Elements of Fiction

Mr. Jeremy Rinkel

Creative Writing

Elements of Fiction

• Point of View

• Setting

• Characters

• Plot– dialogue

• Theme and Tone

Point of View

• First Person– author and reader are in the characters’

shoes– Uses words I, me, and my– Disadvantages

• Author cannot include anything not witnessed by the character

• Limits the reader’s understanding of the world in which the character’s live and the events that happen

Point of View

• First Person– Disadvantages

• Heavily opinionated

– Advantages• Everything is seen and understood in reference to

the characters views, abilities, and disabilities (making the reader dissect and has to figure out the facts from the fiction in the plot)

Point of View

• Advantages– “first person unlimited”- using first person

point of view for multiple characters– Events can be seen from more than one

perspective– Used as a conveyor of relationships

Omniscient POV

• Gives overall understanding

• Is a description from the outside

• Is like watching through a TV camera – You can hear voices and see actions, but not

read thoughts

• Gains perspective, but loses intimacy

• Currently, it is not used very much

Third Person

• Most novels use this point of view

• Greatest versatility and appeals to a wider variety of people

• Often used in action and thriller genres

• The reader walks in the character’s shoes, but may know things the character does not

Third Person

• Very difficult keeping multiple leads constant throughout singular scenes

• If you change POV within a scene, leave a gap, so the reader can know the POV changed

Point of View Checklist

Do you want to tell the story from a character’s point of view?YesNo, use omniscient POV

Do you want your audience to be in the shoes of that characterYes, use first person POVNo, use third person POV

Point of View Checklist

Do you want multiple leads?Yes, use unlimited POVNo, use limited POV

Assignment

• In-class Part 1 of Point of View worksheet

• Homework Part 2 of Point of View worksheet

• Begin THINKING of short story ideas!!!

Point of View

• Assessment Questions– Which one did you find most interesting to

write?– Which was funniest?– Which was most dramatic?– Did any of them suggest stories within stories,

layers of meaning?

Setting

• Setting includes the place and time in which the story takes place.

• The setting should be described in specifics to make the story seem real

• Sets the atmosphere and mood of the story, to place limitations on the characters

• Helps establish the basic conflict of the story.

Setting

• Weather can be an important part of setting.

• The setting can be used for contrast, having something taking place in an unexpected place.

• the more unfamiliar the reader is with the setting, the more interesting the setting.

Time and Place

• Where does the story take place?

• What details tell you this?

• When do the events of this story take place?

Mood

• Setting can help develop and establish the mood of a story

• A vivid description will help the reader to:– See – Hear– Smell– Taste – Touch …the environment of the story

Spatial Order

• There are several ways to organize a description of a place– Start at the top and move to the bottom– Start at the right and move to the left– Start at the place closest to you and move to

the place farthest from you

Other elements to consider

• Customs• Manners• Clothing• scenery

• Weather• Geography• Buildings• Methods of

transportation

Assignment

• Write a description of a place (real or imaginary)—that you would like to visit

• The description should include:– The name of the place– Description of the inhabitants– The landscape (geography) & weather– And any other factors that might be important

to developing an understanding of this place

• Have an idea on a short story

Setting Example

• Field of Dreams (1989) – Based on the book “Shoeless Joe” by W.P.

Kinsella

Setting Assignment

• Describe a familiar place (such as a shopping mall or classroom) under two different types of circumstances.

• For example:– Day and night– Summer and winter– Crowded and empty