Creating A Narrative In 6 Easy Steps

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Updated on: Educator Review By: Michelle Connolly

A narrative is a form of storytelling. Most people use the word about a fictional story, but a narrative can be any form of storytelling. For example, a historical event can be told as a narrative. Essentially, any event suggested or retold in chronological order can be considered a narrative.

A narrative can be any form of storytelling. Histories can be written, spoken, theatrical or visual. It can also be presented as an illustration, dance, music performance, or poetry. Most forms of media are based on narratives. The news, social media platforms and even advertisements tell stories to gain and keep the audience’s attention.

Any form of communication is based on reports because humans desire to understand and interpret the world around them. A narrative comprises a plot, characters, setting, and mood. The main character – the protagonist – is the story’s main focus, with their actions driving the property towards a specific end goal.

Though not necessarily a negative feeling, the antagonist opposes the protagonist and creates obstacles to their destinations. Other characters include sidekicks and minor characters who can help or hinder either protagonist or antagonist.

The setting describes where these characters interact with each other. Everything in a narrative is controlled by the author’s attitude towards the audience; this is known as authorial presence. The elements of a narrative are sometimes borrowed from non-fiction sources.

Narrative structure defines the elements in a story and the order in which they are presented. Every media piece must follow a logical design to appeal to its audience and have meaning. The hero’s journey is one of many structures that most narratives follow; this is a standard plot structure where the protagonist goes through an initial stage before reaching the climax.

Other facilities include flashback, flashforward, frame story, nonlinear narrative and time travel. Every narrative has multiple points of view or perspectives.

These include first person point of view, where the narrator shares their thoughts with the reader; second person point of view, where the narrator addresses the reader directly as “you”; and third person point of view, where the narrator refers to characters as “he,” “she” or “they.”

This help gives depth to characters and keeps readers interested by showing both sides of a situation. Narratives comprise almost every form of expression- from literature to social media to advertisements and political speeches. A report can be anything from factual to fictional and short to long-form work. Learning Mole will explain how narratives are structured to help you create your own!

1) Begin With The Conflict

Describe the event that led up to this point. This scene sets the stage for the rest of your story. It should take place somewhat early in the narrative, like the first scene of a short story or the first few chapters of a novel. Ensure that your inciting incident serves to set the stage for the conflict.

Identify a central conflict. It would help if you immediately introduced the battle in your story so your audience can feel the mounting tension as they read. You’ll build up to the climax of this conflict throughout the narrative, where it will reach its highest point. Your story’s conflict ought to be resolved when it concludes.

2) Characters Have A Well-defined Objective

Different people, groups, forces, or anything wanting other things can give rise to conflict; alternatively, the same person can experience conflict when they are torn between competing desires. But if you don’t know what your characters want, it’ll be difficult to coax even the slightest bit of conflict out of them, let alone a good story.

Establishing a story goal for each of your characters, be it something they are looking for, something they want, something they are pursuing, or something else entirely, is essential to your narrative’s success. The plot will almost write itself if you get these objectives right and set them up in opposition. I want to emphasise that I am not referring to some lofty theory here.

Getting an answer to this question can be as easy as asking yourself, “What does my character want?” A new job to prevent the destruction of the world and the demolition of his foes? The decision rests entirely with you.

Developing A Compelling Main Character

Students present the primary dramatic conflict that will serve as the impetus for the rest of the story during the Rising Action stage. The protagonist must contend with many challenges that heighten the level of tension and suspense as the story draws closer to its climax.

Please take note that character development is not something that only applies to fictional characters! You need to have a well-rounded character if you’re writing a memoir or personal narrative (in which you play the role of a perspective character) or even if you’re writing some other kind of non-fiction. 

The characters end up winning the hearts of the readers. Oh, and there’s one more essential fact you should be aware of concerning the primary personalities of the narrative you’re reading. That is to say, they undergo some kind of transformation continuously. 

Someone fragile and terrified of everything is a good starting point for a character. After that, they will finally be able to conquer their deepest anxieties and mature into a brave man. Your narrative just became a lot more intriguing as a result!

3) Describe The Various Characters

Introduce the character in conjunction with another and proceed to describe them by highlighting their differences. This is an excellent way to bring in their descriptions of their physical appearance. As an illustration, you might say, “unlike my short and delicate sister, I was quite tall and had broad shoulders.” Never in my life had anyone referred to me in such a manner as being dainty.

In conclusion, you might decide to bring new characters into the story gradually as the plot develops. This can be accomplished by progressively revealing information about each character or having them enter and exit at various points in the story.

Both of these strategies are viable options. You will have complete control over the pace at which the character is introduced to the reader, giving you the ability to pique their interest or excitement.

One option is to provide a separate introduction for each character.

This can be accomplished through the use of brief flashbacks or the interaction of the characters with one another in the present. Readers will have the opportunity to become acquainted with each character before being presented with the others in the cast.

Developing Natural Conversation

But how can you ensure that your characters say what they are supposed to say in a way that the audience will believe them? An awkward dialogue exchange or one that seems implausible is the most effective way to ruin a moment like this. 

Do not be concerned if you find that you are having difficulty with this. Pamela M. Tuck, author of “As Fast as Words Can Fly,” and Glenda Armand, author of “Love Twelve 12 Miles Long,” were both winners of the New Voice Award in the past.

Written conversations do not have the same feel as speeches, although they appear realistic when read. The organisation enables the reader to understand the characters, and the characters advance the story by presenting pertinent arguments, discussions, confessions, and dialogue.

They also provide the reader with more information than they had previously. Not just the actual sentences being spoken by the characters but also individual words, thoughts that are left unfinished, pauses, filler words, and noise. 

Additionally, it is not necessary to speak aloud to have a real conversation. The internal monologue, or the character’s thoughts, is also very significant. Always show your readers how people are feeling and what is going on instead of telling them awkwardly how people are feeling and what is going on.

4) Provide A Setting

The last thing you want is a character who is so disconnected from their environment that the plot of their story could take place in any location. It would help if you had them engage with the environment, particularly in believable ways. This is a prerequisite. Use the setting to assist them, challenge them, or both for maximum impact.

The context of a story is the context of a scene or an element of a story that describes the events in which the story takes place, including the time, business, and context. This may also be referred to as the context of the story. 

The plot’s atmosphere, the progression of the action, and the growth of the characters are all influenced to some degree by the story’s setting. The action of the story takes place within the scene. It could be a reference to a particular time or place or a description of a specific circumstance, such as a stormy night. 

The pigsty is the setting for the scene in “The Three Little Pigs” (when they build them when the wolf comes to visit them). This location is where the events of the story take place. Make a location into a character in your story. 

Do not limit yourself to describing the size and colour of the house. Inject some character into it. Is it old-fashioned and musty, preventing sunlight from entering, or is it airy, charming, and refined? To make the location truly charming and give it a personality, you should also provide it with something unique.

5) Work On The Storyline

Make a plan for your story’s progression. You will better understand what to write next by making a plot outline. In addition to this, it assists you in closing any gaps in the plot before you start writing. When planning your story, you can use the brainstorming exercise and the character sheets you created. The following are some ways you can create your outline:

If you want to write a novel, you might be tempted to apply the standard novel-writing strategies to your story, such as meticulously plotting each event, creating detailed character profiles, and, of course, painstakingly mapping it onto a popular story framework consisting of a beginning, middle, and end.

However, it would help if you resisted this temptation. But to write a good story, all you need is a well-developed main character and, at most, one or two significant events. The best way to come up with ideas for storylines and feelings is to brainstorm.

Before turning your ideas into a full-fledged tale, you must first write down what you have in mind. You could try listing your thoughts or freewriting everything that comes to mind. Don’t worry about being coherent at any point. Simply make an effort to unearth potential concepts for your narrative.

6) Resolution

The resolution takes up the entirety of the final chapter of your book. All right, folks, this is it! When this is over, there will be nothing else! The resolution begins immediately after the climax and continues until the last page. There is no set length for keys; however, they are recommended to be as brief as possible.

Since your tale has already come to a close in all but name, you do not want to put your audience through an unnecessary ordeal by wasting their time or preventing them from getting the full impact of the narrative by neatly wrapping up all the loose ends.

Your resolution’s length will be determined by a few factors, the most important of which is the number of unresolved questions or issues. In an ideal scenario, you will have used the scenes that led up to your climax to wrap up as many loose ends as possible.

This will allow the resolution to focus on taking care of only the most critical aspects of the story. The answer reminds me of something sweet at the end of the meal. The best desserts are as sugary and decadent as they can be, beautifully presented, and served in portions so small that the diner is left wanting more in the future but is completely content in the here and now.

In conclusion, the primary conflict in your narrative must be resolved in some fashion, despite your decision to write. It would help if you had a clear understanding of how the conflict will be resolved, regardless of whether the solution is a good one or one with dire consequences. 

An additional perk, if you will, of a well-done ending is that it almost always has a memorable last line. When it comes time to write the conclusion of your story, you should practise writing the final few lines first, then select the one that you feel most effectively concludes the narrative.

Because I just went over the conclusion with you guys above, I won’t bother going over it again here. The secret to writing a satisfying conclusion is to ensure that your readers won’t feel let down once the last page has been turned. 

Be careful not to rush the ending and miss important details about why this particular scene will be the last one. For instance, if the story comes to a happy conclusion, explain to the audience how and why the main character has changed from the beginning of the tale to where they are now regarding their emotional state.

Your conclusion doesn’t have to be very drawn out at all. Your narrative can come to an end in a variety of ways. The turning point of your narrative is a domino effect caused by a single action leading to a single consequence (the protagonist becomes the hero, gets a job, and replaces the villain). 

However, it is also the beginning of a larger, more organised pattern of domino falls that was started by earlier occurrences in human history. Over the past two weeks, I have been following the Olympics, and what has fascinated me the most is not who won the race but rather the stories of the athletes’ individual journeys. 

The game will be remembered for a lifetime due to hearing and seeing their hardships and sacrifices, the ups and downs, the injuries they overcame, and the personal happiness or heartbreak they experienced throughout the game. 

The same can be said about novels. You are deserving of a quality book. This is why David Safford writes exciting stories that he knows readers won’t be able to put down. Visit his website to read the most recent of his stories. 

David is a teacher of language arts, a novelist, a blogger, a wanderer, a Zelda fanatic, and a puzzle artist. In addition, he is married and the father of two wonderful children. It is essential for your story to have a definitive conclusion, but there are also other ways to wrap things up.

As we’ve seen, there are a lot of different ways a story can come to an end! Consider the story that came before it and give it the ending it needs; do not give it the finish you think the reader wants because that will not make anyone happy.

If you do this, you can conclude your novel in a way that will please everyone. It’s fascinating if you find a satisfying conclusion that ends the narrative clearly and logically completes your protagonist’s arc; that’s what you bring to history.

Meaning Long after the film itself is over, it comes to the fore—and then it clings to the audience—and continues to inspire, move, and inspire them. In other words, it has a lasting impact on the audience. 

Suppose you don’t give your story the best possible ending. In that case, you’re cheating your audience and yourself out of a good experience. If this is the case, then the conclusion of your professional life will be very satisfying.

The ending you have planned doesn’t necessarily have to be happy. Still, it should leave the reader feeling that they’ve accomplished something. At least all the stories have been told, and there is nothing else to discuss. 

That entails finding a way to bring together the well-crafted subplots, answering any dramatic questions the story posed at the beginning, and ensuring that all of the mysteries left unsolved are resolved. Satisfyingly ending your story.

Some stories conclude satisfyingly, answering all the questions raised, tying up all loose ends, and making the audience happy. Take, for instance, the experience of having a delectable meal followed by a dessert with just the right amount of food. 

A resolved ending does not leave any room for a sequel, but it does bring the story to an end. My go-to choice for a conclusion leaves the reader questioning what comes next. Bringing the story to a clear conclusion is a nice touch.

The novel “One Hundred Years of Solitude” by Gabriel Garcia Márquez is an excellent illustration of a conclusive ending. In the novel that earned him the Nobel Prize in Literature, Garcia Márquez weaves together the origins of the Buendia family and the town in which they live with the tale of the town’s demise. 

In A Nutshell;

  • Create a writing routine for yourself.
  • They can begin writing once they have collected all of these ideas. 
  • You can begin with a draft and then make a clean and polished version. 

Let them use their imagination and creativity in the presentation, and make sure to show how much you appreciate the final product by keeping reading to do it again and other books in your house. They may want to write in short chapters, use illustrations, or create their own book.

Although it may appear to be an obvious step, sometimes the most challenging aspect of writing is actually sitting down and writing. You, like the majority of writers, probably go through phases in which you make up stories in your head.

During these phases, you select words and attempt to develop a plot line in your head, but you don’t actually write it down on paper. You might actually have it in the chair in front of your computer. Still, before you begin typing, you decide that you should find the ideal font for your narrative.

Two hours later, you’ll be listed in Microsoft Word with the realisation that you don’t have all of it, the actual text on the document with the best available font. They found the early drafting and revision stages to be the most beneficial parts of the process.

In jumbled consecutive sentences, I crossed out everything I could think of during the early drafting stage. During the revision stage, I crossed out things, rearranged them, and put them in my Take a lot of notes while writing. 

Observing the process is one of the most effective ways, in my experience, to help students comprehend the steps involved in writing. So let them observe the wonders of the world to tell its stories: The world is full of wonders!

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