Writing short stories was a fun challenge throughout the first half of the semester. I think it sounds easy to write a story; just come up with a few character names and a plot and weave them together. However, a good story has several literary elements and I think the challenge of writing short stories is in providing these details in a short space without dragging it out or skimping through it. One thing I must work on is sticking to word and page limits. I usually have a lot to say and sometimes a story that is supposed to be approximately 700 words ends up being about 1,500 words. Overall, I do enjoy and take pride in what I’ve written and love the improvement in writing and in awareness in what I read and write. Looking for details about setting, characterization and perspectives in other pieces of writing is fun and really enhances the experience.