A sudden change in the setting. If a story is set in a peaceful town and suddenly there's a portal to another dimension that opens up, it's a great plot twist. It challenges the characters and forces them to adapt quickly, which in turn creates new conflicts and opportunities for the story to develop.
Surprise is key. For example, in 'The Lottery' by Shirley Jackson. At first, it seems like a normal small - town lottery. But then it turns out the 'winner' is actually going to be stoned to death. The sudden shift from a seemingly positive event to a horrific one is what makes it a great plot twist.
The element of surprise. When you read a story and suddenly something completely unexpected happens, it catches your attention. For example, in 'The Necklace' by Guy de Maupassant. A woman borrows what she thinks is an expensive necklace, loses it, and spends years in poverty trying to replace it. Only to find out at the end that the original necklace was a fake. This sudden revelation makes the story very appealing.
They often play with our emotions. We might be feeling sympathy for a character, and then the plot twist changes everything. It makes us re - evaluate how we felt about the whole story. In a good scary plot twist story, the author builds up a certain mood and then shatters it with the twist, like in 'The Monkey's Paw' where the wishes turn out horribly wrong.
Well, a good short - story setting should be well - described so that the reader can easily picture it. It could be a bustling city street with different kinds of people and noises. It should also have the potential for conflict. A small, cramped apartment where two people with different lifestyles are forced to live together can create interesting situations. Additionally, the setting can change over the course of the story to reflect the character's journey, like a character starting in a dark alley and ending up in a bright, open park.
It could be unexpected plot turns or surprise endings. Something that catches the reader off guard and changes the whole perspective.
One idea could be that the character who seems to be the hero is actually the villain all along. For example, in a story about a detective solving a crime, it turns out that the detective was the one who set up the crime in the first place to gain fame.
A great twist in a comic often comes from unexpected plot developments or character revelations. It catches the readers off guard and keeps them engaged.
A good plot should have conflict. It could be a character vs. character conflict, like two rival wizards fighting for a powerful magic item. Or it could be internal conflict, such as a hero struggling with their own dark side. Also, a clear goal for the main character is important. If the character doesn't have a goal, the story can seem directionless.
They engage us because they are like a mental puzzle. We are constantly trying to figure out what is going to happen next. And when the plot twist comes, it's like the final piece of the puzzle falling into place, but in a way that we didn't expect. It can be as simple as a character's identity being revealed differently than we thought or a completely different explanation for the events that have been occurring in the story.
One benefit is that they can overcome writer's block. When you don't know what to write, a short story prompt gives you a direction. Another benefit is that they can inspire creativity. They present a unique situation that you can build on in many different ways. For example, a prompt about a magic portal can lead to countless stories depending on how you develop it.