Sanduleak
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Posts: 21
(1/4/02 8:46 pm)
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Narrative diagrams/Freytag triangles
Here is an example of what's known as a Freytag triangle (named after the German critic Gustav Freytag.) It is a useful tool to outline the basic format of a novel's narrative. Note how the action builds to a climax then falls away quickly in the denoument.
The triangle can be divided into any number of 'acts' - usually 3 or 5 depending on the length and complexity of the story. Each act should finish in a turning point - where something happens that opens a doorway to propel the action forward. When we speak of action in a novel, remember it doesn't always have to be physical action, it might just be a revelation or a new piece of information the main character/protagonist comes across that deepens their understanding of 'the whole of the story' and (as above) moves them (and by extension - the reader) forward.
This type of narrative diagram generally applies across all genres (with specialist variations if necessary) and works whether the 'action' is physical or purely intra or inter personal. The climax equally doesn't have to be a 'shoot em up' scene, just the moment that the protagonist reaches the final apex of the narrative and battles for everything that the writer has put at stake through the narrative lead up.
(edited to fix dufus level typo that the writer should know waaay better than to commit)
Turn your face to the sun and the shadows fall behind you
- Maori proverb
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Edited by: Sanduleak at: 1/4/02 9:16:18 pm
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