The picaresque novel follows a picaro (rogue) through a series of loosely connected episodes rather than a tightly plotted narrative arc. The protagonist is typically clever, morally flexible, and from the lower classes, and their adventures serve as a satirical lens on the societies they pass through. Unlike the bildungsroman, the picaresque hero doesn't necessarily grow or change; the world around them is the real subject.
The picaresque is one of the oldest novel forms and remains a powerful template for satirical fiction. If your story is episodic, centers a charming rogue, or uses its protagonist's journey to critique society, you're working in the picaresque tradition. Understanding the form gives you permission to write episodically without feeling like your plot is broken.
Often considered the first modern novel, following a delusional knight through satirical misadventures.
A boy's episodic raft journey down the Mississippi, exposing American hypocrisy about race, religion, and civilization.
A fantasy picaresque following a charming thief through increasingly dangerous cons in a Renaissance-inspired city.
Write two episodes of a picaresque story. Your protagonist is a charming rogue who arrives in two different social settings (a wealthy dinner party, a religious gathering, a corporate office). In each, they must bluff their way through, and their success or failure reveals something absurd about the setting. The humor should have teeth.