Short Story Reflections

For my own short story analysis I did The Sound of Thunder. The main character Mr. Eckles was very memorable. While his character is not admirable the author developed him in such a way that he appeared very human, faults and all. As opposed to the typical brave and confident main character you often see in teenage literature, Eckles panics and selfishly puts his companions in danger. I think that in writing its very easy to create a hero but very difficult to create a human. Which is likely why I have always enjoyed characters that are developed to the point of being irritating, for example Holden of Catcher in the Rye. After writing my own short story I have a greater appreciation for the author of the Sound of Thunder as it proves to be very difficult to construct a convincing character in a short story and still provide an engaging plot.

            The most challenging aspect of writing the story was the balance between developing plot and character within such as short space. I’ve always appreciated writers who could simultaneously construct a plot, describe setting and create a rounded character.

            I prefer short stories that build up to a point in which something is revealed and the entire plot makes sense. This is something I tried to emulate in my own story. I found the setting and relationships in The Lottery effective for this type of plot line so I used aspects of it in my own short story.

            I guess I might say that I am indifferent to my short story. I can’t say I like it, but it’s also not the worst short story I’ve ever written. Had I the chance I would have liked to build up the relationships between the villagers and in doing so depict Millie as a leader in her community that people depend on. The central character Millie was supposed to be a strong woman that holds her crumbling family up but is also silently suffering. I don’t think Millie’s own fear transferred in the story as I wanted it to and so her character appears rather flat.

            Apart from character development, I would also work on integrating description in the plot. I sort of laid the description on thick in the beginning in order to set up atmosphere but then I left other areas very sparse. One part in particular was the point at which the villagers are standing waiting for the soldiers to come around the corner. I had intended to build up tension there but knowing that it would be the most difficult part to write I left to last, as I have a bad habit of doing. That paragraph ended up getting shortchanged as I ran out of time and ended up throwing in a few lines that just barely functional.

            I don’t often complete a short story as most of mine are abandoned in the drafting stage. Polishing and reworking stories proves to be more difficult than actually writing it in the first place. I’ve found that I learn a lot more about writing when I am forced to follow the process through to the end, as in this class.