UNIT OVERVIEW AND NOTES PERSONAL NARRATIVE

DESCRIPTIVE WRITING PLUS We all have stories to tell – things that have happened to us, events in our lives that we like to share with others. That is much of what personal narrative writing is all about. All that you’ve learned and practiced in our Descriptive Writing unit is going to apply in this unit, but now we are going to take our learning (and our writing) one step further.

HOW WE’RE GOING TO DO IT… The Lessons: Notes on What is a personal narrative? Personal narrative “starts” – practice writing and brainstorming. Sample personal narratives – “exploding the moment” Using dialogue effectively to show instead of tell Drafting, revising, and editing Sharing a final draft

WRITING A PERSONAL NARRATIVE A personal narrative is a reminiscence of an incident or event from one’s past that happened over a relatively SHORT PERIOD of time (maybe only a few minutes or over a few hours or part of a day). It is a TRUE story about the writer herself. A personal narrative can be an emotional experience, a silly incident, a serious or solemn event, or maybe a frightening experience. A writer should include specific details to make the writing come to life. The writing should SHOW instead of tell. Personal narratives most often have DIALOGUE (conversation)— yours should.

FEATURES OF A PERSONAL NARRATIVE STARTING POINT/FOCUS: Personal narratives begin when you identify a memorable experience—something that happened over a relatively short period of time—that you would like to develop or explore. PURPOSE: Writing about past experiences satisfies your desire or need to share part of your past. On different levels, personal narratives may try to inform, entertain, amuse, move to sadness or anger, etc. FORM : Think of a personal narrative as a story with details unfolding one after another. Perhaps try to start right in the middle of the action.

FEATURES CONTINUED AUDIENCE: In most cases, the author is addressing her immediate audience—classmates, peers, teachers, parents. VOICE: To make the personal narrative come to life, use your best storytelling voice. Make the story be your own, in your own words. Use dialogue, action words, and description. Use concrete images to allow the reader to imagine the setting, action, people involved, etc. POINT OF VIEW: Use the pronoun I—you are describing one of your own experiences; you are the storyteller

CHECKLIST Here’s a checklist for “good” personal narratives: __ has an interesting lead that grabs the reader’s attention __ uses a clear, organized structure that’s easy to follow __ focuses on one event occurring in a short period of time __ creates clear, vivid picture of events/people through description and realistic dialogue __ shows rather than tells; paints a picture with words __ has a perceptive and insightful development of ideas __ includes a satisfying ending that leaves the reader with something to think about __ pays attention to audience, purpose, and form __ has a meaningful, creative, and inviting title __ is carefully revised and edited