There are many writers throughout the country, with good educations, with clear brains, and with the ambition to see their work in print, who are failing merely because they are not familiar with the technique of the short story. -Leslie Quirk
With the exception of tweets, your shortest stories will probably be summaries of experience on your corporate website or qualifications package.
You’re describing a single contract or type of experience in less than a page, with space reserved for pictures or graphics. I find project write-ups to be the most challenging format for short stories.
The goal is to begin and end in one place. Begin and end with the same number of players and circumstances.
Tell the story isolated from everyday life.
Your scholastic training and on-the-job observation will tempt you to ignore this advice by explaining to your audience the intricate web of government policy, trends, similar case studies, academic research, public opinion, and so on.
Keep the story as isolated as you can, saving the influencing factors for Q&A.
Think of your story as one complete chapter. It’s a single unit, and any complicated plot detail that requires a second chapter should be removed. Resist the urge to think in terms of a novel.
Draw a line from the opening sentence to the climax, and tell your story along that straight line. Include only the information (people, places, policies, etc.) that keeps you and the audience on the direct path. You know this to be true in your gut.
“Don’t bore us, get to the chorus.”
Whatever your subject matter or format…no matter how unique you believe your story to be, follow the writer’s rule of leading up to a climax. Have you told a bedtime story to a child? Remember the way they egg you on, wanting to know how it all turns out? Presenting straight facts without moving towards a climax empties a room. Few people would care.
Little suggestions whet the audience’s appetite. The best case is enough subtly to keep them guessing with each new bit of information, until the climax delivers a punch.