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101 Themes, Subgenres, and Story Conventions

October 28, 2023 by Richard Leave a Comment

This expansive list contains 101 themes, subgenres, and story conventions that writers can explore in short stories and novels. The list ranges from broad categories like “coming-of-age” and “animal transformation” to subtypes or subgenres like “addiction recovery” and “campus novel.” These varied labels offer a glimpse into the endless possibilities for fictional narratives. For writers unsure where their tale may lead, perusing a list like this could spark inspiration on potential directions. Even for authors with a clear trajectory planned, reading through these creative conventions can still prove worthwhile to appreciate the diversity of creative forms. Whatever one’s familiarity with fiction writing, this compilation has something to offer every reader. These 101 ideas showcase the boundless breadth of storytelling traditions, and with any luck, they may kindle promising new narrative concepts. Most importantly, may these themes ignite your imagination and love of writing.

Addiction/recovery arc – The protagonist journeys from substance addiction to sobriety and maturity.
Afterlife journey – A protagonist experiences revelations about life through a metaphorical afterlife voyage.
Afterlife story – A glimpse of the afterlife profoundly changes the protagonist’s view of life.
Animal transformation – The protagonist metaphorically develops by magically transforming into an animal that represents their inner state.
Apprenticeship novel – The protagonist learns a trade or occupation through hands-on work experience and a mentor-mentee relationship.
Awakening story – The protagonist gains greater awareness about life, society, or themselves.
Biopunk story – Experimental biological or genetic modifications impact the protagonist.
Boarding school novel – Stories exploring socialization, competition, friendship, bullying, authority, rules, and adolescence within boarding school settings.
Breaking away story – The protagonist rebels against traditions and expectations to seek freedom.
Cautionary tale – The protagonist’s flaws and poor choices lead to a moral downfall, acting as a warning.
Campus novel – Stories taking place at university settings where college life signifies the protagonist’s transition to adulthood.
Catharsis story – The protagonist achieves psychological release and restoration through an intense experience.
Changeling story – The protagonist discovers they were secretly switched at birth and must adapt.
Chosen one story – An unlikely protagonist discovers they have a special destiny or chosen fate to fulfill.
Coming of technology story – New technology radically disrupts and changes the protagonist’s world.
Coming-of-age – Stories about a young person’s transition into adulthood. May depict psychological, moral, and social maturation.
Corruption story – An innocent protagonist loses naivete through exposure to harsh realities.
Counterculture story – The protagonist rejects mainstream values and conventions on their personal journey.
Descent into madness story – The protagonist’s mental state deteriorates into psychosis or insanity.
Disillusionment story – The protagonist loses naive idealism and optimism through experience.
Ecofiction – Speculative stories exploring environmental collapse, climate change, and human impact.
Education novel – Stories in which the protagonist’s formal schooling features prominently in their personal growth and maturation.
Emancipation stories – The protagonist gains independence, often through coming of age, overcoming adversity, or escaping constraint.
Empowerment story – The protagonist gains agency, strength, confidence, or freedom.
Entwicklungsroman – A German term also referring to coming-of-age stories focused on the development of the protagonist.
Epiphany story – The protagonist achieves a sudden insight or realization that changes their worldview.
Erziehungsroman – A German term for novels of education focused on the systematic schooling and formal education of the protagonist.
Escape story – The protagonist breaks free of an oppressive or confining situation through determination.
Failure story – The protagonist fails to attain social success but gains inner wisdom.
Fall from grace story – The respected protagonist falls into disgrace through moral lapses.
Fall from innocence – A tragic event or trauma ends the protagonist’s naive youthful outlook.
Family saga – The protagonist’s development unfolds over generations through a family history narrative.
Fallen hero story – A respected hero falls into disgrace or corruption.
Feminine maturity story – The female protagonist actualizes her identity and potential as a woman.
Fish out of water – An ingénu protagonist is thrust into an unfamiliar social environment, gaining worldliness.
First contact story – The protagonist encounters alien life, changing their worldview.
Forced maturity story – Harsh circumstances force the child protagonist to grow up quickly.
Gap year novel – Stories in which the protagonist takes a year off between high school and college to travel abroad, volunteer, work, or find themselves.
Ghost story – Supernatural entities return from the dead to haunt the living.
Gymnasium novel – Stories set in boarding schools and focused on adolescence and school experiences shaping the protagonist’s coming-of-age.
Haunting story – The protagonist is menaced by a supernatural or psychological haunting presence.
Healing story – The protagonist overcomes psychological, spiritual or physical brokenness and becomes whole.
Immigrant experience – The protagonist adapts to a new culture and comes of age as they find their place in a new homeland.
Initiation story – Stories chronicling a childhood event that signifies a loss of innocence and first step toward adulthood.
Initiation through nature – The protagonist achieves maturation through challenging encounters and rites of passage in nature settings.
Künstlerroman – A German term for narratives about an artist’s growth to maturity and mastery of their artform.
Learning by teaching story – A mentor imparts wisdom to a pupil, but learns themselves in the process.
Loss of innocence – Stories that depict formative experiences that shatter the protagonist’s naiveté and ignorance of the adult world.
Magical realism – Realistic fiction subtly infused with hints of fantasy, myth, and magic.
Masculine maturity story – The male protagonist proves his manhood by overcoming challenges.
Metamorphosis story – The protagonist undergoes a profound physical or mental change.
Mind swap story – The protagonist switches bodies/minds with someone and gains new perspective.
Monster transformation – A monster or beast transforms into human form after moral growth.
Overcoming disability – The protagonist transcends limitations of a disability through perseverance and inner strength.
Portrait of the artist – Stories highlighting the intellectual, aesthetic, and emotional development of a young artist or writer.
Psychological thriller – The protagonist’s precarious mental state heightens the tension and stakes.
Puberty novel – Stories emphasizing puberty as the primary symbolic marker of adolescence and growing up.
Quest for identity – The protagonist seeks to discover their authentic self, origins, purpose.
Quest novel – Coming-of-age stories structured around the protagonist’s search for identity, meaning, and purpose in life.
Quarterlife crisis novel – Stories about 20-somethings going through identity struggles in early adulthood and their late 20s.
Rags to riches – The protagonist transcends poverty and low social status through hard work or luck.
Rebirth story – Through a symbolic death and rebirth, the protagonist starts life anew.
Recovery story – The protagonist overcomes addiction or illness through inner strength.
Redemption story – A morally flawed protagonist atones for mistakes and is redeemed.
Regression story – The protagonist becomes more childlike in response to trauma.
Reluctant hero story – An ordinary protagonist who lacks heroic qualities is forced to rise to an occasion.
Revenge story – The protagonist seeks vengeance for a past wrong, achieving a symbolic victory.
Revelation story – The protagonist achieves a sudden spiritual, philosophical or personal revelation that changes their outlook.
Reverse monster transformation – A human transforms into a monster as a result of moral decline.
Riches to rags – The wealthy protagonist loses status and wealth but gains wisdom.
Riddle – A question poem posing a puzzle or conundrum to be solved. Riddles frequently have metaphorical language.
Rite of passage – The protagonist undergoes a significant ritual event that marks their transition to adulthood.
Robinsonade – The resourceful protagonist survives alone in nature against the odds.
Sacrifice story – The protagonist gives up something important to achieve a greater purpose or benefit others.
Secret origin story – The protagonist discovers secrets that explain their own forgotten origins.
Self-actualization – Stories highlighting the protagonist’s journey to fully realize and fulfill their potential.
Self-discovery – Coming-of-age stories emphasizing the protagonist’s inner journey of self-realization and actualization.
Self-discovery in nature – The protagonist achieves insights and maturity through encounters in natural settings.
Shapeshifter story – The protagonist transforms between human and animal form.
Slice of life – Impressionistic glimpses into everyday events, characters, and settings.
Social justice story – The protagonist finds their voice and purpose through fighting inequality.
Social transition – Stories underscoring social advancement, often through education and class mobility, as part of the maturation process.
Societal integration – Stories highlighting the protagonist finding their place in society through rites of passage into adulthood.
Southern gothic – Dark stories of the American South featuring eccentric, grotesque, or flawed characters.
Sports story – The protagonist accomplishes a symbolic “win” through sports achievement parallel to their psychological growth.
Stories of nostalgia – The protagonist reflects wistfully on idealized childhood experiences before coming of age.
Stories of vocation – The protagonist searches for and sometimes finds their calling in a particular career, trade, or creative passion.
Success story – The protagonist achieves outward conventional success through determination.
Superhero origin story – The protagonist gains superpowers and decides to use them for good or ill.
Survival story – The protagonist is forced to tap into inner strength and maturity to survive an ordeal.
Temptation story – The protagonist is led astray by temptation but ultimately resists through inner strength.
Tested faith story – Protagonist’s beliefs are challenged but ultimately reaffirmed.
Time travel story – The protagonist travels to the past or future and returns transformed.
Tragedy – The protagonist experiences a catastrophic downfall through their own flaws and mistakes.
Transformation story – The protagonist experiences a radical inner change in personality, outlook, or way of being.
Travel story – The protagonist gains worldliness and growth through journeys to unfamiliar places.
Trials of conscience story – The protagonist faces a moral dilemma that tests their conscience.
Underdog story – A disadvantaged protagonist beats the odds and finds success through perseverance.
Voyage and return – The protagonist journeys to an unfamiliar realm and returns home matured by the odyssey.
War and trauma – Warfront events force the protagonist to confront mature themes like mortality, violence, despair.
Youth culture – Stories exploring the peer socialization, conventions, and dynamics of youth culture.

It is my sincere hope that this extensive compilation of literary traditions proves valuable for writers in some way. Perhaps it will spark a promising direction for your work, offer insights into developing your craft, or simply provide an engaging read about the art of storytelling.

This list represents a trove of creative possibilities. Whatever your current project or process, immersing yourself in these diverse narrative forms may unveil unexpected connections or innovations to explore. Even just reading for pleasure, many find these conventions interesting windows into the literary imagination.

I welcome any feedback on this resource in the comments below. Please share if you found these genres and themes helpful, thought-provoking, or inspiring in some way. Knowing what resonates most with readers enables me to better serve the writing community. My aim is to facilitate your storytelling journey however I can.

Above all, I hope these narrative traditions ignite your passion for the written word. May they galvanize you to cultivate your own creative voice and contribute it to this living literary lineage. If so, I will consider this endeavor a success. Please do share your thoughts and let me know if this list sparks your imagination. Wishing you the best in your writing! We also have a lot more writing tips on our site.

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About Richard

Richard Everywriter (pen name) has worked for literary magazines and literary websites for the last 25 years. He holds degrees in Writing, Journalism, Technology and Education. Richard has headed many writing workshops and courses, and he has taught writing and literature for the last 20 years.

In writing and publishing he has worked with independent, small, medium and large publishers for years connecting publishers to authors. He has also worked as a journalist and editor in both magazine, newspaper and trade publications as well as in the medical publishing industry. Follow him on Twitter, and check out our Submissions page .

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Genre Conventions: Must-Have Elements of Story

What are Genre Conventions?

Genre conventions are specific requirements for the story’s ALTERNATE WORLD , AVATARS , and catalysts that create conflict and enable solutions. Without specific genre conventions, the reader will be confused, unsettled, or bored and quit reading.

Genre Conventions set up genre audience expectations and create the potential for specific change in the OBLIGATORY MOMENTS of a story. Genre conventions help us focus and filter problems and solutions through two broad categories of constraints: selective constraints and enabling constraints.

Genre Conventions: Must-Have Elements of Story

What are Selective Constraints?

Selective constraints are elements of the setting, or arena, that help define the problem in a story and put the core need at stake. In the POP ( PROPOSITION OF POSSIBILITY ) analysis, this is also called the CONTEXT . We call conventions related to the context selective because they narrow the field of potential big-picture problems addressed in our stories.

Every context has the potential for external and internal conflict, but the reach and characteristics of the location impact the scope of the problems explored in a story. For example, an expansive landscape with multiple locations sets up a wider range of external conflict. A less varied setting tends to support multiple layers of similar conflicts. When the story is set in a single location, we can explore the internal landscape of the AVATARS more extensively.

In ACTION stories, the setting must be a disturbed, unbalanced physical and social environment that gives rise to a threat to life.
HORROR stories unfold within conventional or mundane settings with fantastical elements and a literal or metaphorical labyrinth.
SOCIETY and WAR stories are set against a big canvas with either a widescope external setting or internal landscape.
WESTERN/EASTERN stories take place in a harsh hostile, wide-open landscape.
LOVE , CRIME , THRILLER , PERFORMANCE , STATUS , MORALITY , and WORLDVIEW stories have no specific convention that defines their context, but the setting must give rise to the other conventions and OBLIGATORY MOMENTS of the genre.

Levels of Conflict

Conflict exists within the setting and arises when two forces pursue their opposing goals or natures. We identify conflict on three levels: inner conflict (internal dilemma), personal conflict (between two or more people with opposing goals), and extrapersonal conflict (conflict between a person and the environment, including institutions). All three levels of conflict are bound to exist in any setting, but your context should emphasize the levels that are most important to your story.

ACTION stories have dueling hierarchies: power-dominance and growth. Also the power divide between the protagonist and villain is large.
In WAR Stories, the protagonists are substantially outnumbered by the antagonists.
CRIME and THRILLER stories require a large power divide between the protagonist and antagonist.
HORROR stories must mask the power of the monster throughout the story until the monster’s massive power advantage is revealed.
WESTERN/EASTERN stories require fundamental conflict between the individual and society.
LOVE stories have many levels of conflict. Love stories must set up an external need beyond love, a moral weight that the AVATARS must carry, and the lovers pursuing ordered and chaotic approaches to love and life.
In SOCIETY stories, the power divide between those in power and the disenfranchised is large and impacts human needs beyond the core need for Recognition.
In PERFORMANCE stories, there is a great power divide between the protagonist and antagonist.
MORALITY stories require a seemingly impossible external conflict forcing the protagonist to choose to share or withhold their gifts.
STATUS and WORLDVIEW stories feature a social problem as subtext (e.g., racism, misogyny, or poverty). Conflicts between different groups and individuals within the context cause cognitive dissonance to arise within the protagonist.

Examples of Selective Constraints in Genre Conventions

In Treasure Island , an ACTION story, the setting includes a tropical island, far from authorities in England, where violent pirates with weapons hold the upper hand (personall conflict). The avatars are also susceptible to fatal tropical fevers circulating on the island (extrapersonal conflict). Jim Hawkins, the protagonist, is unsure what strategy he should adopt to defeat the pirates (inner conflict).
In Murder on the Orient Express , a CRIME story, the setting is a luxury train traveling from Istanbul to Calais in the 1930s. Poirot must discover the truth from a group of people with secrets they don’t want to reveal (personal conflict). The AVATARS are trapped because of a snowstorm (extrapersonal conflict).The greater context of the story includes a justice system incapable of protecting law-abiding people and restoring justice (extrapersonal conflict). Before the events of the current story, Ratchett, a notorious criminal, was wrongly acquitted of kidnapping and killing a young child. Once Poirot uncovers the truth, he faces a dilemma about how to serve justice (inner conflict).
The setting of Pride and Prejudice , a LOVE story, is Regency era England, a world of rigid class boundaries and strict standards of behavior. Elizabeth and her sisters can’t earn an independent living, so marriage is the only way to avoid being destitute. At least one of the Bennet sisters must marry a husband willing and able to support the rest, but the social rules of the time mean that the behavior of one sister could ruin the prospects of the others (extrapersonal conflict leading to inner conflict).

What are Enabling Constraints?

Enabling constraints are the characters—or AVATARS —and circumstances—or catalysts—that make it possible for the protagonist to solve the problem presented by the inciting incident. The setting or context is there from the start, and enabling constraints arise from it as potential or actual instruments of conflict that force change along the spectrum of the core value. In other words, enabling constraints cause the effects readers expect to see in the story of a particular genre.

Enabling Constraints increase external conflict, which increases internal conflict. Rising conflict leads the protagonist to the global CRISIS in the all-is-lost moment.

Characters or AVATARS are used to fulfill certain roles in stories. The two primary avatars in a story are the protagonist and the antagonist. The antagonist’s OBJECT OF DESIRE is always in direct opposition to the protagonist’s goals and desires. Other avatars act to aid or hinder the protagonist’s goals and desires. These figures can be mentors, shapeshifters, sidekicks, threshold guardians, or tricksters.

Avatars pursuing their goals creates conflict in the story, forcing the protagonist to change, but they need the support of catalysts to create life-altering discord in the arena.

ACTION and WESTERN/EASTERN stories require a hero, villain, and victim.
CRIME stories feature a professional or amateur detective, a criminal “who makes it personal,” and the victim(s) of the crime.
HORROR stories feature an unheroic protagonist and a monster that cannot be reasoned with.
THRILLER stories require a hero, master villain who targets the protagonist, and victims.
LOVE stories require lovers, rivals, helpers, and harmers. These are AVATARS that are radically for or against the relationship.
SOCIETY and WAR stories require one central AVATAR , the protagonist, with offshoots of other AVATARS that embody the characteristics of the protagonist.
PERFORMANCE stories require a strong mentor figure.
STATUS stories require a strong mentor figure, shapeshifters, and a herald or threshold guardian.
MORALITY stories feature a protagonist that is despicable at the beginning of the story and a spiritual mentor or sidekick.
WORLDVIEW stories require a mentor figure and shapeshifters.

Examples of Avatars in Genre Conventions

In Treasure Island , an ACTION story, Jim Hawkins is the protagonist-hero, but through most of the book, he and the innocent crew members fulfill the agency-deprived role of victim. The main villain or shadow agent is Long John Silver, who is also a charming shapeshifter and threshold guardian. Dr. Livesey serves as mentor to Jim, and Ben Gunn is a marooned sailor and threshold guardian.
In Murder on the Orient Express , a CRIME story, Poirot is the protagonist and master detective. To some extent, almost all the other passengers on the train participate in the murder and cover-up, so they are antagonists and shapeshifters, but they seek to restore justice for the victim, Daisy Armstrong, denied by Ratchett and a broken system, the primary villains.
In Pride and Prejudice , a LOVE story, Elizabeth and Darcy are lovers. George Wickham and Anne de Bourgh are rivals. Lady Catherine de Bourgh is a harmer who wants to keep the lovers apart. Georgiana Darcy and Elizabeth’s aunt and uncle serve as helpers, bringing the lovers together.

Catalysts are story elements that force the protagonist to change their tactics to reach their goal. Catalysts can take the form of an AVATAR or an element of the global context.

From the outside, catalysts exert pressure on the protagonist that mimics a kind of push and pull movement. They can’t solve the external problem easily, and they can’t simply quit and go home. This heightened personal or extrapersonal conflict requires the protagonist to stay in the ring long enough to confront their inner conflict about the problem raised by the inciting incident.

In ACTION stories, the catalysts are a speech in praise of the villain, the deadline, set-piece sequences, and fast paced and exciting plots.
WAR stories have a point of no return and a sacrifice of the protagonist for kinship moment as catalysts.
HORROR stories use a sadomasochistic flip-flop where the reader can experience the power of the monster while sympathizing with the villain as the story’s catalyst.
CRIME , THRILLER , and WESTERN/EASTERN stories require the antagonist’s MacGuffin, red herrings, a clock. the antagonist making the crime personal for the protagonist, and other subgenre specific catalysts.
LOVE stories feature opposing forces, secrets, and rituals as the catalysts for the story.
SOCIETY stories have a revolutionary point of no return, a moment where the vanquished are doomed to exile, and an ironic win-but-lose or lose-but-win ending.
PERFORMANCE stories feature training where the protagonist hones their craft, a moment when the mentor regains their moral compass or betrays the protagonist, and a win-but-lose or lose-but-win ending.
MORALITY stories include ghosts from the protagonist’s past that come to torment them and aid from unexpected sources that act as catalysts throughout the story.
STATUS and WORLDVIEW stories feature a point of no return moment and a win-but-lose or lose-but-win ending.

Examples of Catalysts in Genre Conventions

In Treasure Island , an ACTION story, Long John Silver delivers the speech in praise of the villain. Jim learns that Silver wants the treasure for financial security and that the pirate risks hanging if caught by the English authorities, so he’s planning to kill the honest members of the crew.
In Murder on the Orient Express , a CRIME story, Poirot must sort through the conflicting clues to solve the crime before the train reaches the station, giving the murderer time to escape (deadline). Poirot discovers twelve stab wounds inflicted by different people, a red herring meant to mislead investigators.
In Pride and Prejudice , a LOVE story, Elizabeth doesn’t tell Darcy when her feelings toward him change, and Darcy keeps his proof of love secret, even after they reconnect. They keep these secrets until they can each confront their own personal secrets. They must confront the truth about themselves if they are going to have any chance of commitment.

Additional Resources for Genre Conventions:

Conventions and Obligatory Moments: The Must-Haves To Meet Audience Expectations by Kimberly Kessler and Leslie Watts (Portions of this article have been taken from this book.)
Four Core Framework: Needs, Life Values, Emotions, and Events in Storytelling by Shawn Coyne

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Guides • Perfecting your Craft

Last updated on Nov 22, 2023

Story Structure: 7 Types All Writers Should Know

Nothing makes the challenging task of crafting your first novel feel more attainable than adopting a story structure to help you plot your narrative.

While using a pre-existing blueprint might make you worry about ending up with a formulaic, predictable story, you can probably analyze most of your favorite books using various narrative structures that writers have been using for decades (if not centuries)!

This post will reveal seven distinct story structures that any writer can use to build a compelling narrative. But first…

What is story structure?

Story structure is the order in which plot events are told to the reader or audience. While stories can be told in a wide variety of ways, most Western story structures commonly share certain elements: exposition, rising action, climax, falling action, and resolution.

A tightly controlled structure will answer a reader's questions, provide a climax followed by resolution and information at the end of the story , further the characters’ development , and unravel any central conflicts . In other words, it's responsible for a satisfying narrative experience that accomplishes the author’s aims.

Writing is an art, but if there’s one part of the craft that’s closer to science, this would be it. Become a master of story structure, and you will have the world at your feet.

Classic story structure

When people discuss different story structures, they often talk about the different frameworks used to analyze stories. When you boil them all down, all stories have certain shared elements.

Elements of classic story structure:

Exposition. This first part establishes a protagonist's normal life and greater desires, and usually culminates in the inciting incident.
Rising action. The protagonist pursues their new goal and is tested along the way.
Climax. Our hero achieves their goal — or so they think!
Falling action. The hero now must deal with the consequences of achieving their goal.
Resolution. The conclusion tying together the plot, character arcs, and themes.

These are all common ‘ beats ’ to most stories. It can be easier to see these moments in genres with higher stakes (such as a military thriller), but you’ll find them in almost any type of story.

Classic story structure. A diagram showing all 5 stages.

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Seven Story Structures Every Writer Should Know

Now that we’ve established the most essential components of story, let’s look at seven of the most popular story structures used by writers — and how they deploy these components.

Freytag's Pyramid
The Hero's Journey
Three Act Structure
Dan Harmon's Story Circle
Fichtean Curve
Save the Cat Beat Sheet
Seven-Point Story Structure

1. Freytag’s Pyramid

story structure | a diagram drawn on a lined sheet, demonstrating the shape of the Freytag's pyramid structure

Introduction. The status quo is established; an inciting incident occurs.
Rise, or rising action. The protagonist actively pursues their goal. The stakes heighten.
Climax. A point of no return, from which the protagonist can no longer go back to the status quo.
Return, or fall. In the aftermath of the climax, tension builds, and the story heads inevitably towards...
Catastrophe. The protagonist is brought to their lowest point. Their greatest fears have come true.

This structural model is less frequently used in modern storytelling, partly due to readers’ limited appetite for tragic narratives (although you can still spot a few tragic heroes in popular literature today). By and large, commercial fiction, films, and television will see a protagonist overcome their obstacles to find some small measure of success. That said, it’s still useful to understand the Pyramid as a foundational structure in Western literature — and you will still see it occasionally in the most depressing contemporary tales.

To learn more, read our full guide on Freytag’s Pyramid .

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2. The Hero’s Journey

story structure | The hero's journey, plotted onto a diagram shaped like a clock face

Campbell’s original structure uses terminology that lends itself well to epic tales of bravery and triumph — with plot points like “Belly of the Whale,” “Woman as the Temptress,” and “The Magic Flight.” To make The Hero’s Journey more accessible, Disney executive Christopher Vogler created a simplified version that has become popular amongst mainstream storytellers.

Here, we’ll look at Vogler’s streamlined, 12-step version of The Hero’s Journey.

The Ordinary World. The hero’s everyday life is established.
The Call of Adventure. Otherwise known as the inciting incident.
Refusal of the Call. For a moment, the hero is reluctant to take on the challenge.
Meeting the Mentor. Our hero meets someone who prepares them for what lies ahead — perhaps a parental figure, a teacher, a wizard, or a wise hermit.
Crossing the First Threshold. The hero steps out of their comfort zone and enters a ‘new world.’
Tests, Allies, Enemies. Our protagonist faces new challenges — and maybe picks up some new friends. Think of Dorothy on the Yellow Brick Road.
Approach to the Inmost Cave. The hero gets close to their goal. Luke Skywalker reaches the Death Star.
The Ordeal. The hero meets (and overcomes) their greatest challenge yet.
Reward (Seizing the Sword). The hero obtains something important they were after, and victory is in sight.
The Road Back. The hero realizes that achieving their goal is not the final hurdle. In fact, ‘seizing the sword’ may have made things worse for them.
Resurrection. The hero faces their final challenge — a climactic test that hinges on everything they’ve learned over their journey.
Return with the Elixir. Having triumphed, our protagonist returns to their old life. Dorothy returns to Kansas; Iron Man holds a press conference to blow his own trumpet .

While Vogler’s simplified steps still retain some of Campbell’s mythological language with its references to swords and elixirs, the framework can be applied to almost any genre of fiction. To see how a ‘realistic’ story can adhere to this structure, check out our guide to the hero’s journey in which we analyze Rocky through this very lens.

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3. Three Act Structure

story structure | the 3-act story structure plotted onto a diagram

Act 1: Setup

Exposition . The status quo or ‘ordinary world’ is established.
Inciting Incident. An event that sets the story in motion.
Plot Point One. The protagonist decides to tackle the challenge head-on. She ‘crosses the threshold,’ and the story is now truly moving.

Act 2: Confrontation

Rising Action. The story's true stakes become clear; our hero grows familiar with her ‘new world’ and has her first encounters with some enemies and allies. (see Tests, Allies, Enemies)
Midpoint. An event that upends the protagonist’s mission. (Similar to the climax in Freytag’s pyramid)
Plot Point Two. In the wake of the disorienting midpoint, the protagonist is tested — and fails. Her ability to succeed is now in doubt.

Act 3: Resolution

Pre Climax. The night is darkest before dawn. The protagonist must pull herself together and choose between decisive action and failure.
Climax. She faces off against her antagonist one last time. Will she prevail?
Denouement. All loose ends are tied up. The reader discovers the consequences of the climax. A new status quo is established.

When we speak about a confrontation with an antagonist, this doesn’t always mean a fight to the death. In some cases, the antagonist might be a love rival, a business competitor, or merely an internal or environmental conflict that our protagonist has been struggling with the entire story.

If you’re interested in using this model to plot your own story, read our guide to the three-act structure , and be sure to sign up to our free course on the subject.

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4. Dan Harmon's Story Circle

Another variation on Campbell’s monomyth structure, the Story Circle is an approach developed by Rick and Morty co-creator Dan Harmon. Again, heavily inspired by the Hero's Journey, the benefit of Harmon's approach is its focus on the protagonist's character arc. Instead of referring to abstract concepts like 'story midpoint' and 'denouement', each beat in the story circle forces the writer to think about the character's wants and needs.

A character is in a zone of comfort... This is the establishment of the status quo.
But they want something... This 'want' could be something long-standing and brought to the fore by an inciting incident.
They enter an unfamiliar situation... The protagonist must do something new in their pursuit of the thing they want.
Adapt to it... Faced with some challenges, they struggle then begin to succeed.
Get what they wanted... Usually a false victory.
Pay a heavy price for it... They realize that what they 'wanted' wasn't what they 'needed'.
Then return to their familiar situation... armed with a new truth.
Having changed... For better or worse.

Created by a writer whose chosen medium is the 30-minute sitcom, this structure is worded in a way that sidesteps the need for a protagonist to undergo life-changing transformations with each story. After all, for a comedy to continue for six seasons (and a movie) its characters can't completely transform at the end of each episode. They can, however, learn small truths about themselves and the world around them — which, like all humans, they can quickly forget about if next week's episode calls for it.

To learn more and see this structure applied to an episode of Rick and Morty, check out our full post on Dan Harmon's Story Circle .

Side note: for this kind of character-driven plot (and, indeed, for all of these structures), you're going to want to know you're protagonist inside and out. Why not check out some of our character development exercises for help fleshing your characters out, like the profile template below.

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5. Fichtean Curve

story structure | The fichtean curve, an upward line with many mini-crises that apexes with the climax. It is followed by a drop that is the resolution.

Fleshed out in John Gardner’s The Art of Fiction , the Fichtean Curve is a narrative structure that puts our main characters through a series of many obstacles on their way to achieving their overarching goals. Resembling Freytag’s Pyramid, it encourages authors to write narratives packed with tension and mini-crises that keep readers eager to reach the climax.

Bypassing the “ordinary world” setup of many other structures, the Fichtean Curve starts with the inciting incident and goes straight into the rising action. Multiple crises occur, each of which contributes to the readers’ overall understanding of the narrative — replacing the need for the initial exposition.

To discuss this unusual structure, it’s perhaps best to see it in use. We’ll use Celeste Ng’s Everything I Never Told You as an example. Needless to say, spoilers ahead.

Rising Action

First crisis. Lydia’s family is informed her body was found in a nearby lake. From this first crisis's climax, the narrative flashes back to provide exposition and details of the family’s history.
Second crisis. In flashbacks, we discover that, 11 years prior, Marilyn abandoned her family to resume her undergraduate studies. In her absence, the family begins to fall apart. Marilyn learns she is pregnant and is forced to return home. Having lost her opportunity for further education, she places the pressure of academic success on her children.
Third crisis. Back in the present, Lydia’s father, James, is cheating on Marilyn. The police decide to close the investigation, ruling Lydia’s death a suicide. This results in a massive argument between her parents, and James leaves to stay with the “other woman.”
Fourth crisis. Flashback to the day Lydia died. From her perspective, we see that she’s misunderstood by her parents. She mourns her brother’s impending departure for college, leaving her as the sole focus of her parents’ pressure. Isolated, she tries to seduce a friend — who rejects her advances and explains he’s in love with her brother.
Lydia takes a boat into the lake in the middle of the night — determined to overcome her fear of water and reclaim control of her life. Lydia jumps off the boat, into the water, and out of this life. As in a classical tragedy, this moment is both devastating and inevitable.

Falling Action

Some level of resolution is achieved, and readers get to at least glimpse the “new norm” for the characters. Lydia’s family lean on one another in their grief. While they may never be able to make their amends with Lydia, they can learn from her death. Not all of the loose ends are tied off, but readers infer the family is on the long road to recovery.

Note: In the rising action stage, all of the crises should build tension towards — and correspond with — the story’s major climax. Like the three-act narrative structure, the Fichtean Curve’s climax typically occurs two-thirds through the book.

While this structure lends itself well to flashback-heavy novels such as Everything I Never Told You, it is also incredibly common in theatre. In stage plays like The Cherry Orchard and A Doll’s House , the action takes place in a fixed time and place, but backstory and character development are revealed through moments of high drama that occur before the audience’s eyes.

For a deeper look at this structure, head to our full post on the Fichtean Curve .

6. Save the Cat Beat Sheet

story structure | a diagram showing the save the cat beat sheet, with the 15 points plotted along a wavy line.

Another variation of the three-act structure, this framework created by Hollywood screenwriter Blake Snyder, has been widely championed by storytellers across many media forms.

Fun fact: Save the Cat is named for a moment in the set up of a story (usually a film) where our hero does something to endear himself to the audience.

While many structures are reluctant to prescribe exactly when in a story the various beats should take place, Snyder and Save the Cat have no such qualms. The number in the square brackets below refers to the page that the beat should take place — assuming you’re writing a 110-page screenplay.

Opening Image [1]. The first shot of the film. If you’re starting a novel , this would be an opening paragraph or scene that sucks readers into the world of your story.
Set-up [1-10]. Establishing the ‘ordinary world’ of your protagonist. What does he want? What is he missing out on?
Theme Stated [5]. During the setup, hint at what your story is really about — the truth that your protagonist will discover by the end.
Catalyst [12]. The inciting incident!
Debate [12-25]. The hero refuses the call to adventure. He tries to avoid the conflict before they are forced into action.
Break into Two [25]. The protagonist makes an active choice and the journey begins in earnest.
B Story [30]. A subplot kicks in. Often romantic in nature, the protagonist’s subplot should serve to highlight the theme.
The Promise of the Premise [30-55]. Often called the ‘fun and games’ stage, this is usually a highly entertaining section where the writer delivers the goods. If you promised an exciting detective story, we’d see the detective in action. If you promised a goofy story of people falling in love, let’s go on some charmingly awkward dates.
Midpoint [55]. A plot twist occurs that ups the stakes and makes the hero’s goal harder to achieve — or makes them focus on a new, more important goal.
Bad Guys Close In [55-75]. The tension ratchets up. The hero’s obstacles become greater, his plan falls apart, and he is on the back foot.
All is Lost [75]. The hero hits rock bottom. He loses everything he’s gained so far, and things are looking bleak. The hero is overpowered by the villain; a mentor dies; our lovebirds have an argument and break up.
Dark Night of the Soul [75-85-ish]. Having just lost everything, the hero shambles around the city in a minor-key musical montage before discovering some “new information” that reveals exactly what he needs to do if he wants to take another crack at success. (This new information is often delivered through the B-Story)
Break into Three [85]. Armed with this new information, our protagonist decides to try once more!
Finale [85-110]. The hero confronts the antagonist or whatever the source of the primary conflict is. The truth that eluded him at the start of the story (established in step three and accentuated by the B Story) is now clear, allowing him to resolve their story.
Final Image [110]. A final moment or scene that crystallizes how the character has changed. It’s a reflection, in some way, of the opening image.

Some writers may find this structure too prescriptive, but it’s incredible to see how many mainstream stories seem to adhere to it — either by design or coincidence. Over on the Save the Cat website, there are countless examples of films and novels analyzed with Snyder’s 15 beats . You’ll be surprised how accurate some of the timings are for each of the beats.

For a deeper dive into this framework, and to watch this video where Reedsy’s Shaelin plots out a Middle-Grade fantasy novel using Snyder’s method — head to our full post on the Save the Cat Beat Sheet .

7. Seven-Point Story Structure

story structure | The seven-point story structure

A slightly less detailed adaptation of The Hero’s Journey, the Seven-Point Story Structure focuses specifically on the highs and lows of a narrative arc .

According to author Dan Wells, who developed the Seven-Point Story Structure , writers are encouraged to start at the end, with the resolution, and work their way back to the starting point: the hook. With the ending in mind, they can have their protagonist and plot begin in a state that best contrasts the finale — since this structure is all about dramatic changes from beginning to end.

The Hook. Draw readers in by explaining the protagonist’s current situation. Their state of being at the beginning of the novel should be in direct contrast to what it will be at the end of the novel.
Plot Point 1. Whether it’s a person, an idea, an inciting incident, or something else — there should be a "Call to Adventure" of sorts that sets the narrative and character development in motion.
Pinch Point 1. Things can’t be all sunshine and roses for your protagonist. Something should go wrong here that applies pressure to the main character, forcing them to step up and solve the problem.
Midpoint. A “Turning Point” wherein the main character changes from a passive force to an active force in the story. Whatever the narrative’s main conflict is, the protagonist decides to start meeting it head-on.
Pinch Point 2. The second pinch point involves another blow to the protagonist — things go even more awry than they did during the first pinch point. This might involve the passing of a mentor, the failure of a plan, the reveal of a traitor, etc.
Plot Point 2. After the calamity of Pinch Point 2, the protagonist learns that they’ve actually had the key to solving the conflict the whole time.
Resolution. The story’s primary conflict is resolved — and the character goes through the final bit of development necessary to transform them from who they were at the start of the novel.

For a deeper look into Wells's approach — including the key to using it — check out our full post on the seven-point story structure .

We've said it before, and we'll say it again: story structures aren't an exact science, and you should feel welcome to stray from the path they present. They're simply there to help you find your narrative's footing — a blueprint for the world you're about to start building.

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English Studies

This website is dedicated to English Literature, Literary Criticism, Literary Theory, English Language and its teaching and learning.

Narrative Conventions in Literature & Literary Theory

Narrative conventions, as a theoretical term in literature and storytelling, refer to the established and widely recognized patterns, structures, and techniques that shape the form and content of narratives.

Etymology of Narrative Conventions

Table of Contents

The term “narrative conventions” finds its roots in the Latin word “conventus,” which means “an assembly” or “coming together.”

In the context of storytelling, narrative conventions refer to the established and agreed-upon techniques, structures, and patterns that authors, readers, and audiences come together to accept and use as a foundation for creating and understanding narratives.

These conventions have evolved over centuries and across cultures, forming the basis of how stories are constructed and communicated. They encompass elements like plot structure, character development, point of view, and genre-specific norms, shaping the familiar and expected aspects of storytelling.

Concept of Narrative Conventions

Narrative conventions are the foundational principles and patterns that govern the structure and content of storytelling across various mediums, including literature, film, and oral traditions. These conventions provide a common language and framework for both creators and audiences, enabling effective communication and comprehension of narratives.

They include elements such as the three-act structure, the hero’s journey, and genre-specific tropes. While narrative conventions offer a structured starting point for storytellers, they also allow for creativity and innovation within established norms, enabling the exploration of universal themes and the engagement of audiences with shared storytelling expectations.

Meanings of Narrative Conventions

List of narrative conventions.

Three-Act Structure: The narrative is divided into three parts—setup, confrontation, and resolution.
Hero ‘s Journey: The protagonist embarks on an adventure, faces challenges, and undergoes personal growth.
Flashbacks: Narrative events that occurred before the current timeline are revealed.
Climax : The story’s most intense point of conflict and tension.
Deus Ex Machina : An unexpected and improbable event used to resolve a plot’s conflict.
Epiphany : A moment of profound realization or self-discovery for a character.
Foil Characters : Characters with contrasting traits to highlight the qualities of others.
Foreshadowing : Hints or clues that suggest future events.
Protagonist vs. Antagonist : Central character(s) in conflict with opposing force(s).
In Media Res : Starting the story “in the middle of things.”
Red Herring : Misleading clues or information to divert the audience.
Narrative Voice: The perspective from which the story is told (first-person, third-person, etc.).
Symbolism : The use of symbols to represent deeper meanings or themes.
Setting : The time and place where the story occurs.
Dialogue : Characters’ spoken interactions and conversations.
Irony : A contrast between what is expected and what actually occurs.
Moral Dilemma : A choice between conflicting values or principles.
Parallelism : Repeating a theme or motif with variations.
Rising Action and Falling Action: The progression toward and resolution of the climax.
Closure: Tying up loose ends and providing resolution to the story.
Tension: Building suspense and keeping the audience engaged.
MacGuffin: An object or goal that drives the plot but may have little intrinsic value.
Dramatic Irony: When the audience knows something the characters do not.

Definition of Narrative Conventions As a Theoretical Term

These conventions encompass the rules and norms that guide the construction of stories, including aspects such as plot development, character archetypes, and thematic elements. They serve as a framework through which authors and audiences engage with and understand narratives, providing a shared language and structure for storytelling.

Narrative Conventions: Theorists, Works And Arguments

Joseph Campbell: Known for his work on the “Hero’s Journey,” Campbell argued that many myths and narratives follow a universal pattern of adventure and self-discovery.
Vladimir Propp: Propp’s “Morphology of the Folktale” identified common character roles and narrative functions in folktales, revealing recurring conventions in storytelling.
Northrop Frye: Frye’s “Anatomy of Criticism” explored archetypal themes and narrative structures, highlighting conventions that transcend specific works.

Notable Works:

The Hero with a Thousand Faces by Joseph Campbell: In this seminal work, Campbell outlines the monomyth, a narrative pattern found in stories across cultures, demonstrating how narrative conventions are deeply ingrained in human storytelling.
Morphology of the Folktale by Vladimir Propp: Propp’s book dissects the structure of folktales and identifies recurring character types and narrative elements, shedding light on narrative conventions.
Anatomy of Criticism by Northrop Frye: Frye’s book offers a framework for analyzing literature, emphasizing archetypal themes and narrative conventions that underlie various genres.

Key Arguments:

Universal Patterns: These theorists argue that narrative conventions often exhibit universal patterns and themes that resonate with human experiences, transcending cultural and temporal boundaries.
Character Archetypes : Propp and others assert that certain character archetypes, such as the hero, villain, and mentor, reappear in narratives, contributing to the predictability and familiarity of storytelling.
Structural Framework: The theorists emphasize that narrative conventions provide a structural framework that serves as a foundation for creating and interpreting stories, offering both creators and audiences a shared language for storytelling.

These theorists, works, and arguments illuminate the significance of narrative conventions in shaping the art of storytelling and our understanding of narratives across diverse cultures and time periods.Top of Form

Narrative Conventions And Literary Theories

Narrative conventions in literary criticism.

They hold significant importance in literary criticism as they serve as fundamental tools for analyzing and evaluating literary works. When employed in literary criticism, narrative conventions help critics in several ways:

Interpretation: They provide a structured framework for critics to interpret and understand the content, structure, and themes of a literary work. They enable critics to identify recurring patterns, archetypal characters, and thematic elements that shape the narrative’s meaning.
Comparison: By recognizing them, critics can compare and contrast works within the same genre or across different literary traditions. This comparative analysis aids in assessing how authors conform to or subvert conventions to convey their unique messages.
Evaluation: They offer criteria for evaluating the effectiveness of a literary work. Critics can assess how well an author employs conventions to engage the audience, develop characters, build suspense, or convey thematic depth.
Historical and Cultural Context: Understanding them helps critics place a work within its historical and cultural context. It allows them to assess how an author adheres to or challenges the conventions prevalent during the work’s creation, shedding light on the work’s significance.
Reader Engagement: They influence how readers engage with a text. Critics can explore how these conventions impact readers’ expectations, emotional responses, and interpretations of the work.
Authorial Choices: Criticism involves examining the author’s deliberate choices. Narrative conventions help critics identify the author’s adherence to or deviation from established norms, revealing the author’s intentions, innovations, or subversions.
Subversion and Innovation: Critics often investigate how authors subvert or innovate them to create unique and thought-provoking narratives. This analysis deepens the understanding of the work’s artistic and thematic qualities.
Cultural Significance: They serve as a lens through which critics examine a work’s cultural, societal, and ideological significance. Critics may explore how conventions reflect or challenge prevailing cultural values and norms.
Evolution of Genres : By tracing the evolution of them within specific genres, critics can understand how literary traditions develop over time, responding to changing societal contexts and cultural shifts.
Reception and Impact: They play a crucial role in how a work is received and its impact on readers. Critics assess how well an author utilizes conventions to resonate with the intended audience and provoke a response.

In essence, they are indispensable tools in literary criticism, guiding the analysis, interpretation, and evaluation of literary works across various genres and time periods. They provide a common language and framework for critics to engage with and assess the rich tapestry of literature.

Genre Conventions — The Building Blocks of Genre Storytelling

M ost movies can be characterized as being one genre or the other. If the plot involves a love triangle, that’s most likely romance. If the plot is about a space marine, it’s most likely science-fiction. If the plot involves a group of kids running away from a monster, that’s probably horror. The things that make up the conventions of a genre, also known as genre conventions. What are genre conventions, you ask? You’ll soon be getting an answer via definition, along with plenty of examples.

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Genre Conventions Definition

Defining genre conventions.

We want to provide a brief genre conventions definition before really digging into what they mean and how they are utilized. Conventions of a genre can be used in a lot of different ways, so a straightforward understanding of the basic concept is a must.

GENRE CONVENTIONS DEFINITION

What are genre conventions.

Genre conventions are elements, themes, topics, tropes, characters, situations, and plot beats that are common in specific genres. Genre conventions are what make certain stories the genre that they are. This is why conventions of a genre are made up of specific elements, as these are used to create and identify the genres in question.

What are genre conventions characteristics:

Plot beats and narrative turns that must almost always occur in the genre the story is set in.
Characters and settings that are staples of the genre (either directly or subtly).
Tropes and themes that are almost always part of the genre they are being featured and used in.

What are Conventions in Film

Explaining genre conventions.

Genre conventions work best when you are working exclusively inside the genre you have chosen. This means no mixing or blending of other genres and just focusing on what works for the genre you have chosen. A fantasy story will have a dragon, a knight, a princess, a wizard, and more. A romance story will have a person in love with someone, along with a competing suitor for the protagonist’s love, and a happy ending.

Conventions of a genre do not have to be a checklist, but rather a group of themes and topics that make the genre what it is. For example, a romance story must always have a romance at its center, otherwise it isn’t a romance. And if your romance does not end with the couple living happily ever after, you might alienate the very audience you were writing for. Same if you write a Western that isn’t set in the West, doesn’t have a gunslinger, a showdown, or a sunset; you might upset some, if not all, Western fans.

In many ways, genre conventions exist to give the people what they want. Dragons in fantasy, shootouts in Westerns, monsters in horror, and so on. This is also why plenty of writers have made a living making stories in the same genre, as they know what their audience wants. It’s like the old Greek comedies and tragedies; the genre alone should give you the gist of what you’re about to read or watch.

That said, plenty of movies set in specific genres have broke with convention in one way or another, while still clearly being that genre. A tragic romance can still be a success, as can a Western set in a not-so-Western location. And of course, a horror story can be realistic, so long as there are still victims to terrorize. It’s a careful balancing act, but it’s been done before.

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Genre Conventions List

Obeying and defying conventions.

Some classic and well-known movies have played genre conventions straight, while others have successfully defied them.

The Friday the 13th series as a whole has maintained horror genre conventions to the point of parody (as seen in Jason X ). Each film involves a killer coming after a group of youngsters, successfully killing off a lot of them before being defeated by someone (most often the Final Girl who has survived the killer’s attacks).

Where are conventions in film? • Friday the 13th

Alien is a classic film that, while mostly horror, is set in outer space. So aside from the setting, its horror genre conventions are played completely straight. There’s a group of people on an isolated freighter who are hunted down by an unknown and frightening monster. In the end, only one crew member remains, and it is up to them to take this monster out for good. You can read our Alien script breakdown for more in-depth analysis on how it balanced sci-fi with horror.

Crime films tend to follow certain paths that cover similar beats and end results. Many of these are either noir , neo-noir, or noir influenced, like Chinatown. One of the very best neo-noirs of all-time , Chinatown follows a detective investigating a mysterious murder. Like all crime stories, he follows clues before falling into serious danger himself, culminating in his discovery of who was behind it all. And since it’s noir, the ending is usually a downer, even if the detective was able to solve the crime.

Then you have Memento , a noir-influenced crime movie unlike any other. The protagonist suffers from memory loss and there are two parallel storylines; one told chronologically, the other reverse-chronological. A risky move, but it paid off for director Christopher Nolan , as it is considered one of Nolan’s best films , along with having one of the best plot twists in recent memory.

Genre conventions list • Memento

Romance movies tend to be among the most conventional with their stories and plots, but some movies manage to shake things up. One of the best romantic comedies of all time is (500) Days of Summer , a rom-com that says outright it is “not a love story.” The film is told out of order as it follows our male lead and how he fell too hard for the titular Summer, how his expectations got the better of him, and how he eventually learned to move on.

What are genre conventions in film? • Subscribe on YouTube

Then you have Edgar Wright’s Scott Pilgrim vs. the World , the definition of a movie that defies genre categorization. Video game references, musical fight scenes, and wild visual effects helped make this movie into the cult sensation it is today. That said, the main plot is still very much a romance: boy meets girl, boy has to fight for girl, boy loses girl, boy comes back stronger than ever for girl, boy and girl try again.

These are just some examples of movies that obey or defy genre conventions in their own special ways. There’s no shortage of scripts you can read online that follow the familiar path, go in a totally different direction, or do something in-between. Following conventions of a genre is more than okay, as many other successful films have proven, but sometimes going off the beaten path pays off, too.

Ultimate Movie Genre Guide

Now that we’ve gone over genre conventions, we can look at the many genres that make up the cinema landscape. Our ultimate guide covers nearly every genre out there, from general well-known genres to smaller sub-genres, all with plenty of examples.

Up Next: Ultimate Movie Genre Guide →

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Writing conventions for book writers

Key conventions include spelling, grammar, punctuation, paragraphing, and citations.
Crime writing uses concise, detailed prose and explicit crime scene descriptions.
Dystopian literature depicts bleak, sinister settings and comments on social issues.
Persuasive writing uses rhetoric and ample evidence to shape reader opinions.

All great writers started by mastering the basics of writing. Understanding and applying these conventions can improve your writing style and quality. If you want to improve your writing, this article is for you.

Definition of writing conventions

Writing conventions refer to the established standards governing language use when crafting written content. These encompass the fundamental structures such as grammar, punctuation, spelling, capitalisation, paragraphing, and citation styles, among others, that lend coherence and sophistication to your text.

Importance of writing conventions in book writing

In book writing, adhering to these conventions serves several essential purposes:

Enhancing clarity: By correctly applying concepts such as punctuation and structure, you facilitate smoother comprehension for your readers.
Projecting professionalism: Meticulous observance of grammar guidelines demonstrates a high-level expertise that readers appreciate.
Broadening appeal: By subscribing to global language norms (conventions), you write with an accent-neutral approach that's accessible audience-wide.

Types of writing conventions

Let's familiarise ourselves with the popular types:

Mechanical conventions: This sphere includes aspects like capital usage at sentence beginnings or proper nouns, correct usage of punctuation marks, accurate spellings, etc.
Grammatical convention: This refers to appropriate tense usage, subject-verb agreement precision, accurate application of parts of speech, etc.
Stylistic convention: This encompasses creative elements such as plot construction, character development, dialogue creation and literary device deployment.
Academic convention : This revolves around citation styles like APA/MLA/Harvard, etc.; typical research paper structure involving Introduction/Body/Conclusion.

We will delve deeper into these categories and explore genre-specific writing conventions as we move further. Stay tuned if you aspire to polish your discernment on this academic convention of paramount importance.

Main writing conventions

In this section, I will introduce the key writing conventions that form the foundation of successful book writing. These principles aim to enhance readability and ensure your work meets standard literary expectations.

Spelling and grammar

Whether you're penning a crime thriller or an academic paper, correct spelling and grammar are among the most essential conventions in writing. Understanding rules and patterns within the English language lays the groundwork for any written matter, fostering reader comprehension.

Adherence to these basics helps readers to navigate your prose without distractions from misplaced words or erroneous sentence structures. Even though literature is home to vast linguistic creativity, straying too far from established norms can alienate readers. Therefore, staying rooted in sound spelling and grammatical structure fuels reader understanding while allowing experimental flexibility.

By mastering common spellings through consistent practice and leveraging tools such as dictionaries or spell-checking software, we can combat spelling errors before they even surface. In terms of grammar, studying essential elements, including verbs, nouns, adjectives, punctuation (to be discussed separately), conjunctions, tense usage, etc.., further polishes our craft.

Punctuation and capitalisation

The power of punctuation lies in its ability to influence tone, pace and clarity. Each mark has its unique function - full stops indicate closure while commas introduce pauses; quotation marks attribute dialogue or cited material; colons present lists or additional information, all aiding in presenting organised thoughts crisply.

Simultaneously, using capitalisation correctly increases readability by helping distinguish between proper and regular nouns, indicating sentence beginnings or highlighting important acronyms, etc., providing simple visual breaks that go a long way!

When placed suitably, great punctuation can elevate messaging impact substantially, but when misused, it results in ambiguity, deterring smooth reading experiences, thus reiterating punctuation's vital role within conventions English-speaking writers follow!

Paragraphing and formatting

Paragraphing signals intentionality within the structure. Each new one previews a shift in topic or perspective. Together with appropriate formatting - such as indentation, line spacing and heading allocation - it aids in portraying a coherent narrative.

Best practices involve starting paragraphs with clear topical sentences followed by supporting sentences, then concluding ones tying back to the main thought-enriching content flow. Likewise, formatting usability like bullet points for lists or bold texts for emphasis establishes a pleasing aesthetic while frontrunning seamless comprehension.

Remember, though, there's an art to paragraphing: overuse may intimidate readers by appearing dense, while underuse may create a monotonous rhythm; disturbing engagement balance is key!

Citation and referencing

Finally, correct citation conventions protect intellectual property rights and affirm the authenticity of your writings. By acknowledging source materials properly, you maintain academic integrity and lend credibility to arguments made, enabling reader cross-verifications if needed.

While referencing styles vary across organisations (e.g., APA, MLA, Chicago), the central convention remains consistent - crediting sources adequately. Failing to do so could lead to potential plagiarism allegations and reputational damage, thus underscoring the undeniable importance of citations!

Master these primary conventions, and meaning will emerge from your words, readily inviting avid participation from the audience!

Writing conventions for specific genres

In the vast field of writing, various genres have certain conventions. Let's explore some of these. Remember, understanding the genre-specific conventions English readers expect allows you to communicate effectively and creatively.

Crime writing conventions

Starting off with crime writing conventions, this genre is often characterised by concise prose packed with details. The storyline regularly outlines detectives solving crimes while unveiling plots filled with red herrings, suspenseful twists, and exciting cliffhangers. Strikingly explicit descriptives of crime scenes are conventional sentence structures common in this genre, making readers feel they're part of the case-solving process.

Crime conventions include:

Concise prose packed with details
Detectives solving crimes
Plots filled with red herrings, suspenseful twists, and exciting cliffhangers
Strikingly explicit descriptives of crime scenes
Making readers feel they're part of the case-solving process

Fiction writing conventions

Fiction follows more general guidelines than strict ones since it supports an array of sub-genres like romance or fantasy. Common conventions include:

A strong narrative structure marked by rising action leading to a climax
Engaging dialogue that propels character development forward
The inclusion of internal or external conflict that drives the story

Fiction book covers also have certain conventions that help signal the genre to readers. Compelling artwork depicting major characters or key scenes often dominates fantasy or romance covers. Clean, minimalist designs with bold titles are frequently seen in literary fiction. Thrillers may use grittier images and prominent text styling to convey tension.

Short story writing conventions

Short stories are unique in that they can pack a lot of plot development into a limited number of words. They can also create deep connections with readers without the need for superfluous sentences that drop mystery hints or background information.

One important convention in short stories is the use of embodied symbols, also known as motifs, as narrative devices. Motifs can be used to reinforce themes or to create a sense of foreshadowing.

For example, in the short story "The Lottery" by Shirley Jackson, the black box that is used to draw the victim in the lottery could be seen as a symbol of death. The box is described as being "heavy" and "ominous," and it is the focus of the entire story. The use of the black box helps to create a sense of dread and suspense, and it also reinforces the theme of death that is central to the story.

Dystopian writing conventions

Dystopian literature is a unique genre that often features bleak settings and sinister societal norms. These stories often comment on current social issues, such as rampant consumerism. The phrase "concentrated despair" could be used to describe the essence of dystopian literature, as these stories often depict a dark and hopeless world. The characters in dystopian literature often represent ideas beyond their personal identities.

For example, in the novel "1984" by George Orwell, Winston Smith represents the individual's struggle against the oppressive government.

Dystopian literature can be a powerful tool for social commentary. By depicting a world that is worse than our own, these stories can help us appreciate the good things in our lives and work to improve our society.

Horror writing conventions

Horror writing thrives on delivering spine-chilling surprises designed to terrify and tap into readers' deepest fears and insecurities. It does this by incessantly feeding suspense, reinforcing conventional horror narratives by playing on psychological tensions.

Horror sub-genres—such as supernatural or psychological horror—demand specific conventions that English authors often learn to pluck readers' fear strings. For example, in supernatural horror, the author might create a sense of dread by hinting at the presence of a malevolent force that is unseen but nonetheless felt.

The author might play on readers' fears of the unknown in psychological horror by creating a sense of unease and paranoia. By using these and other conventions, horror writers can create truly terrifying and unforgettable stories.

Letter writing conventions

Beyond creative writing, there are practical applications as well: letter writing. Clear and concise communication is paramount, with the letter's purpose established early on, followed by detailed explanations. Academically speaking, appropriate salutations and closings are never to be overlooked in these academic conventions.

Narrative writing conventions

Narrative writing is more than just telling a story. It is about creating a world in which readers can get lost. By smoothly progressing from exposition through rising action to climax, falling action, and resolution, narrative writing can create a satisfying and complete experience for the reader.

Exposition is the introduction of the characters and setting of the story. Rising action is the build-up of tension and conflict in the story. The climax is the point of highest tension and conflict in the story. Falling action is the resolution of the conflict and the beginning of the story's end. Resolution is the end of the story and the tying up of loose ends.

When these elements are used effectively, narrative writing can be a powerful tool for engaging and entertaining readers.

Persuasive writing conventions

Persuasive writing carries a direct agenda—convince! This genre is laced with persuasive techniques backed up by ample evidence aiming at shaping reader opinions over topics that could be controversial or biased, thus leaning towards using rhetorical devices that appeal to emotions and logic for survival amidst polemic torrents.

An intricate understanding of what conventions in writing shape your craft proficiently, besides assisting navigation across numerous genres while adhering appropriately to their conventions, meaning it'll spice up your creativity.

Writing conventions might seem like a peculiar mountain to climb. Yet, with the right approach and practice, this task becomes manageable, even enjoyable! Here are some strategies to overcome challenges in learning writing conventions and harnessing your craft into an art.

Getting better

Here, we share our recommendations for learning more about writing conventions.

Learn continuously

Remember that language is ever-changing, which makes understanding writing conventions a continuous process. So, keep yourself updated. Participate in workshops or sign up for online courses on improving writing skills. Join writer's clubs where you can share ideas, exchange feedback, and learn from other writers' strengths.

Studying published works

There is no better way of understanding the pulse of writing conventions than studying published works of renowned authors within your chosen genre. Analysing their style will help you understand how they follow grammar laws and vocabulary usage while bending the rules slightly to make their work unique.

Practise regularly

As Benjamin Franklin once said, "Tell me, and I forget. Teach me, and I remember. Involve me, and I learn." Writing regularly helps improve fluency and encourages automaticity when applying learned rules.

Start by keeping a daily journal.
Set aside time for free-writing exercises - rapid writes devoid of break.
Try imitating your favourite author's style occasionally. It helps synthesise what we observe about good writing!

Seek constructive feedback

Nothing helps improve writing more than constructive criticism from an experienced mentor or group of peers who understand the finesse required in mastering writing conventions. A good mentor or peer group can help you identify your strengths and weaknesses as a writer and provide specific feedback on improving. They can also help you develop your writing style and voice. If you are serious about improving your writing, it is important to seek feedback from experienced writers who can help you take your writing to the next level.

Here are some additional benefits of getting constructive criticism from an experienced mentor or group of peers:

You can learn from their mistakes and successes.
You can get feedback on your work in progress.
You can get support and encouragement from others who are also trying to improve their writing.
You can build a network of other writers who can help you with your writing career.

The usage of apps & tools

Explore various online tools, such as Grammarly or Hemingway Editor , which help correct common syntax, punctuation, spelling, or sentence construction mistakes, thereby allowing you to sharpen your skill at conventional use.

Mastering any skill requires hard work married with determination, but rest assured that the efforts invested will bear fruit soon enough, turning you into not just a writer but a crafter — one who knits together words using the thread of writing conventions with meticulous detail. In the words of Stephen King, "To write is human, to edit is divine." Remember this as you embark on your continuous journey of mastering writing conventions!

Common mistakes to avoid

Navigating one's way around writing conventions can feel like traversing a minefield - especially for a beginner. However, it becomes significantly easier to sidestep these pitfalls by being aware of the areas where errors frequently occur.

Here are five common blunders often seen within the landscape of writing conventions:

Inconsistent use of tense: Maintaining a steady tense throughout your entire work is crucial for ensuring fluidity and continuity. Switching between past, present, and future tenses unthinkingly can confuse readers and disrupt their engagement with your narrative.
Overuse of adverbs: Adverbs might seem like a fantastic tool to enhance descriptive language; however, they should be used sparingly. Often, strong verbs or apt adjectives can perform the role better without bloating the text unnecessarily.
Misplacement of punctuation marks : Understanding where to correctly place punctuation marks is more than academic convention—it's a fundamental skill in framing your narrative effectively. Commas that sprout indiscriminately or missing quotation marks could distort your intended meaning entirely.
Neglecting paragraph structure : Paragraphing isn't just about aesthetic appeal on paper or screen—each paragraph serves as a container for specific ideas. Launching several ideas inside one bulky paragraph or spreading out an individual idea across multiple paragraphs causes unnecessary reader fatigue.
Weak understanding of citation and referencing : Errors relating to incorrect citations or poor referencing not only diminish your credibility as an author but also plunge you into potential plagiarism issues—a craft-denting mistake that must be prevented at all costs.

Keeping these common mistakes front and centre during your writing process can drastically reduce preventable errors from entering your work. One must remember how conventions guide presenting high-quality content that engages readers onto every page turn until "The End".

Final thoughts

As we draw this comprehensive exploration of 'what are conventions in writing' to an end, it's fairly clear that the significance of effective usage and understanding of writing conventions simply cannot be overstated.

Whether it is the meticulous application of spelling and grammar, thoughtful incorporation of punctuation and capitalisation, or the careful formatting and referencing necessary to give your creation a polished finish, each aspect plays a pivotal role in delivering a coherent narrative.

Remember, every genre has its unique characteristics. A crime novel thrives on suspense built around precise details, whereas a dystopian narrative draws upon imagination grounded in plausibility. This intricate variation extends across all forms - from letter writing to persuasive pieces - with each having specific conventions contributing towards their distinct charm.

Be mindful of common errors while adhering to these guidelines, too! The road may seem strewn with challenges initially, but persevere! With dedicated practice and focused learning over time, you’ll learn to navigate through these academic conventions like a pro.

Understand the rules well enough before breaching into innovation.
Practise regularly and consciously apply learned concepts.
Analyse works by experienced authors to gain insights into the practical application of these conventions.

Becoming adept at these literary norms will not only hone your craft but also aid you in connecting with your readers more fluently. As writers, engaging effectively and meaningfully with our audience is our most rewarding achievement.

Keep refining your skills until you master the art of harnessing these 'conventions, sentences, phrases, or chapters to tell engaging stories that resonate. Happy writing!

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Genre Conventions: How to Satisfy Suspense Readers by Meeting Expectations

by Joslyn Chase | 0 comments

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When you sit down with a book, are you hoping for a particular type of story experience? This is a common desire, since readers—know it or not—are drawn towards specific genres and genre conventions. What is a genre convention? Let's take a look and see how they work specifically in suspense.

What is a genre convention?

A genre convention is any element, including character, plot point, setting, archetypes, and other device that define a reading (or viewing) category. If you've ever searched for a “comedy” on your streaming service, you were depending on the genre conventions to help you find a show to make you laugh. Books work the same way. In stories, genre tells you what to expect as a reader.

From a writer’s perspective, knowing these genre “flavors” and how to create them to satisfy reader expectations is key to writing stories that will keep readers coming back.

In addition, understanding the genre conventions and obligatory scenes helps you push yourself farther and reach higher to innovate and twist what’s been done before, astonishing readers . . . and even yourself!

How to Write for Suspense Genres

Something amazing has happened to me in my writing so many times that I’ve come to expect it rather than be surprised by it. It’s this:

I’ve planned, plotted, and written most of my story and I’m nearing the finish line. I have a pretty solid idea about how the story is going to end, but I let my mind wander a bit and a new twist for the finale leaps into view. Usually, all it requires is a few tweaks in the previously written parts to set it up, and I’ve added a whole dimension to the story.

Thriller readers expect an extra twist like this before the story’s conclusion. A false ending is one of the genre’s obligatory scenes. If I leave the false ending out of my thriller, I leave readers unsatisfied at the end of my book and they may not even realize why.

They simply won’t move on to my next book, and I’ve lost a reader. I never want that to happen. And you don’t, either.

So, let’s dig into what readers are looking for when they pick up a book in the suspense genres.

Note: I’ve drawn a large portion of this information from Shawn Coyne, author of The Story Grid: What Good Editors Know .

Mystery Genre Emotions

According to Shawn Coyne, the core emotion readers want to feel—the reason they make mysteries and crime stories their choice of genre—is intrigue . They want to be challenged with a stimulating puzzle and get a chance to solve it while exploring the lives and relationships of engaging characters in interesting settings.

The puzzle usually involves at least one murder, which can also evoke feelings of fear and concern for the characters. And the story’s resolution should bring a feeling of fulfillment or surprise, as well as a pleasurable release of tension when the criminal is brought to justice.

If the mystery is not a “whodunit” murder, but instead a caper or heist, the reader may cheer for the perpetrators and feel anxiety over whether they’ll get away with it or not.

You can help generate these emotions for your mystery readers by creating characters they can care about . It’s also critical to design an intriguing puzzle with clues and red herrings , delivering all the information in the right order for readers to solve the case or experience the story along with the viewpoint character .

Mystery Genre Conventions

A genre convention is something readers expect to find in a story from a particular genre. If the element doesn’t make an appearance in the story, readers will be disappointed without really understanding why, so it’s important to include these conventions in your mystery story .

The MacGuffin

The MacGuffin in a mystery is something pursued by the characters, the Object of Desire , and it drives the story forward as the pursuit unfolds. It can be something tangible, like treasure or a coded message—an example is the Maltese Falcon in the story by that name. Or it might be something intangible, such as secret knowledge or proof of innocence, like Roger Thornhill’s quest in North By Northwest .

In a murder mystery, the MacGuffin is most often the solution to the crime.

Clues and Red Herrings

These are the pieces of information gained by the sleuth that send them along a line of investigation. Clues, if interpreted correctly, lead to the solution while red herrings lead to dead ends or false conclusions. For more information about clues and red herrings and how to create and plant them in your story, check out my Ultimate Guide to Clues and Red Herrings .

Antagonist making it personal

As the protagonist sleuth gets closer to the truth, the more uncomfortable the criminal becomes until, at some point, the antagonist makes it personal. This can mean anything from interfering in the investigation and planting false clues to mislead the protagonist, to attempting to “bump off” the protagonist altogether.

A shapeshifter

Someone, somewhere along the line, is exposed as a shapeshifter, hypocrite, or traitor. This is a secondary character who says one thing and does another, impacting the protagonist’s progress in solving the puzzle.

The betrayal doesn’t have to be momentous, and the shift involved doesn’t have to be for the worse. An apparent enemy can prove to be an ally, for instance.

While a mystery doesn’t apply the same kind of time pressure as a Thriller, without some kind of a clock moving it forward, the story can drift and get flabby. Limiting time is an effective way to keep a mystery story fresh, active, and moving toward a resolution. It’s something readers and writers alike have come to depend upon in the mystery genre.

Clear threat of escalating danger

This danger does not have to be physical. It can imperil the sleuth’s credibility, sanity, or dignity. Or the threat may impact something else significant. This escalating threat raises the stakes , keeps the reader emotionally involved, and helps drive the story forward.

These six conventions of the crime genre, which includes mystery, are set forth by editor Rachelle Ramirez in her article, How to Write a Crime Story .

Let’s move on now to the obligatory scenes.

Obligatory Scenes of the Mystery Genre

When crafting a mystery story, be sure to include these key scenes in your planning. Without them, your mystery will likely fail to resonate with fans of the crime genre. These iconic moments don’t each need their own scene but may be combined as the story progresses.

A crime or the threat of a crime

According to both Alfred Hitchcock and Ellery Queen Mystery Magazine, long-acknowledged authorities on the subject, this is the definition of a mystery story. It must have a crime or the plausible threat of a crime. Usually, this is what occurs in the Inciting Incident of the story.

An investigation

The sleuth, your story’s protagonist, must actively pursue a solution to the crime and bring the culprit to justice, or enact an alternate, satisfying resolution. If the story is a caper or heist, the plan must unfold and lead to the capture or escape of the thieves.

Speech in praise of the antagonist

This is rarely something as formal as an actual speech. Instead, it entails a character pointing out the antagonist’s prowess or apparent superiority in some way. Perhaps as a warning to the sleuth or a secondary character’s admiration of the antagonist.

Protagonist discovers antagonist’s MacGuffin

At some point in the story, the sleuth comes to understand the criminal’s core pursuit—what he’s really after. For example, the motive behind the crime may become clear, representing a big jump ahead in reaching the solution.

Initial strategy fails

Most successful stories begin with a character, in a setting, with a problem. From there, they go into a series of try/fail cycles until the ultimate “try” of the story’s climax. So, the initial attempt must fail, forcing the protagonist to change strategies and try again. And again.

Core Event in the climactic scene

In a mystery, the core event involves exposure of the criminal and revealing the solution to the crime—explaining what happened and how the truth was discovered.

In the case of a caper or heist, the core event is the enactment of the plan—putting it all into action and moving toward completion or failure.

Criminal brought to justice

The final obligatory scene, which may or may not happen during the story’s climax, is bringing the criminal to justice or an equally satisfying resolution.

In the case of a caper or heist, this is where the protagonist either succeeds and gets away or is caught.

Remember that readers want to feel intrigued by the mystery. Be sure to present a challenging, interesting puzzle and deliver all the pieces to the reader for a satisfying conclusion.

For more about Mysteries, see How to Write a Mystery Novel .

Emotions of the Suspense Genre

Readers of suspense read to experience the feeling of . . . suspense. That uncertainty that comes with knowing there’s something going on below the surface but only getting hints as to what it might be.

These are the stories that mess with your mind.

The suspense genre teeters on the border between mystery and horror. It involves piecing together—not necessarily a crime, as in Mystery—a bigger picture of a hidden reality. You’ll often see these sorts of books categorized as psychological thrillers, but I class them differently since thrillers demand an unrelenting fast pace, whereas suspense can move along at a variety of paces.

For example, one of the most enduring suspense stories ever written is Daphne DuMaurier’s Rebecca . Fraught with suspense and an underlying sense of peril, it nevertheless moves at a leisurely pace through the dim halls of Manderley.

Remember that Alfred Hitchcock was the Master of Suspense and you’ll have a fair idea of the appeal suspense lovers are looking for. To help you develop this kind of emotion in your readers, work on creating a great atmosphere for suspense. Focus also on techniques for pulling readers into the setting and foreshadowing events.

Suspense Genre Conventions

Because Mysteries, Thrillers, and Suspense are closely related, they share many Conventions and Obligatory Scenes. In this section, I’ll reiterate where necessary, but focus on the difference between genre conventions.

Menacing atmosphere

Setting is crucial in a Suspense story. A richly drawn, sinister atmosphere is key to creating the mood and tension suspense readers enjoy. The setting can be thick with foreboding or superficially bright with unsettling indicators that all is not as it seems.

A secret plot

The unknown antagonist is brewing something diabolical beneath the surface of the story that the protagonist seeks to uncover.

Don’t know who to trust

The hero of the story will be surrounded by secondary characters, but she’ll have doubts about which of them she can rely on and which might be trying to harm her. This is the primary dilemma of the suspense novel.

It’s personal

In a mystery or a thriller, the antagonist makes the hero his target at some point in the story’s progression. In a suspense story, it’s always personal. In most cases, the hero has been the target from the start.

As in a mystery, the protagonist will gather information to help her form an accurate picture of what’s going on. In a mystery, the clues generally help solve a crime that’s already happened. In a suspense, the pieces lead the hero to discover an evil plan in progress or that will hatch in the imminent future.

A Shapeshifter

Like a mystery, the suspense story will feature at least one shapeshifter—a character who seems to be one thing yet proves to be something else. Remember, the shapeshifter doesn’t have to go from good to bad but may instead be someone the protagonist thought was against her who turns out to be an ally.

High Stakes

The risk to the protagonist must be real and significant—usually hinging on life or death. And those stakes should rise as the story progresses. The scope of that risk—meaning the consequences of the hero failing to discover the truth—most often keeps to the lower end of the scale, affecting only the protagonist or a small circle of contacts.

Obligatory Scenes of the Suspense Genre

These scenes represent the must-have moments in a suspense story. Leave them out, and you risk losing readers who sense something vital missing from your book.

Hero enmeshed in the unfolding danger

You must give your protagonist a compelling reason for being in the dangerous situation and show how they can’t turn back, crossing the point of no return.

Your protagonist must gather information to make sense of her dilemma and formulate a plan of escape.

As in all effective stories, once the character is in a setting with a problem, her first attempt at overcoming the problem fails and she is forced to scramble for a new plan, usually at greater risk to herself as the stakes rise.

The core event of a suspense lies in the hero exposing the big, underlying secret and destroying the evil plan or escaping its grasp. Or perhaps not. Suspense does not always have a happy ending, though readers do prefer them.

Suspended resolution

Often (but not always) in a suspense story, the ending is left up in the air, an ambiguous conclusion. Readers must decide the final outcome for themselves or remain forever suspended in uncertainty. This is in keeping with the overall unsettled, disconcerting tone of the story. And leaves possibilities open for a sequel.

For more information about what makes a Suspense story and how it differs from Mystery and Thrillers, I invite you to read How to Write a Suspense Novel .

Emotions of a Thriller

Readers dive into thrillers expecting to feel excitement, to experience danger and thrills without actual risk. They want the stimulation of traveling to far off, exotic places without leaving home, the buzz of being privy to momentous secrets, the breathless high of jumping from one narrow escape to the next while staying safe. They want an action story.

Thrillers, like crime stories, also play on a reader’s sense of justice and sanctity of life. Thrillers tend to pit bad guy against good guy and bring the good guy out on top. That is a major appeal of the thriller .

And readers want something more from thrillers—they want to know what it feels like to inhabit a particular sort of world. That’s why there are so many sub-genres of thrillers—to provide the emotions and sensations craved by readers for each milieu.

For example, in addition to the emotional appeals listed above . . .

Espionage and Secret Agent thrillers let readers experience the thrill of international intrigue, clever tactics, and breaking the rules to achieve a crucial end goal.
Disaster thrillers allow readers to feel the vicarious terror of panic and destruction, giving them the opportunity to speculate how they would react under such dire circumstances.
Military thrillers give readers a chance to get down in the trenches and feel the fear, the tragedy, the intimate violence of war as well as rousing emotions of heroism and patriotism.
Technothrillers allow readers to feel like they are insiders to safe-guarded military and technological information, like they have a Top-Secret clearance to access vital issues of national security.
Legal thrillers bring readers into the fascinating machinations of the legal system, letting them take part in high-profile (albeit fictional) trial proceedings and feel the associated angst and prestige.
Financial thrillers allow readers to feel the cachet of wealth and the power that comes with it, and to experience lifestyles of the rich and famous.
Serial Killer thrillers let readers feel the brush with death and get a peek into a mind so deranged they’ll never be able to understand it.
Medical and Bio-thrillers are terrifying on such a fundamental level that they create feelings of mortal weakness and helpless fascination.
Political thrillers impart a strong fear factor as well, inviting the paranoia of conspiracy theories and government takeovers.
Paranormal thrillers allow readers to be beguiled by the other-worldly and unexplainable, giving them a little chill of excitement.

You can facilitate these emotions for your readers by pulling them deep into the story setting , making sure they understand what’s at stake , providing effective and exciting action scenes , and delivering the information they need to be active players in the reading experience.

Designing cliffhangers that work is another powerful way to evoke the target emotions in your thriller readers.

Thriller Genre Conventions

You’ll notice a lot of crossover in the conventions and obligatory scenes. For this section, I heavily referenced Rachelle Ramirez’s article Secrets of the Thriller Genre .

Here are the conventions you’ll want to include in your story if you’re writing a thriller. Readers want them. Readers expect them. Don’t disappoint.

Vibrant atmosphere

The setting is a vital part of a thriller and should be portrayed in clear and specific detail , bringing it alive and making it immediately threatening.

Remember, this is the Object of Desire, what everyone is after. Nuclear codes, diamonds, cold hard cash—whatever it is, make it crucial for both antagonist and protagonist to obtain, pitting them against each other.

The Inciting Crime

The crime or threat of a crime that kicks off the story must contain some clue about the MacGuffin.

Protagonist has a special gift

There is something—a unique talent or ability—that sets the protagonist apart. His superpower. He may suppress that gift or foster it, but in the end he must unleash it to overcome the villain.

Ticking clock

The pace of a thriller is almost relentlessly fast, and the countdown is an important convention. It doesn’t have to be a literal ticking clock, but you must find some plausible way to apply the pressure of time in your thriller.

Protagonist pursues an investigation

The hero needs to be actively engaged in an effort to catch the criminal and put a stop to his dastardly plans—following up on clues and hunting or being hunted.

High stakes

Nothing less than life itself can be on the line. The lives of innocents must be at stake and depend on the hero’s victory over the antagonist.

Elements of suspense

The story must contain the elements of suspense, providing information that allows readers to predict and anticipate outcomes, heightening the emotional investment and driving the narrative.

Unyielding antagonist

In some types of stories, the bad guy can be reasoned with and possibly dissuaded from his course of action. In a thriller, that’s not the case. The villain is intent on destruction and determined that nothing will stop him.

Speech in praise of the villain

Someone, somewhere in the story, must remark on how cunning or invincible the villain is, highlighting the hero’s disadvantage and lengthening the odds.

Protagonist is the final victim

In the climactic scene, the protagonist is the last barrier between the antagonist and his goal of annihilation—he becomes the final victim and either triumphs or ultimately fails.

Not only is there danger, not only are the stakes high, but that danger must escalate and the stakes must rise in a cause and effect chain of events throughout the story.

The Shapeshifter

Again, the shapeshifter or hypocrite is an important part of the story, someone whose deception impacts the protagonist in a real way and usually in a vulnerable moment.

Justice or injustice prevails

In a thriller with a positive ending, the villain is brought to some sort of justice, appropriate to his crimes. In a thriller with a negative ending, the villain gets away and injustice prevails.

However, these are not the only two options: the villain can escape justice (for now) but his evil plan is destroyed. He will rise again with a new plan in the sequel.

Obligatory Scenes of the Thriller Genre

Remember, these are the scenes that will make your thriller. If you leave one out, you will break your thriller. Don’t do that.

Inciting crime indicating that a master villain is at work

The crime must have a perpetrator, leave victims in its wake, and be of such a clever or dastardly design that it must be the work of a master criminal.

Clear point of no return

There must be a point at which the protagonist can never go back to the way things were before. This scene pinpoints the moment when the hero’s world is knocked off its axis.

The protagonist’s first attempt to foil the villain’s diabolical plan fails, setting off a try/fail cycle that escalates up to the climactic scene.

The hero gains insight into the villain’s intentions as he discovers and comes to understand what the bad guy is ultimately pursuing.

Villain makes it personal

At some point as the story progresses, the protagonist’s efforts to obstruct the villain’s plan land him square in the bullseye. The antagonist targets the hero as his primary victim, bringing the conflict to a personal level, and the two are on a collision course for a head-to-head battle at the story’s climax.

Hero at the mercy of the villain

This is the climactic scene where the hero faces the villain at overwhelming odds and has to dig deeper than ever before to unleash her special gift—the thing that turns the tables and makes it possible for her to defeat the antagonist.

False ending

Just as the reader is catching her breath and thinking all is resolved, the antagonistic force rebounds to challenge the hero again.

For more information, check out How to Write a Thriller Novel .

Give Your Readers What They Crave

These landmark scenes will give your story what it needs to hold and satisfy readers. They help your book to resonate, making your audience happy, because those bedrock elements of story are in the reader’s DNA, bred and nurtured through years of absorbing stories.

So, use these conventions and obligatory scenes to make your story work. The trick is in innovating them so they feel fresh to the reader. Bring your own voice and creativity into the process to make that happen.

Above all, remember that readers read to feel something, and what they want to feel from the suspense genres . . . is suspense. And all its glorious offshoots—excitement, dread, anticipation, intrigue.

If you’ve followed this series of articles, The Elements of Suspense , you’ve packed your writer’s toolbox with dozens of techniques and must-have skills for grabbing readers and creating a suspenseful story. And that’s exciting!

How about you? Do you recognize these conventions and scenes in the stories you read or watch? Tell us about it in the comments .

Practice incorporating these core emotions, conventions, and key scenes into your work in progress. For this exercise, choose one of the obligatory scenes for the story you’re currently writing and create that scene.

If you don’t have a WIP, use one of these prompts to get you started:

Daniel is trapped in a high-rise office building as he discovers the truth about the villain’s MacGuffin.
Victoria scrambles through a booby-trapped jungle in a failed attempt to stop the villain’s escape in a helicopter.
Peter investigates the crime scene, observing clues and formulating ideas about suspects and motives.

Write for fifteen minutes . When you are finished, post your writing in the Pro Practice Workshop , and don’t forget to give your fellow writers feedback as well!

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Joslyn Chase

Any day where she can send readers to the edge of their seats, prickling with suspense and chewing their fingernails to the nub, is a good day for Joslyn. Pick up her latest thriller, Steadman's Blind , an explosive read that will keep you turning pages to the end. No Rest: 14 Tales of Chilling Suspense , Joslyn's latest collection of short suspense, is available for free at joslynchase.com .

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2.1: Point of View
2.2: Perspective and Point of View
2.3: Literary Terms
2.4: Elements of Literature
2.5: The Rough Guide to Literary Style, a Historical Overview
2.7: Conflict
2.8: Symbols in Literature
2.9: Symbolism
2.10: Characters and Characterization
2.11: Metaphor

Creative Writing Genre Guide – The Many Genres of Writing in The Creative Arts

Written by Scott Wilson

Like the hiss of a jagged sword slicing past your ear or the roar of a spacecraft entering the atmosphere of a strange planet, genre echos through every piece of creative writing.

Whether or not the author chooses consciously to conform to an existing genre or decides to break new ground, genre will attach to whatever they create. Even so-called non-genre, or literary, fiction is itself a sort of genre. Genre is a tool that is used by:

Writers , to guide story and expectations
Critics , to categorize and analyze creative works
Publishers and Booksellers , to stock and market books to their target audiences
Readers , to find and read works that align with their aesthetic preferences

Understanding and mastering genre is not optional for creative writers. But it’s not easy, either.

How Genre Defines Your Creative Writing Work

Genre is a hot topic in the world of creative writing. You won’t get far in the average creative writing program before you get into some kind of argument over how to classify some piece of work.

That’s because genre is necessarily subjective. There is no centralized Genre Board that puts a stamp inside the front cover of each new book that is released. The American Literature Association does not maintain an official list of genres that authors are required to choose from among before beginning their next story.

The reality of a serious writer is a reality of many voices, some of them belonging to the writer, some of them belonging to the world of readers at large. ~ Aberjhani

Our literary genres today are simply social conventions, conventions that evolve over time with community expectations and tropes. It’s impossible to come up with a genre writing definition that will satisfy everyone. At the same time, genre is descriptive enough to be indispensable for readers and writers alike.

Genre is so difficult to get a grip on because it is effectively a kind of rolling consensus.

Genre is defined by the authors themselves, by critics who seek to interpret works, by readers deciding what they like to read, and by publishers looking to market those works.

And those definitions change all the time.

The Rapid Evolution of Genre in Writing

Take the ancient and well-established genre of fantasy, for example. Myth and legend may be the oldest genres of fiction, stretching back to our earliest recorded works. The Epic of Gilgamesh and Beowulf both fall into the realm of fantasy.

But fantasy has evolved as its readers and writers have.

Fantasy writing today is nothing like what it was prior to Tolkien’s tales of Middle Earth reaching and shaping the expectations of readers. Epic works like The Lord of the Rings and the Chronicles of Narnia set a standard for their writing genre, and subsequent tales are inevitably judged by those standards.

With the pace of publishing increasing rapidly and the ease of finding literature to taste getting easier and easier, genre is evolving at a lightning pace.

Writing Sub-Genres Have Become Ever More Niche With the Internet

That kind of specificity comes with very distinctive expectations, however. Niche works are often expected by readers to follow a very specific formula—hit a certain set of plot points, come in at a particular word-count, feature a distinctive type of characters. If you’re aiming for success in the Highlander romance niche, you had better have an evil Englishman somewhere in the story—and heaven help you if there’s not a shirtless man in a kilt on the cover.

While this kind of narrow, formulaic approach is seen as a constraint by some authors, it represents a kind of feedback loop that allows writers to reach very specific audiences. If you plan to make a career out of creative writing, understanding and selling to the market is door you’ll need to open. Genre expectations give you the key.

The genre of writing you pick for any given story you choose to tell will define how it is viewed and what readers expect before you even put down the first word. So understanding how genres in writing work and how to use them in your own pieces is a key part of being a creative writer today.

Picking a Writing Genre Can Be Empowering for Creative Writers

Understanding what genre is and how genres are defined is the only way that you can understand how your own work will be perceived. And developing that kind of knowledge allows your writing to grow and operate on multiple levels as your stories unfold. Genre offers subtext to your stories. Adding a new entry to the catalog of any particular genre expands what the field has to say.

The many types of genres in writing offer an avenue for every writer to explore and expand their craft.

Equally important for some writers is the sense of context that genre creates for their writing. Not only can it help shape creative works by offering standards to aim at, but it also provides a set of expectations that can be subverted to critical effect. For example, The Red Badge of Courage by Stephen Crane would not have had the effect on readers that it did without a long tradition of glorious war stories from a genre that it mimicked, then up-ended with the hero’s cowardice.

Pure formless creativity and invention are wild and dangerous things. To develop a coherent story and a world that is true enough for readers to believe is a tricky business. Having a set of general rules to follow and expectations to meet brings focus.

Beyond that, the very act of channeling your imagination into a defined form and to tell your own story within those rules is a challenge that rewards the creative spirit. Finishing a novel can feel very much like clicking the last piece into place on a jigsaw puzzle. The picture on that puzzle is the genre. When everything lines up to match, your sense of satisfaction and accomplishment is immense.

Writing Genres Give Readers the Stories They Are Looking For

Those stores, and the publishers who print novels and magazines, live and die by genre sales. Some publishers either specialize in or dedicate certain of their imprints to particular genres. Editors, illustrators, and agents may also specialize by genre. Critics, industry awards, and writing groups are often dedicated to different genres. Even creative writing programs offer specializations or concentrations in certain writing genres.

Ultimately, however, genre in writing persists and is needed for the reader. The evolution of genres in writing has largely been in the hands of publishers and book sellers, all seeking to match works with groups of readers who will find them appealing.

Genre in Writing May Be Determined in Different Ways

Genres in writing are not absolutes. Any given work can fall into many different genres depending on how the term is being applied. For example, the two big categories of writing are the genres of poetry and prose. Every work will fall into one of those, as well as others.

The most common ways of categorizing genre are:

By literary technique and style
By setting or character type

Each of these different genres of writing will share certain characteristics, but may diverge through other categories. For example, there are works that have a common science fiction theme, but use technique and style more common to literary fiction. The Handmaid’s Tale , by Margaret Atwood, is one example… set in a dystopian future, it nonetheless develops characters and explores deep themes common to other classic works of literature.

In addition to crossing genres, creative writing works also may fall into sub-genres. The most writing genres evolve branches over time. In fact, science fiction, one of the biggest and most popular genre examples in writing today, is simply a sub-genre of the larger category of speculative fiction.

Sub-Genres Sprout From Pop-Culture in Unexpected Ways to Offer Something Uniquely Tailored to Every Audience

To give just one example of this process, consider the evolution of the genre of steampunk.

Steampunk is a sub-genre of cyberpunk, which already lies at the bottom of a long list of other sub-genres of fiction:

In addition, steampunk works almost all fall into the addition speculative fiction category of alternate history, since they imagine a historical era not as it was, but as it might have been. Some can be called Westerns; others are post-apocalyptic, taking another bite out of the dystopian genre apple.

The first proto-steampunk works were published in the ’70s and ‘80s by authors such as Tim Powers and James Blaylock, but it was 1990’s The Difference Engine , by William Gibson and Bruce Sterling that really kicked off steampunk as a genre—probably because Gibson and Sterling were also two of the prime movers in cyberpunk itself.

As steampunk caught on and became more popular, not only did newer works emerge to expand the genre (including its own sub-genres), but older novels that included or inspired the same elements were sometimes described as steampunk. Seminal works like H.G Wells’ The Time Machine and Jules Verne’s Twenty Thousand Leagues Under the Sea are sometimes found in lists of steampunk works.

Why not just do away with genre, and consider each piece on its own merits? Ultimately, many scholars and creative writing professionals are able to do just that.

In the same way that a rock musician can understand, appreciate, and adapt techniques from the classical world, good writers recognize and respect good writing craft, regardless of genre.

But genre is also a part of artistic judgement. A creative work can be assessed by how well or poorly it conforms to the expectations of the genre it is aimed at.

How To Succeed as a Creative Writer in Different Types of Writing Genres

To be clear, you don’t need to pick a genre lane if you don’t want to. Iain Banks had no problem at all jumping back and forth between epic sci-fi novels, psychologically complex literary fiction, rollicking travelogues, and even poetry. All of it earned critical acclaim.

When J.K. Rowling decided she needed a break from fantasy, she picked up the pen name of Robert Galbraith and popped over into crime fiction instead.

But most creative writers aren’t made of the same stuff as Banks or Rowling. It may be that a particular genre is what inspires you to write in the first place. Perhaps it’s a fascination with the subject matter that draws you in to a particular kind of world. Or maybe it’s just a raw commercial calculation, playing to the market and what is most publishable.

In any case, deciding the genre or genres you are interested in writing in is only one part of the process. Each genre has its own unique path to success.

The Many Genres of Writing in English Literature

To help you get started, we’ve got a whole list of writing genre guides that take you step-by-step through the process of becoming a successful writer in that field.

Literary Fiction

Literary fiction is the non-genre genre of creative writing. It includes works that are too non-traditional to fit cleanly in existing genres or that focuses on characterization and exploration of deep truths over conventional plot or narrative structures. Much of the pantheon of great novels and works that are used in teaching creative writing fall into the literary fiction genre.

Fantasy authors excel in creating imaginary worlds where fantastic creatures roam, magic and the supernatural shape character’s lives, and medieval settings call classic mythology to mind. Fantasy is one of the oldest of genres in both Eastern and Western writing traditions, and its popularity continues to ensure steady careers for well-trained fantasy writers.

There is a fascination with the macabre and surreal that keeps horror novels on the top-seller lists year after year. From Anne Rice to Stephen King, some of the most commercially successful modern authors have chosen this genre. And with classics from Shelley and Poe as part of the enduring tradition of literature, a career in horror offers creative writers a shot at both fortune and fame.

Mystery, or crime, fiction embraces a whole spectrum of entertaining works from Agatha Christie’s classic detective novels to the hard-boiled works of Dennis Lehane. Writers who have the talent to deliver an intricate plot and keep readers engaged with a steady stream of clues, but still make the reveal and resolution a rewarding surprise, have a bright future in the mystery genre.

The Western genre is both relatively new and distinctively American in nature. Following in the footsteps of Louis L’Amour and Max Brand is no easy task, but there is plenty of life in the humble Western, as works by Cormac McCarthy and Larry McMurtry have shown. Western writers may or may not need a ten-gallon hat, but the definitely need story-telling skills and a strong set of research skills.

Young Adult

Young adult works often combine other genres into stories that deal particularly with the interests and concerns of teenagers. Whether it’s a mix of fantasy and school, like Harry Potter , or pure works that explore contemporary problems and challenges like the classic The Outsiders , young adult novels can shape the perspectives and growth of a generation. Young adult writers have to develop not only a knack for telling stories cleanly and understandably, but also for tapping into the zeitgeist of their target audience.

Science Fiction (Sci Fi)

Science fiction uses the prism of technology and time to explore both exciting theoretical science and social mores and consequences of humanity today. Science fiction is a genre that has a robust demand and strong traditions. Although it can be tough to break into sci-fi, studying creative writing offers the kind of analytical tools and techniques that can make it happen.

Short Story

The genre of short story is one rooted in length rather than subject. A short story can be told in almost any of the other genres listed here, but it is a form that requires its own set of skills and sensibilities. Creative writing degrees are one of the best places for writers to polish up their ability to deliver the crisp, clear, meaningful prose that is needed to build a successful short story.

Making people laugh is a rare skill in any kind of artistic endeavor. Comedic writing has a long and honorable history in the world of dramatic literature, serving as one of the first genres recognized by the Greeks. Comedy often crosses other genre boundaries, with tendrils in horror, science fiction, and crime. But pure comedies in the form of satire and parody serve important roles in social commentary as well as entertainment.

Historical Fiction

Writing historical fiction comes with a set of guard rails that play directly to the strengths of creative writers: research offers a glimpse of the world as it once was, and imagination fills out the humanity of those times. While the historical setting can be one grounded firmly in reality, like Hilary Mantel’s acclaimed Wolf Hall , it can also serve as a portal to the fantastical, as in Susanna Clarke’s incredible Jonathan Strange & Mr. Norrell .

Writing Conventions: What They Are & How To Use Them

February 22, 2024

Table of Contents Hide

What is a writing convention, 1. spelling and grammar, 2. punctuation, 3. capitalization, 4. paragraphing, 5. formatting, 6. citation and referencing , narrative writing conventions, persuasive writing conventions, letter writing conventions, instructional writing conventions, formal writing conventions, why do writing conventions matter, faqs on writing conventions, we also recommend.

Have you ever wondered why some writing just seems to flow effortlessly, while others seem confusing and disjointed? The secret lies in understanding and utilizing writing conventions effectively.

Writing conventions are the basic rules and norms that govern the way we write. They encompass everything from grammar and punctuation to formatting and structure. Mastering these conventions can make a world of difference in the clarity and impact of your writing.

Whether you are a student, a professional, or simply someone who wants to improve your writing skills, understanding writing conventions is essential. In this article, we will explore what writing conventions are, why they matter, and how you can use them to enhance your writing.

Writing and language conventions encompass the guidelines individuals need to adhere to when composing any type of written content. Whether crafting a narrative or delivering a political address, adherence to certain fundamentals, such as constructing complete sentences and correctly spelling words, is crucial for ensuring coherence and impact on the audience.

In addition to the broader writing conventions applicable to all forms of text, specific genres have distinct regulations and principles that govern them. For instance, the presence of stage directions, scenes, and dialogue without quotation marks signifies a play script.

Keep reading below to learn all about language conventions and techniques, including a language conventions list for you to use with your class.

READ ALSO: 50 Exclusive 6th Grade Writing Prompts that are Printable for Free

What Are The Basic Writing Conventions?

The basic writing conventions and rules that must be followed in all writing tasks, to help the reader understand what has been written are:

Accurate spelling and proper grammar form the foundation of effective communication. They play a crucial role in ensuring that your words are transparent, succinct, and easily comprehensible to your audience. Beyond just enhancing the readability of your writing, adherence to correct spelling and grammar reflects your commitment to precision and professionalism.

Typos and grammatical missteps have the potential to diminish the impact of your work, obscuring its intended meaning. Proficiency in spelling and grammar conventions empowers you to articulate your thoughts with clarity and precision, allowing you to express ideas with confidence and authority. Therefore, giving due attention to this essential writing convention is a key step toward honing your skills as a proficient wordsmith.

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Punctuation is crucial in sentences for several reasons. Firstly, it helps to clarify the structure and organization of your writing, guiding readers on how to interpret the text. Punctuation marks, such as commas, periods, and colons, create pauses, indicate the end of a sentence, and separate different elements within a sentence.

Secondly, punctuation contributes to the overall tone and meaning of a sentence. For example, the placement of a comma can change the emphasis or nuance of a phrase. It helps to convey the intended emotions and nuances, preventing misunderstandings.

Punctuation marks like commas, periods, semicolons, and dashes should be used correctly since they may distinguish between poorly and flawlessly formed sentences. Every mark has a unique function and, when utilized skillfully, can elevate an ordinary statement to the level of an artistic creation. Take advantage of the power of punctuation and your writing will flow naturally, captivating your audience with your deft use of language.

Capitalization serves as a means of adding sophistication and lucidity to your writing, aiding in the differentiation of proper nouns, titles, and the commencement of sentences. This writing convention is indispensable as it imparts a sense of significance and emphasis to your words, guiding the reader’s focus toward the most pivotal aspects of your text.

Using capitalization at the onset of a sentence or for the initial letter of a proper noun establishes a formal and professional tone. Additionally, capitalizing the first word in a title or heading introduces a touch of creativity and style. Therefore, utilizing capitalization judiciously enhances your writing, allowing each letter to stand prominently, and capturing the reader’s attention with pride and clarity.

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Paragraphing enhances readability by breaking down a piece of text into manageable and organized chunks. This structure provides visual cues to readers, guiding them through the flow of ideas and making the content more digestible.

It helps to organize and group related information together. Each paragraph typically focuses on a specific point or idea, allowing readers to follow the logical progression of your thoughts. This organizational structure makes it easier for readers to understand the connections between different concepts.

Formatting in writing refers to the arrangement and presentation of text to enhance its readability, clarity, and overall visual appeal. Proper formatting is crucial for various reasons:

Well-formatted text is easier to read. The right use of fonts, font size, and line spacing contributes to a comfortable reading experience.

Furthermore, formatting aids in organizing ideas and information logically. Headings, subheadings, and bullet points create a visual hierarchy, making it clear how different pieces of information relate to each other. This improves the overall structure and coherence of the document.

By mastering formatting conventions, you can make your writing more attractive and engaging, ensuring that your message is received loud and clear. So, embrace the power of formatting and watch your writing come to life on the page!

Citing and referencing form the basis of academic writing, serving to acknowledge the sources you’ve consulted and utilized to bolster your ideas.

Accurate citation not only showcases your research acumen but also underscores your commitment to intellectual integrity and recognition of others’ contributions. Proper citation and referencing play a pivotal role in enhancing the credibility and authority of your writing, enabling readers to trace your sources and validate your assertions.

Whether you’re crafting an essay, research paper, or any academic document, proficiency in citation and referencing conventions is indispensable. Embrace this writing practice as an opportunity to exhibit your academic prowess, thereby making your writing more compelling and persuasive.

Check out 10 Tips on How to Increase Readability Score While Writing

Tone is the emotional quality or attitude that comes across in your writing. It is a subtle but powerful writing convention that can shape the way your message is received by your audience. Tone can be playful or serious, formal or informal, optimistic or pessimistic, and it sets the overall mood of your writing.

By mastering tone, you can effectively convey your message and connect with your readers on an emotional level. It is important to keep your audience in mind when choosing your tone, as different readers may respond better to different emotional appeals.

Style represents the distinctive and individualized touch that a writer imparts to their writing. It includes various components such as sentence construction, vocabulary selection, figurative expressions, and overall tone. Cultivating a unique style allows a writer to distinguish their work, making it memorable and impactful for their readers.

A strong writing style can also make your writing more engaging and memorable, drawing your readers in and keeping them hooked until the very end. However, style is not just about aesthetics – it is also about clarity, coherence, and effectiveness. By mastering the conventions of style, you can ensure that your writing is both beautiful and effective, leaving your readers with a lasting impression of your talent and skill.

SEE ALSO: Chinese vs Japanese Writing: A Side-by-Side Comparison

Writing Conventions For specific Genres

While the rules of spelling, punctuation, capitalization, and grammar are necessary for all texts, some genres have their own sets of rules and principles to follow. These features help the reader to identify what kind of text they are looking at.

Here are the different writing conventions for specific genres:

Like a book, a narrative text recounts a tale. Characters, dialogue, and an obvious narrative structure are some characteristics of a narrative work. To ensure that their narrative text has a distinct beginning, build-up, climax, resolution, and finish, children might prepare utilizing a tale mountain framework. You can be certain that you are reading a narrative if the material you are reading has a plot like this.

Persuasive writings can take the form of speeches, articles, posters, or other written works to persuade the reader to share the author’s viewpoint. Possessing a distinct point of view, which is usually expressed in the opening and conclusion, is an illustration of a persuasive writing convention. Rhetorical inquiries, emotive language, and facts and numbers will also be common elements.

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Numerous visual cues indicate the kind of text you are reading when you are reading a letter. A letter’s address, date, and salutation (such as “Dear Sir/Madam”) are all located in the upper right-hand corner. Additionally, it is probably going to be written in paragraphs and end with a salutation like “Yours Sincerely.”

Instructional writing covers text types such as recipes, instruction manuals, and how-to articles. This genre has many defining conventions, such as having a numbered list of instructions. This will be written in chronological order, and include imperative verb commands, such as “Mix the batter”. Instructions are unlikely to include any speech or descriptive features. This specific list of conventions helps the reader to know they are reading a set of instructions and to follow them effectively.

Writing conventions extend to distinct registers and genres. When creating a formal text, like a letter to your headteacher, particular guidelines govern your writing, signaling to the reader the formal nature of the communication. This involves refraining from using contractions, opting for expressions like “cannot” instead of the more casual “can’t.” A formal text is also unlikely to incorporate nicknames or slang terms. Adhering to these conventions assists in establishing the appropriate tone for your writing.

Writers utilize conventions to enrich and elucidate the meaning of their written expressions. These conventions empower writers to articulate precisely how a word or phrase should be comprehended by the reader, facilitating a clear grasp of the writer’s intended message. In instances where the writer is not physically present to orally convey the text, conventions serve the function of reading the content on behalf of the writer.

When composing any piece of writing, the writer typically envisions and hears the words internally before putting them to paper. While the writer has a distinct auditory perception, the reader lacks this personal insight. Conventions function as a roadmap, directing the reader through the text—signaling pauses, advancements, accelerations, decelerations, and other nuances. Essentially, conventions ensure that the written composition resonates with the intended tone and rhythm as perceived by the writer during the writing process.

Without conventions, writing would be a mess. If we didn’t put a space between each word just as you can see, everything would run together. Without the convention of correct spelling, writers could never be sure if readers would be able to read the words they had written. And even if we all spelled each word the same way, without the convention of punctuation, writers would still have trouble getting their message across.

Writing conventions are established rules and practices governing the mechanics, structure, and presentation of written language. They include elements like grammar, punctuation, spelling, and formatting.

Writing conventions are crucial for effective communication. They ensure clarity, consistency, and understanding in written content, making it easier for readers to comprehend the message.

Reading widely, studying grammar guides, and practicing writing are effective ways to enhance your grasp of writing conventions. Seeking feedback from peers or instructors can also be beneficial.

Regular proofreading, attention to detail, and awareness of common mistakes (e.g., grammatical errors, punctuation misuse) are key to minimizing language convention errors in writing.

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Ways to Teach Conventions: Our Favorite Things

During yoga class, my instructor Michelle guided the group into a pose. She had several cues as we moved into half moon and she’d give a cue, repeat a cue, give a different cue, repeat a cue, give another, repeat… and I realized that I needed those repeated cues! As I tried to implement something different, my foot would unflex until I consciously heard her remind me to flex. Maybe someday my foot will just know to stay flexed without the conscious effort (and then maybe I’ll go for MORE flex), but until then, I need the reminders for my best practice.

Just as I need them in yoga practice, students benefit from revisiting, reviewing, and reminding when it comes to conventions. Writing involves the integration of so many skills and cognitive processing that it’s understandable. Here are some ideas that I hope you can use in your instruction right as the year starts– and then any time thereafter.

Take the time to remind students of what they’ve learned in previous years.

This is a great way to introduce the concept of inquiry for students and to practice an inquiry lesson with the question: What do you know about conventions when it comes to capitalization and punctuation? The chart below is one I’ve used with individual students, and you could also use it as a whole class chart, inviting students to contribute to the various categories.

Create a progression of charts.

It’s powerful to remind students of when they may have first been introduced to various skills. You can customize chart progressions by talking to your colleagues, and you can also look through your curriculum if you work in a system that has a scope and sequence for language skills.

The charts below are ones that I created by sitting in front of the Common Core Language Standards and trying to name out the skills by grade level in order to make the overall chart of expectations less overwhelming for both teachers and students. When I think of conventions as a relay race where someone completes their lap and passes the baton, it’s much less daunting. Maybe first-graders won’t master capital letters for names and dates, but if it’s not brand new information for them, then second graders don’t have quite so much to learn.

Isolate skills as necessary.

Whenever I talk about this idea, I use a sports analogy, but you can use whatever analogy that works for you. When I coached soccer, I had the players practice dribbling with tops of garbage cans; they had to dribble the ball around the tops, keeping the ball close enough to be able to turn. Three steps was their goal in between taps, but the more authentic goal was to be able to dribble successfully during a game, swerving around other players the way they’d maneuvered the garbage can tops. Many of the players were much better dribblers in the controlled situation than on game day. That being said, the better they got at the tops, the better they generally were in the game.

If a writing piece is the equivalent to a soccer game, then the goal is to have convention skills show up in that authentic writing. Convention stations have become my equivalent for athletically-oriented drills. I can design “stations” that specifically address and give extra practice for whatever skill I want to see showing up more in authentic writing.

The station below is one I’ve used for students working on capitalization, and the digital version of it is here.

Some other stations I’ve set up successfully are digitally linked below:

Apostrophe Center

End Punctuation Center

Tense Center

Comma Center

Remember: the most effective centers are ones that you make in response to the students in your classroom, so consider these centers as prototypes for ones that you design based on the learning you are seeing in the day to day work.

TIP: Whenever you are setting up centers, try to avoid having students correct work that is done with mistakes. It’s better for them to see the work done right and then notice and name the skill and rationale. This way their developing brains focus on how the right way looks instead of the fact that it’s confusing.

Other Quick Practices for Building Convention Awareness:

Get silly with the power of talk and speak in sentences during times of the day when it works. You can play the audio for an example of me doing it. Kids think it’s pretty funny, but it’s also powerful for them to hear conventions and it helps some kids to visualize it.
Spend a couple of days doing what I call “obsessing” during writing workshop, and interrupt students every few minutes to ask if the sentence they just wrote has all of the capitals and conventions they know. Start your reminder with the same few words so those few words become students’ cue to check their previous sentence.
Make sure conventions are showing up in ALL the writing students are doing. “Is there a reason you left the period off of your sentence?” is one of my favorite questions when students are working on something outside of writing workshop.

Michelle’s voice is in my thoughts as I practice poses on my own without her in the room reminding me of all that my body should be remembering. And the truth is that my body has internalized many of the cues. This unconscious element of practice is a powerful way for me to think about my hopes for students when it comes to the use of conventions; names just get capitalized, and periods just happen at the ends of sentences. This shift from conscious competence to unconscious competence is a great goal when it comes to students and conventions.

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Published by Melanie Meehan

I am the Writing and Social Studies Coordinator in Simsbury, CT, and I love what I do. I get to write and inspire others to write! Additionally, I am the mom to four fabulous daughters and the wife of a great husband. View all posts by Melanie Meehan

23 thoughts on “ Ways to Teach Conventions: Our Favorite Things ”

I loved how the students can speak their conventions; speaking conventions aloud is fun and engaging in visualizing punctuation. Thank you for sharing; I will be using this technique in my future classroom!!

What a great idea to review what students have learned in previous years.

I can’t wait to incorporate these ideas at school this year. I think the idea of talking and naming the punctuation as you speak will be engaging and could also be used in some way with voice to text transcription on devices.

I love your connection to yoga, learning a new skill, and needing repeated reminders. I have found many times I try things in yoga that remind me of what students are going through as they are learning a new process. As we keep learning, we are better able to relate to the feelings our students go through as they learn. Thank you for the reminder to notice and name what they see that is correct vs. showing it incorrectly and editing it. Great post!

Another hit in this series. So practical and tips that can really make a big difference. Thanks Melanie!

We’ve done “talk like a pirate day”, so why not “talk like a computer day”? I think my students will get a kick out of talking with punctuation, so I look forward to trying it out with them, as well as incorporating more quick centers for conventions. Thanks for the ideas and helpful tips.

Repetition is so smart! I think too often we just expect them to remember all things… I love these ideas!

The center practice sheets are short and effective ways to practice the skill. I appreciate your notes about having students see it the correct way in their practice. I like that the sheets have the student explain why the convention was used, and then gives them the opportunity to practice it by creating their own.

I like the idea of reminding students of what they’ve learned in previous years. I also liked emphasizing what has been done correctly, rather than finding errors in writing samples.

The sports analogies are super helpful! I will be planning for ways to practice and build conventions awareness to help build those skills!

These are great strategies for teaching conventions! I love the idea of talking conventions and I could see this being powerful during shared writing experiences too, connecting the visual with the auditory cues. I love that you start with reminding students of what they already know about conventions, develop learning progression charts for each skill, and mention the importance of using correct mentor sentences and asking students to notice and name the skill and rationale. Thank you!

*Also the link for the tense center takes me to the end punctuation center.

I love the soccer and yoga comparisons. Thank you for the ideas you shared in the post and the reminders to use humor- with 8th graders, that is always appreciated. 🙂

Love the idea of stations. I teach pre service teachers and this is an idea I will be passing on!

This has so many wonderful practical suggestions for an area that I struggle to help teachers with. I especially appreciate the model of how we can expect our elementary students to move closer to mastery over time. Thank you so much for this!

What a great reminder to use correct conventions asking students to notice and name! Great tips, thank you!

Love the conventions charts. I need to do something like this also with my high schoolers.

Using an inquiry approach to help students understand conventions is so powerful. Thanks for the freebies!

Love the convention stations! The reminder chart is a great way to start the year.

I teach 2nd graders, and as stated in the post, I am often reminding, reviewing, and revisiting conventions with them. They can tell me what they need/what’s missing, but the fact that that it’s missing shows me it’s not automatic for them as they write. These isolation station ideas will definitely be in use in Room 209 this year. Thank you!

I love the idea of convention stations!

Thanks for all these resources. I have used your third grade reminders in the past- now I must create the fifth grade version:)

I love how you created your progression charts! They are effective yet simple.

Great easy ways to bring real and effective strategies to the teaching of conventions. Thank you.

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Narrative Writing: A Complete Guide for Teachers and Students

MASTERING THE CRAFT OF NARRATIVE WRITING

Narratives build on and encourage the development of the fundamentals of writing. They also require developing an additional skill set: the ability to tell a good yarn, and storytelling is as old as humanity.

We see and hear stories everywhere and daily, from having good gossip on the doorstep with a neighbor in the morning to the dramas that fill our screens in the evening.

Good narrative writing skills are hard-won by students even though it is an area of writing that most enjoy due to the creativity and freedom it offers.

Here we will explore some of the main elements of a good story: plot, setting, characters, conflict, climax, and resolution . And we will look too at how best we can help our students understand these elements, both in isolation and how they mesh together as a whole.

WHAT IS A NARRATIVE?

A narrative is a story that shares a sequence of events , characters, and themes. It expresses experiences, ideas, and perspectives that should aspire to engage and inspire an audience.

A narrative can spark emotion, encourage reflection, and convey meaning when done well.

Narratives are a popular genre for students and teachers as they allow the writer to share their imagination, creativity, skill, and understanding of nearly all elements of writing. We occasionally refer to a narrative as ‘creative writing’ or story writing.

The purpose of a narrative is simple, to tell the audience a story. It can be written to motivate, educate, or entertain and can be fact or fiction.

A COMPLETE UNIT ON TEACHING NARRATIVE WRITING

narrative writing | narrative writing unit 1 2 | Narrative Writing: A Complete Guide for Teachers and Students | literacyideas.com

Teach your students to become skilled story writers with this HUGE NARRATIVE & CREATIVE STORY WRITING UNIT . Offering a COMPLETE SOLUTION to teaching students how to craft CREATIVE CHARACTERS, SUPERB SETTINGS, and PERFECT PLOTS .

Over 192 PAGES of materials, including:

TYPES OF NARRATIVE WRITING

There are many narrative writing genres and sub-genres such as these.

We have a complete guide to writing a personal narrative that differs from the traditional story-based narrative covered in this guide. It includes personal narrative writing prompts, resources, and examples and can be found here.

narrative writing | how to write quest narratives | Narrative Writing: A Complete Guide for Teachers and Students | literacyideas.com

As we can see, narratives are an open-ended form of writing that allows you to showcase creativity in many directions. However, all narratives share a common set of features and structure known as “Story Elements”, which are briefly covered in this guide.

Don’t overlook the importance of understanding story elements and the value this adds to you as a writer who can dissect and create grand narratives. We also have an in-depth guide to understanding story elements here .

CHARACTERISTICS OF NARRATIVE WRITING

Narrative structure.

ORIENTATION (BEGINNING) Set the scene by introducing your characters, setting and time of the story. Establish your who, when and where in this part of your narrative

COMPLICATION AND EVENTS (MIDDLE) In this section activities and events involving your main characters are expanded upon. These events are written in a cohesive and fluent sequence.

RESOLUTION (ENDING) Your complication is resolved in this section. It does not have to be a happy outcome, however.

EXTRAS: Whilst orientation, complication and resolution are the agreed norms for a narrative, there are numerous examples of popular texts that did not explicitly follow this path exactly.

NARRATIVE FEATURES

LANGUAGE: Use descriptive and figurative language to paint images inside your audience’s minds as they read.

PERSPECTIVE Narratives can be written from any perspective but are most commonly written in first or third person.

DIALOGUE Narratives frequently switch from narrator to first-person dialogue. Always use speech marks when writing dialogue.

TENSE If you change tense, make it perfectly clear to your audience what is happening. Flashbacks might work well in your mind but make sure they translate to your audience.

THE PLOT MAP

narrative writing | structuring a narrative | Narrative Writing: A Complete Guide for Teachers and Students | literacyideas.com

This graphic is known as a plot map, and nearly all narratives fit this structure in one way or another, whether romance novels, science fiction or otherwise.

It is a simple tool that helps you understand and organise a story’s events. Think of it as a roadmap that outlines the journey of your characters and the events that unfold. It outlines the different stops along the way, such as the introduction, rising action, climax, falling action, and resolution, that help you to see how the story builds and develops.

Using a plot map, you can see how each event fits into the larger picture and how the different parts of the story work together to create meaning. It’s a great way to visualize and analyze a story.

Be sure to refer to a plot map when planning a story, as it has all the essential elements of a great story.

THE 5 KEY STORY ELEMENTS OF A GREAT NARRATIVE (6-MINUTE TUTORIAL VIDEO)

This video we created provides an excellent overview of these elements and demonstrates them in action in stories we all know and love.

HOW TO WRITE A NARRATIVE

Now that we understand the story elements and how they come together to form stories, it’s time to start planning and writing your narrative.

In many cases, the template and guide below will provide enough details on how to craft a great story. However, if you still need assistance with the fundamentals of writing, such as sentence structure, paragraphs and using correct grammar, we have some excellent guides on those here.

USE YOUR WRITING TIME EFFECTIVELY: Maximize your narrative writing sessions by spending approximately 20 per cent of your time planning and preparing. This ensures greater productivity during your writing time and keeps you focused and on task.

Use tools such as graphic organizers to logically sequence your narrative if you are not a confident story writer. If you are working with reluctant writers, try using narrative writing prompts to get their creative juices flowing.

Spend most of your writing hour on the task at hand, don’t get too side-tracked editing during this time and leave some time for editing. When editing a narrative, examine it for these three elements.

Spelling and grammar ( Is it readable?)
Story structure and continuity ( Does it make sense, and does it flow? )
Character and plot analysis. (Are your characters engaging? Does your problem/resolution work? )

1. SETTING THE SCENE: THE WHERE AND THE WHEN

narrative writing | aa156ee009d91a57894348652da98b58 | Narrative Writing: A Complete Guide for Teachers and Students | literacyideas.com

The story’s setting often answers two of the central questions in the story, namely, the where and the when. The answers to these two crucial questions will often be informed by the type of story the student is writing.

The story’s setting can be chosen to quickly orient the reader to the type of story they are reading. For example, a fictional narrative writing piece such as a horror story will often begin with a description of a haunted house on a hill or an abandoned asylum in the middle of the woods. If we start our story on a rocket ship hurtling through the cosmos on its space voyage to the Alpha Centauri star system, we can be reasonably sure that the story we are embarking on is a work of science fiction.

Such conventions are well-worn clichés true, but they can be helpful starting points for our novice novelists to make a start.

Having students choose an appropriate setting for the type of story they wish to write is an excellent exercise for our younger students. It leads naturally onto the next stage of story writing, which is creating suitable characters to populate this fictional world they have created. However, older or more advanced students may wish to play with the expectations of appropriate settings for their story. They may wish to do this for comic effect or in the interest of creating a more original story. For example, opening a story with a children’s birthday party does not usually set up the expectation of a horror story. Indeed, it may even lure the reader into a happy reverie as they remember their own happy birthday parties. This leaves them more vulnerable to the surprise element of the shocking action that lies ahead.

Once the students have chosen a setting for their story, they need to start writing. Little can be more terrifying to English students than the blank page and its bare whiteness stretching before them on the table like a merciless desert they must cross. Give them the kick-start they need by offering support through word banks or writing prompts. If the class is all writing a story based on the same theme, you may wish to compile a common word bank on the whiteboard as a prewriting activity. Write the central theme or genre in the middle of the board. Have students suggest words or phrases related to the theme and list them on the board.

You may wish to provide students with a copy of various writing prompts to get them started. While this may mean that many students’ stories will have the same beginning, they will most likely arrive at dramatically different endings via dramatically different routes.

narrative writing | story elements | Narrative Writing: A Complete Guide for Teachers and Students | literacyideas.com

A bargain is at the centre of the relationship between the writer and the reader. That bargain is that the reader promises to suspend their disbelief as long as the writer creates a consistent and convincing fictional reality. Creating a believable world for the fictional characters to inhabit requires the student to draw on convincing details. The best way of doing this is through writing that appeals to the senses. Have your student reflect deeply on the world that they are creating. What does it look like? Sound like? What does the food taste like there? How does it feel like to walk those imaginary streets, and what aromas beguile the nose as the main character winds their way through that conjured market?

Also, Consider the when; or the time period. Is it a future world where things are cleaner and more antiseptic? Or is it an overcrowded 16th-century London with human waste stinking up the streets? If students can create a multi-sensory installation in the reader’s mind, then they have done this part of their job well.

Popular Settings from Children’s Literature and Storytelling

Fairytale Kingdom
Magical Forest
Village/town
Underwater world
Space/Alien planet

2. CASTING THE CHARACTERS: THE WHO

Now that your student has created a believable world, it is time to populate it with believable characters.

In short stories, these worlds mustn’t be overpopulated beyond what the student’s skill level can manage. Short stories usually only require one main character and a few secondary ones. Think of the short story more as a small-scale dramatic production in an intimate local theater than a Hollywood blockbuster on a grand scale. Too many characters will only confuse and become unwieldy with a canvas this size. Keep it simple!

Creating believable characters is often one of the most challenging aspects of narrative writing for students. Fortunately, we can do a few things to help students here. Sometimes it is helpful for students to model their characters on actual people they know. This can make things a little less daunting and taxing on the imagination. However, whether or not this is the case, writing brief background bios or descriptions of characters’ physical personality characteristics can be a beneficial prewriting activity. Students should give some in-depth consideration to the details of who their character is: How do they walk? What do they look like? Do they have any distinguishing features? A crooked nose? A limp? Bad breath? Small details such as these bring life and, therefore, believability to characters. Students can even cut pictures from magazines to put a face to their character and allow their imaginations to fill in the rest of the details.

Younger students will often dictate to the reader the nature of their characters. To improve their writing craft, students must know when to switch from story-telling mode to story-showing mode. This is particularly true when it comes to character. Encourage students to reveal their character’s personality through what they do rather than merely by lecturing the reader on the faults and virtues of the character’s personality. It might be a small relayed detail in the way they walk that reveals a core characteristic. For example, a character who walks with their head hanging low and shoulders hunched while avoiding eye contact has been revealed to be timid without the word once being mentioned. This is a much more artistic and well-crafted way of doing things and is less irritating for the reader. A character who sits down at the family dinner table immediately snatches up his fork and starts stuffing roast potatoes into his mouth before anyone else has even managed to sit down has revealed a tendency towards greed or gluttony.

Understanding Character Traits

Again, there is room here for some fun and profitable prewriting activities. Give students a list of character traits and have them describe a character doing something that reveals that trait without ever employing the word itself.

It is also essential to avoid adjective stuffing here. When looking at students’ early drafts, adjective stuffing is often apparent. To train the student out of this habit, choose an adjective and have the student rewrite the sentence to express this adjective through action rather than telling.

When writing a story, it is vital to consider the character’s traits and how they will impact the story’s events. For example, a character with a strong trait of determination may be more likely to overcome obstacles and persevere. In contrast, a character with a tendency towards laziness may struggle to achieve their goals. In short, character traits add realism, depth, and meaning to a story, making it more engaging and memorable for the reader.

Popular Character Traits in Children’s Stories

Determination
Imagination
Perseverance
Responsibility

We have an in-depth guide to creating great characters here , but most students should be fine to move on to planning their conflict and resolution.

3. NO PROBLEM? NO STORY! HOW CONFLICT DRIVES A NARRATIVE

narrative writing | 2 RoadBlock | Narrative Writing: A Complete Guide for Teachers and Students | literacyideas.com

This is often the area apprentice writers have the most difficulty with. Students must understand that without a problem or conflict, there is no story. The problem is the driving force of the action. Usually, in a short story, the problem will center around what the primary character wants to happen or, indeed, wants not to happen. It is the hurdle that must be overcome. It is in the struggle to overcome this hurdle that events happen.

Often when a student understands the need for a problem in a story, their completed work will still not be successful. This is because, often in life, problems remain unsolved. Hurdles are not always successfully overcome. Students pick up on this.

We often discuss problems with friends that will never be satisfactorily resolved one way or the other, and we accept this as a part of life. This is not usually the case with writing a story. Whether a character successfully overcomes his or her problem or is decidedly crushed in the process of trying is not as important as the fact that it will finally be resolved one way or the other.

A good practical exercise for students to get to grips with this is to provide copies of stories and have them identify the central problem or conflict in each through discussion. Familiar fables or fairy tales such as Three Little Pigs, The Boy Who Cried Wolf, Cinderella, etc., are great for this.

While it is true that stories often have more than one problem or that the hero or heroine is unsuccessful in their first attempt to solve a central problem, for beginning students and intermediate students, it is best to focus on a single problem, especially given the scope of story writing at this level. Over time students will develop their abilities to handle more complex plots and write accordingly.

Popular Conflicts found in Children’s Storytelling.

Good vs evil
Individual vs society
Nature vs nurture
Self vs others
Man vs self
Man vs nature
Man vs technology
Individual vs fate
Self vs destiny

Conflict is the heart and soul of any good story. It’s what makes a story compelling and drives the plot forward. Without conflict, there is no story. Every great story has a struggle or a problem that needs to be solved, and that’s where conflict comes in. Conflict is what makes a story exciting and keeps the reader engaged. It creates tension and suspense and makes the reader care about the outcome.

Like in real life, conflict in a story is an opportunity for a character’s growth and transformation. It’s a chance for them to learn and evolve, making a story great. So next time stories are written in the classroom, remember that conflict is an essential ingredient, and without it, your story will lack the energy, excitement, and meaning that makes it truly memorable.

4. THE NARRATIVE CLIMAX: HOW THINGS COME TO A HEAD!

narrative writing | tension 1068x660 1 | Narrative Writing: A Complete Guide for Teachers and Students | literacyideas.com

The climax of the story is the dramatic high point of the action. It is also when the struggles kicked off by the problem come to a head. The climax will ultimately decide whether the story will have a happy or tragic ending. In the climax, two opposing forces duke things out until the bitter (or sweet!) end. One force ultimately emerges triumphant. As the action builds throughout the story, suspense increases as the reader wonders which of these forces will win out. The climax is the release of this suspense.

Much of the success of the climax depends on how well the other elements of the story have been achieved. If the student has created a well-drawn and believable character that the reader can identify with and feel for, then the climax will be more powerful.

The nature of the problem is also essential as it determines what’s at stake in the climax. The problem must matter dearly to the main character if it matters at all to the reader.

Have students engage in discussions about their favorite movies and books. Have them think about the storyline and decide the most exciting parts. What was at stake at these moments? What happened in your body as you read or watched? Did you breathe faster? Or grip the cushion hard? Did your heart rate increase, or did you start to sweat? This is what a good climax does and what our students should strive to do in their stories.

The climax puts it all on the line and rolls the dice. Let the chips fall where the writer may…

Popular Climax themes in Children’s Stories

A battle between good and evil
The character’s bravery saves the day
Character faces their fears and overcomes them
The character solves a mystery or puzzle.
The character stands up for what is right.
Character reaches their goal or dream.
The character learns a valuable lesson.
The character makes a selfless sacrifice.
The character makes a difficult decision.
The character reunites with loved ones or finds true friendship.

5. RESOLUTION: TYING UP LOOSE ENDS

After the climactic action, a few questions will often remain unresolved for the reader, even if all the conflict has been resolved. The resolution is where those lingering questions will be answered. The resolution in a short story may only be a brief paragraph or two. But, in most cases, it will still be necessary to include an ending immediately after the climax can feel too abrupt and leave the reader feeling unfulfilled.

An easy way to explain resolution to students struggling to grasp the concept is to point to the traditional resolution of fairy tales, the “And they all lived happily ever after” ending. This weather forecast for the future allows the reader to take their leave. Have the student consider the emotions they want to leave the reader with when crafting their resolution.

While the action is usually complete by the end of the climax, it is in the resolution that if there is a twist to be found, it will appear – think of movies such as The Usual Suspects. Pulling this off convincingly usually requires considerable skill from a student writer. Still, it may well form a challenging extension exercise for those more gifted storytellers among your students.

Popular Resolutions in Children’s Stories

Our hero achieves their goal
The character learns a valuable lesson
A character finds happiness or inner peace.
The character reunites with loved ones.
Character restores balance to the world.
The character discovers their true identity.
Character changes for the better.
The character gains wisdom or understanding.
Character makes amends with others.
The character learns to appreciate what they have.

Once students have completed their story, they can edit for grammar, vocabulary choice, spelling, etc., but not before!

As mentioned, there is a craft to storytelling, as well as an art. When accurate grammar, perfect spelling, and immaculate sentence structures are pushed at the outset, they can cause storytelling paralysis. For this reason, it is essential that when we encourage the students to write a story, we give them license to make mechanical mistakes in their use of language that they can work on and fix later.

Good narrative writing is a very complex skill to develop and will take the student years to become competent. It challenges not only the student’s technical abilities with language but also her creative faculties. Writing frames, word banks, mind maps, and visual prompts can all give valuable support as students develop the wide-ranging and challenging skills required to produce a successful narrative writing piece. But, at the end of it all, as with any craft, practice and more practice is at the heart of the matter.

TIPS FOR WRITING A GREAT NARRATIVE

Start your story with a clear purpose: If you can determine the theme or message you want to convey in your narrative before starting it will make the writing process so much simpler.
Choose a compelling storyline and sell it through great characters, setting and plot: Consider a unique or interesting story that captures the reader’s attention, then build the world and characters around it.
Develop vivid characters that are not all the same: Make your characters relatable and memorable by giving them distinct personalities and traits you can draw upon in the plot.
Use descriptive language to hook your audience into your story: Use sensory language to paint vivid images and sequences in the reader’s mind.
Show, don’t tell your audience: Use actions, thoughts, and dialogue to reveal character motivations and emotions through storytelling.
Create a vivid setting that is clear to your audience before getting too far into the plot: Describe the time and place of your story to immerse the reader fully.
Build tension: Refer to the story map earlier in this article and use conflict, obstacles, and suspense to keep the audience engaged and invested in your narrative.
Use figurative language such as metaphors, similes, and other literary devices to add depth and meaning to your narrative.
Edit, revise, and refine: Take the time to refine and polish your writing for clarity and impact.
Stay true to your voice: Maintain your unique perspective and style in your writing to make it your own.

NARRATIVE WRITING EXAMPLES (Student Writing Samples)

Below are a collection of student writing samples of narratives. Click on the image to enlarge and explore them in greater detail. Please take a moment to read these creative stories in detail and the teacher and student guides which highlight some of the critical elements of narratives to consider before writing.

Please understand these student writing samples are not intended to be perfect examples for each age or grade level but a piece of writing for students and teachers to explore together to critically analyze to improve student writing skills and deepen their understanding of story writing.

We recommend reading the example either a year above or below, as well as the grade you are currently working with, to gain a broader appreciation of this text type.

narrative writing | Narrative writing example year 3 1 | Narrative Writing: A Complete Guide for Teachers and Students | literacyideas.com

NARRATIVE WRITING PROMPTS (Journal Prompts)

When students have a great journal prompt, it can help them focus on the task at hand, so be sure to view our vast collection of visual writing prompts for various text types here or use some of these.

On a recent European trip, you find your travel group booked into the stunning and mysterious Castle Frankenfurter for a single night… As night falls, the massive castle of over one hundred rooms seems to creak and groan as a series of unexplained events begin to make you wonder who or what else is spending the evening with you. Write a narrative that tells the story of your evening.
You are a famous adventurer who has discovered new lands; keep a travel log over a period of time in which you encounter new and exciting adventures and challenges to overcome. Ensure your travel journal tells a story and has a definite introduction, conflict and resolution.
You create an incredible piece of technology that has the capacity to change the world. As you sit back and marvel at your innovation and the endless possibilities ahead of you, it becomes apparent there are a few problems you didn’t really consider. You might not even be able to control them. Write a narrative in which you ride the highs and lows of your world-changing creation with a clear introduction, conflict and resolution.
As the final door shuts on the Megamall, you realise you have done it… You and your best friend have managed to sneak into the largest shopping centre in town and have the entire place to yourselves until 7 am tomorrow. There is literally everything and anything a child would dream of entertaining themselves for the next 12 hours. What amazing adventures await you? What might go wrong? And how will you get out of there scot-free?
A stranger walks into town… Whilst appearing similar to almost all those around you, you get a sense that this person is from another time, space or dimension… Are they friends or foes? What makes you sense something very strange is going on? Suddenly they stand up and walk toward you with purpose extending their hand… It’s almost as if they were reading your mind.

NARRATIVE WRITING VIDEO TUTORIAL

narrative writing | Copy of Copy of Copy of HOW TO WRITE POEMS | Narrative Writing: A Complete Guide for Teachers and Students | literacyideas.com

Teaching Resources

Use our resources and tools to improve your student’s writing skills through proven teaching strategies.

When teaching narrative writing, it is essential that you have a range of tools, strategies and resources at your disposal to ensure you get the most out of your writing time. You can find some examples below, which are free and paid premium resources you can use instantly without any preparation.

FREE Narrative Graphic Organizer

narrative writing | NarrativeGraphicOrganizer | Narrative Writing: A Complete Guide for Teachers and Students | literacyideas.com

THE STORY TELLERS BUNDLE OF TEACHING RESOURCES

narrative writing | story tellers bundle 1 | Narrative Writing: A Complete Guide for Teachers and Students | literacyideas.com

A MASSIVE COLLECTION of resources for narratives and story writing in the classroom covering all elements of crafting amazing stories. MONTHS WORTH OF WRITING LESSONS AND RESOURCES, including:

NARRATIVE WRITING CHECKLIST BUNDLE

⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐ (92 Reviews)

Narrative Writing for Kids: Essential Skills and Strategies

7 Great Narrative Lesson Plans Students and Teachers Love

Top 7 Narrative Writing Exercises for Students

How to Write a Scary Story

IMAGES

Persuasive/Argumentative Essay Rubric
Poetic Devices and Their Effects
Creative Writing-Story Openings- Lesson 03/15
Free Creative Writing Story Prompts
1st graders learn about writing conventions.
Creative Writing short story

VIDEO

English Lang CREATIVE WRITING STORY #grade9 #fullmarks #creativewriting
Show Don't Tell
How To Write The PERFECT Creative Writing Story In 5 Steps!
Lesson Story Structure and Plot 4-12
Use These 3 Phrases In ANY Creative Writing Story You Write In Your GCSE Paper 1 Resit Exams!
Choosing a Topic || Creative Nonfiction

COMMENTS

Literary Conventions: 5 Examples of Literary Conventions
Literary Conventions: 5 Examples of Literary Conventions. Written by MasterClass. Last updated: Jun 7, 2021 • 3 min read. When writing a novel, short story, or poem, using standard literary conventions can help your readers recognize the genre of your work. When writing a novel, short story, or poem, using standard literary conventions can ...
101 Themes, Subgenres, and Story Conventions
This expansive list contains 101 themes, subgenres, and story conventions that writers can explore in short stories and novels. The list ranges from broad categories like "coming-of-age" and "animal transformation" to subtypes or subgenres like "addiction recovery" and "campus novel.". These varied labels offer a glimpse into ...
Genre Conventions: Must-Have Elements of Story
We call conventions related to the context selective because they narrow the field of potential big-picture problems addressed in our stories. Location Every context has the potential for external and internal conflict, but the reach and characteristics of the location impact the scope of the problems explored in a story.
Story Structure: 7 Types All Writers Should Know
Revealed: Seven story structures every writer needs to know! Click to tweet! 1. Freytag's Pyramid. Named after a 19th-century German novelist and playwright, Freytag's Pyramid is a five-point dramatic structure that's based on the classical Greek tragedies of Sophocles, Aeschylus, and Euripedes.
Narrative Conventions in Literature & Literary Theory
The term "narrative conventions" finds its roots in the Latin word "conventus," which means "an assembly" or "coming together.". In the context of storytelling, narrative conventions refer to the established and agreed-upon techniques, structures, and patterns that authors, readers, and audiences come together to accept and use as a foundation for creating and understanding ...
Writing Conventions: What They Are & How to Use Them
It is a vital writing convention that helps to break up the text, allowing the reader to take in information in smaller, more manageable chunks. Paragraphs are like signposts, marking the beginning and end of different ideas and topics. They give structure and coherence to your writing, making it easier to understand and follow.
Genre Conventions
A fantasy story will have a dragon, a knight, a princess, a wizard, and more. A romance story will have a person in love with someone, along with a competing suitor for the protagonist's love, and a happy ending. Conventions of a genre do not have to be a checklist, but rather a group of themes and topics that make the genre what it is.
Writing Conventions For Book Writers
The author might play on readers' fears of the unknown in psychological horror by creating a sense of unease and paranoia. By using these and other conventions, horror writers can create truly terrifying and unforgettable stories. Letter writing conventions. Beyond creative writing, there are practical applications as well: letter writing.
What Are Writing Conventions? A Comprehensive Guide to Writing Rules
Conventions Build Credibility: Proper use of writing conventions such as grammar, spelling, and punctuation, portray a writer as knowledgeable and credible. This, in turn, builds trust between the writer and the reader. Conventions Establish Consistency: Writing conventions create a standard way of communicating ideas. When writing is ...
Genre Conventions: How to Satisfy Suspense Readers by Meeting Expectations
Here are the conventions you'll want to include in your story if you're writing a thriller. Readers want them. Readers expect them. Don't disappoint. Vibrant atmosphere. The setting is a vital part of a thriller and should be portrayed in clear and specific detail, bringing it alive and making it immediately threatening. The MacGuffin
The Best Short Stories and Short Story Conventions
In some cases, you are basically writing a miniture novel without the freedom and conventions of a novel. - Sierra Refit 2 years ago. 1. Roald Dahl's Tales of the Unexpected is exceptional. The Penguin-published collection of short stories is written for adults, but is just as engaging, exciting and often as funny as his beloved children ...
2: Literary Conventions
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Genres of Writing
Genre is a tool that is used by: Writers, to guide story and expectations. Critics, to categorize and analyze creative works. Publishers and Booksellers, to stock and market books to their target audiences. Readers, to find and read works that align with their aesthetic preferences.
Writing Conventions: What They Are & How To Use Them
The secret lies in understanding and utilizing writing conventions effectively. Writing conventions are the basic rules and norms that govern the way we write. They encompass everything from grammar and punctuation to formatting and structure. Mastering these conventions can make a world of difference in the clarity and impact of your writing.
Genre Conventions: To Go Along With Or Subvert? 4 Answers
Option 1. The first example of subverting genre conventions is when you want to blend genres. Let's say you want to write a thriller but with a hint of science fiction. Consider the TV show Fringe. Set on the fringes of reality, this show is classified as science fiction but also includes the FBI. Mixing genres is a great excuse to defy the ...
Rule-Breaking Stories
Stories that break the rules and conventions of fiction writing There are numerous rules and conventions when it comes to writing fiction, and the lines between the two are often blurred. Because writing is an art form, even fundamental rules about the form can be open to interpretation or debate.
Writing Conventions
Helping Your Students Put Finishing Touches on Their Work. Writing conventions ensure that a work is clear and easy to read. Help your students polish their stories with these hands-on creative writing tips from the six-trait writing process! As in every stage of the writing process, kids learn to edit and apply correct English conventions by ...
Ways to Teach Conventions: Our Favorite Things
Apostrophe Center. End Punctuation Center. Tense Center. Comma Center. Remember: the most effective centers are ones that you make in response to the students in your classroom, so consider these centers as prototypes for ones that you design based on the learning you are seeing in the day to day work.
What are Writing Conventions?
Writing and language conventions are simply the rules people must follow when writing any kind of text. Whether you're writing a story or a political speech, there are certain principles, such as writing in full sentences and spelling words correctly, thatwill help the text make sense and have an impact on the audience.
Narrative Writing: A Complete Guide for Teachers and Students
A narrative can spark emotion, encourage reflection, and convey meaning when done well. Narratives are a popular genre for students and teachers as they allow the writer to share their imagination, creativity, skill, and understanding of nearly all elements of writing. We occasionally refer to a narrative as 'creative writing' or story writing.
How to Format Dialogue in Your Novel or Short Story
Written by MasterClass. Last updated: Aug 30, 2021 • 4 min read. Whether you're working on a novel or short story, writing dialogue can be a challenge. If you're concerned about how to punctuate dialogue or how to format your quotation marks, fear not; the rules of dialogue in fiction and nonfiction can be mastered by following a few ...
Writers Conferences 2024: 60 Events Worth Attending
Writers Conferences to Consider for 2024 and Beyond General Interest San Francisco Writers Conference. When: Annually in February Where: San Francisco, CA Held annually in February, the San Francisco Writers Conference is a "celebration of craft, commerce and community." Connect with industry experts, bestselling authors, agents, editors and leaders in both self-publishing and traditional ...
19 Writing Conferences For Emerging and Established Writers
Sewanee Writers Conference. Held on the campus of the University of the South, 90 minutes from Nashville, the Sewanee Writers Conference is a twelve-day conference that provides workshops across fiction, nonfiction, poetry, and playwriting. The conference fee for "contributors" is $1,800, which covers food and lodging for twelve days.