Personal Narrative

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PersonalNarrative

• Writing that is about a persons
• personal experiences
• written by that person

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Elements of a Personal NarrativeYou will
probably use several, but not all of these
elements in your personal metaphor paper.

• Point of View
• Strong Lead
• Character and Setting
• Conflict
• Dialogue and Blocking
• Interior Monologue
• Show Dont Tell
• Strong Conclusion

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Point of View

• Personal narratives are written in first person
  point of view.
• The narrator is a character in the story.
• First person pronouns are used to indicate the
  writer is telling the story from his/her point of
  view.

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Strong Leads

• A strong lead immediately grabs the readers
  attention by being out of the ordinary and
  exceptionally interesting.
• Strong lead ideas
• Short, arresting sentence
• Astonishing or shocking statement or scenario
• Exciting direct quotations
• Flashback
• Inspiring and philosophical ideas
• ANY COMBINATION OF THE ABOVE

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Character and SettingA good narrative develops
character and setting.

• Character Description
• Physical appearance
• Personality traits
• Directly stated
• Shown through actions and words
• Setting Description
• Elaborate description of place
• Imagery - sights, sounds, smells, touch, taste
• Time

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ConflictYour paper will include some, but
perhaps not all aspects of conflict as defined
here.

• The problem around which the narrative revolves
  is called the conflict.
• A good personal narrative cleverly introduces the
  conflict, excitingly develops it, and
  meaningfully resolves the conflict in the end.

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Dialogue and Blocking

• Dialogue is when characters in the narrative
  speak aloud to one another.
• Dialogue should develop characters by giving
  clues about their personalities and feelings.
• There are specific rules for writing dialogue.
• Blocking is words that physically situate or
  describe what the speaker is doing as he/she
  speaks.
• Stop! he shouted while angrily pounding his
  fists on the table.

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Interior Monologue

• Interior monologue tells what the character is
  thinking and feeling inside his/her head.
• It helps the reader discover more information
  about the character.
• It is often written in italics.

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Show Dont Tell

• A good narrative develops the conflict and story
  through the use of vivid, descriptive language.
• He was tall. (telling - how boring!)
  
• His shadow loomed over my head, covering me in
  darkness. (showing - yay! ?)
• Figures of speech such as simile, metaphor,
  personification, and hyperbole are great ways to
  show not tell.

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Strong Conclusion

• A personal narrative ends with a personal
  revelation.
• A revelation is a big ideaan important or
  life-changing realization based on the narrative
  experience.
• This revelation is often stated directly, but can
  be cleverly alluded to.

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Analyzing Personal Narratives

• In the model narratives, find and analysis
  examples of
• Strong Leads
• Character and Setting Development
• Conflict
• Dialogue and Blocking
• Interior Monologue
• Showing Not Telling
• Strong Conclusions
• BE READY TO SHOW AND DISCUSS!