1. NARRATIVE WRITING

2. NARRATIVE WRITING
What you write says something about you! Colleges regard your choices as a way to evaluate your preferences, values, mental processes, creativity, sense of humor, and depth of knowledge. Your writing reflects your power of persuasion, organizational abilities, style, and mastery of standard written English.
Be careful with your topic selection. It signals your:
Preferences
Values
Thought Process

3. NARRATIVE WRITING
A narrative involves the recreation of an incident or event - real or imagined - in order to make a point.
PART I: RECREATION OF EVENT/TOPIC:
The narrator wants the reader to relive and share the event. Show what happened, don’t just tell us.
To do that, a writer should include: what people did, said, people’s thoughts/emotions, a sense of mood, characterization, etc.

4. NARRATIVE WRITING
A narrative involves the recreation of an incident or event - real or imagined - in order to make a point.
PART II: MAKE A POINT -
This parts answers the “so what?” question. Why would you spend all of this time telling a story? This is the part where you emphasize that there is a point to the story. It might be a lesson, a moral, insight or a turning point in a writer’s life. Somehow explain why this was a meaningful event.

5. NARRATIVE WRITING CHARACTERISTICS
A single narrator’s voice & point of view
Setting – describe where and when in detail
Plot Structure - A single event or series of events is recreated in chronological order (introduction & conflict, main events, resolution)
DETAILS, DETAILS = STYLE POINTS! Details of setting, action, speech, thoughts, and emotions that make up the event. Characterization of main characters to show us personalities, emotions, looks, etc. Using dialogue is a creative way to help achieve that. You can also evoke imagery by appealing to the senses.
Theme/Message – the “so what?” for the reader to understand why you are telling this story.

6. NARRATIVE PROMPT
OPTION 1: True Life – Evaluate a significant experience, achievement, risk you have taken, or ethical dilemma you have faced AND its impact on you and how it has affected your life.
OPTION 2: The Role Model – Indicate a person who has had a significant influence on you, AND describe that influence and how it is affected your life.
OPTION 3: The Good and the Bad - Think about an event in your life that seemed bad, but turned out to be good. Tell the story of the event that you experienced AND how an event that seemed negative turned out to have valuable consequence.  

7. SCORING GUIDE

8. NARRATIVE BRAINSTORM Setting (when/where) Characters/People Involved
Plot
beginning, middle, end
Theme (“So What?” Point)

9. NARRATIVE ESSAY DIALOGUE RULES: DIALOGUE RULES
Attention Grabber must be dialogue.
Use a comma to separate quote and who’s speaking.
Start a new paragraph EVERY TIME someone new is talking.
DIALOGUE RULES
Bang, bang! “This is the police! Open your door. Your roommate tried to kill herself,” grunted a deep voice. I don’t remember saying anything, but I remember holding my breath as I looked down at the empty bottom bunk. Colleen, my college roommate, wasn’t there. One of the scariest days of my life was just beginning.

10. NARRATIVE ESSAY DIALOGUE RULES: ESSAY
Attention Grabber must be dialogue.
Use a comma to separate quote and who’s speaking.
Start a new paragraph EVERY TIME someone new is talking.
ESSAY
INTRODUCTION (attention grabber & intro)
BODY OF STORY (details of middle & end)
“SO WHAT?” / THEME

11. DIALOGUE *Put a star (*) where new paragraphs should start.

12. CORRECT DIALOGUE (*NOTICE ALL OF THE PARAGRAPH CHANGES!)
SHOULD LOOK LIKE:

13. NARRATIVE EDITING
Read Ms. McQ’s narrative. Write down at least 7 questions on the essay in places you would like to know more information. You may also make any other comments that you want on the paper.
SAMPLE QUESTIONS:
How did you feel?
How did it look?
What did you say?
Why did you do that?
Add detail on senses?

15. NARRATIVE FINAL DRAFT TYPE FINAL DRAFT 3 paragraphs minimum
Double space, heading at top
3 paragraphs minimum
Intro (dialogue, intro story)
Story itself with details & sense
“So what?” Point - valuable/memorable
You must include:
Dialogue (with correct grammar)
Answer all questions and underline them.
2 details on each sense (sight, touch, smell, sound, taste)