Creative Writing - Fiction UK MCQs
Creative Writing - Fiction UK MCQs
These Creative Writing - Fiction UK multiple-choice questions and their answers will help you strengthen your grip on the subject of Creative Writing - Fiction UK. You can prepare for an upcoming exam or job interview with these 80+ Creative Writing - Fiction UK MCQs.
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1: In terms of "show versus tell", which of the following is preferable when structuring a story?
A. Having more tell than show
B. Having more show than tell
C. Having about the same amount of show as tell
D. Having twice as much tell as show
2: A good novel or novella often has __________ points of view.
A. one or more
B. five
C. ten
D. half a dozen from different genders
In fiction writing, 'foreshadowing' is a term for __________________.
A. the shadows that lurk in the back of a character's mind
B. the clues in the narrative that give an indication of or pre-empt the future plot or story
C. the tying up of all loose ends at the end of the story
D. the rebels in a gothic horror story
E. None of the above
4: What is creative non-fiction?
A. Same as non-fiction
B. Fiction with some fact
C. Non-fiction writing that uses creative techniques often associated with fiction writing
D. Half fact, half fiction, in certain agreed ratios
E. a and c
5: What is a mythological story, or myth?
A. The story of a real historical event or person
B. A story that is set in a faraway, fairy-tale land
C. A story set in the future from which we can better understand the present
D. A story that carries deeper meaning, often offering a symbolic interpretation of mankind, nature, and the wider world in a universal context
6: Which of the following is not a commonly acknowledged genre in novel writing?
A. Mystery
B. Thriller
C. Horror
D. Crime
E. Love
7: A story is often said to have three parts: a beginning, a middle and an end. What are these parts sometimes called?
A. The premise, the pause and the demise
B. The run-up, the walk-on and the run-off
C. The leap, the steady and the fall
D. The exposition, the middle section and the denouement
According to Ernest Hemingway's
A. Most of the story's effect should be below the surface and conveyed by relatively fewer words on the page.
B. More words should be used on the page, with the effect on the reader being reduced.
C. Stories should be cold and always have selfish characters.
D. All of the above
9: The term "onomatopoeia" refers to the formation of words that imitate the sounds associated with the objects or actions they refer to. Given that, which of the following character names is onomatopoeic?
A. Mr. Tall, the banker
B. Mr. Swish, the broom maker
C. Mr. Hungry, the baker
D. Mr. Legs, the sprinter
10: Literary agents usually have _________ clients or authors on their client list.
A. 1-5
B. 1-10
C. 1-100
D. 1-200
E. None of the above: the number of clients can vary a great deal.
In fiction writing, a 'foil' is ______________.
A. the fundamental and usually universal concept expressed through the story
B. the protagonist
C. the hurried dialogue between two characters that expresses frustration or unhappiness
D. the antagonist
E. a character who calls attention, by contrast, to the good qualities or traits of the protagonist or other characters
The term 'irony' refers to ________________.
A. the moment a character becomes angry or extremely irate
B. the discrepancy or incongruity between what is meant and what is actually said, which often results in a wry contrast
C. the moment a speaker means every word he or she says and wants to be taken literally
D. a theme centred on irons, fire irons, or tire irons
E. b and c
F. None of the above
In fiction writing, a 'caricature' is ______________.
A. a character from the past
B. a character who is larger than life
C. a character whose behaviour or mannerisms are exaggerated for comic relief, as in a visual cartoon
D. a drawing of the main character
14: Fiction that is published online is usually called _______________.
A. PC fiction
B. long fiction
C. flash or flashy fiction
D. digital fiction
E. b and d
The term 'writer's block' refers to ______________ .
A. the moments when a writer gets 'stuck' and finds it difficult to continue writing a particular work or story
B. the division between chapters in a book where white space is present on half a page
C. a metallic block writers use for inspiration and to generate new ideas
D. an author's finished book
___________ is a method by which an author enters into a contract with a publishing company, at the author's expense, to have his or her manuscript printed in book form.
A. E-publishing through the author's own website
B. Professional journaling
C. Self-publishing
D. A query letter
E. Third-party printing
17: What is copy-editing?
A. Editing a text by making notes on a separate sheet of paper and ensuring that there are three spare copies of the manuscript
B. Copying the entire text in case it gets lost
C. Marking up a manuscript with symbols that communicate to a typesetter, editor or author how to change the manuscript
D. Copying and editing the manuscript, and then repeating the process twice
E. None of the above
18: A full-length work in which characters appear in cartoon form, but that is usually written for an adult audience, is called _______________.
A. pulp fiction
B. an autobiography
C. a graphic novel
D. a comic strip
E. c and d
In fiction writing, the term 'persona' refers to ________________.
A. a person in the story who has morphed into multiple people
B. the moment at which a character takes the action very personally
C. the entire cast of characters
D. the voice adopted by the author to tell the story, which may or may not be like the real author's voice
20: A line break in a story is often associated with what kind of change in the action or narrative?
A. A change in tense
B. A change in tension
C. A change in time or space
D. A breaking and entering
E. A break for comedy / tragedy
In fiction writing, 'setting' refers to ___________.
A. the tone in which the author writes the story
B. the time, place, and circumstances of the story
C. how the story is typeset on the page
D. the time at which the story takes place, but not the specific place
22: Which of the following genres of writing is the least likely to have a sub-plot?
A. A fairy tale
B. A novella
C. A short story
D. A novel in verse
E. Flash fiction
23: If a novel is poorly plotted, what is most likely wrong with it?
A. The overall story is too long.
B. The story is too simple.
C. The characters are not believable and are hard to like.
D. The events, story and characters do not integrate well or are over-written, exaggerated or unbelievable, and/or there are factual errors.
E. It is plodding and dull.
F. a, b and d
24: A print run is _____________ .
A. the printing of a book that occurs at one particular time and for a determined number of copies
B. the printed copies of a book that are quickly distributed to the bookstores
C. the reprinting of titles that have sold out at the retail stores
D. the author's term for a particular kind of editing that assures good quality printing
25: The in-house departments at a publishing company are commonly called Production, Marketing, Sales, Design, Finance/Accounting and _________ .
A. Self-promotion
B. Author/Writer
C. Editorial
D. Micro-management
E. Distribution
A. the very ending
B. the very middle
C. the highest point in the story or conflict just before potential resolution
D. a sequel to a work
E. All of the above
27: Which of the following is commonly regarded as the most essential ingredient of a dramatic plot?
A. Conflict
B. Harmony
C. Moral characters doing bad things
D. Immoral characters doing good things
28: If editorial work is done in-house, it would most likely be carried out by which of the following people?
A. A freelancer
B. The publisher
C. The managing director
D. A desk editor
E. An intern
29: The overuse of _________________ should be avoided in fiction writing because it can lead to weak, unrealistic, and ineffective prose.
A. chapters and paragraphs
B. adjectives and adverbs
C. beginnings and endings
D. All of the above
30: What are page proofs?
A. The individual pages of a book in the publishing process that are still in draft format and that the author, editor, and typesetter mark up for possible changes
B. The proofreading marks that appear on the pages of an almost-finished book or publication
C. The watermarks on the copyright, introduction, and contents pages
D. The final, proofread, camera-ready pages that are being sent to press
Is the following sentence true or false?
When you agree to first UK serial rights, you give a publisher the first right to publish your work in serial form only in the UK; they would have to negotiate any other rights separately.
A.
True
B.
False
32: A pseudonym is ______________ .
A. a ballpoint pen
B. a specific editorial deletion method
C. a pen name, or the name under which a writer is published
D. a novel's release date
E. the term for pulping old books
33: Which of the following statements best illustrates the primary purpose of writing dialogue?
A. Dialogue shares information by narrating the story.
B. Dialogue is less important than other aspects of story-telling such as setting, theme, and characterization.
C. Dialogue propels the plot forward through a character's actions rather than through his words.
D. Dialogue reflects the speaking voice of the character.
34: A book that sells in great numbers and makes the top-selling lists of major newspapers is often called a ____________ .
A. major success
B. big-time book
C. bestseller
D. bank-breaker
E. publisher's lunch
F. dime-store novel
35: Publishing companies are often called publishing ___________ .
A. super-conglomerates
B. corporations
C. houses
D. cottages
E. None of the above
36: What is the difference between a closed plot and an open plot?
A. An open plot involves marriage at the end, while a closed plot involves murder.
B. An open plot is one in which conflict is resolved at the end, while a closed plot is one in which conflict is not resolved.
C. A closed plot is one in which conflict is resolved at the end, while an open plot is one in which conflict is not resolved.
D. There is no difference between an open and closed plot.
37: A flashback is _____________________ .
A. a brighter, more positive moment for a character or for the tone of the story as a whole
B. a flashy sequence during which the style of writing becomes disjointed, similar to modernist writing
C. a section in which the narrative goes back in time, often within the mind of a character, to events preceding the current action
D. a section of narrative immediately following a flash-forward
38: In fiction writing, the term "allusion" refers to _______________.
A. the dark tone of a narrative
B. the alternating movement between comedy and tragedy in a narrative
C. an instance in which a speaker's words are meant to mean the opposite of their literal meaning, or when the speaker's words are undermined by the narrator
D. an indirect historical or cultural reference made by the writer or one of his characters in a narrative
39: According to the old adage about making every significant detail count, if a gun is placed on the wall in the first part of a story, ________________________ .
A. it should fall off sooner rather than later
B. it should be ignored
C. it should be fired by the end of the story
D. it should remain there
40: In terms of novels, what is a "proposal"?
A. A summary of an existing novel
B. A short description of an author's past and future work
C. A letter or e-mail sent to the editor of a magazine requesting payment
D. A hypothetical description of a future work or work-in-progress that might interest an editor
41: A "typo" in a draft, proof or published book is ___________ .
A. a spelling mistake
B. an intentional error
C. a mark that draws the reader's attention such as underlining, italics or bold
D. a typing error
42: Which of the following best describes a "roman a clef" (novel with a key)?
A. A novel written in French
B. A novel with a key attached to the front cover
C. A novel with a map or family tree in the front that relates to the action
D. A novel in which actual events and/or people are depicted as fictional events and/or characters
What is the difference between a publisher's 'front list' and its 'back list'?
A. The front list is put in the window, and the back list stays in the office.
B. Creative Writing Test - Fiction (UK Version)Creative Writing Test - Fiction (UK Version)
C. The front list is marketed, while the back list is not.
D. The front list is contains the names of genre writers, while the back list contains the names of literary writers.
44: A plot synopsis is ____________________ .
A. a summary of the main plot in relation to the characters and the main events
B. an expansion of the main plot in terms of what could be included for an even longer version
C. a numbered list of plot points with no reference to characters
D. an alternative version of the story for editing purposes
45: What is the difference between a "plot" and a "story"?
A. A story is a series of events told in chronological order. A plot is a series of events deliberately arranged so as to reveal their dramatic, thematic, and emotional significance.
B. A plot is a series of events told in chronological order. A story is a series of events deliberately arranged so as to reveal their dramatic, thematic, and emotional significance.
C. Both a and b
D. A story is linear; a plot is non-linear.
E. There is no difference; plot and story are the same thing.
46: A story that ends at the point at which it began is said to be ___________
A. reversed
B. self-induced
C. non-linear
D. cyclical
47: In terms of time, a story without temporal disjunctions, flashbacks or dream sequences that could confuse the main action is said to be _______________ .
A. plain
B. over-determined
C. non-linear
D. linear
E. None of the above
48: In fiction writing, the term "in medias res" refers to __________________.
A. the middle of a story
B. a person who meddles in the action
C. the technique of beginning a story in the middle of the action
D. the technique of telling a story in reverse order of action
49: In terms of how a story is told, "POV" means ________.
A. pick of vice
B. particle of vector
C. piece of venom
D. part of version
E. point of view
50: What is a biographical novel?
A. A half fictional, half factual novel, the fiction and fact alternating between chapters
B. The factual re-telling or re-imagining of a fictional character
C. Telling someone else's real story as non-fictional, from a third-person perspective
D. One that deals with biology and its affect on the characters
E. The fictional re-telling or re-imagining of a real person
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Creative Writing - Fiction UK MCQs
