Components of a story

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Elements of a story
• Plot
• Setting
• Character
• conflict
• Theme
• Point of view
• Tone
Plot

• In a literary work, film, story or other narrative, the plot is the

sequence of events where each affects the next one through the
principle of cause-and-effect.
• There are a lot of different ways to structure your plot, but in general, a plot arc has five main
points:

• Set-up/exposition – The beginning part of your story where you establish the world, the
characters, the tone, and your writing style
• Rising action – The rising action is usually prompted by your inciting incident. Here, you
escalate tension and problems, explore your characters. This is the biggest chunk of your book.
• Climax – This is the sort of “moment of truth.” The culmination of everything–the highest point
of tension. The point the plot has been leading up to.
• Falling action – What goes up, must come down. This is where you resolve any subplots and
side stories.
• Resolution – Wrap up.
Setting

• The setting is when and where your story takes place.

• Aside from the physical location and position in time, your setting can include:

• weather
• political climate
• social norms
• cultural influences
• Take the time to consider these aspects to build a complex world for your
characters to interact with.
• Setting of a Story
• Where and when a story occurs can affect what characters do, how the plot
unfolds, and whether the reader can connect with the author's choices. Consider
the two main types of setting when writing or reading a short story.

• Backdrop Setting
• This type of setting can be the backdrop for almost any story. The time period and
physical place don't affect the plot in a major way.

• Example: Most fairy tales take place in a distant kingdom during the Renaissance
period. However, the themes of these stories do not depend on their backdrop.
• Integral Setting
• An integral setting is a time and/or place that directly affects the plot.
Alternatively, the story depends on that setting as an integral
element.

• Example: The characters in William Golding's Lord of the Flies create a

society on a deserted island where their plane has crashed
Character

• Complex and relatable characters are important to a good story. The

writer can create these types of characters by understanding
character types and character traits.
Character Types

• Each of the types of characters in a story contributes to the plot, but in very different ways.

• Protagonist: The main character whose journey we follow throughout the story

• Antagonist: Sometimes known as the foil, the character whose goals come up against the
protagonist's, leading to conflict

• Dynamic Character: A character who changes as a result of the events in the story

• Static Character: A character who does not change during the course of a story
Character Traits
• How a character will react to events in the plot depends on his or her
characterization, or character traits. These character traits help the
reader understand the character's personality and motivation.

• Example: In Jane Austen's Pride and Prejudice, Elizabeth Bennet's

dialogue and behavior show that she is witty, discerning, and playful.
We can then predict how she will react when Mr. Darcy invites her to
dance.
Conflict in Story Writing

• The point where the protagonist's and antagonist's interests collide is the
conflict. There are many types of conflict found in different stories, but they can
be broadly categorized as external conflict and internal conflict.
• External Conflict
• An external conflict exists between a character and something else (like another
character, nature, society, or fate) outside of the character's control. He or she
must resolve this conflict during the rising action or climax of the story.
• Example: The stepmother in Cinderella sabotages Cinderella's chance to attend
the royal ball.
Internal Conflict

• Internal conflict occurs when a character struggles with something

within themselves, such as fear or insecurity. Resolving internal
conflict allows the character to develop in a dynamic way.

• Example: Fyodor Dostoevsky's Crime and Punishment follows

Raskolnikov's deep guilt and internal torment after he commits a
terrible crime.

• Theme
Theme

• Once you identify a story's plot, setting, characters, and conflict, you can work on
finding its theme. The theme is the story's "big idea" or underlying message about life.
It can be one word that embodies what a story is trying to say or it can be a longer
phrase.

• Thematic Motifs
• Sometimes you can find clues for a story's theme in its motifs, which are repeated
images, sounds, words, feelings, or other story elements.

• Example: In F. Scott Fitzgerald's The Great Gatsby, Jay Gatsby watches Daisy's green
light on East Egg every night. This foreshadows how much her absence affects his
happiness.
• Theme vs. Subject
• The theme of a story is not the same as its subject, which is the actual
topic of the story.

• Example: The Harry Potter series is about a boy wizard at Hogwarts.

However, its themes are friendship, bravery, and good vs. evil.
• Point of View
• Even though the main character is the central figure of the story, the point of view (or
perspective) of the story may not be theirs. Sometimes, a story uses a narrator to tell the story.

• First Person
• In the first-person point of view, the person telling the story is a character, usually the main
character (but not always), and speaks from an "I" perspective.

• Example: Sandra Cisneros, "Eleven"

• "Today I wish I was one hundred and two instead of eleven because if I was one hundred and
two I'd have known what to say when Mrs. Price put the red sweater on my desk."
• Second Person
• A second person point of view allows you, the reader, to experience the
story through a "you" perspective. This point of view is not as common as
first or third-person points of view.

• Example: R.A. Montgomery, Journey Under the Sea from the Choose Your
Own Adventure series

• "You are a deep-sea explorer searching for the famed lost city of Atlantis.
This is your most challenging and dangerous mission."
• Third Person
• A third-person narrator tells a story that is happening to other people.
• A narrator can be omniscient, where they know about all events and
characters, or limited, where they follow only one or a few characters.

• Example: Joseph Miller, Catch 22

• "Yossarian was moved very deeply by the absolute simplicity of this

clause of Catch-22 and let out a respectful whistle."
• Tone
• The final element is the tone of the story. Tone is the general feeling
of a story or scene, which the author establishes with vivid word
choice. All of the previous elements must be consistent in order to
achieve the desired tone.
• Symbolism
• Symbolism is a literary device used to convey subtle meanings.

• A symbol can be anything from an object, a character archetype, an animal, an occurrence in nature. A window, an
estranged father, a lion, a storm, a desk, a fire.

• Symbols have meaning connected to them.

• Here are some examples of symbolism in stories:

• A window might signify freedom, longing, hope.

• A lion might be bravery.
• A storm might be impending doom or threat.
• A desk could indicate creativity, work, neglect.