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College of Liberal Arts, Sciences and Education

Prepared by: Ms. Rhodora B. Magallanes

MODULE 5
READING AND WRITING FICTION
Brief Introduction or Description
Module 5 – Reading and Writing Fiction gives a detailed explanation of the basics of fiction writing, the
elements, techniques and the literacy devices. This module aims to develop the initiative to compose original
fiction stories. This lesson will also help in dissecting and analyzing a story and identify the elements used in the
story.
Learning Outcomes:
By the end of the module, you should be able to:
1. Define and describe fiction and fiction writing.
2. Differentiate literary and genre fiction; Describe the characteristics and give examples.
3. Identify the various elements, techniques, and literary devices used in writing fiction
4. Determine the various modes of fiction
5. Make a story analysis using graphic organizer; identify the elements of fiction using the details of
the story
6. Construct an original short story composition using the elements, techniques and literary devices in
writing fiction

Lesson 5.1 What is Fiction?

In literature, fiction encompasses written works that are defined by narratives or stories that are created,
invented, and made up by the writer. As opposed to the many genres of nonfiction—biography, autobiography,
commentary, data analysis, philosophy, history, and others—fiction is defined by its focus on narratives
invented by the author. When a literary work is labeled fiction, this indicates to the reader that the written
content is original and unique to the author’s imagination. This allows for expansive creative opportunities on
the part of writers and encourages suspension of disbelief among readers in order to accept the “world” as it is
invented and presented by the author. Most academics and literary critics further subdivide fiction into two
categories: genre fiction and literary fiction.
Literary Fiction vs. Genre Fiction

 Literary Fiction is character-driven. Any action in the story impacts the main character or characters, and
understanding this impact is the whole point of telling the story. The overall tone of the book is
introspective. Literary Fiction, then, is always a study of the human condition and often an exploration
of difficult social or political issues that control our lives. For this reason, it’s generally considered more
“serious” than genre fiction.
Types of Literary Fiction:
a. Contemporary Literary Fiction deals with timely social issues or political moments.
b. Realistic Literary Fiction includes coming-of-age stories and biographical novels.
c. Experimental Literary Fiction challenges storytelling conventions.
d. Philosophical Literary Fiction investigates life’s big questions.
Characteristics of Literary Fiction
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1. Character-focused narratives
2. Ample symbolism, metaphor, and allegory
3. Advanced vocabulary infused with imagery

4. Ambiguous plot points, including even the work’s conclusion

5. Exploration of larger philosophical themes regarding the human condition and the will of nature
6. Exploration of larger trends in history and culture
7. Lack of adherence to a fixed plot formula
Examples of Literary Fiction
1. The Great Gatsby (F. Scott Fitzgerald)
2. Giovanni’s Room (James Baldwin)

 Genre fiction (also referred to as commercial fiction) is made up of books that have a broad and diverse
audience appeal. Compared to literary fiction, genre fiction is easier to describe and define. These books
commonly have a good potential to sell, depending on the genre’s previously established audience. After
all, someone who loves fantasy books is more willing to take a chance on an unknown author if the genre
is something they already enjoy. The most common genres in fiction are the same you might see dividing
the tops of shelves in a bookstore: romance, action/adventure, science fiction, fantasy, horror,
mystery/crime, historical, and western. Each of these genres can break down even further into sub-
genres as well.
Characteristics of Genre Fiction
1. Adheres to time-honored formulas for plot and character arcs
2. Typically more literal with fewer obscure symbols and allegories
3. Whatever symbolism might exist is typically clear and easily accessible to all readers

4. Often fits specific genres like mystery, horror, science fiction (sci-fi), romance, military thrillers, and
spy novels
Examples of Genre Fiction
There are now seven major genres of fiction as given below.
1. Fantasy: It involves imaginative fiction having a fictional universe, mythological character, and magical
environment.
2. Historical Fiction: This type of fiction involves historical characters, situations, and events.
3. Contemporary Fiction: This genre involves modern and postmodern fiction with modern and
postmodern characters, events, situations, and themes.
4. Mystery: This genre involves crime, mysterious circumstances, or puzzling situations.
5. Science Fiction: It involves science stories, experiments, space travels, etc.
6. Romance: This genre involves romantic situations, events, characters, and relationships.
7. Graphic Novels: This modern genre involves stories involving graphic images and pictures with them.

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College of Liberal Arts, Sciences and Education
Prepared by: Ms. Rhodora B. Magallanes

Lesson 5.2 The Elements of a Short Story

A short story is a brief work of literature, usually written in narrative prose.
Characteristics of a short story:

1. A story is a structure.
2. A story is complete.
3. A story is well-proportioned.
4. A story is compact.

 Setting
The setting of a short story is the time and place in which it happens. Authors often used the landscape,
scenery, buildings, seasons or weather to provide a strong sense of setting.
In works of narratives, the literary element setting includes the historical moment in time and
geographical location in which a story takes place, and helps initiate the main backdrop and mood of a story.
Setting has been referred to as story world or milieu to include the context beyond the immediate
surroundings of the story.
Elements of setting may include culture, historical period, geography and hour. This also include the
passage of time, which may be static in some stories or dynamic in other with changing seasons.

 Characters

A character is a person, or sometimes even an animal, who takes part in the action of a short story or
another literary work.
Characterization is when the writer creates people in a story so that they seem actually to exist. A
good writer gives illustration that a character is real. A character is usually but not always a person. However,
whether animal or inanimate objects, it must have some human qualities.
Two major Methods of Presenting Characters:
1. Showing – characters are shown in dramatic situations revealing themselves indirectly by what they
say and do
2. Telling – characters are directly presented in the story based on what they say or do.
Types of Characters
1. Protagonist vs. Antagonist - The protagonist of a story is the leading character. This character often
takes on the role of the good guy, but this isn’t an essential attribute of a protagonist. Antagonist is
also a noun. The antagonist is a person who actively opposes or is hostile to the protagonist. In many
stories the antagonist takes on the form of the bad guy in a story.
2. Round vs. Flat – Round characters are complex figures with many different characteristics and undergo
development, sometimes sufficiently to reprise the reader. Flat characters, are two-dimensional, in
that they are relatively uncomplicated.
3. Dynamic vs. Static – Dynamic characters are the ones who change over the course of the story, while
static characters remain the same throughout.

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 Point of view

Point of view is the angle of considering things, which shows us the opinion, or feelings of the individuals
involved in the situation. In literature, point of view is the mode of narration that the author employs to let the
readers hear and see what takes place in a story, poem, essay, etc. It is the reflection of the opinion an individual
from real life or fiction can have.
Three Major Kinds of Point of View
1. First person POV, the narrator participates in the action of the story. This often use the pronouns “I” or
“we”.
2. Second person POV, employs the pronoun “you” and as if as if the author is talking directly to the
reader.
3. Third person POV, the narrator does not participate in the action of the story as one of the characters,
but allows the readers to know what the characters feel. This often use the pronouns like “he”, “she”,
“it”, “they” or a name.
a. Third person Omniscient – Omniscient means all-knowing. If a person is all-knowing, he or she knows
the thoughts and feelings of everybody. This occurs when a story is told by a narrator who is not part
of the story but knows the thoughts and feelings of the characters in the story.
b. Third person Limited – Third person limited is similar to omniscient point of view, but it is a limited
viewpoint. The narrator only knows the thoughts and feelings of the characters.
c. Third person Objective Point of View – The writer tells what happened without stating more than
what can be inferred from the story’s action and dialogue. The narrator never discloses anything about
what the characters think or feel, remaining a detached observer.

Stream-of-consciousness technique – the most intense use of central consciousness in narration can
be seen; this technique takes a reader inside a character’s mind to reveal perceptions, thoughts, and
feelings on a conscious or unconscious level

Objective point of view – employs a narrator who does not see into the mind of a character; the
narrator reports action and dialogue without telling directly what the character feels and thinks

The First-Person narrator (Participant)

1. Unreliable Narrator – the interpretation of the author is different from the character
2. naive narrator – the narrator lacks the sophistication to interpret accurately what they see in the story

 Plot

Plot is the author’s arrangements of the incidents in a story. It is the organizing principle that controls
the order of the events. This structure is, in a sense, what remains after the writer edits out what is irrelevant
to the story being told.

Events can be presented in a variety of orders:

1. Conventional – the standard plot pattern which begins with a problem leading to a climactic struggle
that is followed by a resolution of the problem; the elements are recognizable to readers
2. In medias res – stories that begin in the middle; the story begins on the verge of some important
moment
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3. Flashback – a device that informs about events that happened before the opening scene of a work.

Kinds of Plot
1. Linear Plot – begins at point A, progresses through events which towards a climax, and the finally
reaching point B. This type of liner plot is also referred to as the Aristotlean plot structure.
2. Non-linear plot – typically presents the audience with multiple paths from point A to Point B. in other
words, it pre-determines all the ends but does not specify any of the means. The choices offer more
control over plot development to the audience. Suddenly the text needs the reader in order to
progress. This heightens the immersion for many users by creating a bridge between the narrative
world and reality.
3. Episodic plot structure – made up of series of chapters or stories linked together by the same
character, place or theme but held apart by their individual plot, purpose and subtext.
Traditional parts of a Plot
Freytag’s Pyramid – designed by Gustav Freytag, a German Writer, based upon Aristotle’s theory of tragedy,
Freytag’s Pyramid divides the drama into five parts: exposition, rising action, climax, falling action and
denouement.
1. Exposition – introduces the main characters of the story, especially the main character or the
protagonist. During the exposition, the protagonist learns the main goal and what is at stake.
2. Conflict – a point in time where all main characters are introduced, their motives and allegiances have
made clear and they have begun t struggles against one another.
3. Rising action – it is the event that catalyzes the protagonist to go into motion and to take action. This
involves the buildup of events until the climax.
4. Climax – the turning point or the highest point of the story. The protagonist makes the single big
decision that defines not only the outcome of the story, but also who they are as a person.
5. Falling action – consists of events leading to the ending. Characters’ action resolves the problem.
6. Resolution/ Denouement – the phase where the protagonist and the antagonist resolved the problems
and either the protagonist or the antagonist wins the conflict. The conflict officially ends. Some stories
show what happens to the characters after the conflict ends and, or they show what happens to the
characters in the future.
The 6 Kinds of Story Conflicts
1. Person against person
2. Person against nature
3. Person against self
4. Person against society
5. Person against the supernatural
6. Person against technology
Multiple conflicts – stories where characters have to face several conflicts

 Irony
Literary device where the chosen words are intentionally used to indicate a meaning other than the
literal one. This is often mistaken to sarcasm. Sarcasm is actually a form of verbal irony, but sarcasm is
intentionally insulting.

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Breaking Down the Types of Irony

1. Verbal irony – the use of words to mean something different than what they appear to mean
2. Situational irony – the difference between what is expected to happen and what actually happens
3. Dramatic irony – when the audience is more aware of what is happening than a character

 Theme
The theme is the central topic. Theme is the central idea or meaning of a story. It provides a unifying
point around which the plot, characters, setting, point of view, symbols, and other elements of a story are
organized.
Themes are not always easy to express, but some principles can aid in articulating the central meaning.
1. Pay attention to the title of the story.
2. Look for the details of the story that have potential symbolic meanings.
3. Decide whether the protagonist changes or develops some important insight as a result of the
action.
4. When formulating he theme in your own words, write it down in one or two complete sentences
that make some point about the subject matter.
5. Be certain that your expression of the theme is a generalized statement rather than a specific
description of a particular people, places and incidents in the story.
6. Be wary of using clichés as a way of stating theme.
7. Be aware that some stories emphasize theme less than others.

Lesson 5.3 Techniques and Literary Devices

 Mood and Tone

Mood is the feeling you get while reading a story. This could be happiness, sadness, darkness, anger,
suspicion, loneliness or even excitement. It is the atmosphere of the story. The tone is the author’s attitude
toward a subject. The tone can be identified by looking at word choices and phrases.

 Foreshadowing
Foreshadowing or guessing ahead is a literary device by which an author hints what is to come. It is a
dramatic device in which an important plot-point is mentioned early in the story and will return in a more
significant way. It is used to avoid disappointment. It is also used to sometimes arouse the reader. A hint that
is designed to mislead the reads is called red herring. A similar device is the flash forward (also known as
prolepsis).
Common Examples of Foreshadowing
1. A presence shows something that will reoccur.
2. Heightened concern is also used to foreshadow events where the reader sense that danger is coming
soon.
3. A gun is a sign of upcoming events. Sometimes it will be hidden in a drawer or glove compartment.
4. A worry or apprehension of a character also foreshadows as shown in the facial expressions, gestures
or words. At this point, the readers don’t know what is wrong, but they anticipate of finding out.
5. A characters’ thoughts can foreshadow.

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6. Narration can foreshadow by telling something that is going to happen. Details are often left out, but
the suspense is created to keep the readers’ interest.
 Motifs vs. Symbols

A motif is an image, spoken or written word, sound, act or another visual or structural device that has a
symbolic significance. It is used to develop and inform the theme of the literary work. A motif is a repeated
detail in a pattern of meaning that can produce a theme while creating other aspects at the same time.
Symbol is an object, a picture, a written word, or a sound that is used o represent something else either by
resemblance, convention or association.

 Style – refers to the distinctive manner in which a writer arranges words to achieve particular effects.
The arrangement includes individual word choices and matters such as length of sentences, their
structure and tone and the use of irony.
 Diction – refers to a writer’s choice of words; the writer’s choice of words is crucial in controlling a
reader’s response; the diction must be appropriate to the characters and the situation the author
places them

Learning Tasks:

 Learning Task 9 - QUIZ – Identify what elements of fiction/ short story is described in each number.
(Content uploaded in Silid LMS)
 Learning Task 10 - Compose an original short story applying the elements, techniques and literary
devices in fiction writing.
 Learning Task 11 - STORY ANALYSIS – Read the story “The Necklace” and identify the elements of
fiction applied in this story through a graphic organizer

The Necklace by Guy de Maupassant

Source: https://americanliterature.com/author/guy-de-maupassant/short-story/the-necklace

References:
Celadon Books (2021). What is literary fiction? https://celadonbooks.com/what-is-literary-fiction/

Humanities Libretext (2022). What is fiction?

https://human.libretexts.org/Bookshelves/Literature_and_Literacy/Writing_and_Critical_Thinking_Through_Literature_
(Ringo_and_Kashyap)/04%3A_About_Fiction-_Short_Stories_and_the_Novel/4.01%3A_What_is_Fiction

Marantan, R. M. (2016). Creative writing. Jimczyville Publications.

Masterclass (2021). Literary Fiction: Definition, Characteristics, Literary Fiction Vs. Genre Fiction.
https://www.masterclass.com/articles/literary-fiction-definition-and-characteristics

Literary Devices (2022). Fiction. https://literarydevices.net/fiction/

Ringo, H. & Kashyap, A. (2022). What is fiction?

https://human.libretexts.org/Bookshelves/Literature_and_Literacy/Writing_and_Critical_Thinking_Through_Literature_
(Ringo_and_Kashyap)/04%3A_About_Fiction-_Short_Stories_and_the_Novel/4.01%3A_What_is_Fiction

Spark Press (2022). Genre Fiction 101: Intro to Genre. https://gosparkpress.com/genre-fiction-101-intro-to-genre/

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