Design Patterns: The Storytelling of Code

Content:

• What design patterns are
• Why they exist
• Their categories (creational, structural, behavioral)
• Observer & Factory examples
• A beautiful analogy with writing/art

When we write code, we’re not just instructing machines; We’re expressing ideas, solving problems, and communicating with other developers. In many ways, programming is like writing a story. Just as writers use alphabets, words, and literary devices, developers use syntax, functions, and design patterns to tell their story in code.

What Are Design Patterns?

Design patterns are proven, reusable solutions to recurring problems in software development. They aren’t new syntax or frameworks, but best practices, like blueprints that show us how to organize our code more clearly, flexibly, and maintainably.

They serve as a shared language among developers. Instead of writing paragraphs to explain, you can simply say “I’ll use the Observer pattern” and everyone understands.

Why Do We Need Them?

Before Patterns

• Code was often messy and repetitive.
• Changes in one part could break everything else (tight coupling).
• Adding new features meant rewriting large chunks of code.

After Patterns

• Code becomes clean, flexible, and reusable.
• Developers solve problems in standard, battle-tested ways.
• Teams can communicate faster using a shared vocabulary.

Types of Design Patterns

Patterns are usually grouped into three families:

1. Creational – deal with object creation. (e.g., Factory, Singleton)
2. Structural – deal with how objects are composed. (e.g., Adapter, Decorator)
3. Behavioral – deal with how objects interact. (e.g., Observer, Strategy, Command)

Observer Pattern (Behavioral)

Problem: How do you make sure that when one object changes, all dependent objects are automatically updated?

Solution: Define a one-to-many relationship between a subject and its observers.

JavaScript Example:

class Subject {
  constructor() {
    this.observers = [];
  }
  subscribe(observer) {
    this.observers.push(observer);
  }
  notify(data) {
    this.observers.forEach(obs => obs.update(data));
  }
}

class Observer {
  constructor(name) {
    this.name = name;
  }
  update(data) {
    console.log(`${this.name} received: ${data}`);
  }
}

const news = new Subject();
const alice = new Observer("Alice");
const bob = new Observer("Bob");

news.subscribe(alice);
news.subscribe(bob);

news.notify("New article published!");

Whenever the subject (news) changes, all observers (subscribers) are notified automatically.

Factory Pattern (Creational)

Problem: How can we centralize object creation so adding new types doesn’t break our code everywhere?

Solution: Use a factory class that decides which object to create.

JavaScript Example:

class Admin {
  constructor(name) { this.role = "Admin"; this.name = name; }
}
class Guest {
  constructor(name) { this.role = "Guest"; this.name = name; }
}

class UserFactory {
  createUser(type, name) {
    switch (type) {
      case "admin": return new Admin(name);
      case "guest": return new Guest(name);
      default: throw new Error("Invalid type");
    }
  }
}

const factory = new UserFactory();
const user1 = factory.createUser("admin", "Alice");
const user2 = factory.createUser("guest", "Bob");

console.log(user1, user2);

Adding a new user type is as simple as editing the factory, not rewriting code everywhere else.

The Artistic Analogy: Code as Storytelling
Your insight was perfect: writing code is like writing a story.

Writing / Art	Coding	Analogy
Alphabet	Syntax (let, class)	Building blocks
Words	Variables, expressions	Small meaning
Sentences	Functions	Complete thought
Paragraphs / Chapters	Classes, modules	Organized units
Story / Book	Software	Complete system
Literary Devices (metaphor, foreshadowing)	Design Patterns (Observer, Factory)	Elegant, reusable structures
Genres (Romance, Sci-fi)	Frameworks (React, Django)	Guiding structure
Plot	Algorithms	Sequence of events
Editing	Refactoring	Polishing work

Just like writers don’t invent a new alphabet every time, developers don’t invent new syntax. Instead, they use design patterns like literary devices, ways to express ideas more clearly, elegantly, and universally.

So,

Design patterns are not “new code you must write.” They are shared wisdom, best practices that have stood the test of time.

Just as a novelist uses foreshadowing or symbolism, a programmer uses Observer or Factory. Both make the story whether on paper or in code easier to understand, more flexible, and more powerful.

Future Start Here, Join Me!
-Turkan Isayeva

Comments

[ALI]

This is such a brilliant analogy, Turkan! I love how you compared design patterns to literary devices—it makes the concept so much more intuitive. The Observer and Factory examples were super clear too. Honestly, this post reads like both a lesson and a story in itself!

[Turkan İsayeva]

Thank you for the comment and your feedback. I appreciate