Gary Panter blog

Formal elements and places in story

> expectations created by ad/splash/cover—first impressions
> style / look / angle / pov / moving / locked / typography
> introduction / place / time / characters / the situation—what are we facing? Are we given something to hold in mind?
> narrator / no narrator /multiple narrators / silent narrator / undependable narrator
> tell it with action
> tell it with conversation
> infer information
> foreshadowing
> linking motifs / reinforcing motifs
> velocity of telling / action/pacing
> setting the tone
> violating expectations
> the purposely misleading clue or element / irony
> detail / set dressing
> what to leave out
> drawing the reader into the story
> first clue that something is not right
> characters in concert and conflict
> initial test / sucess / failure
> second test / sucess failure
> deepening knowledge /conflict
> hidden force/adversary / actor in the action
> temporary respite
> resumption of test
> apparent conclusion
> real conclusion
> afterglow / implications