MFA Creative Writing and Literary Forms 1 — Questions and Answers
Question 1: In creative writing, what is 'show, don't tell'?
- Using dialogue instead of narration
- Presenting concrete sensory details and action rather than abstract statements about emotions (Correct answer)
- Writing in present tense instead of past tense
- Using short sentences to increase pace
Correct answer: Presenting concrete sensory details and action rather than abstract statements about emotions
'Show, don't tell' means conveying emotion and character through specific actions, details, and sensory experience rather than stating feelings directly.
Question 2: What is the 'inciting incident' in story structure?
- The climax of the narrative
- The event that disrupts the protagonist's ordinary world and sets the main conflict in motion (Correct answer)
- The moment of resolution at the story's end
- A flashback to the character's backstory
Correct answer: The event that disrupts the protagonist's ordinary world and sets the main conflict in motion
The inciting incident is the triggering event that upsets the protagonist's status quo and launches the central conflict of the narrative.
Question 3: What is 'free verse' poetry?
- Poetry that rhymes on every other line
- Poetry written without a fixed meter or rhyme scheme (Correct answer)
- Poetry organized in tercets only
- Poetry that follows a strict syllable count per line
Correct answer: Poetry written without a fixed meter or rhyme scheme
Free verse is poetry that does not follow a regular metrical pattern or rhyme scheme, relying instead on natural speech rhythms, imagery, and line breaks.
Question 4: In fiction writing, what is an 'unreliable narrator'?
- A narrator who speaks in a foreign language
- A narrator whose credibility is compromised by limited knowledge, bias, or deliberate deception (Correct answer)
- A third-person omniscient narrator who withholds information
- A narrator who changes perspective mid-story
Correct answer: A narrator whose credibility is compromised by limited knowledge, bias, or deliberate deception
An unreliable narrator is a character-narrator whose account cannot be fully trusted due to psychological instability, bias, naivety, or intentional dishonesty.
Question 5: What is 'dramatic irony' in literary writing?
- When the plot takes an unexpected turn
- When the audience knows information that a character in the story does not (Correct answer)
- When a character says the opposite of what they mean
- When the setting creates a feeling of danger
Correct answer: When the audience knows information that a character in the story does not
Dramatic irony occurs when the audience possesses knowledge about the situation that at least one character lacks, creating tension or dark comedy.
Question 6: Which point of view uses 'I' and 'me' to narrate a story from inside one character's direct experience?
- Second person
- Third-person limited
- First person (Correct answer)
- Third-person omniscient
Correct answer: First person
First-person point of view places the narrator as a participant in the story, using 'I,' creating intimacy but limiting the reader to one character's perspective.
MFA Creative Writing and Literary Forms 1
In creative writing, what is 'show, don't tell'?