NARRATIVE WRITING
NOTES
The purpose of narrative writing is to:
•Entertain
•To tell a story
•Can be fictional or non-fictional
PERSONAL NARRATIVE
CHECKLIST
Covers a 3-5 minute experience
Must be multi-paragraphed (2+ paragraphs)
All verbs are in the past tense
Uses one of the four introduction types (listed below)
CHECKLIST CONTINUED:
ACTIONS (events) are written in CHRONOLOGICAL
ORDER
TRANSITIONS, especially TIME transitions, are used between
ACTIONS (events)
REACTIONS (emotion/feeling words) are used between actions
(events)
IMAGERY is STRONG (sensory words)
Reader SEES and “FEELS” everything the writer did
Conclusion is strong--wraps up the story with a QUESTION
shows a CHANGE in the writer, ends with a FINAL
THOUGHT, or ends with an INTERESTING ACTION
INTRODUCTION TYPES:
1. COMMON INTRODUCTION:
EX: When I was your age...
EX: When I was on vacation...
EX: When I was on a rollercoaster...
It’s BORING!! Don’t use this intro at all!!!!
INTRO TYPES CONTINUED:
2. ACTION (HERO) INTRODUCTION
example: Hesitating, I held my breath and
jumped off the dock into the frigid water.
INTRO TYPES CONTINUED:
3. “DIALOGUE” INTRODUCTION
example: “Dad! Dad! Watch my cannonball!” I screamed
to my father, who was watching from the cabin’s porch.
***refer to handout in writing binder for
how to punctuate dialogue
INTRO TYPES CONTINUED:
4. IDEA/THEME STATEMENT (DIFFICULT!)
example: I deeply regret the day I took my grandmother’s
generosity for granted.
It’s like a lesson/moral learned.
It’s like a Chicken Soup for the Soul intro.
Sample Intro:
“Wow,” I whispered as I scanned the room for the first time. We had
walked past it many times, even ordered take-out, but we had never ventured
into the Dragonfly. I couldn’t help but notice the blood-red walls with cryptic
characters emblazoned in gold, high-backed chairs without sitters, and a
small, raised dining area. “I thought the place would be bigger,” I said
skeptically as the hostess showed us our table. The restaurant had opened
probably five minutes before the cab dumped us out on State Street.
CONCLUSION TYPES:
PREDICTION: an insight into how the future
could be different, better, or worse.
CONCLUSION TYPES CONTINUED:
POINTED QUESTION: leaves the reader
thinking about your experience
CONCLUSION TYPES CONTINUED:
FULL-CIRCLE ENDING: circles back to the
introduction
CONCLUSION TYPES CONTINUED:
IDEA/THEME STATEMENT: a brief
explanation of lessons learned from your
experience
ALSO: Please do not start your narrative with an
onomatopoetic word as a single sentence.
Ex: BANG! I ran into the wall.
AND…
Please no rollercoaster stories!!
Sample Conclusion:
But that wasn’t the case. After a few frustrating
moments, and telling my brain to stop over-analyzing the
situation, I began to relax and the chopsticks began to feel as
normal as a fork. I enjoyed good conversation and excellent
food. Not only had I been successful taking risks with eating
utensils, but that the Dragonfly chef can make a darn good
radish-sculpture of a fish. The rest of the meal wasn’t that
bad either. Besides, I always look good in what I eat.
