Shadow-dog Literary-dog

Shadow-dog, the Whatever-It-Takes-dog, the Get-It-Done-dog. BTW, when he gets hosed down, he turns all black once again. Shadow may become a character in some literary effort I may undertake. To think this out I need some precise definitions of genre. Tell me if you can, with precision, and critiques, the difference between fiction, faction, analogy, allegory, parable, novel, historical novel, story, fable, etc., what can be embraced or avoided either entirely or with distinctions.