14 Literature & books

fiction

imaginary

a novel (a novelist)

stories about people & events that've been invented by author (person who writes them)

a play (a playwright)

a piece of writing intended to be performed in theatre (person who writes them)

an essay (an essayist)

articles for publication (person who writes them)

a tale

an imaginative, interesting story

a story-line / (construct) a plot

outline of events in story

to relate sth (formal) / to tell sb

to tell or describe sth to people

to narrate sth (a narrator, a narrative)

to tell or describe sth to people (person telling story, story)

to unfold

to develop & become known or understood

a character

people that it's about

a protagonist

most important character

a hero(ine)

main character, who's usu admired or respected for good qualities

simile

expression which describes person or thing as being similar to sb or sth else: usu start with 'like' or 'as'

metaphor (metaphorical)

imaginatively identifies one object with another which has emotional & imaginative qualities you're trying to attribute to first object: don't start with 'like' or 'as'

figurative

abstract, imaginative or metaphorical

imagery

use of figurative language to produce pictures in minds of readers or hearers

wit (witty, a witticism)

ability to use words or ideas in amusing, clever & imaginative way (to be…, amusing or clever remark)

wordplay / a pun (to pun)

making jokes by using meanings of words in unusual, amusing or clever way / words with more than 1 meaning or same sound but different meaning

allusion (to)

reference to person, event, story, … in which person, event, story… isn't mentioned specifically or in detail but is only indirectly referred to

irony (ironic(al))

form of humour in which you say sth in such a way that people realize that you're joking or that you really mean the opposite

tongue-in-cheek

not serious about sth & being ironical

sarcasm (sarcastic)

savage, bitter form of humour: often means opposite of what it seems to say, but making its victim an object of ridicule, usu intended to cut, wound or insult

parody / a send-up (BrE,informal) (to parody sth, a parodist / to send sb/sth up)

piece of writing which copies style of well-known author for comic effect or ridicule

satire (satirize sth, a satirist, satirical)

piece of writing that attacks foolish or wicked behaviour by making fun of it, often by using sarcasm & parody

a cliff-hanger/a whodun(n)it

story whose outcome's uncertain until end / story about a murder & in which identity of murderer's kept mystery until end

a serial

story in magazine or newspaper which appears in number of parts at regular times, such as once a week or once a day

an instalment / an episode

one of sth's parts that are published seperately one after other

a series

group of things that are all related to each other or that are intended to form complete set

a classic

sth's well-known & thought to be of very high standard

a blockbuster

a book or film that will be very popular & successful because of exciting or sensational events described in it

a bestseller

a book that sells extremely well & tops the charts for a while

a prize/an award

sth you win because of a big achievement

to nominate sb / to short-list sb (a short-list)

to formally suggest sb as winner / to put sb on short-list of smaller number of candidates who've been selected from larger group -> final decision

content ((table of) contents)

subject matter & ideas in book (what gives details of what's in book at the front of it)

a blurb

short description of contents of book written by publisher & usu printed on jacket or cover)

a preface (to) / a foreword / a prologue (to)

brief comment at beginning of book about purpose of book: written by author or editor or by another whose name's associated in some way with book & just a few pages

an introduction

more formal exposition of purpose of book & contains outline of subject: published in textbooks, reference books & other works of non-fiction & often include explanations of various kinds of info book contains

the acknowledgements

at beginning or end of book: short piece of writing in which author thanks all people who've assisted them

a dedication

message which is written at beginning of book as sign of affection or respect for sb

a glossary (to gloss sth, a gloss)

alphabetical list of words or expressions & special or technical meaning that they have in particular book, subject or activity (to provide explanation of them)

an annotation (to annotate sth)

critical, historical or explanatory notes (when you add these to sth)

an index (to index sth)

alphabetical list that's printed at back of book to tell reader where particular subjects,people,places,events… are referred to in book (to provide this in sth)

a cross-reference (to cross-reference sth)

note at one place in book that tells reader that there's more detailed info at another place in it

a draft (to draft sth)

early version of book (or…) which sb's going to write, containing only the broad ideas & not details

to publish sth / to bring sth out (a publisher)

to print copies which are then sent to shops & sold

a proof (to proof-read sth, a proof-reader)

first printed copy of sth (to read sth to find & mark any mistakes that need to be corrected before publishing, person who does this)

to edit sth (an editor, an edition)

to prepare sth for publication: collecting of several pieces of writing by different authors, cutting out of material for sake of improvement or to meet limitations of space, planning & supervising work of subordinates charged with execution of those plans (person who does this, particular version of book that's printed at one time)

to print sth (a printing / an impression)

to publish a certain edition of a book (the publishing of the book)

a copy

single example of one printing of publication

to revise sth (a revision)

to see were sth can be improved

to update sth (an update)

to change sth according to what's known or required at time of revision

to abridge sth (an abridgement)

to make sth shorter by removing some parts of it

a paperback OR hardback

book with thin cardboard cover OR book with a stiff hard cover

royalties

payments made to authors who are given a fixed percentage of profits from sale of books

browse through / leaf through

to quickly go over a book to see if it's interesting

flip through / flick through

to flip pages until you get to the one you were looking for

to skim through/over

to scan a page to get the gist

the gist

the main idea

skip sth

to not read certain pages

a library (a public library, a librarian)

place where they have books in all kinds of different areas (public version, person who works there)

a collection

the variety of books

a volume

a book

a manuscript

a book

a copy

a version of a book

a reading room

specific rooms for special editions of books

a reader

people that read books

sensational

full of interesting or exciting details, intended to cause great public excitement

dull

not interesting

faithful

accurately representing the original

vivid

very accurate & lifelike, strong & intense

sharp

hard & direct, severe

imaginative

showing a lot of imagination

colourful

clear & lively

realistic

clear & detailed

characterized

describe the character of

rich

highly amusing or ludicrous

graphic

clever & especially effective

to evoke

to inspire, draw forth feelings, responses

grotesque

comically or repulsively distorted, monstruous, unnatural

dreary

dismal, dull, gloomy

remarkable

worth notice, exceptional

authorative

supported by authority

original

imaginative & clever, using new ideas or methods

precious

affectively refined

banal

so ordinary & unoriginal that it's not at all interesting

stilted

stiff & unnatural, bombastic

laboured

complicated & studied

mannered

very artificial, as if trying to impress

far-fetched

unlikely to be true

cliched

boring because used many times before

expressive

indicating clearly sb's feelings & thoughts

to portray

to give a particular impression of sb

gripping

making a strong impression because interesting or unusual

accurate

careful, precise, lacking errors

tedious

tiresomely long, wearisome

absorbing

intensely interesting

poignant

painfully sharp to the emotions or senses, deeply moving

hilarious

exceedingly funny

banal

trite, feeble, commonplace

affected

formal , constrained, lacking spontaneity