The word tale comes from the Latin term compŭtus , which means "account. " The concept refers to a short narrative of imaginary events. Its specificity cannot be pinpointed, so the difference between a long story and a short novel is difficult to determine.
A story presents a reduced group of characters and a not too complex argument, since among its characteristics appears the economy of narrative resources.
It is possible to distinguish between two main types of stories: the popular tale and the literary tale.
The popular tale is usually associated with traditional narratives that are transmitted from generation to generation orally. There may be different versions of the same story, since there are stories that maintain a similar structure but with different details.
The literary tale, on the other hand, is associated with the modern tale. These are stories conceived by writing and transmitted in the same way. While most popular tales do not have a differentiated author, the case of literary tales is different, as their creator is usually known.
Among the first stories written in the Spanish language appears “El conde Lucanor” , a collection that was written by the Infante Don Juan Manuel between the years 1330 and 1335.
On the other hand, the Royal Spanish Academy mentions that the word story can also refer to the indiscreet account of an event, the narration of a false event or a hoax. For example: "Pedro came with the story that he cannot find a job . "