Writing Hands-on

Narrative writing Narrative writing ( 敘述寫作 ) tells a story, gives a picture of an event or experience, or makes a point by telling what has happened in a situation. Supporting details should be presented and arranged in a specific order so that readers will have a better understanding of the information. The following are some effective tips on how to write a good narrative paragraph:

1. Brainstorm Write down as many ideas related to this topic as you can. Cross out any irrelevant ideas, and group the relevant ones together. 2. Write a Rough Outline Think of a topic sentence that best describes the idea you want to express in the paragraph, and then organize the supporting ideas in the order that they occurred. The following are some useful transitional words or phrases to connect the details: first, second, then, next, later, after, before, when, while, meanwhile, finally, eventually, at first, in the meantime, at the moment, in turn, in the long run, in the end,...

Exmaples: 1. Brainstorm Write down as many ideas related to this topic as you can. Cross out any irrelevant ideas, and group the relevant ones together. topic: Watching a Horror Movie

1. watch a horror film late at night one time 2. dead people came alive and turned into zombies 3. a zombie appeared with cold eyes and a pale face 4. frightened by the bloody scenes 1. ① watched a horror film late at night one time 2. ① dead people came alive and turned into zombies 4. ① frightened by the bloody scenes

5. turned the volume down 6. turned off the TV 7. headed back to my room 8. was scared to death and nearly passed out 9. the darkness in the room made the atmosphere creepier 6. ② turned off the TV 7. ② headed back to my room 8. ③ was scared to death and nearly passed out 9. ① the darkness in the room made the atmosphere creepier

10. heard footsteps behind me and a voice whispering my name 11. my heart pounded wildly 12. the ghost-like figure was my mom 10. ③ heard footsteps behind me and a voice whispering my name 11. ③ my heart pounded wildly 12. ③ the ghost-like figure was my mom

2. Write a Rough Outline The Topic Sentence Last Friday night, I watched a horror movie alone in the living room. The Topic Sentence ① scared by the bloody scenes ② decided to stop watching ③ frightened by a ghost-like figure and then discovered who this really was

3. Write a Paragraph *the topic sentence (1) *the supporting sentences (2-12) 1 Last Friday night, I watched a horror movie alone in the living room. 2 At first, I thought there was nothing to be scared of, so I turned off the light and lay down on the sofa to watch the film by myself.

3 However, right after the movie started, I found out that I had been wrong—there was plenty to be scared of. 4 I was really horrified when those dead people turned into zombies and came back to life. 5 As flesh and blood splattered everywhere on the TV screen, the darkness in the room made the atmosphere there even creepier.

6 Finally, I stopped there and turned off the TV. 7 Just before I was going to head back to my room, I heard footsteps behind me and a voice whispering my name. 8 I tried to tell myself that it was only my imagination, but the voice rose up over and over again.

9 My heart pounded wildly, and I was very afraid. 10 It was not my imagination! 11 There really was someone behind the sofa! 12 At the moment that I was just about to pass out, that “someone” turned the light on.

*the concluding sentence (13) 13 To my great relief, it was my mom, saying that she had heard some noise in the living room.

Exercise: Now it’s your turn to start to brainstorm, and then prepare a rough outline for this topic: A Bad Day in My Life. Write down all of your ideas, develop them into complete sentences, and then organize them into a paragraph. Finally, bring the paragraph to an end with a good concluding sentence.

topic: A Bad Day in My Life 1. Brainstorm 1.slept late on a school day 2.fell down because the sidewalk was too slippery 3.go wet because I didn’t have an umbrella with me 1.  slept late on a school day 2.  fell down because the sidewalk was too slippery 3.  got wet because I didn’t have an umbrella with me

4.my glasses were broken 5.dirty water and mud splashed all over me 6.my classmates laughed at me 4.  my glasses were broken 5.  dirty water and mud splashed all over me 6.  my classmates laughed at me

2. Write a Rough Outline The Topic Sentence I had a very bad day yesterday. The Supporting Ideas  Overslept and missed the bus  Slipped on the side walk and got all wet  Was teased by my classmates

___________________________________ ___________________________________ ___________________________________ ___________________________________ ___________________________________ ___________________________________ ___________________________________ ___________________________________ ___________________________________ ___________________________________ 3. Write a Paragraph I had a very bad day yesterday. To begin with, I overslept and missed my usual bus. Then, as I rushed out of the door, it started to rain. I didn’t want to waste any more time heading back home to get an umbrella, so I simply put my schoolbag under my jacket, hoping that it wouldn’t get too wet. Suddenly, I slipped and fell on the slippery sidewalk. My glasses flew off, and everyone looked at me. I was very embarrassed. But my bad day didn’t end there.

___________________________________ ___________________________________ ___________________________________ ___________________________________ ___________________________________ ___________________________________ ___________________________________ ___________________________________ ___________________________________ ___________________________________ As I was looking down and trying to find my glasses, a car drove through a puddle of water and splashed me all over. It was very hard for me to see anything with the water and mud all over my face. I finally found my glasses, but then I discovered that my glasses were broken. Wet and dirty from head to toe, I finally arrived at school. When my classmates saw me, they all broke out into laughter. It goes without saying that yesterday really was not my day.