ELEMENTS OF FICTION

CHARACTER:
Character is an important element of fiction. Without a central character,
there is no story. The goal of the fiction writer is to create characters that
are likeable and memorable..
But a good story needs more than memorable characters. A good story
includes an inciting incident that impacts the main character. It includes a
main character who has a goal or desire. It includes a main character who
is confronted with some type of conflict. This conflict might exist within the
mind of the character or be external. Often, the antagonist is the opposing
force in the story. A good story includes a main character who is faced with
challenges and obstacles.
Protagonist: central to the action, moves against
an antagonist and exhibits the ability to adapt to
new circumstances. The central character in a
story.
Antagonist: any force in a story that is in conflict
with the protagonist. An antagonist may be
another person, an aspect of the physical or social
environment, or a destructive element in the
protagonist's own nature.
Types of Characters
There are several ways in which the fiction writer and reader of fiction can define
characters in a story.
Protagonist and Antagonist. A story needs a central character, or hero, or
protagonist. Often this main character must oppose a villain or antagonist. Both are
major characters in the story.
Major and Minor Characters. Stories include major characters, such as the
protagonist and antagonist. Stories often include minor characters. These are
characters who the fiction writer defines by a single idea or quality. These types of
characters are necessary for the story, but they are not important. These are
secondary characters to the story.
Flat and Round Characters. A character can also be identified in terms of flat or
round characters. A flat character is a minor character in the story. This type of
character doesn’t change as the story progresses.
Round characters, on the other hand, must deal with conflict in the story and are
change by it. The writer develops these types of characters by using character
descriptions and dialogue. Round characters are all the major characters of the story,
including the hero and villain.
Static and Dynamic Characters. Another way of defining a character is in terms
of “static character” or “dynamic character.” A static character is a minor character
in the story and plays a supporting role to the main character. Static characters don’t
change as the story progresses. The fiction writer spends little time developing static
characters.
In contrast, a dynamic character is a round character. This type of character grows
and develops as the story advances. The fiction writer spends a great deal of time
developing these types of characters. They are believable and can be memorable.
• Characterization
• What is characterization? It is the means by which the fiction writer
presents and reveals a character in the story to the reader. Although
the techniques of characterization are complex, writers typically
reveal characters through the following methods:
• Action. How the character acts or behaves throughout the story.
• Appearance. What types of clothes the character wears. His/her
hygiene.
• Dialogue. What the character says and how the character says it.
• Thoughts and Feel. By what the character thinks and feels.
• Relationships. The types of personal relationships, such as friends
and acquaintances the character has.
Characterization is the process by which the fiction writer reveals a character’s
personality to the reader. The fiction writer can reveal a character in the following
ways:
By telling the reader directly what the character is like (not a very subtle approach
and not used often by writers);
By describing how the character looks and dresses (What type of clothing does the
character wear?
By letting the reader hear how the character speaks (Does the character speak with
a dialect? Is the character loud or soft-spoken?);
By revealing the character’s private thoughts and feelings (What does the
character think about other people? About himself?);
By revealing the character’s effect on other people (Do people want to associate
with the character? Do people do whatever the character asks?)
By showing the character’s actions (Does the character treat people who respect
and courtesy? Does the character make good decisions or poor ones?).
The Character Profile/Character Sketch
Author Nancy Lamb wrote in “The Art and Craft of storytelling”
that the challenge of the writer is to create characters that live
and breathe on the page. To achieve this, the writer must create
characters that are:
 Authentic.
 Grab the attention of the reader.
 Believable.
 Appealing to the reader.
One method of developing a character is by using a character profile.
Before constructing the story, the fiction writer ought to have a good idea of what
sorts of characters he/she will include in your story, such as the protagonist and
villain. To help you write about characters. You can create a character sketch or
profile for each character. For each character sketch, include the following:
 Age
 Sex
 Name
 Education
 Job
 Interests
 Likes and dislikes
 Important traits
 Clothes
 Body language
 Name
 The aspiring writer can ask the following questions to
develop a character sketch:
Where is the character from?
What is the character’s social milieu or environment?
How old is the character?
What is the name of the character?
What does the character look like?
What does the character do for a living?
How does the character deal with conflict and change?
What is the character’s goal or motivation in the scene or story?
Dialogue
Much of what a reader learns about a character comes from what the character says
and how the character says it. Keeping points in mind, the aspiring writer can use
dialogue for the following purposes:
To advance the plot. (Sam screamed, “I am going to kill you.”)
To reveal and express character emotions and traits. (The mother said, “You are
lazy.”)
To allow characters to confront one another. (The boyfriend replied, “I am
leaving you for my secretary.”)
To crystallize situations and relations. (“I love you.”)
To comment on the setting. (“I loathe this country.”)
To introduce a motif, symbol, or allusion. (“You look like the Mona Lisa.”)
To transition to a new scene or narrative summary. (“I will call you tomorrow.”)
How to Create Memorable Characters
There is no single method by which the fiction writer goes about creating
memorable characters. Some get their ideas from real people. Others read about a
character in the news. Some use themselves as a basis of a character sketch.
To create memorable characters, the aspiring writer can follow these suggestions:
Early in the story, define the main goal or purpose of the protagonist.
Create conflict throughout the story.
Create a struggle that the character must endure and overcome.
Create characters that are interesting and appealing to the reader.
Create convincing motivations for your characters.
Craft a story that the reader can relate to.
Create multi-dimensional characters.
Create characters that are able to defend themselves and overcome their antagonists
or enemies.
The hero must be the instrument of his own salvation.
Point of View Definition
Point of view, or POV, refers to two things in writing:
1.A point of view in a discussion, an argument, or
nonfiction writing is an opinion, the way you think
about a subject.
2.In a story, the point of view is the narrator’s
position in the description of events.
 Why Point of View Is So Important

Because point of view filters everything in your

story. Everything in your story must come from
a point of view.
Which means if you get it wrong, your entire
story is damaged.
The 4 Types of Point of View
Here are the four primary POV types in fiction:
•First person point of view. First person is when “I” am telling the story.
The character is in the story, relating his or her experiences directly.
•Second person point of view. The story is told to “you.” This POV is
not common in fiction, but it’s still good to know (it is common in nonfiction).
•Third person point of view, limited. The story is about “he” or “she.” This
is the most common point of view in commercial fiction. The narrator is
outside of the story and relating the experiences of a character.
•Third person point of view, omniscient. The story is still about “he” or
“she,” but the narrator has full access to the thoughts and experiences
of all characters in the story.
First person point of view example:
Call me Ishmael. Some years ago—never
mind how long precisely—having little or no
money in my purse, and nothing particular to
interest me on shore, I thought I would sail
about a little and see the watery part of the
world.
—Moby Dick by Herman Melville
First person narrative is unique to writing
There’s no such thing as first person in film or
theater—although voiceovers and mockumentary
interviews like the ones in The Office and Modern
Family provide a level of first person narrative in third
person film and television.
In fact, the very first novels were written in first
person, modeled after popular journals and
autobiographies.
First person point of view is limited
First person narrators cannot be everywhere at once and thus cannot get all sides of the
story. They are telling their story, not necessarily the story.
First person point of view is biased
In first person novels, the reader almost always sympathizes with a first person narrator,
even if the narrator is an anti-hero with major flaws.
Of course, this is why we love first person narrative, because it’s imbued with the
character’s personality, their unique perspective on the world.
Unreliable narrators. Some novelists use the limitations of first person narrative to
surprise the reader, a technique called unreliable narrator, in which the audience
discovers the narrator’s version of events can’t be trusted.
For example, Gillian Flynn’s Gone Girl pits two unreliable narrators against each other,
each relating their conflicting version of events, one through typical narration and the
other through journal entries.
Other Interesting Uses of First Person Narrative:
•The classic novel Heart of Darkness is actually a first person narrative within a first
person narrative. The narrator recounts verbatim the story Charles Marlow tells about his
trip up the Congo river while they sit at port in England.
2 Big Mistakes Writers Make with First Person Point of View
When writing in first person, there are two major mistakes writers make:
1. The narrator isn’t likable. Your protagonist doesn’t have to be a cliché
hero. She doesn’t even need to be good. However,
she must be interesting. The audience will not stick around for 300
pages listening to a character they don’t enjoy. This is one reason why
anti-heroes make great first person narrators. They may not be morally
perfect, but they’re almost always interesting.
2. The narrator tells but doesn’t show. The danger with first person is
that you could spend too much time in your character’s head, explaining
what he’s thinking and how he feels about the situation. You’re allowed to
mention the character’s mood, but don’t forget that your readers trust and
attention relies on what your character does, not what he thinks about
doing.
Second Person Point of View
While not used often in fiction—it is used regularly in nonfiction, song lyrics, and even
video games—second person POV is still good helpful to understand.
In this point of view, the narrator is relating the experiences of another character called
“you.” Thus, you become the protagonist, you carry the plot, and your fate determines
the story.
We’ve written elsewhere about why you should try writing in second person, but in
short we like second person because it:
•Pulls the reader into the action of the story
•Makes the story personal
•Surprises the reader
•Stretches your skills as a writer
Here’s an example of second person point of view:
You have friends who actually care about you and speak the language of the inner
self. You have avoided them of late. Your soul is as disheveled as your apartment, and
until you can clean it up a little you don’t want to invite anyone inside.
—Bright Lights, Big City by Jay McInerney
 Third Person Point of View
In third person, the narrator is outside of the story and relating the
experiences of a character. The central character is not the narrator. In fact,
the narrator is not present in the story at all.
An example of third person limited point of view:
A breeze ruffled the neat hedges of Privet Drive, which lay silent and tidy
under the inky sky, the very last place you would expect astonishing things
to happen. Harry Potter rolled over inside his blankets without waking up.
One small hand closed on the letter beside him and he slept on, not
knowing he was special, not knowing he was famous…. He couldn’t know
that at this very moment, people meeting in secret all over the country were
holding up their glasses and saying in hushed voices: “To Harry Potter—the
boy who lived!”
• Third Person Omniscient
• The narrator has full access to all the thoughts and experiences of all the
characters in the story.
• Third Person Limited.
• The narrator has only some, if any, access to the thoughts and experiences of the
characters in the story, often just to one character.
• However, this distinction is messy and somewhat artificial. Full omniscience in
novels is rare—it’s almost always limited in some way—if only because the
human mind isn’t comfortable handling all the thoughts and emotions of
multiple people at once.
• The most important consideration in third person point of view is this:
• How omniscient are you going to be? How deep are you going to go into
your character’s minds? Will you read their thoughts frequently and deeply at
any chance? Or will you rarely, if ever, delve into their emotions?
Tina wants Fred to go to the store to pickup the
cilantro she forgot she needed for the meal she’s
cooking. Fred is frustrated that she didn’t ask him to
pick up the cilantro on the way home from the office,
before he had changed into his “homey” clothes
(AKA boxer shorts).
“Do you want to eat? If you do, then you need to get
cilantro instead of acting like a lazy pig,” Tina said,
thinking, I can’t believe I married this jerk. At least
back then he had a six pack, not this hairy potbelly.
“Figure it out, Tina. I’m sick of rushing to the store
every time you forget something,” said Fred. He
felt the anger pulsing through his large belly.
The Biggest Third Person Omniscient Point of View
Mistake
The biggest mistake I see writers make constantly in third
person is head hopping. When you switch point of view
characters too quickly, or dive into the heads of too many
characters at once, you could be in danger of what editors
call “head hopping.”
When the narrator switches from one character’s thoughts
to another’s too quickly, it can jar the reader and break the
intimacy with the scene’s main character.
try to avoid going into more than one character’s thoughts per
scene or per chapter.
• 1. 2ND PERSON point of view is used regularly in
fiction.
• 2. First person point of view is limited
• 3. Full omniscience in novels is rare—it’s almost
always limited in some way—if only because the
human mind isn’t comfortable handling all the
thoughts and emotions of multiple people at once.
• 4. Round characters are all the major characters of
the story, including the hero and villain.
• 5. Character is not an important element of fiction
• 6. the narrator has full access to the thoughts and
experiences of all characters in the story.
• 7. The central character in a story.
• 8. This type of character doesn’t change as the story
progresses.
• 9. It is the narrator’s position in the description
of events.
• 10. The narrator is outside of the story and
relating the experiences of a character.
•11-14. what are the 4 types of POV

•15-18. Accdg. To Mary lamb the challenge is to

create a character that live and breathe on the
page. So what are the four characteristics of a
character that you must create?

•19-20. What are the two major characters?