A short story is a work of prose fiction that can be read in one sitting—usually between 20 minutes to an hour. There is no maximum length, but the average short story is 1,000 to 7,500 words, with some outliers reaching 10,000 or 15,000 words. At around 10 to 25 pages, that makes short stories much shorter than novels, with only a few approaching novella length. A piece of fiction shorter than 1,000 words is considered a “short story” or “flash fiction,” and anything less than 300 words is rightfully called “microfiction.”

A short story author has to choose between telling her story using the voice of one of her characters or assuming a detached, omniscient perspective that gives her greater flexibility in describing the story’s setting and characters. Each type of narrative has specific strengths and weaknesses, and the best type of narrative for a story depends on the dramatic effect the author is trying to achieve and her skill in using a particular type of narrative.