Features Of Narrative Writing d3m5j

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 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 Don’t 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 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. 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 ed to you, you kicked it back. The ball didn’t 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 Hood’s 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