1. G-EN270 INTRO TO FICTION
The Elements of Fiction
Style

2. G-EN270 INTRO TO ICTION
AR340 WEB-BASEDFDESIGN
Style ::
Can be loosely conceived as applying to
everything in a story—for everything in it
involves the writer’s use of language—but…for
our purposes, we’ll say…

3. G-EN270 INTRO TO ICTION
AR340 WEB-BASEDFDESIGN
Style is a writer’s technical handling
of all aspects of language

4. G-EN270 INTRO TO ICTION
AR340 WEB-BASEDFDESIGN
Style includes diction ::
The kinds of words a writer uses

5. G-EN270 INTRO TO ICTION
AR340 WEB-BASEDFDESIGN
Style includes syntax ::
How a writer combines words into sentences

6. G-EN270 INTRO TO ICTION
AR340 WEB-BASEDFDESIGN
Style includes organization ::
How a writer groups sentences and passages (into
paragraphs, for example) and makes them cohere
more or cohere less

7. G-EN270 INTRO TO FICTION
Hemingway Kincaid Wallace
Words 1,459 673 1,125
Sentences 183 1 9
Avg./
8 673 125
Sentence
Paragraphs 110 1 1

8. G-EN270 INTRO TO ICTION
AR340 WEB-BASEDFDESIGN
Style also includes
• Rhythm and sound—the writer’s use of
language’s auditory appeals, i.e., its “music,” or
poetry
• Tone—the author’s attitude toward his or her
subject matter

9. G-EN270 INTRO TO ICTION
AR340 WEB-BASEDFDESIGN
Diction, syntax, organization, rhythm and sound,
and tone constitute the author’s voice, which
Charters defines as “the total effect of the author’s
rhetorical and stylistic choices.”

10. G-EN270 INTRO TO ICTION
AR340 WEB-BASEDFDESIGN
Style also embraces those aspects of language that
extend and magnify the impact and significance of
language
• Imagery—the use of words that give a concrete
representation of a sensory experience or an
object that is perceived by the senses
• Symbolism—the use of an image, plot event, or
character to suggest an abstract meaning in
addition to its literal significance

11. G-EN270 INTRO TO ICTION
AR340 WEB-BASEDFDESIGN
A final note ::
Point of view and dialogue can radically alter a
writer’s style: S/he may be creating a narrative
voice that reflects the style of the speaker.