Focus on Genre: Elements of Fiction

  • Plot

  • Characters

  • Setting

Writers create fictional stories to entertain their readers. Writers use key elements of fiction—plot, characters, and setting—to build their stories.

Plot: How It Works

The plot is the series of events that happen in a story.

  • • The plot is built around a conflict, or problem, that the main character faces.

  • • During the rising action, the plot develops as complications occur, and the character tries to solve the problem.

  • • The climax is the turning point, or the most important event of the story.

  • Falling action leads to the resolution, where the problem ends.

Read “The Clever Woman” aloud to understand the stages of the plot.