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The Narrative
Guidelines
Narrative Writing
A narrative essay:
--Is based on personal experience
--Tells a story
--Reveals an insight about the action or people involved
The Epiphany
A narrative essay shows an insight the writer gained from his / her experience (called an “epiphany”).
• A turning point in your life--perhaps a time when you were forced suddenly to grow up, a time when you faced a difficult challenge, or a time when you reassessed your values.
Common narrative essay topics include:
• Being exposed to a culture different from your own
• Immigration / Emigration
The Narrative Essay Format
The narrative essay moves the reader towards some insight into the experience.
Such essays have a basic, three-part organizational framework:
Beginning Middle Ending
Patterns of OrganizationOrganizational Pattern 1
Retell the first stage of the experience Beginning
Continue describingthe experience
Middle
Discuss the epiphany(the meaning of the experience)
Ending
Patterns of OrganizationOrganizational Pattern 2
Provide background informationand a focal point or insight / epiphany Beginning
Describe in detail the experience(s)that led to the insight / epiphany Middle
Reflect on the experience, for example, by discussing its deeper
meaning, implication, or irony.
Ending
Patterns of OrganizationOrganizational Pattern 3
Provide background informationand a question about your topic. Beginning
Describe in detail the experience(s)that lead to an answer to the question
you raised in the beginning.Middle
Answer the question you raised in the beginning, or explain why the
question cannot be answered.Ending
How to Start: Prewriting Strategies
Free writing: To write without stopping to worry about spelling, grammar, or structure. Try to write consistently for at least five minutes.
Listing / Brainstorming: To list words / phrases quickly.
Clustering: To create a visual map of ideas (shows how ideas connect to one another)
Prewriting Strategies (ctd.)Listing / Brainstorming: To list words / phrases quickly.
An Unforgettable Experience:
The 1989 Loma Prieta earthquake
7.1 on the richter scale
Violent and scary
I was twelve years old
I was in the garage
Everything crashed to the floor
My pet dog hid under the bed
Lasted 30 seconds
Sounded like a train crashing through the house
Prewriting Strategies (ctd.)
An Unforgettable Experience:
I rmbr the 1989 Loma Prieta earthquake as an unforgettable experience.I was 12 yrs old at the time and was in my parents garage….The house, well it startedshaking violently. At first I didn’t really know what was going on….it felt like a train was running through the house at top speed. I looked outside and could see trees swaying so violently that they were hitting the ground on either side. This vase my mom owned, well, it feel on off of the top of the piano where she kept it, rolled off the keys, and fell onto the floor, perfectly upright. I was really surprised that it didn’t break because it was an antique and very breakable. I rmbr that image the most for some reason, of the vase. So anyway, afterwards (it lasted like 30 seconds), we couldn’t find my pet dog for a long time, and i was scared that she had somehowescaped and run away. We found her underneath my bed, scared and shaking. Wehad about 3 big after schocks that nite--at least 5.0 .
Free writing:To write without stopping to worry about spelling, grammar, or structure. Try to write consistently for at least five minutes.
Prewriting Strategies (ctd.)
An Unforgettable Experience:
Clustering: To create a visual map of ideas (shows how ideas connect to one another)
The Loma Prieta Earthquake
Violent andScary Very loud
7.1 on richter scale
Lasted 30 seconds
Visual Details
Mom’s vase
The trees outside
Aftermath
Many big aftershocks
Couldn’t find my pet dog
Main Idea (Thesis)
Point 1Point 2
Point 3
Writing the Essay: Tips
Use the prewriting strategies to draft your essay
Try various patterns of organization until you find one you like
Don’t worry too much about grammar or spelling in your first draft: work primarily on content and organization
Proofread and edit for grammar / spelling in your second draft
Talk to Katie when you need help!