A short story is a work of short, narrative prose that is usually centered around one single event.

It is
limited in scope and has an introduction, body and conclusion.

Elements of a short story

1. Setting: Where and when is the story set? Setting represents both the physical location but also the
time (i.e. past, present, future) and the social and cultural conditions in which the characters exist.

2. Character: A person or animal or really anything personified. There can be one main character or
many, and often there are secondary characters, but not always.

PROTAGONIST. The HERO or the main character is the character you are hoping will succeed, defeat the
villain, and be happy.

ANTAGONIST. The VILLAIN, is the character who tries to prevent the HERO from succeeding or being
happy.

3. Plot: The events that happen in a story are called the plot. In a plot you typically find an introduction,
rising action, a climax, the falling action, and a resolution. Plot is often represented as an arc. To learn
about plot in detail, read the article: “What is a Plot.”

1. Beginning or Exposition-this is when characters and problems are introduced to the reader.
Example: Romeo and Juliet's families are enemies, but Romeo and Juliet meet at a party and like each
other.

2. Rising Action-this is where the problem and characters are developed through a series of actions
that builds to the . . .

Example: Romeo visits Juliet on a balcony one night, and then she sends a message to him through her
nurse. They meet and secretly wed without their families' knowledge. Romeo kills Juliet's cousin Tybalt,
and he is exiled. Juliet's father orders her to marry someone else. Juliet fakes her death, sending a
message to Romeo to let him know, but he hears of her death and doesn't get the message.

3. Climax-this is where the problem (or conflict) is resolved in one way or another. The climax is
often called the "turning point" in a story.

Example: Romeo kills himself, and Juliet wakes from her sleep, sees him, and kills herself.

4. Falling Action or Denoument-this is where the reader learns what happens as a result of the
climax-or the way in which the problem was solved.

Example: The two families mourn Romeo and Juliet.

5. Resolution-where the entire plot is wrapped up and there is a sense of closure for the reader.

Example: Romeo and Juliet's deaths have ended their families' feud and there is peace in Verona.

Conflict: Every story must have a conflict, i.e. a challenge or problem around which the story is based.
Without conflict, the story will have no purpose or trajectory.

4. Theme: Idea, belief, moral, lesson or insight. It’s the central argument that the author is trying to
make the reader understand. The theme is the “why” of the story.