Though the novel and the short story are two genres of literature, they have some similar aspects. A novel is a narrative in prose, a short story is also written in prose. A novel has a plot, a short story has also a plot. The protagonist of a novel is the chief attraction of the story; likewise, the plot of a short story is built around the protagonist.

The novel's story contains a series of incidents related to a central situation. A short story, especially a long short story has also incidents related to the central situation of the main plot. Entertainment may be the main purpose of a novel as it may also be the purpose of a short story. Novels may be classified according to their manner. On this basis, novels may be categorized as romantic, realistic, impressionistic or naturalistic or stream-of-consciousness. A short story may also be of any of the above categories though on a smaller scale. The character, action and incidents are closely related with one another in a novel so that they give a sense of unity. A short story also has the same unity based on the intimate relationship between characters, incidents, and actions.