Craft & Technique Flashcards
(9 cards)
Show don’t tell
Show don’t tell reveals through action and imagery rather than explanation.
Example: Showing a character’s loneliness through their empty apartment.
How meaning is conveyed through action, not explanation
Control
Control is the creator’s command over narrative elements.
Example: Pacing a story to build tension.
How the author manages narrative elements
Constraints
Constraints are limitations that shape creative work.
Example: Telling a story in only six words.
Creative limits that shape the text
Media-specificity
Media-specificity uses the unique features of a medium.
Example: A comic using panel layout to control pacing.
How the medium (e.g., film, prose) shapes the story
Transmediality
Transmediality is storytelling across multiple platforms.
Example: A narrative that spans a book, game, and film.
Storytelling across multiple platforms
Title
Framing device
The title shapes how the audience interprets the story.
Example: A title like “The Betrayal” primes the reader for conflict.
How the title shapes interpretation
Attention
Attention involves techniques used to capture and hold the audience’s focus.
Example: A shocking opening scene in a film.
How the text holds the reader’s focus
Exposition
Exposition provides background information to understand the story.
Example: A narrator explaining the world’s rules.
How background information is delivered
Persuasion
Persuasion involves techniques to influence the audience.
Example: A speech that rallies a crowd.
How the text convinces or influences the reader
