as his1 and the proud1 contemplative1 yet kindly1 soul is oftenest captivated by simplicity like hers4 ,but while they spoke softly1 and he was watching the happy sadness1 the lightsome shadows1 the shy yearnings1 of a maiden's nature1 the wind through the ,notch took a deeper and drearier sound4 ,it seemed1 as the fanciful stranger said1 like the choral strain of the spirits of the blast who in old ,indian times had their dwelling among these mountains and made their heights and recesses a sacred region4 ,there was a wail along the road as if a funeral were passing4 ,to chase away the gloom1 the family threw pine-branches on their fire till the dry leaves crackled and the flame arose1 discovering once again a scene of peace and humble happiness4 ,the light hovered about them fondly and caressed them all4 ,there were the little faces of the children peeping from their bed apart1 and here the father's frame of strength1 the mother's subdued and careful mien1 the high-browed youth1 the budding girl1 and the good old grandma1 still knitting in the warmest place4 #cc4 ,the aged woman looked up from her task1 and with fingers ever busy was the next to speak4 #cd4 ,old folks have their notions1 said she1 as well as young ones4 ,you've been wishing and planning and letting your heads run on one thing and another till you've set my mind a-wandering too4 ,now1 what should an old woman wish for1 when she can go but a step or two before she comes to her grave8 ,children1 it will haunt me night and day till ,i tell you4 #ce4 ,what is it1 mother8 cried the husband and wife at once4 #cf4 ,then the old woman1 with an air of mystery which drew the circle closer round the fire1 informed them that she had provided her grave-clothes some years before--a nice linen shroud1 a cap with a muslin ruff1 and everything of a finer sort than she had worn since her wedding day4 ,but this evening an old superstition had strangely recurred to her4 ,it used to be said in her younger days that if anything were amiss with a corpse--if only the ruff were not smooth or the cap did not set right--the corpse1 in the coffin and beneath the clods1 would strive to put up its cold hands and arrange it4 ,the bare thought made her nervous4 #cg4 ,don't talk so1 grandmother1 said the girl1 shuddering4 #ch4 ,now1 continued the old woman1 with singular earnestness1 yet smiling strangely at her own folly1 ,i want one of you1 my children1 when your mother is dressed and in the coffin1--,i want one of you to hold a looking-glass over my face4 ,who knows but ,i may take a glimpse at myself and see whether all's right8 #ci4 ,old and young1 we dream of graves and monuments1 murmured the stranger youth4 ,i wonder how mariners feel when the ship is sinking and they1 unknown and undistinguished1 are to be buried together in the ocean1 that wide and nameless sepulcher8 #dj4 ,for a moment the old woman's ghastly conception so engrossed the minds of her hearers that a sound abroad in the night1 rising like the roar of a blast1 had grown broad1 deep and terrible before the fated group were conscious of it4 ,the house and all within it trembled2 the foundations of the earth seemed to be shaken1 as if this awful sound were the peal of the last trump4 ,young and old exchanged one wild glance and remained an instant pale1 affrighted1 without utterance or power to move4 ,then the same shriek burst simultaneously from all their lips3 #da4 ,the slide6 ,the slide6 #db4 ,the simplest words must intimate1 but not portray1 the unutterable horror of the catastrophe4 ,the victims rushed from their cottage and sought refuge in what they deemed a safer spot1 where1 in contemplation of such an emergency1 a sort of barrier had been reared4 ,alas6 they had quitted their security and fled right into the pathway of destruction4 ,down came the whole side of the mountain in a cataract of ruin4 ,just before it reached the house the stream broke into two branches1 shivered not a window there1 but overwhelmed the whole vicinity1 blocked up the road and annihilated everything in its dreadful course4 ,long ere the thunder of that great slide had ceased to roar among the mountains the mortal agony had been endured and the victims were at peace4 ,their bodies were never found4 #dc4 ,the next morning the light smoke was seen stealing from the cottage chimney up the mountainside4 ,within1 the fire was yet smouldering on the hearth1 and the chairs in a circle round it1 as if the inhabitants had but gone forth to view the devastation of the slide and would shortly return to thank ,heaven for their miraculous escape4 ,all had left separate tokens by which those who had known the family were made to shed a tear for each4 ,who has not heard their name8 ,the story has been told far and wide1 and will forever be a legend of these mountains4 ,poets have sung their fate4 #dd4 ,there were circumstances which led some to suppose that a stranger had been received into the cottage on this awful night1 and had shared the catastrophe of all its inmates2 others denied that there were sufficient grounds for such a conjecture4 ,woe for the high-souled youth with his dream of earthly immortality6 ,his name and person utterly unknown1 his history1 his way of life1 his plans1 a mystery never to be solved1 his death and his existence equally a doubt1--whose was the agony of that death moment8 ,,the ,,end ,,index ,action3 implied by plot1 #de2 of characters1 #ajb2 advanced by speech1 #ajg2 advanced by preliminary climax1 #agg4 ,adjectives1 #aig4 ,adverbs1 #aih4 ,allegory1 #bi4 ,ambitious ,guest1 ,the3 as paradigm1 #df2 observes unities1 #dh1 #aej-aeb1 #aed2 elemental or true plot of1 #eh2 theme of1 #eh2 skeleton or working plot of1 #ei-fa2 facts in1 #ij-ic2 characters in1 #ig2 compression of dialogue in1 #aae2 beginning of1 #acd1 #adf2 scene of1 #add2 suspense in1 #afb2 preparation for climax in1 #afg-afi2 climax of1 #agb1 #ahc2 conclusion of1 #ahc2 text of1 #bcd-bdi4 ,author1 intrusion of1 #abj-abb4 ,balance1 #afj4 ,beginning3 crucial test1 #acb1 #adf #adh2 length of1 #acb2 introduces foundation 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,page #cj ,sceptre changed to ,spectre ,rappocini's changed to ,rappaccini's ,page #dj practise changed to practice ,page #db ,girard changed to ,gerard ,page #dh centres changed to centers ,page #ed accident1 changed to accident4 #gg ,rickshaw changed to ',rickshaw #if egregriously changed to egregiously #ajc supernumeries changed to supernumeraries ,page #agh ,higinbotham changed to ,higginbotham ,the use of hyphens1 and practised on ,page #hi and unpractised on ,page #abi have been retained as in the original despite some inconsistencies4 ---------------------------------------- -----------