1. Terms to Know

2. Character
An individual or thing that plays a part in the story.

3. Conflict
The struggle between opposing forces in a story or drama.

4. Conventions
The style of writing that authors use to write fantasy, horror and other stories.

5. Imagery
Descriptive language that appeals to one or more of the five senses, sight, hearing, touch, taste and smell

6. Metaphor
A figure of speech that makes a comparison between two seemingly unlike things. It doesn’t use the word “like” or “as.”

7. Mood
The emotional quality of a literary work. A writer’s choice of language, subject matter, setting, diction, tone, as well as such sound devices as rhyme and rhythm, contribute to this emotional quality.

8. Motif
A significant word, phrase, image description, idea, or other element that is repeated throughout a literary work and is related to theme.

9. Plot
The sequence of events in a narrative work. Consists of exposition, rising action, climax, falling action and resolution.

10. Repetition
The reocurrence of sounds, words, phrases, lines or stanzas in a speech or literary work.

11. Structure
The particular order or pattern a writer uses to present ideas.

12. Suspense
A feeling of curiosity, uncertainty, or even dread about what is going to happen next in a story.

13. Symbol
Any person, animal, place, object or event that exists on a literal level within a work but also represents something on a figurative level.

14. Theme(s)
The main idea or message of a story, poem, novel, or play often expressed as a general statement about life.

15. Tone
An author’s attitude toward his or her subject matter conveyed through elements such as word choice, rhythm, sentence structure, and figure of speech.