1. Elements of Fiction

2. Plot & Sequence Plot is a series of related events in a
story, each connected to the next.
Sequence is the order in which a
story‘s events take place.

3. Plot Components
Exposition – The start of the story, the situation before the action starts.
Rising Action – The series of conflicts and crisis in the story that lead to the climax.
Climax – The turning point. The most intense moment—either mentally or in action.

4. Plot Components (continued)
Falling Action – All of the action which follows the climax.
Resolution – The conclusion, the tying together of all of the threads.

5. Plot: Conflict Conflict is the dramatic struggle between two forces
in a story.

6. Plot: Types of Conflict
External Conflict can take place between two characters; between a character and a group; or between a character and an animal or force in nature.
Internal Conflict is a struggle that takes place within a character’s mind or heart.

7. Additional Vocabulary
Flashback – An action that interrupts the story to introduce an event that took place in the past. Flash-Forward – An action that jumps ahead of the story to narrate an event that happens at a later time.

8. Foreshadowing
Foreshadowing is a hint in the story that certain events are going to happen later. Foreshadowing often makes you curious about what will happen next, which is also known as suspense.

9. Setting & Atmosphere
Setting – The time and place in which the story happens. Tone – the author’s attitude towards his/her material, the audience, or both. Mood – the atmosphere that pervades a literary work with the intention of evoking a certain emotion or feeling from the audience.

10. Characterization
Characterization is the way writers create characters in a story. Direct Characterization is when writers tell us directly what a character is like (“good” or “lazy”). Indirect Characterization is when you use clues in the story to decide what kind of person a character is.

11. Character Roles
Protagonist – The main character in a story. Antagonist – The character that the main character (protagonist) struggles against. Subordinate Characters – Minor characters in the story.

12. Types of Characters
Round Character – A character who is fully developed, just as a person in actual life is.
Flat Character – A character who is not fully developed in the story. A flat character is almost never the main character.
Dynamic Character – A character who changes during the story. The change might involve recognition of some truth about life.
Static Character – A character who does not change during the story.

13. Point of View
First Person Narration – A story told my an “I” narrator. Third-Person Limited - the story is narrated by the author, but he/she focuses on the thinking and actions of a particular character. Third Person Omniscient - the story is narrated by an impersonal author who sees and knows everything, including characters’ thoughts

14. Additional Terms
Dialogue – The conversations characters have with other characters.
Genre – The different forms of literature. Genres include short stories, novels, novellas, plays, and poems.

15. Theme
A theme is an author’s insight about life. It is the main idea or universal meaning, the lesson or message of a literary work. Common literary themes involve basic human experiences such as: adventure; coming-of-age; courage. One of the greatest themes in literature is the “quest,” the search to attain some noble goal or purpose.