story meaning

Authors Competing with Story for Reader’s Attention in Literary Fiction

by

To simplify a complex subject in order to identify a basic problem that needs to be addressed to improve literary fiction in general, consider there are two ways to deliver a story in literary fiction.  (1) Authorial dominated prose narration and (2) story-specific reader engagement through developed storytelling.   An author has a story to tell.  The inexperienced writer writes with the false confidence that all that is needed is a description of the story–just write, feel free, get it on the page.  The result?  Narrative description in story present and back story without incorporating drama–conflict, action, resolution–and engaging the … Read More…

Meaning in the Literary Fictional Story

by

Meaning in fiction is often conceived as an element of writing that may or may not be inserted into a story, like a plastic baby doll in a Mardi Gras king cake. But meaning, its presence or lack of, is ubiquitous in a literary story, like the taste of sugar in a meringue. Writers seem to disagree, or at least not seek uniformity, on what meaning actually is in a story. Some seem to believe meaning equates with morality; others seem to think that it is equated with significance and, as a result, subsequently means ponderous and difficult, perceived attributes … Read More…