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Story Telling : The Creative World Of Writing

Before delving into the topic for discussion, it's always proper to give a general knowledge of what exactly that topic is, hence the need for a definition.

Creative Writing: This kind of writing is strictly outside the bounds of professional or technical literature such as journals, academic literature, etc. Novels, poems, plays are all a part of creative writing. In the simplest of terms it could be said to be any work fictional or non-fictional of original composition.

Plot

The plot of a story is what makes up the story. It is the series of events that are brought together to form the story; this could be seen in novels, play, film/movie. The overall outcome of a creative work is the plot of such work.

Several things are responsible for creating a fantastic plot, they are plot structures or order. They include the following :

Exposition (settling the scene)

Rising action (building tension)

Climax (the exciting bit)

Falling action (tidying up loose ends)

Resolution (ending the story)

In order to achieve a proper and satisfying piece of creative writing, a writer must get acquainted with the above plot order and understand how to combine them. For a good understanding of the above plot structures, I would take my time to explain them and how they all work to give what sometimes become best sellers.

Exposition : The exposition is the introductory part of a story, it sets the stage for the main action which will be discussed later on. Questions such as where and why, geographical and time setting are answered. The main character are likely to be introduced in the exposition, with their lives or stories being painted. Also the point of view, the position the story is being told is revealed here.

The exposition creates the context which will eventually bring about the meaning, providing the background for the development of the story. Some authors may decide to use flashback in the beginning because if not properly constructed, expositions could be boring. The flashbacks are usually explained in a latter part of the story.

Where there are many characters, the exposition could be separated into  chapters (number of different expositions) and how the different characters are related and come together for the overall plot.

Rising action : After the calm or slightly calm deployment of the expository element, there is a steady rise of tension in the story using danger, fear, hazard, conflict, anger and other devices. The protagonist is always very involved in the building of tension, struggling with other characters and their responses and ability to tackle the tension.

The process is usually long and somewhat slow and may go through several turn of events that all act together to capture the interest and attention of the audience.

Climax : The climax comes when the long and slow rise of tension (the action) is at its peak. This is usually the most exciting part of the story, in most cases the protagonist (hero) and the antagonist (villain) have a face off here. In movies, the climax is usually the most expensive and difficult part to create, with lots of tension, special effects and other things that are displayed in that scenario.

Stories with sub-plots have several climax which reach resolutions before the Big Bang which happens near the end of the story.

The climax leads to a  closure (closure principle ) which ushers in the resolution for the story (though not all of it). Climaxes could be disguised so as to increase and extend tension. It may seem like things are about to get better but a bigger issue springs up and the intended climax is halted for even a more intriguing one.

Falling action : After the suspense and excitement of the climax, the story still has a bit to go through before completion. Some unresolved issues may still be hanging waiting for a proper closure. These tensions are handled in the falling action stage. The falling action stage could also be called the anti climax and most authors don't dwell too much on it as they use it to tidy up loose ends and bring the story to a final resolution.

Resolution : This part comes at the end of the story after the nail-biting action of the climax. The author fixes every pending issue and gradually draws the curtain .The recency effect of the story indicates that we are so much affected by the ending,  it is of utmost importance to ensure there's nothing left unresolved which will eventually bring the story to a satisfactory end.

In comedies, the antagonist or villain is punished while the protagonist or hero is rewarded and celebrated for his bravery. The case may be a bit different in tragedies as the antagonist may escape unharmed and the protagonist ending in a worse state.

Now that we've established the order by which a good story should be written, we will now do some comparisons between a few key terms in creating an awesome story.

Conflict Vs Climax

Plot Vs Theme

Theme Vs Topic

Conflict Vs Climax

Conflict is the struggle between two forces.Climax is the turning point of the story.Conflict gives the story a direction.Climax is the point where conflict is at its highest.Conflict is introduced at the exposition itself.Climax is preceeded by the rising action.

Plot vs Theme

Plot is the series of events and happenings that make up the story. Theme is the central message conveyed through a piece of writing. Plot consists of events. Theme consists of a message.

Theme Vs Topic

Theme is central message conveyed through the writing. Topic is the subject matter discussed in the writing. Theme explains why that particular piece of writing was written. Topic explains what that writing is about. Theme is not directly stated in the work. Topic is generally directly given in the work. Theme is specific as it reflects an opinion. Topic is more general as it denotes the subject.

Despite knowing all the above, plot and the progressive stages it goes through to become a complete story an equally important area to have a proper knowledge of is characterization. Below is the building block for character development. But first, what exactly is the term characterization.

Characterization

This is a literary device used step-by-step in literature to point out and interpret the details or features of the characters in a story. The author usually introduces the characters in the early stages so as to make a noticeable emergence.

After unveiling the characters, the author points out their behaviors; as the story progresses, the thought pattern of the characters are also being developed. The next line of action shows the characters as they express their opinions and ideas and how they interact with each other. The final stage involves the response of one character to the others personalities.

Types Of Characterization

Direct or explicit characterization : This kind takes a direct approach in developing the characters, as implied in the name. This approach uses another character, narrator or the protagonist himself to tell the readers or audience about the particular character in focus.

Indirect or implicit characterization : The second way takes a rather subtle approach. The audience is given the liberty of identifying the characteristics of the characters by keeping track of their thought process, behavior, appearance and manner of communication among themselves as well as their responses.

Elements Of Characterization

Characterization is so critical to creating a fantastic piece, even if you have the best plot structure in the world, without an equally fantastic characterization it sums up to nothing. Below is a guide that will effectively help in developing the best characters.

Speech : Here the focus is on what the character says, how he says it and the tone used. Even in written works, it is critical to carefully work on the manner in which he addresses other characters. The speech tells a lot about the personality of that particular character. Don't joke with it.

Thought : This concentrates on the general thought pattern of the character. Speech and thought sometimes go hand-in-hand, you must ensure the thought is not too far apart when compared with speech especially when it has to do with the antagonist. Thoughts reveal a lot about the true intentions of a character, therefore should be carefully crafted and worked out to avoid losing the interest of the readers or audience.

Action : How a character responds to things tells so much about who the character is just like in thoughts. In developing the actions of a character you must ensure it's in line with his thought pattern. If the thoughts are wrong and the character seems to be doing something right then you must make it known to your readers or audience the fact that the character is pretending in order to achieve a result synonymous with the wrong thoughts.

Appearance : This looks at the physical appearance and traits of the character in question, if the character is poor the appearance shouldn't say otherwise. When the element of appearance is wrongly used it will create a lot of confusion in that it doesn't interpret the characteristics of that character fully.

Effect on others : The behavior of a character with other characters informs the readers or audience about the kind of character you're creating. Is the character loved or hated? How does he affect the different relationships he has with other characters? It is also advisable to maintain the effect of that character on others till the start of the falling action stage, just before resolution where everyone's true personality will be unveiled.

Understanding the deployment of these elements will give you a character that will linger on in the minds of your readers or audience.

Function Of Characterization

Characterization is a vital instrument in story writing. Understanding the role it plays cannot be over emphasized for any story teller. It helps make sense of the behaviors of the different characters by enabling us understand their thought process and actions. A good use of characterization gives the readers or audience the avenue to relate better with the unfolding events taking place in the story. Also to achieve the best of characterization there should be a good use of dialogue in order to examine the motivations and actions of the characters more deeply.

Conclusion : I've met a lot of people who have gone through literature classes myself inclusive, and it's seemed like nothing was being taught on how to actually come up with a creative piece. This is largely due to the orthodox adherence of the syllabus. This article deals with two vital topics that can never be left out in creative writing which is hardly taught in class.

Note : to be a great writer you must understand plot and characterization cause these two tools are the bed rock of any good piece.

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