6 Tricks to Student Narrative Writing Success

Trick #1 - The Wow! Line (Brainstorming) Middle Beginning End *The is the Wow! moment*

From your Wow! moment, press rewind in your brain. Go all the way back to the beginning of the story. You want to begin just before the major happenings in your story occur. Remember to grab your reader’s attention with a good lead.

Finally, fast forward to the end section of your story and jot down what happened after the Wow! moment.

Trick # 2 – The Lead YOU MUST CATCH YOUR READER’S ATTENTION!!!!!!!!!!! The LEAD DOES NOT: tell what happens at the Wow! moment mention the subject or topic start with “One day,” “One night,” “Hi, my name is Tiffany,” or “Have you ever…?”

Your lead should fit into one of three categories: 1. Dialogue (someone speaking) Ex: “Come downstairs, Derrick,” yelled mom. Immediately the reader will wonder who Derrick is and why his mom is yelling at him. He/she will have to keep reading to find out the answers to those questions.

Your lead should fit into one of three categories: 2. Small movement Ex: Allison kicked the can into the stream. Immediately the reader will wonder who Allison is, why she is kicking a can into a stream, where Allison is, etc.

Your lead should fit into one of three categories: 3. What someone thinks or feels Ex: “I don’t want to do this,” Jamie thought. Immediately the reader will wonder what it is Jamie doesn’t want to do. Ex: Beads of sweat formed on my forehead. Immediately the reader will wonder what’s wrong.

Now Write Your Rough Draft Write quickly without worrying about mistakes or specific details Use pencil Use complete sentences No Erasing! Mark out what you want to change

Trick # 3 – Revising A Go back and add specific detail and dialogue to the Wow! moment to make it more interesting Ex: Before – As Maria slammed the door behind her, she saw a flash of green shoot towards the clouds. After – As Maria slammed the door behind her, she heard the flutter of wings and saw a flash of green shoot towards the clouds.

Trick # 4 – Revising B Go back and add unusual details at the 1st mention of the main character or subject in the beginning Ex: Before – Mickey was a parakeet. He was pretty. We had a lot of fun together. After – Mickey was a fist-sized parakeet. He had a green chest, yellow head and black and white wings. I trained him to say 35 expressions. We had a lot of fun together, like when he used to sit on the edge of my cereal bowl and throw rice crispies across the table.

Trick # 5 – Revising C Substitute regular, every day words with special words that will make your writing SPARKLE!! This is where your Thesaurus comes in handy.

Trick # 6 – The Conclusion NO MORE “THE END” Your ending should be a thought, a feeling, or a lesson learned about the main topic. Ex: Before – “After Chris moved away, I went home and watched TV.” After – “After Chris moved away, I went home and watched TV, but it felt lonely without my best friend watching with me. I hope we get to see each other again real soon.”

Titles You should name your story at the end. Never tell, only hint at what is to come – do not spoil the Wow! moment Ex: Our Family Camping Trip (BOO!!!!) Mountains and Mosquitoes is a better choice because it makes the reader wonder what the story will be about

Proofreading During proofreading, you should correct things like spelling, punctuation, and grammar. Proofread in a low voice so your ears can hear mistakes. Point to each word with your pencil as you say the word. Proofread in slow motion.

Publishing Copy it over neatly Input to your computer Make a book Add drawings