Story Time is commonly thought of as a
phrase meaning "
time for stories". However, it can also be used to make an important distinction between the
time flow of a story's
contents and the
story itself.
Story Time is the time that flows in what is called the "Content Plane". In other words, "
real life". It is the plane where events are limited to the flow of real time and real space.
Story Time is one-way, and measurable by units such as
seconds or
hours.
The differences between
Story Time and
Discourse Time are often manipulated in
Narrative Time:
anachrony in movies, for example.
Example:
You are riding the bus from your house to that of a friend. When you arrive at your friend's house, the trip can be measured as a set period of time. Maybe 45 minutes. This is the "Story Time". To tell someone else of these events in "Story Time", you would have to include every meticulous event in the exact time frame in which it occurred. The "story" would take exactly 45 minutes to tell, and describe everything from the moment you left to the moment you arrived; clearly
an impossible task.