Storytelling Techniques in Fiction

Study Notes

Story Elements

A big change of fortunes can break expectations and add complexity to a story
Complication: an obstacle created by the protagonist for themselves
Montage: a series of summarized actions, often with music

Foreshadowing and Payoff

Foreshadowing: a hint that sets up something that will happen later in the story
Red herring: false foreshadowing to mislead the audience
Dead end: foreshadowing with no payoff
Deus ex machina: a payoff with no foreshadowing, where a solution comes out of nowhere

Suspense and Ellipsis

Suspense: a state of tension or uncertainty in the story
Ellipsis: a break in the narrative, often leaving out information to create suspense

Characters

Character arcs: changes in a character's inner nature, for better or worse
Desire: what drives a character's choices, what they want (conscious and unconscious)
Motivation: why a character wants what they want
Dimension: a character's inner conflict, contradictions, and complexity
Supporting characters: help to reveal the protagonist and are part of the story world
Comedic characters: have a blind obsession, often creating humor

Dialogue

Definition: a dramatic text to be expressed by one or several players
Five functions of dialogue: characterize, reveal inner information, establish conflict, exposition, and humor
Subtext: what is meant beneath what is being said

Genre

Definition: a dramatic approach that conditions the construction of the story
Model: a special world, a protagonist with a special talent, a weakness, and an antagonist

Creative Process

Daniel Cassany's advice: look for ideas, organize them, develop them, put it on paper, revise constantly, adapt to constraints, and have the audience in mind
Methods: diary, maps and diagrams, brainstorming, explore the subject, and the "star" method (what, who, when, why, how, where)

Dramatic Premises

Universal patterns present through narration in history, helping to construct plots and characters
Examples: Ronald Tobias' 20 Master Plots, Estrategias del guion cinematográfico, La semilla inmortal

Story Structure

A sequence is a series of scenes that culminates with greater impact than any previous scene
A scene is an action through conflict in more or less continuous time and space that turns the value-charged condition of a character's life
Crossmedia: one story, many channels, reaching different audiences
Transmedia: one storyworld, many stories, many forms, many channels, with every story complete in itself

The Three Act Structure

Robert McKee's definition of ACT: a series of sequences that peaks in a climactic scene
First act: establishes main characters, relationships, and the world of the story
Inciting incident: event that sets the story in motion
First turning point: event that makes the story take a new direction
Second act: rising action, obstacles, and conflicts
Midpoint: an important event that doesn't change the story's direction
Second turning point: introduction to the third act, with more weight than the first turning point
Third act: resolution of the story, climax, and denouement

Other Dramatic Tools

Action knots: narrative units with their own set up, development, and resolution, forming a chain of cause and effect
Anagnorisis: a dramatic recognition of a character's identity
Peripeteia: obstacles, reversals, and strong story events

Description

This quiz covers various storytelling techniques used in fiction, including plot twists, character complications, and suspense-building devices. Learn about foreshadowing, payoffs, and red herrings to improve your storytelling skills.