How to Write a Short Story in Five Days

Jason Fink's guide to writers was released on March 9, 2023. BooksGoSocial provided a galley for review.

I have always been an amateur dabbler in writing. Around 2000, I was part of a Yahoo Group for DC Comics fanfiction; over three years I wrote over 150 short stories - about one a week. I remember how disciplened I had to be to generate that kind of output on a steady basis.

Overall, this guide is very straightforward with very little fluff. Fink outlines a five-day approach and clearly, concisely expands upon each item. While this book is indeed a short read, it is definitely designed as something to be referred back too often for writers as they grow their abilities. And though the title emphasizes short stories, much of this advice is very practical in any writing of any length.

I connected to several of the Day 1 brainstorming techniques. We use freewriting (writing for a fixed time period) in the monthly writing group I lead at the library. Visualizing and outlining are also things I have used a lot over the years. I had not considered using predictive AI like ChatGPT as an option.

This was a great read for someone looking for any tips on writing - long or short really!
While the title says a "short story in five days", I think a lot of the information and steps in this book could be applicable to longer stories/novels where the process is much longer. It is a very easy to navigate guide with simple steps. It walks you through from story inspiration right down to the final marking steps. I really liked the relevant clips/dialogue/references to major works or authors to really punctuate the point.
Overall it was an easy quick read with great info.

In the fast-paced world we live in, it can be hard to find the time to sit down and write. But with the help of How to Write a Short Story in Five Days by Jason Fink, you can do just that! This book provides a practical and effective guide to crafting compelling short stories in a short amount of time. Whether you’re a writer looking for inspiration or someone who wants to try their hand at writing, this book is perfect for you! Let’s take an inside look at what makes this book so helpful.

How to Write a Short Story in Five Days is full of helpful advice for writers of all levels. From planning and outlining your story to refining and polishing it, Jason Fink covers each step with detailed instruction and expert advice. For example, he includes sections on writing tips for people with ADD and ADHD as well as sections on non-western structures, like using adaptive AI language models like ChatGPT. He also makes sure to provide plenty of tips and tricks throughout the book so your story will have maximum impact.

The book is written clearly and concisely so even if you’re not an experienced writer, you’ll be able to understand the concepts easily. It also contains personal anecdotes taken from other authors which make the content more engaging and relatable. All in all, How to Write a Short Story in Five Days provides readers with an insightful overview into how they can craft compelling stories quickly.

I found some of the lists of information useful to copy for future use by highlighting it on my kindle to save for later, making it easy to find when I need it.

If you're looking for an easy-to-read guide on how to write short stories quickly, then How To Write A Short Story In Five Days by Jason Fink is well worth checking out! With its clear instructions and helpful advice, this book will give you the confidence you need when embarking on your writing journey. Highly recommended!

This book is awesome if you're looking for some basic writing tips - whether you want to write a short or long story! Even though the title talks about writing a short story in five days, the advice in this book can totally be useful for longer stories or even novels that take much longer to write. It's a super easy-to-follow guide with simple steps that takes you from finding inspiration for your story all the way to the final editing stages.

Worth checking out.

How to Write a Short Story in Five Days is part of the "How to do stuff" series by Jason Fink.

As it says on the tin (cover), it provides a formula to write a short story in just five days, but also tools to develop as a writer.

In short day one is used to plan your story including come up with ideas, invent a few characters and create a rough outline.

The next day it's time to write the first draft without overthinking it too much. Just write!

Based on your work from Day 2, you spend Day 3 refining and editing the draft.

Assuming all has gone well so far, during Day 4 it's time to polish the story and hopefully have some input from early readers to work in (or ignore!).

The final day is allocated for formatting of the story and sending it off for publication,

Simples!

Fink provides lots of tips and ideas, as well as writing exercises in the book and this is one of few times I really wished I had a printed copies so I easily could make notes as I read.

Practical advice, short book, something any writer will keep coming back to. It covers everything from starting brainstorming to polishing end product.

This short book gives a lot of good advice. It’s probably aimed at students and beginners, but I like the refresher. Laid out clearly, could easily be used for reference when working on various projects. Would work well for a writing group to use to sync up writing projects. I’d take at least a week for each task, but I’m an over thinker. A great guide with some super nice touches (prompts, publishing venues) and latest info (ChatGPT?) about tools in the field.

Have you ever thought about writing a short story but never got round to it? Jason Fink's handy, readable step-by-step guide could be just the motivation to get you started.

I received a free electronic copy of this book from NetGalley in exchange for an honest review.

As a creative writing and English major, I've read quite a few "how to write" books, and this is one of the most useful. Not only did it give tips for writing, but it also shared methods for preparing stories for publication and where to take them. I appreciated the bullet-point style in which "How to Write a Short Story in Five Days" is presented as it made it easier to seek out relevant information instead of wading through rambling. I would definitely recommend this book to beginning writers.

(As a side note, I wrote a 1,600-word short story by using this book although I am not quite sure if what I came up with is any good or not.)

This was a comprehensive, though basic, guide to writing short stories aimed at those with little to no academic or practical experience with the topic. It is split into sections that outline every step of the process of planning, writing, and publishing a short story, including modern advice such as using ChatGPT or similar AI programmes to generate possible plot points. There are plenty of quotes and example sections to make the advice clear as well. I found the section about formatting very useful (nice to have it compiled, I have to google font sizes and indenting every time). The lists of websites that take submissions was also appreciated, as was the list of further resources.

Other than that, the organisation was slightly odd as almost everything was presented in bullet points, which made it feel like I was reading one of my university PowerPoints, but it’s not unreadable by any means. This book will be useful for beginner writers and hobbyists looking towards publishing, though a lot of the advice will be common sense or well-known techniques.

This is a valuable book for any would=be writer. I was in writers' groups for several years but got away from writing when 'life' intervened. I'd like to get back at it and this book provides some great information on how to do that. Though the title says for short stories, the tips given can be applied to any type of writing whether it be novels, nonfiction, or short stories.

How to Write a Short Story in Five Days by Jason Fink covers all genres and provides a comprehensive guide on creating a compelling short story. Fink cites a diverse range of classic and modern writers, offering valuable insights and inspiration for both new and experienced fiction writers. The book is structured around a five-day timeline, a useful way to approach writing. Still, it can also be stretched out to fit individual needs.

In addition to the writing process, the book also provides practical tips on how to get your work published, including advice on self-publishing. Overall, How to Write a Short Story in Five Days is an excellent resource for anyone interested in writing fiction. It provides helpful information and inspiring examples to help writers hone their craft and get their work into the world. Thanks to NetGalley and the publisher for the free copy to review.

This was a brilliant gem of a book. I’ve wanted to write a short story for a while now but have always found them intimidating and difficult to master. However, this book has helped me so much, and made me realise I can write in a shorter form. It has valuable tips, tricks and a step-by-step formula that produces results. It’s one I’ll be coming back to time and time again. Thank you to Netgalley, the author and publisher, for a chance to read and review this book.

I’ve always wanted to learn how to write short stories that’s why I grabbed the opportunity to read the advance readers’ copy (ARC) of this book. True enough, this book is best for beginners.

The book is a quick read, but it is packed with valuable insights on how to create well-developed characters, settings, and plots. These elements, including the tips and tools, are all essential to the five-day process of writing a story.

The inclusion of the use of AI chatbots like ChatGPT adds to the relevance of the book at the present time since AI has been a hot topic not only in writing but also in business, education, and marketing. The book looks into the possibility of using AI as a tool not only for generating ideas but also for overcoming writer’s block.

I was initially excited about the book, but there were other things that I didn’t love. The author did give examples to get his message across but it would’ve been more helpful if he also shared his own journey in writing short stories. In this way, I could relate to him more and the book would have more personality. The book sounded instructive but practical.

Jason Fink’s How to Write a Short Story in Five Days is highly recommended to those who have just started to write short stories. It contains all the important things that a writer needs to know. Even though the author didn’t share much about his own journey as a short story writer, he still gave helpful tips on how to write compelling stories quickly and effectively.

Thank you, Jason Fink and NetGalley for the opportunity to read the ARC and share my opinion.

I read "how to write__" books almost as a joke, because the truth is, most of them suck.

This book did not! I was shocked. The information was useful, very similar to what you may get in a college class, and there were even tips on where to take your story once it is written.

Solid how to book.

A concise yet informative collection of tips for beginners. It might be ambitious to aim for a polished story in five days however all the steps you need to take to complete your story are outlined here. Seasoned writers will find some tips and ideas for writer's block as well as story starters. I liked the section on free writing. I also found the information on AI as a tool for developing ideas to be useful and relevant in today's market.

This book could also be titled: If You Owned This Copy of How to Write a Short Story in Five Days Your Stories Would Be Selling Now.

Jason Fink delivers the writing basics for getting a story on the page and getting it out with action steps to take immediately. No fluff to wade through to get to the good stuff.

Ray Bradbury's Zen in the Art of Writing is my favorite short story guide, but this book is a worthy contender with examples and tips for writing in today's market that includes the current challenges and opportunities including AI, writing software and templates. I particularly appreciated Fink's addition of a the section on ADD/ADHD, which I know has made the dream of being a writer seem unattainable for many when the truth is the exact opposite.

Get a copy and get writing.

As someone who has always been interested in writing, but has never been able to gather my ideas together to write anything long-form, this book was a great way to start. It was very informative and easy to understand. It outlines what to do very clearly and effectively, and creates an efficient workflow. Fink created a useful book for beginners like me and something I will recommend to my friends if they want to get into writing.