Features of

Narrative Writing

J Munro 2007

Unit Sequence
1. Voice

8. Good Setting Descritions

Develop a Personal Voice when Writin

g

2. Point of View

Point of View First and Third person

3. Structure of a Narrative

Planning your Narrative

Orientation
Complication
Resolustion
Sequence of Events
Short Stories

4. Good Beginnings

5.

Opening Paragraphs
Examples of Story Beginnings
The Opening Sentence
Active Beginnings

Plot Development
Improve your Plot
Plot Development

6. Good Endings
7. Good Character Description

Characterisation
Character Profile
Character Wheel

Planning a Setting
Create a Setting

9. Sentence Structure

Add Phrases
Join Short Sentences
Vary sentence length
Smooth Transitions
Using Conjunctions

10. Appropriate Dialogue

Improve your Dialogue

11. Descriptive Language

Create Similes
Create Metaphors
Personification
Onomatopoeia
Impact
Make every Word Count
Create Word Pictures
Focus on the Facts
Replace Overworked Words
Strong Verbs
Dont Say

Develop a Personal Voice when Writing

VOICE shows your personality when writing. The writing has a sound different
from everyone else's. It has feeling and emotion so that it does not sound boring.
The reader should be able to tell if you are happy or sad. The writer should be
writing from the heart and bring the topic to life for the reader.

Funny

One day my mom took me to the circus.

I LOVE the circus. There are always
some very funny clowns. My favorite
clown there came up to me and told me
he had a secret for me. He got real close
to me and I thought he was going to
whisper in my ear when POW he squirted
me in the face with his water flower. I
never laughed so much. I had a great
time at the circus and will remember it for
the rest of my life.

Serious

It was the day for the big test. I studied

all week and knew I was ready. I was
still a little bit nervous, but knew once I
started I would be fine. The teacher
asked us to get some books out to
read when we were finished so we
wouldn't bother the other kids if we
finished early. The test was a breeze.
When I was done I started to read my
favorite book.

Mysterious Yesterday when I was on my way to

the grocery store I saw a very strange
man. He had on a brown trench coat,
red hat and was carrying a purple
umbrella. I'm sure he was some kind
of investigator. As he began walking I
noticed he was just peeking over the
top of his coat and I could only see his
eyes. He was very sneaky looking.
I'm sure he was watching somebody, I
just wonder who!

Frightening As a baseball let me tell you I have some

pretty frightening experiences. Imagine
being hit by a hard bat. OUCH, I want to
scream every time someone hits me.
Then for the flight through the air. You
can't believe how scary that is. I am
always asking myself three questions.
Will someone catch me? Will I fly over
the fence and land with a hard thud? Or
will I just go bouncing across the field?
The next time you are frightened, stop a
minute and think about how I feel. That
is the true meaning of frightened!

Look at the picture below and reading the short paragraph.

Choose the voice that you think is being used in each paragraph.
Remember when writing with voice it can be:
Funny, Serious, Mysterious, Frightening
Have you ever seen two Martians
in a play before? Well you should
have been at the same show as I
was. I never laughed so hard in my
life. These two green creatures
were trying to back to their land
safely, but came across many
strange people. They never saw
humans before. They kept trying to
act like us. Well, that is where the
fun begins. You should go see the
Martian's On Earth if you get a
chance. It is your chance to sit
back and laugh!

Halloween night was finally here. I

was very excited to trick or treating
with my friends. There is always
one house that everyone is afraid
to go to and this year we decided
we would go. We slowly crept up
the steps and tap lightly at the door
hoping nobody would hear us and
we could get out of there quickly.
Before we could turn around there
she was. There were bats flying
around her head, a frog in one
hand, a broom in the other hand
and a black cat next to her leg.
Before she could speak my friends
and I let out a scream and ran all
the way home. That is one house
we will NEVER go to again.

The first day of school is

always a tough one. You are
always waiting to see who is
in your class, what your
teacher will be like and how
your day will run. Usually
everyone is very quiet trying
to set a good example. We
all get out our books, sit in
our seats nice and tall and do
everything the teacher says
with very little noise.
I bet this is the teachers
favorite day of the year!

I will never forget my 5th

birthday. My mom
surprised me with a
clown to entertain my
friends and I. This clown
was very funny and had
many tricks up his
sleeve. When his show
was over he made
everyone at my party a
balloon animal. This was
a great day for me!

Exercise:
You and your friends were playing a ball game outside on the top quad. You
know that you are not allowed to kick balls on the quad. When the ball was
passed to you, you kicked it back. The ball didnt go where you wanted it and
you broke Mrs. Jones office window.

Describe what happened to Mrs Jones, using a serouis

voice, and then in a funny voice described to your
friends what happened.

Point of View
When a writer begins a new story he must decide:"Who will tell my story?"
An author can tell a story from the first-person point of view.
OR
The author can use the third-person point of view

First-person Point of View

Third-person Point of View

A character in the story is the

narrator. This character is telling
the story. The narrator uses the
pronouns I, me and
we.
In first-person point of view,
readers learn about events as the
narrator learns about them.

The story is being told by an

outside observer - someone who is
not in the story. The author uses
the pronouns he, she, and they.
In third-person point of view, the
author can tell about the thoughts,
actions, and feelings of the other
characters.

First - Person Point of View

I walked home from school today with my friends.
We stopped for ice cream. I had vanilla. It's my
favorite. When I got up this morning I brushed
my teeth. Then I got dressed and ate my
breakfast.
Third - Person Point of View
Ted plays on a baseball team. He loves to play
with his team. He has a game next week. His
coach thinks he's a good baseball player.
The princess was locked in the tower. She had no
way to escape. She hoped that a prince would
rescue her. Her wish came true. He came and
took her to his castle.

Read each group of sentences.

Decide if it is written in first person or third person point of view.
The hunter had a cottage in the woods. He lived there all alone.

I ride the bus to each every day. I like to sit with my friends.

My friends and I went camping. I toasted marshmallows over the fire.

Joey likes to go swimming. Sometimes he asks his friend Sam to go with him.
He brings his ball to play with.

Frosty the snowman had a hat on his head. He also had a pipe and a carrot
nose. He held a shovel in his hand.

Point of View
The role of the narrator is vital as her or his bias can affect the way the story
develops.

Retell Little Red Riding Hood from two of these points of view:

grandma

Red Riding Hoods mother

the wolf

the wood cutter

Use the first person I when you write your two or three paragraphs.

Narrative Writing
In a good narrative, the reader relates closely to the story,
feels involved with the plot and often identifies with the
characters. A good story is hard to put down and the reader
feels a sense of loss when it ends. The features of a
narrative are:
the plot

this is what happens

characters

the people or animals in the story

the setting

where the narrative takes place

theme

the aurthors message