Covering The Key Points Of A Narrative Paragraph

Narratives are stories. They may be true experiences or fictional events. Narratives may teach a lesson or reveal an opinion. Mostly, they are written for the reader or listener's enjoyment, which make them really fun to compose. The narrative is one of the writing styles students explore and compose in the English Composition course. Writing narrative paragraphs can help prepare students for writing extended narrative compositions.

A narrative paragraph should provide the listener (or reader) with enough information to answer the following key questions: "What is the narrative about? Who are the most important people in the narrative? What is the setting of the narrative? What main events structure the narrative? What is the author's purpose for telling the story?" It may seem like much, but this information can make up one paragraph if the writer applies basic narrative writing elements to his or her draft.

A paragraph typically begins with a sentence that includes a topic and a main idea. The topic is the subject and the main idea is the elaboration on the subject. For example, your topic might be the "fear of flying." Overcoming that fear would be the main idea. In a narrative paragraph, this sentence is called the lead sentence. It introduces the narrative and sometimes reveals a tidbit about the main idea, or the sentence may disclose how the writer felt.

Supporting sentences follow the lead sentence. These sentences describe factual and sensory details that answer the questions like who, what, where, when, and why about the topic (subject). Supporting sentences may also include information that describe how things look, sound, smell, feel, etc. Using the fear of flying topic, the writer might explain the way turbulence made he or she feel. Bear in mind, supporting sentences should give details only about the main idea.

If your narrative paragraph include events, it is best to keep details orderly by writing them in the sequence they occurred. Helpful transition clue words like after or finally or time clue phrases like at first and later that day help reader and listeners understand when events took place. Ordering details also keeps the narrative flowing in terms of structure, and it helps the writer remember what needs to be included in the story.

The narrative ends with a concluding sentence. The ending can be written in a few different ways. The conclusion can be connected back to the lead sentence to remind the listener or reader of why the narrative was written. It also can express personal feelings, explaining how the writer felt about his or her experience. Or, it can tell one last event that wraps up the narrative.

Once you understand the specifics of writing a narrative paragraph, you can practice by writing narrative paragraphs about some of your own personal experiences. You can base them on the best things that ever happened to you, or the worst things. Jot down some notes describing your feelings, the setting, the people involved, and the event. Then, write your narrative paragraph!

Being prepared is the most important part of this exercise. Once you become skilled at writing narrative paragraphs, longer narratives, which are typical required in an English Composition class, may be easier for you to develop and write. If you are eager to take the English course, you can register through one of the many online universities.

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