Short Stories

You want to write short stories, so let’s get started.

  • Create a  Short Stories  project using the instructions in  Projects . An entry for the new project will appear in the Projects window. 

  • Double click on the new entry to open the project (you can also right-click on the entry and choose  Open Project from the pop up menu). A window will appear.

The window contains three areas:

  • Across the top there is a toolbar. The tools vary according to the context you are working in.

  • On the left is the navigation panel. For a Short Story project this consists of three sections, each of which contains a named item called a  Folder .

    • YOUR STORIES containing:

      • All – a list of all the stories

      • Draft – a list of draft stories

      • Ready – a list of stories ready for publication

      • Set Aside – a list of stories set aside for a later date

      • Accepted – a list of stories that have been accepted for publication

    • COLLECTED

      • Collections – named collections of stories

      • Submissions – named collections that have been submitted for publication

    • PUBLICATIONS

      • Magazines – a list of magazines where you have submitted stories

      • Competitions – a list of competitions where you have submitted stories

      • Commissions – a list of commissions for the stories

      • Other – a list of places where you have sent stories, eg agents, publishers

    • OTHER

      • Research – a list of documents used for research

      • Trash – deleted stories

    • The third panel, filling most of the window, is where you will type text.

Preceding each item there is a small arrow followed by the name of the item followed by a number in brackets. 

Clicking on a arrow expands the contents of the item next to it. However, at this point none of the items contains anything. This is indicated by a 0 inside the brackets. 

Moving on:

Let’s move on and  write your first story .

Back to Quick Start