Notice & Note Fiction Signposts

You notice a word, phrase, or situation mentioned over and over (Ask: Why does this keep happening?)

• Again and Again

• Aha Moment

• Contrasts and Contradictions

• Memory Moment

When a character suddenly realizes, understands or finally figures something out - Ask: How this might change things?

• Aha Moment

• Contrasts and Contradictions

• Memory Moment

• Tough Questions

A change in a character's action or a difference from what the reader expects the character to do based on his previous behavior in the story (Ask: Why is the character doing that?)

• Words of the Wiser

• Contrasts and Contradictions

• Memory Moment

• Tough Questions

The author interrupts the action to tell you about something that happened in the past (Ask: Why is this memory important?)

• Words of the Wiser

• Again and Again

• Memory Moment

• Tough Questions

Questions a character raises that reveal his or her inner struggles to the reader. "What could I possibly do to survive this?" (Ask: What does this make me wonder?)

• Words of the Wiser

• Again and Again

• Aha Moment

• Tough Questions

A character (probably older and wiser) takes the main character aside and offers serious advice (Ask: What is the lesson?)

• Words of the Wiser

• Again and Again

• Aha Moment

• Memory Moment