Ms Wolfe - Language Arts
Writer's Workshop - Short Story Writing
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Summer School 2005
NCTE Presentation 2003
SAEP

Suggested short story starters (if you need some ideas....)

Good problems have good details, are suspenseful, and most often get characters in trouble. Choose from the following list a problem that will make your story fascinating.

Stranded on top of a skyscraper in the middle of an earthquake!
You're stuck in a volcano and it's about to blow.
Three men are in a two man raft in the middle of the Pacific Ocean and a shark is right by the raft and the raft is losing air.
Stranded in the middle of a blistering hot desert with no water to drink..

from: http://wwwbir.bham.wednet.edu/wws/probs.htm

Suspense Starters:
 

It was a strange night, there seemed to be a chill in the air...

As soon as I arrived, I could sense that something was out of place...

One night, Iooked out the window and I saw the neighbor...

I was reading a book when I looked up. There in the window I saw...

I decided to go for an evening stroll.  I walked about three blocks when I felt it...

Everyone avoided the big old mansion. It was believed to have...

Sometimes I think my friend has strange powers. Every time he's around...

All of a sudden, I was trapped!

5 Convenient Tips For Writing Short Stories