Page 2 Style

Style, or the cadence and flow of language, can be developed through the following:



  1. Effective Sentences: Authors may vary sentence length and beginnings, to make their writing interesting. 
  2. Word Choice or Diction: Specific vocabulary is chosen with its denotative (dictionary) or connotative (emotional) meaning to suit a character and/or the audience. Some words are used in formal language, others in slang.
  3. Dialogue: Writers use dialogue or conversation between two or more people, to bring characters to life and add interest.
  4. Imagery or Sensory Language: To share experiences, authors use language that appeals to sight, taste, touch, smell, sound, and hearing to share experiences.
  5. Tone: The attitude of the author toward the subject (close, distant, serious, humourous).         



Literary Devices

Literary Devices include the following:



  1. Symbols: A symbol is an object, a person, situation, or an action that represents something else. It will be something that has a literal meaning in a story, but also represents or suggests an abstract concept. In a novel, a symbol is identified by its repeated use throughout the story. The item or idea is personally significant to a character.

    Context is important to determining meaning of a symbol. To one culture, earth and water may represent life; to another, it may represent land ownership.

    A symbol depends on the stories that are told.
  1. Foreshadowing: Foreshadowing is a hint the author gives about what is going to happen in a story. 
  2. Suspense: An author creates suspense by letting the reader know something is about to happen, making him or her anxious to learn how the characters will respond.
  3. Surprise: This is something unexpected that happens in the story or an unexpected ending.
  4. Flashback: This is remembering a previous incident to explain a character's current actions or feelings.
  5. Figurative Language: Writers use figurative language to build comparisons and create special effects that help readers understand characters, places, and ideas.





  Please contact your teacher if you have questions.