FICTION

This refers to any imaginative fact and idea of life. The characters and setting are purely works of the
author’s mind and may o may not happen in real life. However, themes and conflicts raised in some stories are
similar in real life context. These make the readers view and put themselves into the shoe of the characters.

Types of Fiction
a. Chick Lit
It is a type of fiction which addresses issues of modern womanhood, often humorously and light-
heartedly. The genre became popular in the late 1990s. It sometimes includes romantic elements but is not
generally considered a direct subcategory of the romance novel, because the heroine’s relationship with
her family and friends is often just as important as her romantic relationships.

b. Flash Fiction
It is a style of fictional literature of extreme brevity. There is no widely accepted definition of the
length
of the category. Some self-described markets for flash fiction impose caps as low as three hundred words,
while others consider stories as long as a thousand words to be flash fiction.

c. Speculative Fiction
It is an umbrella term encompassing the more fantastical fiction genres, specifically science fiction,
fantasy, horror, weird fiction, supernatural fiction, superhero fiction, utopian and dystopian fiction,
apocalyptic and post-apocalyptic fiction and alternate history in literature as well as related static, motion
and visual arts.

d. Novel
This is a lengthy narrative story separated into series of chapters. It possesses complexity of plot
and
has the capacity to introduce numerous characters in different parts of the story. It also contains more
elaborate settings.

e. Story
This is a short narrative story which focuses on a single plot and characterized by its different
elements.

The Elements of a Short Story

1. Setting-refers to the time, place and condition in which the story takes place.

2. Characters-these are the persons, animal or things moving around the p[lot of the story.

Two Major Types of Characters

a. Protagonist-the main character in the story. He/She is the hero or heroine of the story.
b. Antagonist-He/She is the villain who opposes the main character in the story.

3. Plot-refers to the series of actions and events happen in the story.

 Five Parts of Plot
a. Exposition-this is the part sets the mood of the story wherein characters, setting and background are
being introduced.
b. Rising Action-the part of the plot that marks the onset of the major conflict in the story.
c. Climax-the part that builds the highest tension and considered to be the story’s highest point of
interest.
d. Falling Action-this marks the revelation and realization of the characters leading to the resolution of
the story’s main conflict.
e. Denouement-the final resolution and outcome of the story.

Pyramidal Structure of the Five Parts of the Plot

Climax

Rising Action Falling Action

Exposition Denouement

4. Conflict-refers to the struggle of complication involving the characters of the story.

Types of Conflict
a. Man vs. Man
b. Man vs. Himself
c. Man vs. Nature
d. Man vs. Society
e. Man vs. Technology

5. Point of View-pertains to the voice used by the writer as a narrator of the story and how it was seen or told.

Three Points of View

a. Omniscient- The author allows the inner thoughts and feelings of the main characters to be presented in
the text.
b. First Person Point of View-The author is the one observing and speaking in the story. He can be one of
the characters or the one portraying his own identity.
c. Third Person or Limited Point of View-The author chooses a character as a narrator who will be the
central observer and detects action inside the story.

6. Mood-refers to the atmosphere and tone of the story.

7. Theme-pertains to the central idea which conveys truths and values according to the author’s purpose and
perspective on the human’s experience.

8. Symbols-the images and objects used in the story to stand for something other than themselves.