MFA Creative Writing and Literary Forms

Question 1

In creative writing, what is 'show, don't tell'?

Accepted Answer

Presenting concrete sensory details and action rather than abstract statements about emotions

Answer

Using dialogue instead of narration

Answer

Writing in present tense instead of past tense

Answer

Using short sentences to increase pace

Question 2

What is the 'inciting incident' in story structure?

Accepted Answer

The event that disrupts the protagonist's ordinary world and sets the main conflict in motion

Answer

The climax of the narrative

Answer

The moment of resolution at the story's end

Answer

A flashback to the character's backstory

Question 3

What is 'free verse' poetry?

Accepted Answer

Poetry written without a fixed meter or rhyme scheme

Answer

Poetry that rhymes on every other line

Answer

Poetry organized in tercets only

Answer

Poetry that follows a strict syllable count per line

Question 4

In fiction writing, what is an 'unreliable narrator'?

Accepted Answer

A narrator whose credibility is compromised by limited knowledge, bias, or deliberate deception

Answer

A narrator who speaks in a foreign language

Answer

A third-person omniscient narrator who withholds information

Answer

A narrator who changes perspective mid-story

Question 5

What is 'dramatic irony' in literary writing?

Accepted Answer

When the audience knows information that a character in the story does not

Answer

When the plot takes an unexpected turn

Answer

When a character says the opposite of what they mean

Answer

When the setting creates a feeling of danger

Question 6

Which point of view uses 'I' and 'me' to narrate a story from inside one character's direct experience?

Accepted Answer

First person

Answer

Second person

Answer

Third-person limited

Answer

Third-person omniscient