This week we begin the study of Narrative writing. Reflect for a moment on the last memorable story you heard, told, or read. What made the story remain with you? Was it a compelling character? An interesting set of circumstances? Was it told in an amusing or serious manner, and did it make you react emotionally?
Everyone loves a good story, and each day we seek out good stories in a variety of media: novels, short stories, newspapers, works of fine art, blogs, even notes and posts on social media pages.
Narration is the art of storytelling, and in the narrative modules, you will investigate the ways in which writers employ common narration strategies to engage readers from the beginning to the end of a significant event. You will also look critically at some examples of effective narration as you draft your narrative essay.
After successfully completing the narrative essay lessons, you should be able to:
describe the purpose, basic components, characteristics, and structure of narrative writing
demonstrate writing techniques of a narrative essay
This section will help you determine the purpose and structure of narrative writing.
Narration means the art of storytelling, and the purpose of narrative writing is to tell stories. Any time you tell a story to a friend or family member about an event or incident in your day, you engage in a form of narration. In addition, a narrative can be factual or fictional. A factual story is one that is based on, and tries to be faithful to, actual events as they unfolded in real life. A fictional story is a made-up, or imagined, story; the writer of a fictional story can create characters and events as he or she sees fit.
The big distinction between factual and fictional narratives is based on a writer’s purpose. The writers of factual stories try to recount events as they actually happened, but writers of fictional stories can depart from real people and events because the writers’ intents are not to retell a real-life event. Biographies and memoirs are examples of factual stories, whereas novels and short stories are examples of fictional stories.
Because the line between fact and fiction can often blur, it is helpful to understand what your purpose is from the beginning. Is it important that you recount history, either your own or someone else’s? Or does your interest lie in reshaping the world in your own image—either how you would like to see it or how you imagine it could be? Your answers will go a long way in shaping the stories you tell.
Ultimately, whether the story is fact or fiction, narrative writing tries to relay a series of events in an emotionally engaging way. You want your audience to be moved by your story, which could mean through laughter, sympathy, fear, anger, and so on. The more clearly you tell your story, the more emotionally engaged your audience is likely to be.
Major narrative events are most often conveyed in chronological order, the order in which events unfold from first to last. Stories typically have a beginning, a middle, and an end, and these events are usually organized by time. Certain transitional words and phrases aid in keeping the reader oriented in the sequencing of a story. Some of these phrases are listed here:
after/afterward
as soon as
at last
before
currently
during
eventually
meanwhile
next
now
since
soon
finally
later
still
then
until
when/whenever
while
first, second, third
Other basic components of a narrative are:
Plot - The events as they unfold in sequence.
Characters - The people who inhabit the story and move it forward. Typically, there are minor characters and main characters. The minor characters generally play supporting roles to the main character, or the protagonist.
Conflict - The primary problem or obstacle that unfolds in the plot that the protagonist must solve or overcome by the end of the narrative. The way in which the protagonist resolves the conflict of the plot results in the theme of the narrative.
Theme - The ultimate message the narrative is trying to express; it can be either explicit or implicit.
When writing a narrative essay, start by asking yourself if you want to write a factual or fictional story. Then freewrite, brainstorm, or mindmap about topics that are of interest to you.
Once you have a general idea of what you will be writing about, you should sketch out the major events of the story that will compose your plot. Typically, these events will be revealed chronologically and climax at a central conflict that must be resolved by the end of the story. The use of strong details is crucial as you describe the events and characters in your narrative. You want the reader to emotionally engage with the world that you create in writing.
To create strong details, keep the human senses in mind. You want your reader to be immersed in the world that you create, so focus on details related to sight, sound, smell, taste, and touch as you describe people, places, and events in your narrative.
As always, it is important to start with a strong introduction to hook your reader into wanting to read more. Try opening the essay with an event that is interesting to introduce the story and get it going. Finally, your conclusion should help resolve the central conflict of the story and impress upon your reader the ultimate theme of the piece.
Narration is the art of storytelling.
Narratives can be either factual or fictional. In either case, narratives should emotionally engage the reader.
Most narratives are composed of major events sequenced in chronological order.
Time transition words and phrases are used to orient the reader in the sequence of a narrative.
The four basic components to all narratives are plot, character, conflict, and theme.
The use of sensory details is crucial to emotionally engaging the reader.
A strong introduction is important to hook the reader. A strong conclusion should add resolution to the conflict and evoke the narrative’s theme.
Now that you have a clearer idea of how how to write a narrative essay, please take the quiz Narrative Essay. Details are in the "Activities" section below.
Before you start writing your own narrative essay, we will read some narrative essays so that we can get more familiar with this type of writing. This will give you a clearer idea of what your narrative essay could be like and make it easier for you to get started writing your own essay.
The essays I would like you to read are “My College Education” and “Only Daughter.”
After completing the reading, please do the Narration Reading Reaction activity. Details are in the "Activities" section below and in Forums > Narration > Reading Reaction.
Now that we have read about narrative writing and read some narrative essays, it’s time to start writing a narrative essay. The first step is selecting a topic.
This is the essay prompt for the Narrative Essay:
Write an essay about one specific experience that changed how you acted, thought, or felt. Use your experience as a springboard for reflection. Your purpose is not to merely tell an interesting story but to show your readers the importance of the experience and its influence on you.
When you select your topic, please be sure to select an experience that you are comfortable sharing with your classmates. You will also want to be sure to select an experience that is appropriate for college writing. If you are unsure, please check with the instructor ahead of time.
Here are some topic suggestions to get you started thinking about your own topic:
A significant trip with your family
A wedding or a funeral
A storm, a hurricane, an earthquake, or other natural event
A school event
The most important minutes of a sporting event
A time you confronted authority
A time you had to deliver bad news
Your biggest social blunder
Your first day of school
The first performance you gave
For this essay, we will need to draw on our knowledge of the writing process to get started. Choose your preferred prewriting strategy to find and develop a topic. One way, for example, is to make a list. If you choose to do this, use one of the general topics above and make a specific list under it. For example, if you chose “A school event,” you could list below it what the event was, who was involved, what happened, and so on. You may want to choose several prospective topics and see which you have more to write about.
When you have completed prewriting, review your possible topics. About which of these do you care most? For which would you be able to create a sequence of events? And, which will allow you to you most clearly communicate the importance of the experience as well as its influence on you?
Choose that subject as the topic of your essay.
After completing the topic exercise, please do the Narration Topic activity. Details are in the "Activities" section below and in Forums > Narration > Topic.
These are the activities that you need to complete this week. All activities are due by 11:55 p.m. on their due dates.
Narrative Essay Quiz. Read "What is Narrative Writing" and then take the quiz that covers that material.
Due by xx/xx.
Points: 15
Narrative Reading Reaction Activity. After reading, "My College Experience" and "Only Daughter," post a forum message in which you write a 250-word reaction (minimum) about your reading experience that focuses on the following questions: What did both of these essays teach you about narrative writing? Were the essays good examples? Which did you think was the best example? Why? Which essay did you like the best? Why? Use quotations from the essays to back up your thoughts.
Initial post due by xx/xx.
Two replies due by xx/xx.
Points: 20
Narrative Essay Topic Activity. Write a 2-3 sentence explanation of the topic you chose for your narrative essay. What experience did you choose as your topic? Why did you choose it?
Initial post due by xx/xx.
Two replies due by xx/xx.
Points: 10