Glossary
Glossary
A
ab ovo: Telling a story by starting at the earliest possible scene. See ‘in media res.’ From the Latin ‘from the egg.’
act: A major division of a play or opera. Subdivisions of acts are called scenes or episodes.
action: The events which unfold in a story and which answer the question ‘What happens next?’ Action comes from characters who do things in order to achieve their goals or overcome obstacles.
ambiance: The mood or tone of a situation.
anima: The inner personality of a character. See ‘persona’. A term from Jungian psychology.
antagonist: The adversary of the protagonist or central character in a story.
anticlimax: A descent from an important or dramatic situation to a trivial or less dramatic one.
antihero: A protagonist who lacks heroic qualities, such as well-intended motives.
archetype: A model or pattern with symbolic significance which recurs throughout literature.
atmosphere: The dominant impression a story creates through such elements as setting and dialog.
C
catastrophe: A misfortune or disaster, usually sudden. A plot in which events result in an outcome not in line with the protagonist’s goals.
catharsis: The purging of emotions. Aristotle wrote that the effect of tragedy upon the audience is a purification of the spirit through the discharge of emotions, with the resulting relief from tension.
cause and effect: In stories, events must have a reason, rather than occur through coincidence. Causes are usually the actions of characters, and are based on motives.
chapter: A main division of a book, usually numbered, but sometimes titled. Since you don’t want the reader to quit reading, arrange your chapter breaks so that chapters end at places of high dramatic tension.
character: A person represented in a story. Character is the sum of the traits and features which distinguish one person from another; the storyteller creates character by selecting these qualities.
climax: The point of maximum dramatic intensity which occurs at a turning point or crisis.
coincidence: An event which occurs through random chance. Readers don’t often accept coincidence in fiction, but demand cause and effect.
comedy: A story of light and cheerful tone with a happy ending.
conflict: The struggle between opposing forces. Conflict is the force which drives the events which comprise the plot.
counterplot: A subplot in a story which contrasts to the principal plot line. For example, scenes which depict the antagonist’s actions can be a counterplot.
crisis: A turning point in a story, at which a choice or change or decision must occur. Climax refers to the emotional intensity a crisis should generate.
D
denouement: The final outcome or unravelling of the complications in a story. The falling action which follows the final climax.
details: Specific and particular items or features. Effective stories rely on details rather than generalizations, particularly in characterization, settings, and props.
deus ex machina: Using an improbable or supernatural force at the end of a story to resolve the complications of the plot. Such devices are no longer accepted by most audiences. The term is Latin for ‘god from a machine.’
dilemma: A choice between undesirable alternatives. Effective conflicts in a story should be dilemmas; if the choice is obvious, the character’s path is clear, and suspense is weakened.
drama: (1) Events which have vivid, conflicting elements. (2) A literary composition which tells a story about characters in conflict.
dramatis personae: A list of the characters in a story and their relationships or roles. Printed in the program of a play or at the beginning of a literary work.
E
empathy: Identifying with or experiencing the sensations and emotions of another person. A major goal of fiction is to invoke from the reader empathy for the characters in the story.
F
fable: A short story designed to teach a moral lesson. Fables are often written for children and sometimes contain animals as characters.
fairy tale: A story about magical creatures such as elves, dragons, dwarves, etc. Fairy tales are often written for children.
falling action: The part of a story that follows the climax. See ‘resolution’ and ‘denouement.’
fantasy: A story based on extravagantly imaginative characters and premises.
fiction: A literary work created from imagination and designed to entertain the reader. ‘Effective fiction makes readers think, but the primary purpose of all fiction is to make readers feel.’ — H. Shaw.
flashback: A scene or episode which relates earlier events in the story. Flashbacks are often written as remembrances by a character.
foreshadowing: Writing events into a story which foretell a later event, so that when the later event occurs, it will have more impact or seem more believable.
foreshortened prose: Contracted or abridged narration which summarizes story events or scenes. Foreshortened prose can compress large stretches of time into a few words, but is less graphic and compelling than writing in scenes.
formula: A plot created according to stereotyped or set forms. Most stories follow a formula at a base level. Good stories transcend formula through attention to detail and complexity of characterization, motive, situation, and setting..
frame: A border which encloses story elements. Examples of frames are opening and closing a story with the same words or in the same setting, and the prose which surrounds a story-within-a-story or tale.
G
genre: A categorization of fiction according to similar milieus, locales, and dramatic situations.
H
hero: A character who possesses physical or moral courage, bravery, and/or a noble nature. The protagonist, or central character, may be but doesn’t have to be a hero. A heroine is a female hero.
historical novel: A novel which is a fictional representation of actual historical events or persons.
I
in media res: Starting a story in the middle of the events the story relates, rather than at their beginning. This is often done to provide a narrative hook, by opening with an action scene. Stories which employ this device often use flashbacks to provide information to the reader. From the Latin ‘in the middle of things.’
incident: A distinct piece of action in a story. Incidents may be related in a scene or in foreshortened prose.
L
legend: A non-historical story handed down from earlier times, or a literary work which is supposed to be based on a legend. See ‘myth.’
locale: The setting for a novel, play, or motion picture.
M
McGuffin: An object which is searched for, fought over, or fled from, but which has no value other than to set the action in motion. The term was devised by Alfred Hitchcock.
melodrama: Plays which exaggerate emotion and relate sensational and thrilling action, often at the expense of character development.
metamorphosis: A complete change of form or substance, often caused by some form of magic or witchcraft, found in fantasies.
mimesis: A principal of drama proposed by Aristotle, which states that dramatic works should mirror and mimic life.
mise-en-scene: The surroundings and environment of a scene. Often used to refer to the stage setting of a play.
mood: The prevailing emotional tone or atmosphere of a scene or episode.
morality play: An allegorical play from the 14th to 16th centuries which involved characters personifying virtues and vices.
morality: Conformity to rules of proper conduct; virtue. All stories, except for decadent works, are concerned with morality, since conflict involves choices between ‘right’ and ‘wrong’ action.
motif: The recurring subject or theme of a literary work.
motivation: The reasons and explanation as to why a character acts in a certain way. Motives are often goals, and are formed from the character’s background and traits. Well-motivated actions have a sense of inevitability.
movement: The pace and force of action in a story. Action is ‘fast’, description is ‘slow’.
mystery: (1) Something kept secret or that remains unexplained. Elements of mystery in a story create suspense in the reader (see ‘suspense’.) (2) A detective story involving a criminal act whose perpetrator is not immediately divulged to the reader.
myth: A traditional or legendary story, usually involving gods and heros or supernatural occurrences.
N
narration: Relating or telling events. Narration implies a narrator, always either the writer or someone involved in the action, and thus relates to point of view.
narrative hook: Events or scenes placed at the beginning of a story for the purpose of arousing the reader’s interest so as to make him read further.
novel: A lengthy fictitious prose narrative. Novels are usually 70,000 words or more in length. Short novels are called novelettes.
novelette: A short novel, typically 30,000-40,000 words in length.
novella: A long short story. Novellas span the range from short story to novelette.
O
obligatory scene: An episode which the reader expects in the story so strongly that the writer is obliged to put it there. Confrontations between protagonist and antagonist are often obligatory. Obligatory scenes are a subset of stock scenes.
one-act play: A play consisting of one act. A one-act play, like a short story, demands concentration upon one theme as well as economy in style, setting, and plotting.’— H. Shaw
outline: The essential features or main aspects of a project, which reveal its order and organization. ‘Every literary work of any distinction is so ordered and organized that an outline can be made of its contents and structure.’ — H. Shaw
P
parable: A short story or play which is allegorical and which teaches some moral or religious truth.
passion play: A play representing Christ’s Passion, usually performed during Lent.
pathos: The ability of a story to evoke feelings of pity and sadness. From the Greek for ‘suffering.’
persona: (1) A character in a fiction. (2) The public role a character assumes or is perceived to assume (contrasted with ‘anima’.) Character development in stories sometimes consists of stripping the persona of a character.
picaresque: A story in which the adventures of a roguish hero are described. Usually a comedy or satire.
play: A dramatic work intended to be acted out on the stage (stage play) or in a television show or motion picture (screen play). Because they are performed by actors, plays emphasize dialog and scenes.
play-within-a-play: A scene in a story in which a miniature drama is presented. Act III, Scene IV from Hamlet is an example. A form of ‘frame.’
plot: The order or sequence of scenes and events in a story. The plot points generally progress from goal to conflict to resolution. Motive is what separates plot from a mere string of episodes. ‘The king died and then the queen died’ is a string of events; ‘the king died, and then the queen died of grief’ is a plot.— E.M. Forster.
point of view: The position of the narrator in relation to the story. Point of view covers not only vocal, spacial, and temporal aspects, but also mental and attitudinal aspects. Point of view is to prose what camera angle and lens choice are to the director.
premise: The basis or proposition from which a story proceeds. The premise may be a moral the story is intended to illustrate, or an idea or concept it intends to prove. See ‘theme.’
problem: A matter involving uncertainty or doubt. A character with a problem is the basis of a plotted story. The major story problem should directly relate to the story’s premise.
props: Furniture, ornaments, and objects handled by the characters in a scene.
protagonist: The leading character of a drama or literary work.
R
resolution: The final state of affairs in the plot; the story’s ending situation.
rising action: The episodes in the plot which lead up to the climax. The rising action consists of the complications which make up the second act in a three act play.
roman a clef: A novel which depicts actual historical events and persons under the guise of fiction.
S
scene: A plot point which takes place in one time and place, and which involves a particular set of cast members, one of whom (the scene protagonist) is usually pursuing a goal.
script: The written form of a play. Scripts have particular formatting requirements which relate to the director’s and actors’ needs.
sequel: (1) A story based on an earlier work. (2) The reactions of a scene’s viewpoint character to the events in the scene. Usually this starts with an emotional response and leads to a plan for new action, which starts the next scene. Thus, a type of transition.
short story: A work of fiction under 10,000 words. Often refers to a story with a plot; the term ‘slice of life’ refers to unplotted stories.
situation: The state of affairs at the beginning of a story.
slice of life: The term was coined around the turn of the century by the novelist Jean Jullien. Jullien felt that plots reduced the realism of fiction. A slice of life story attempts to depict a scene or character without contrived drama so realistically that it invokes an emotional response in the reader.
stereotype: A simplified concept of a character or situation.
stock character: A familiar character expected by readers in certain types of fiction, such as the hard-boiled detective or the prostitute with a heart of gold.
stock situation: A situation or incident which is commonly found in fiction, such as ‘boy meets girl’ or revenge.
story: A narration of incidents designed to amuse and inform an audience.
stream of consciousness: A style in which a character’s random thoughts are presented without concern for sequence, syntax, or reality.
subplot: Scenes and events in a story which are secondary to the main plot. Subplots may contrasted with the main plot (counterplots), highlight it by coming together at some point (braids), or be unrelated.
suspense: Uncertainty as to the outcome of an event or situation. Suspense is caused by posing questions for the reader but not answering them right away. A man hiding in an apartment with a knife leaves the reader wondering ‘what will happen when the tenant arrives home.
suspension of disbelief: The willingness of readers or the audience to suspend doubt about the reality of characters or events in a story. For example, a movie goer may ignore that he is sitting in a darkened room looking at projected image, and treat the film as ‘real.’ Bad storytelling can break this spell.
T
tale: A story which narrates (usually in the first person) the details of some incident in the story’s ‘past.’ The narration is a form of ‘frame.’
theme: The story’s unifying idea, or motif. Theme can be a category, such as idea-based or character-driven, but in common usage theme often means the story’s moral or premise. The story’s outcome and cast should support the theme. See ‘premise.’
three-act play: A formula for fiction derived from the five acts Aristotle described in his Poetics. The formula is structured around the modern three-act stage play and describes which story elements should occur in which act, and by inference, the logical order of material in any dramatic story.
tragedy: A serious story whose theme is illustrated by a disastrous or unhappy outcome. Most tragedies can be traced to some character flaw or defect in the protagonist.
transition: A piece of narrative which links one scene with another by telling the reader that time, setting, or viewpoint has changed since the last scene.
twist: A sudden and unexpected turn of events. A twist ending, in which the twist occurs at the end of a story, has effects similar to the deus ex machina, if not properly foreshadowed.
V
verisimilitude: ‘The appearance of truth.’ The aspects of a story which make it believable to the reader, so that he will ‘suspend disbelief’ while he’s in the story. Ways to achieve verisimilitude include showing rather than telling, use of specifics and details, and accuracy in factual (non-fictional) elements such as procedures, settings, or slang.
vignette: A term derived from the art work which decorated the front plates of novels, ‘little vines.’ It refers to a brief literary sketch or episode such as a character study or a single scene. The term usually refers to a short, unplotted work.
villain: A character who represents an evil or unwelcome force. The villain is a stock character frequently cast as the antagonist in stories.