Fiction is composed of distinct parts, sometimes called modes of storytelling. You can think of them as the building blocks that you’ll use to construct your fiction project. Once you learn to identify these blocks and how they work, they’re fun to play with. But if you get the balance wrong by, say, overloading your project with exposition (tell), your project may, well, topple over.
If you search online, you’ll see authors differ on how many modes of storytelling there are, and even what they are called. That can get confusing. But the concepts are basically the same.
You're likely familiar with each of these terms, but I’ll give you my definitions, followed by very simple examples taken from the opening of The Stalker, one of my literacy learner or hi-lo novels (written at a low reading level for those improving their reading skills). You'll find a more complex example in the third page of this article.ACTION is what the characters do, how they move within the scene, what is happening. Example:
I grabbed the phone from the nightstand.
The line above is an action beat. Beats are the small actions we give to characters, usually inserted within dialogue, that orient the reader as to who is speaking, where the characters are and what they are doing. Beats also help to convey emotion and can offer pacing and rhythm to the prose.DIALOGUE is what the characters say to each other, in conversation on the page. Example:
"Nice day for a little kayak trip, eh?" he said. "But I wouldn't go out if I were you."
"Who is this?" In EXPOSITION things are explained and background information is given. When exposition occurs in dialogue, it’s called expository dialogue. You've heard the expression "show, don't tell." Exposition is all about "tell." Example:
I run sea kayak tours. My staff and I guide tourists as they paddle my boats around the many islands along the coast of Vancouver Island.DESCRIPTION engages all five senses and paints a picture of the setting and characters in the reader's mind. Example:
Artists' studios, cafes, and a fish and chips shop lined the waterfront. Fishermen's boats were tied up along the docks beside the tourists' sailboats and motorboats. Across the inlet, mist drifted down the rocky cliffs.