How to write a short novel

Writing of micro-novel

Micro-novel is also known as short novel, ultra-short story, and one-minute novel. In the past, it existed as a variety of short stories. Later development made it become an independent literary style. Its nature is defined as "a marginal modern emerging literary genre between marginal short stories and prose." ". A. Tolstoy believes: "Short novels are the best school for training writers." ("On Literature")

Japanese writer Hoshi Shinichi pointed out: "There were similar ultra-short stories a long time ago. "...However, the official emergence of the name ultra-short story originated from the United States." Most people regard the American writer O. Henry (1862-1910) as the founder. His nearly three hundred works have vivid plots and humorous writing styles. Among them, "The Gift of the Magi" is very popular. It can be said that ultra-short stories have three elements: novel conception, rigorous plot, and novel ending. That is, within 1,500 words, it should summarize everything that an ordinary novel should have. It can also be said that micro-novel is a kind of sensitivity, which captures the novel - a kind of wisdom, a kind of beauty, an intriguing scene, a kind of novel from a point, a picture, a contrast, an admiration, and a moment. Fresh thoughts.

The goal of micro-novel writing is four words: micro, novel, dense and strange.

1. Micro. This refers to a small length, no more than 1,500 words. Therefore, when conceiving and writing, we must pay attention to the condensation of words and sentences, and redundant words and sentences are not allowed in the work. Such as "A Page from the Husband's Expenditure Account" by Mark Twain. The full text has only seven lines, but it has the entire plot of a novel.

2. New. It refers to novel ideas and fresh style. As soon as Xing Xin wrote a one-minute novel, he pursued "newness" vigorously. He wrote: "Some critics confuse my novels with American short-short stories, which is inappropriate. I was influenced by American short-short stories. But I did not rely entirely on them, but used them to my advantage. My novels emphasize the word 'new', giving readers new themes and knowledge, and even surprising them!" (Hoshi Shinichi's "One-Minute Novels") For this reason, he often With the help of fairy tales, fables, science fiction, reasoning and other techniques, he reflects his unique feelings in real life and expresses fresh themes through non-realistic themes or non-realistic brushwork on realistic themes, such as his "Warranty". Of course, the concept of micro-novel is the same as other forms of novels. Sometimes it is not obvious at a glance. Sometimes the theme is not one but diverse. This is okay. For example, a famous American science fiction writer, Fredrick Brown, wrote a piece called the shortest science fiction novel in the world: "The last man on earth was sitting alone in a room, when suddenly there was a knock on the door..." Very unique and thought-provoking writing.

3. Secret. It refers to a tight structure. In terms of structure, the author of micro-novel should strive to compress and concentrate time, place, and characters as much as possible, so that the structure of the work is concise and exquisite, just like a micro-carving handicraft. Therefore, special efforts should be made in material selection, cutting and layout.

Four. Strange. It means that the ending should be novel, clever and unexpected. The characteristic of micro-novel is mostly the word "odd". Many excellent works by Chinese and foreign writers often leave people stunned at the end. For example, the ending of Shao Baojian's "Forever Door" is unexpected.

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There is no fixed method for writing - about micro-novel

I once wrote a novel on a whim, but it was criticized as being nonsense and lacking the basic elements of a novel. I don’t know how to make up stories, but I’m still not convinced by the idea that it doesn’t have the basic elements of a novel.

The so-called basic elements of a novel are nothing more than characters, plot, and environment. The plot of a novel generally includes beginning, development, climax and ending. The environment of the novel includes the natural environment, social environment, and the specific environment of the characters' activities. The novel should create typical characters in typical environments.

This is the most traditional and old-fashioned requirement.

When I said this, I couldn't help but secretly laugh, thinking of a joke ""Nobility" and "Love" circulating on the Internet.

The university liberal arts professor asked each student to write a short story, requiring that the novel must have two basic elements: "nobility" and "love".

A few days later, the students completed their homework one after another.

When the professor read the novel by classmate Chu Fengtou, he was very helpless because both elements existed. The content of the novel was: "The princess is pregnant." The professor had to ask him to add some "fantasy" elements .

A few days later, Chu Fengtou gave his "masterpiece" to the professor again: "The princess of the constellation Weaver is pregnant."

The professor was very angry after reading it, so he He also asked him to add some "mysterious" elements.

This time, Chu Fengtou's novel became: "The princess of the Vega constellation is pregnant, who did it?"

The professor couldn't stand it anymore, so he resorted to The last resort was to let Chu Fengtou add a "religious" element.

A few days later, when the professor read Chu Fengtou’s novel with a victorious smile, he actually tore it into pieces.

"The princess of the Vega constellation is pregnant, OhMyGod! Who did it?"

It can be seen that this so-called element is not the standard for evaluating articles at all. The most important thing about novels is to publish new ones, especially micro-novels. But being new is not just about the unexpectedness of the plot, but the most important thing is the selection of materials and personalized emotions. Moreover, the scope of personalization should be within the novelty of unfamiliarity and should not be obscure. With the development of civilization for thousands of years, no matter how it is renovated, it cannot break away from the general plot framework. Whether it is unconscious identification or conscious rebellion, it is always based on the same psychological state. The articles compiled with great effort are just a temporary skill, just a game, and usually everyone thinks it is really interesting, then it becomes interesting, then it becomes interesting, and then... it’s gone.

Why do you feel happy when you see a book, sad when you see a book, and take it for granted? Excellent works are always the result of hard work. Even if the author thinks it is a game, it is actually his true self reflected in a relaxed state. Nowadays, most people seem to have this problem when learning to write novels. They pay more attention to certain elements than novelists. In fact, it can be regarded as necessary for practice, but it has no effect on the novel creation itself. What I'm afraid of is that even the reviewers will see it from this point of view. Just like nowadays it seems that everyone can learn to paint ink painting, but the standard of public participation in evaluation has actually contributed to the decline of ink painting. The reason is the same.

Generally speaking, the word count of a novel is more than 200,000 words, the word count of a short story is between a few thousand to 30,000 words, and the word count of a novella is about 350,000 to 100,000 words. Among them, micro-novels are also called short novels, palm-sized novels, and one-minute novels. The number of words is generally less than 2,000 words. What I read online are basically mini-novels.

As for the characteristics of micro-novel, I might as well steal other people’s words to explain:

(1) Write with small knowledge, and use the near to know the far. There are few characters and the plot is simple. But small but fine, subtle but wonderful, less is better than more, and micro reflects macro. It has a strong sense of reality, is fast and light, and is full of the flavor of life, but it must describe the "farness" of the artistic realm and make people connect with each other infinitely.

(2) Learn from the strengths of others and not stick to one pattern. It can be called "fuzzy novel" by extensively drawing on the strengths of other articles and artistic genres.

(3) Accurate use of materials and novel lens. Micro-novel writes about a point on the surface, which is unfolded in motion and can be called a "shot" in film and television. Flashbacks and supplementary narrations in general short stories should become descriptions and connections of instantaneous shots in micro-novels to avoid lengthy narratives and explanations.

(4) Write special points with emphasis on emotion. The characteristic of character description in micro-novel is to write about a certain aspect of the main character's personality, or to write about the main character's emotions and mentality.

From this point of view, the novel is not a fixed thing, and it seems that most people have some misunderstandings about it. The first characteristic is its obvious insight into subtleties. In other words, it has traces of China's subtle words and great righteousness since ancient times, and is similar to fables.

Even a simple love story can express the chasm between people, a chasm that not even Aphrodite's magic can bridge. Only such a simple story of love and non-love can be sublimated to the meaning of the entire human race, not just a romantic night. Trust is not only a matter between lovers, but also a cornerstone of survival in this society! However, the tendency of emotional psychological description is difficult for ordinary readers to understand and accept, which in turn involves the second characteristic of micro-novel, that is, the ambiguity of genre.

Consciously downplaying the plot is similar to a prose narrative. Perhaps this is why others feel that some novels lack elements! But emotional description is exactly the development trend of micro-novel. For example, incomprehensible indifference is expressed by a chaotic stream of consciousness, and the overlap of illusion and reality can express the irrational state of mind. But it is too obscure and the organization is messy, which is one of the reasons why this kind of novel is not understood.

Most people still follow the classic ideas, and even look at it with the mentality of seeking novelty and excitement. Once art became something that everyone liked, it began to decline, even though novels were once so unrefined. But who knows whether something that is not understood today will become a classic tomorrow?

So it’s better not to say more.

Original definition

Micro-novel is also known as short novel, ultra-short story, and one-minute novel. In the past, it existed as a variety of short stories. Later development made it become an independent literary style. Its nature is defined as "a marginal modern emerging literary genre between marginal short stories and prose." ". A. Tolstoy believed: "Little novels are the best school for training writers." They are generally less than 200 words.

Network Definition

Micro-novel published in the form of microblogs is a vivid expression of the extension of the value of microblogs. It was originally a new microblog created spontaneously by netizens. application. In addition to being short and concise, with concise language and an unexpected ending, it also has the characteristics of being able to interact with readers at any time within 140 words.

"Short length", "Principle of Unity", "Simple characters", "Simplified details", "Simple emotions", "Short time interval", "Simple style", "Simple language". Among them, short length, about a thousand words, is its external feature; fine selection of materials, clever structure, and deep meaning are its essential features. In addition to the characteristics of a micro-novel or a short novel, such as its shortness, conciseness and concise language, micro-novel also has its own unique features: 1. The number of words should be within 140 words. There is a certain limit on the number of words, so from this point of view it should be a shorter novel. 2. The ending is unexpected. The ending is always surprising, beyond ordinary people's imagination, and innovative. 3. Interact with readers at any time. Because it is online, readers can participate in discussions at any time, and authors can also reply to readers and discuss with readers at any time

"Wisdom and imagination" type

Micro-novel may not be consistent with common sense, and it may only have one sentence Words, or a true thought or a hidden secret in the author's heart, can still impress readers. For example: #小故事##ppmeet# In the first year, the leader of the Demon Cult met the hero for the first time. The man drew his sword and faced him with righteousness. He sneered: "Hypocrite." In the second year, he was defeated by the hero's sword with just one move. , begging for death, but the man did not kill him, he sneered: "You are still a gentleman." In the third year, when he went crazy and almost died, the man tried his best to save him, he frowned slightly: "You are indeed a gentleman." In the tenth year, When he woke up in the morning, his whole body ached, he gritted his teeth and cursed the person next to him: "You are not a gentleman!"

"A thousand twists and turns" type

A short 140 words The novel can also be circuitous, bringing you from the novel back to reality, and from reality back to the novel. For example: #小故事##ppmeet# "Minister, someone is here to petition." "Coax him out!" "You can't coax him away." "Then beat him out!"... "Minister, it's over, you hit him too hard, you beat him. It’s an old woman who’s dead.” “Mom, give her 50,000 yuan and call her if she makes trouble again!”… A few days later, the minister called from his hometown. "Gou baby, your mother went to the city a few days ago to see you and had someone beat you to death.

Someone lost 50,000 yuan..."

"Unexpected" type

In micro-novel, although the text is short, the unexpected ending is often eye-catching and breaks the cliché. The biggest feature of micro-novel. For example: #小故事##ppmeet# He met a charming and wealthy woman and was fascinated by her. He quit his job, betrayed his fiancée, and eloped with this woman on the plane. The woman asked him, do you remember the buck-toothed girl you humiliated in middle school? He was startled, and the woman in front of him looked more and more familiar. He asked. The woman shook her head and sneered. Thanks to you, she graduated from middle school. Then he committed suicide. He was frightened, so you are...? The woman smiled sinisterly, I am her brother.