How to Write a Narrative By Ms. C

What is a Narrative A narrative essay, paper, or story tells the audience a personal event that has happened to them Can serve a greater purpose The story tells a personal event, such as Night

Narrative Structure A narrative structure is the way the story is presented to the audience Exposition Rising Action Climax Falling Action Resolution

Exposition Tells the information of the story The Who, What, When, Where of the story Who is the main character What is happening (is something wrong?) When is this taking place Where is the story taking place Example: Harry Potter and the Sorcerer’s Stone Getting to know Harry, the Wizarding World, and the setting of the story

Rising Action Problems and actions start appearing There is usually more than one action or problem happening in a story. Example: Harry’s letter keep getting taken away from him He has problems in school The troll Voldemort (He Who Must Not Be Named)

Climax This is the LAST conflict of the story There should be NO more conflict, problems, or actions after this event Example: Harry and Voldemort’s confrontation After this confrontation there are no more conflicts after the story

Falling Action The falling action is where any unknown details or plot holes are filled Example: Dumbledore tells Harry about the Sorcerer’s Stone and what will happen to it

Resolution The final outcome of the story is told It is here that the tone of the author’s story can usually be found Example: Harry’s first year at Hogwarts is wrapped and Harry learns the value of friendship and bravery

Showing not Telling Narrative stories SHOW the audience what is happening Show The light streaming from the window hit my sleep-lid eyes Tell The light hit me as I woke up

Show not Tell Cont. Tell I was nervous as I told my mom the truth Show I rubbed my sweaty hands on my pants, my eyes cast down as my voice shook; taking a deep breath I told my mom the truth.

Dialogue When writing dialogue, be sure to ALWAYS make a dialogue on a NEW paragraph Example: The tires screeched to a halt, my breath escaping me as the seatbelt dug into my shoulder. “Watch where you are going!” I shouted at the young man walking down the road. “Maybe you shouldn’t text and drive” The man shouted back, his arms raising over his head in anger.

Narrative Assignment Your turn! Write at LEAST a one page narrative on… Must include the following: Creative title A engaging hook Descriptive wording A beginning, middle, end

Themes to Write About You can write about one of two themes A time in your life where you faced prejudice, or someone you know faced prejudice. What did you do? How did you feel? OR A time when you persevered through a difficult time. Persevere: Maintain a purpose despite difficulty, obstacles, or discouragement Example: Ms. C persevered through school even though getting good grades was hard for her Also life (maybe talk about my struggle to overcome health issues as a baby/child