Fiction is the telling of stories which are not entirely based upon facts. More specifically, fiction is an imaginative form of narrative, one of the four basic rhetorical modes. A narrative or story is a construct created in a suitable format (written spoken poetry prose images song Theater, or Dance) that describes a sequence of Rhetorical modes (also known as modes of discourse) describe the variety conventions and purposes of the major kinds of writing Although the word fiction is derived from the Latin fingo, fingere, finxi, fictum, "to form, create", works of fiction need not be entirely imaginary and may include real people, places, and events. Fiction may be either written or oral. Although not all fiction is necessarily artistic, fiction is largely perceived as a form of art or entertainment. Art refers to a diverse range of Human activities creations and expressions that are appealing to the Senses or Emotions of a human individual See also Entertainment (disambiguation and The Entertainer (disambiguation Entertainment is an activity designed to give people The ability to create fiction and other artistic works is considered to be a fundamental aspect of human culture, one of the defining characteristics of humanity. Culture (from the Latin cultura stemming from colere, meaning "to cultivate" generally refers to patterns of human activity and the symbolic Human nature is the concept that there are a set of logical characteristics including ways of thinking feeling and acting that all 'normal' human beings have in common
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Elements of fiction
Even among writing instructors and bestselling authors, there appears to be little consensus regarding the number and composition of the fundamental elements of fiction. For example:
- "Fiction has three main elements: plotting, character, and place or setting. " (Morrell 2006, p. 151)
- "A charged image evokes all the other elements of your story—theme, character, conflict, setting, style, and so on. " (Writer's Digest Handbook of Novel Writing 1992, p. 160)
- "For writers, the spices you add to make your plot your own include characters, setting, and dialogue. " (Bell 2004, p. 16)
- "Contained within the framework of a story are the major story elements: characters, action, and conflict. " (Evanovich 2006, p. 83)
- " . . . I think point of view is one of the most fundamental elements of the fiction-writing craft . . . " (Selgin 2007, p. 41)
As stated by Janet Evanovich, "Effective writing requires an understanding of the fundamental elements of storytelling, such as point of view, dialogue, and setting. " (Evanovich 2006, p. 39) The debate continues as to the number and composition of the fundamental elements of fiction. [1]
Character
Characterization is often listed as one of the fundamental elements of fiction. UserScottandrewhutchins: http//enwikipediaorg/w/indexphp?title=Characterization&diff=next&oldid=157919139 --> Characterization is a process of conveying A character is a participant in the story, and is usually a person, but may be any persona, identity, or entity whose existence originates from a fictional work or performance.
Characters may be of several types:
- Point-of-view character: the character from whom the story is viewed.
- Protagonist: the main character of a story
- Antagonist: the character that stands in opposition to the protagonist
- Supporting character: A character that plays a part in the plot but is not major
- Minor character: a character in a bit/cameo part
Plot
Plot, or storyline, is often listed as one of the fundamental elements of fiction. The Protagonist or main character is the central figure of a story. An antagonist (from Greek ανταγωνιστής - antagonistes, "opponent competitor rival" is a character or Mythos (Aristotle In literature the plot comprises all the events in a story particularly rendered towards the achievement of some particular Artistic or Emotional It is the rendering and ordering of the events and actions of a story. On a micro level, plot consists of action and reaction, also referred to as stimulus and response. On a macro level, plot has a beginning, a middle, and an ending. Plot is often depicted as an arc with a zig-zag line to represent the rise and fall of action. Plot also has a mid-level structure: scene and sequel. A scene is a unit of drama—where the action occurs. In Fiction, a scene is a unit of drama A sequel is what follows an aftermath Then, after a transition of some sort, comes the sequel—an emotional reaction and regrouping, an aftermath. (Bickham 1993, pp. 23-62)
Setting
Setting, the locale and time of a story, is often listed as one of the fundamental elements of fiction. In Fiction, the setting of a story includes the time location and circumstances in which it takes place Sometimes setting is referred to as milieu, to include a context (such as society) beyond the immediate surroundings of the story. In some cases, setting becomes a character itself and can set the tone of a story. (Rozelle 2005, p. 2)
Theme
Theme, a conceptual distillation of the story, is often listed as one of the fundamental elements of fiction. A theme, from Old French tesme, is a broad idea in a story or literary work or a message or lesson conveyed by a written text It is the central idea or insight serving as a unifying element, creating cohesion and is an answer to the question, 'What did you learn from the piece of fiction?' In some cases a story's theme is a prominent element and somewhat unmistakable. (Morrell 2006, p. 263)
Style
Style is not so much what is written, but how it is written and interpreted. Style in fiction refers to language conventions used to construct the story or article. In Fiction, style is the manner in which the author tells the story A fiction writer may manipulate diction, sentence structure, phrasing, dialogue, and other aspects of language to create style or mood. The communicative effect created by the author's style is sometimes referred to as the story's voice. Every writer has his or her own unique style, or voice (Provost 1988, p. 8). Style is sometimes listed as one of the fundamental elements of fiction.
Categories
Types of prose fiction:
- Flash fiction: A work of fewer than 2,000 words. A literary genre is a category of literary composition Genres may be determined by Literary technique, tone, Content, or even (as in the case of fiction Flash fiction is Fiction characterized by its extreme brevity (1,000 by some definitions) (around 5 pages)
- Short story: A work of at least 2,000 words but under 7,500 words. The short story is a literary genre of Fictional Prose Narrative that tends to be more concise and to the point than longer works of fiction such (5-25 pages)
- Novelette: A work of at least 7,500 words but under 17,500 words. A novelette (or novelet) is a piece of short Prose fiction The distinction between a novelette and other literary forms like a Novella, is usually based (25-60 pages)
- Novella: A work of at least 17,500 words but under 50,000 words. A novella is a written, Fictional Prose Narrative longer than a Novelette but shorter than a Novel. (60-170 pages)
- Novel: A work of 50,000 words or more. A novel (from Italian novella, Spanish novela, French nouvelle for "new" "news" or "short story (about 170+ pages)
- Epic: A work of 200,000 words or more. An epic is a lengthy Narrative poem, ordinarily concerning a serious subject containing details of heroic deeds and events significant to a culture or nation (about 680+ pages)[1][2]
Forms of fiction
Traditionally, fiction includes novels, short stories, fables, fairy tales, plays, and poems, but it now also encompasses films, comic books, and video games. A novel (from Italian novella, Spanish novela, French nouvelle for "new" "news" or "short story The short story is a literary genre of Fictional Prose Narrative that tends to be more concise and to the point than longer works of fiction such A fable is a succinct story in prose or verse that features Animals Plants inanimate objects, or forces of nature which are A fairy tale or fairy story is a fictional Story that may feature folkloric characters (such as fairies, enchantments]] often involving A play, or stageplay, is a form of Literature written by a Playwright, almost always consisting of Dialogue between Fictional characters Fictional film or narrative film is film that tells a Fictional story or Narrative. A comic book (often shortened to simply comic and sometimes called a comic paper or comic magazine) is a Magazine or Book of narrative A video game is a Game that involves interaction with a User interface to generate visual feedback on a video device.
The Internet has had a major impact on the distribution of fiction, calling into question the feasibility of copyright as a means to ensure royalties are paid to copyright holders. The Internet is a global system of interconnected Computer networks Copyright is a legal concept enacted by Governments, giving the creator of an original work of authorship Exclusive rights to control its distribution usually for Royalties (sometimes running royalties) are usage-based payments made by one party (the "licensee" to another (the "licensor" for ongoing use of an Also, digital libraries such as Project Gutenberg make public domain texts more readily available. A digital library is a Library in which collections are stored in digital formats (as opposed to print Microform, or other media and accessible by computers Project Gutenberg, abbreviated as PG, is a volunteer effort to Digitize, archive and distribute Cultural works The public domain is a range of abstract materials &ndash commonly referred to as Intellectual property &ndash which are not owned or controlled by anyone The combination of inexpensive home computers, the Internet and the creativity of its users has also led to new forms of fiction, such as interactive computer games or computer-generated comics. A personal computer Game (also known as a computer game or simply PC game) is a Video game played on a Personal computer, rather Countless forums for fan fiction can be found online, where loyal followers of specific fictional realms create and distribute derivative stories. Fan fiction (alternately referred to as fanfiction, fanfic, FF or fic) is a broadly defined term for Fiction about characters or settings A fictional universe is a self-consistent fictional setting with unique background elements such as an imaginary history or geography and possibly fantasy or science The Internet is also used for the development of blog fiction, where a story is delivered through a blog either as flash fiction or serialblog, and collaborative fiction, where a story is written sequentially by different authors, or the entire text can be revised by anyone using wiki. Blog fiction is a form of fiction writing that uses weblogs to reach its readership A blog (a contraction of the term " Web log " is a Web site, usually maintained by an individual with regular entries of commentary descriptions of Collaborative fiction is a form of writing by two or more authors who take it in turns to write a portion of the story. A wiki is a page or collection of Web pages designed to enable anyone who accesses it to contribute or modify content using a simplified Markup language.
Uses of fiction
Although fiction may be viewed as a form of entertainment, it has other uses. Fiction has been used for instructional purposes, such as fictional examples used in school textbooks. A school (from Greek σχολεῖον - scholeion) is an Institution designed to allow and encourage Students (or "pupils" It may be used in propaganda and advertising. Propaganda is a concerted set of messages aimed at influencing the opinions or behaviors of large numbers of people Advertising is a form of Communication that typically attempts to persuade potential Customers to Purchase or to consume more of a particular Brand It may be perpetuated by parents out of tradition such as with Santa Claus or to instill beliefs and values. The word tradition comes from the Latin traditionem acc of traditio which means "a giving up delivering up surrendering" and is used in a number of Santa Claus, also known as Saint Nicholas, Father Christmas, Kris Kringle, or simply " Santa " is the Although they are not necessarily targeted at children, fables offer an explicit moral goal. A fable is a succinct story in prose or verse that features Animals Plants inanimate objects, or forces of nature which are
References
- Bell, James Scott (2004). Write Great Fiction: Plot and Structure. Cincinnati, OH: Writer's Digest Books, 16. ISBN 158297294X.
- Bickham, Jack M. (1993). Scene & Structure. Cincinnati, OH: Writer's Digest Books, 23-62. ISBN 0898795516.
- Edgerton, Les (2003). Finding Your Voice: How to Put Personality in Your Writing. Cincinnati, OH: Writer's Digest Books. ISBN 1582971749.
- Evanovich, Janet (2006). How I Write: Secrets of a Bestselling Author. New York: St. Martin's Griffin, 39 and 83. ISBN 0312354282.
- Morrell, Jessica Page (2006). Between the Lines: Master the Subtle Elements of Fiction Writing. Cincinnati, OH: Writer's Digest Books. ISBN 1582973938.
- Provost, Gary (1988). Beyond Style: Mastering the Finer Points of Writing. Cincinnati, OH: Writer's Digest Books, 8.
- Rozelle, Ron (2005). Write Great Fiction: Description & Setting. Cincinnati, OH: Writer's Digest Books. ISBN 158297327X.
- Selgin, Peter (2007). By Cunning & Craft: Sound Advice and Practical Wisdom for Fiction Writers. Cincinnati, OH: Writer's Digest Books, 41. ISBN 1582974918.
- (1992) The Writer's Digest Handbook of Novel Writing. Cincinnati, OH: Writer's Digest Books, 160. ISBN 0898795079.
Note
- ^ counting a page roughly as 300 words.
- ^ a professional writer usually writes an average of 500-1000 words per day. Stephen King stated he writes an average of 2000 words per day, every day. Stephen Edwin King (born September 21, 1947) is an American Author, Screenwriter, Musician, Columnist,
See also
- Main list: List of basic fiction topics
- Fictional character
- Fiction writing
- Plot (narrative)
- Pseudohistory
- Setting (literature)
- Style (fiction)
- Theme (literature)
- Writing style
Dictionary
fiction
-noun
- Literary type using invented or imaginative writing, instead of real facts, usually written as prose.
- (uncountable) Invention.
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