Unit 3
Plot and Structure

Learning Objectives

When you have completed Unit 3, you should be able to

1. define the difference between narrative showing versus telling.
2. state the risks and virtues of expository writing in fiction.
3. explain each element of Frank O’Connor’s three-pronged definition of plot (exposition, development and drama) and discuss the role each plays in a story’s structure.
4. discern, in your own fiction, when expository writing is effective, versus when information is better revealed through more incidental and indirect approaches.
5. demonstrate an understanding of the nonexpository techniques of detail, description and dialogue.
6. grasp the role expository writing (or lack thereof) has in establishing a story’s structure and tone.