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Home About Store Resources Contact Story Structure Database K.M. Weiland Site
JUNE 6, 2014 by S. ALEX MARTIN 33 COMMENTS WRITER'S HELP
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5 Basic Literary Devices ThatWill Deepen Your Fiction
We
all
knowthebasicelementsofstories.Firstyouhaveyour
characters,thenyouhaveplacesforthosecharacterstogo,and
thenyouhavethingsforthecharacterstodo.Nowletstakea
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deeperlook.Howcanyouadddepthtoyourcharacters,
settings,andevents?Theanswerissimple:developliterary
deviceswithinyourstory.
Easiersaidthandone,right?Noworries.Herearesomeeffectiveliterary
devicesthatwilltransformyourreadersfrompageskimmersintofullblown
storyanalyzers.
Literary Device #1: Foil and MirrorCharactersThisisarguablythesimplestofthedevices.Foilcharacterssharefeworno
valuesortraits.Maybeonecharacterislazyandboring,andhisbestfriendis
energeticandagogetter.Thesearefoilcharacters.Putthemtogether,and
theyllhighlighteachothersstrengthsandweaknesses.Themostcommon
foilcharactersaretheheroesandvillains,whostandfordifferentvaluesand
wanttoachieveseparategoals.
Mirrorcharactersareusedforasimilarpurpose.Theytendtoshareseveral
qualitiesandareusedtocomplementandhighlighteachotherstraits.
Commonmirrorcharactersembarkonparallelplots,sometimestoachievea
singlegoal,whichteststhemandhighlightstheirtraitsindifferentways.
http://www.helpingwritersbecomeauthors.com/2014/01/minor-characters-help-discover-theme.htmlhttp://www.amazon.com/s/?_encoding=UTF8&camp=1789&creative=390957&field-keywords=k.%20m.%20weiland%20workbook&linkCode=ur2&sprefix=k.%20m.%20w%2Caps&tag=httpwwwkmweil-20&url=search-alias%3Daps&linkId=YDEPRHUKYH6MN42KSIGN UP FOR K.M.WEILANDS
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Literary Device #2: Static and DynamicCharactersHavingavarietyofcharactersbringsflavoranddepthtoeverystory,butyou
dontneedtodiveintothelivesofeverycharacterinthestory,showingevery
flawtheycouldpossiblyhave,andexplainingtheirfamilyhistoriesindetail.
Youdontknowthelivesofeverypersonyoumeet.Someyoupassonthe
streetandneverseeagain,someyouengageinsmalltalk,andsomebecome
yourfriends.
Storiesarethesameway.Somecharacterswillbestatic:background
characterswhoservebasicroles.Mostlikelytheyarestrangerstothemain
cast.Theydonthavearcs,andreadersusuallywontgrowattachedtothem.
Dynamiccharactersarethepeopleattheforefrontofthestory.These
charactersexperiencethemostchangethroughoutthestories.Villainswho
growtohaveremorse,heroeswhoundergotragedy.Thesecharacterswillbe
themostdeveloped.Theywillformfriendshipsandservemajorrolesinthe
eventsofthestory.Readersrelatetodynamiccharactersbecausetheirtraits
aremuchmoredevelopedonemotionallevels.
Literary Device #3: Symbolism
http://www.helpingwritersbecomeauthors.com/2011/05/are-happy-endings-must.htmlhttp://www.helpingwritersbecomeauthors.com/resources/free-e-bookhttp://www.helpingwritersbecomeauthors.com/2014/06/minor-characters.htmlhttp://www.helpingwritersbecomeauthors.com/2013/07/should-you-ever-redeem-your-bad-guys.htmlhttp://www.helpingwritersbecomeauthors.com/2010/07/whap-pow-zinghow-can-you-tell-if-your.htmlAttachmeaningtoobjects.Thingsrepresentotherthings,usuallysocietal,
emotional,orpersonal.Countryflags,theAmericanEagle,theHolyLand,the
NileRiver,andmore.Theseallcontainmeaning.Peoplelookatthese
objectsandseetheircountry,orpride,orlifesustenance.Thereare
thousandsofmeanings.Death,freedom,sacrifice,love,repentance,
forgiveness,mercy,help,savior,bravery,treacherythelistgoesonandon.
Attachmeaningstoobjects.Groundthatintoyourstory.Makeitconcrete.
Symbolismwillimprovethequalitybecauseitcancropupatcertainpointsto
remindthemaincharacterswhattheybelieveinandarefightingfor.
Literary Device #4: Repetition of IdeasRepeatingcertaineventsorstructureswillalwayshelpgroundtruthand
realityintoyourstory.Thingsthathappenmorethanoncewillnotgo
unnoticedbyreaders,sousethattoyouradvantageandmakethosethings
important.
Literary Device #5: Parallelism ofEventsParallelismismypersonalfavoritestoryelement.Why?Becauseparallelism
http://www.helpingwritersbecomeauthors.com/2013/05/3-ways-to-add-repetition-that-pleases.htmlhttp://www.helpingwritersbecomeauthors.com/2010/06/how-to-strengthen-your-story-with.htmlmakeslightbulbsgooff.Heresaprimeexample:inHarryPotterandthe
DeathlyHallows,weretoldtheTaleoftheThreeBrothers.Thefirstbrother
diedforpower,theseconddiedforlostlove,andthethirdgreeteddeathlike
anoldfriend.Well,lookattheSecondWar.Voldemortsoughtultimatepower
anddiedasaresult.Snapediedforlostlove(LilyPotterdiedatVoldemorts
hand).Harrywalkedintotheforest,readytodie,readytogreetdeathforthe
benefitofall.
Parallelismcanalsobebetweenevents,characters,settings,and
dialogue.Thereisnolimit.Youcaneasilyforeshadowsomethingusing
parallelismifyouaneventearlyonthatleadstoasimilarpointlaterinthe
story.Readerswillbeabletoanalyzeeventsandmakeconnectionstoother
partsofthestory.Becauseparallelismallowsforsomuchflexibilityinthe
plot,youcanweavemultipleeventstogether.
Havefunwiththeseimportantliterarydevices,andmostofall,becreative!
Tell me your opinion:What are some of yourfavoriteliterary devices? Do you have any others toadd?
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