Question
How to write a good narrative essay?
Answer
A narrative essay is essentially telling a story with the intention of making a certain point. In most occasions, the narrator often tells a story that is based on real events, and which also seeks to capture the imagination of the listeners. In essence, the writer, being the narrator, includes their personal experiences within the context of the story’s bigger theme. While it is possible to look at it as just a story, a narrative essay seeks to convey meaning and to insist on the importance of the story under study. Students/writers are hence supposed to tell their stories creatively and ensure that they not only capture the attention of their readers but also leave a lasting impression. Like all other essays, language is an important entity, and writers need to have a good mastery of it to be able to tell their story right. Any writing needs to leave an impact on the readers, and it is only through language that one can express themselves and communicate their message to readers.
Question
How to start narrative essay?
Answer
A narrative essay, like other essays, uses the standard essay format which mainly includes an introduction, a body, and finally a conclusion. The introduction communicates the writer’s focus or perspective to the readers and it is important to delve into it directly. Readers are not supposed to struggle to understand what the writer is trying to communicate but should be gradually ushered in from the introduction. The format of an introduction for a narrative essay is always the same and in a narrative essay, writers introduce their ideas and then through the thesis statement makes their focus and perspective known to their readers. The information provided here could be general, but the thesis statement should clearly outline the writer’s view of the topic. Once readers are through reading the introduction, they should have an idea of what to expect when they start reading the body of the essay. How to start a narrative essay is indeed a challenge but having already developed a skeleton of the story, commencing should not be a problem. Having a draft before beginning the essay is also one of the most important narrative essay tips that can help one develop and write a good essay.
How to start a narrative essay introduction could be hard if a writer has not fully established their stand or have a purpose for their essay. Narrative essay prompts are many, but it is important to make sure that the point or purpose is distinct. Below is an example of how to introduce a narrative essay and while using the thesis statement to make their point.
Example of introduction for a narrative essay
The issue of race has gained traction in the last few years, particularly with the US elections. The whole world was taken through months of vivid pictures of how race continues to be something that works to the detriment of development. Come religions were victimized while some people became victims of their skin color. The nation was indeed divided and continues to be especially when the issue of race is mentioned. The election of President-elect Donald Trump only but worsened the situation and worked to elevate and divide the people even further. Videos began to emerge on the internet of some Trump supporters asking Muslims as well as African Americans, and the Latinos to move back to Africa, Mexico, and the Middle East. I was indirectly affected by the events because some of my Muslim friends were subjected to abuse and one of them was even assaulted. The question I asked myself was, did the election of Donald Trump heighten the racial divide or not? While to some this might be clear, I believe that these issues existed before but only manifested themselves even further because of the voice that Trump gave the people. It is my belief that the issue of race was the same before Trump’s win and only manifested itself because of Trump’s blunt nature.
In the above introduction, readers are first introduced to the issue of race and then taken through it through the election that happened in the US. Readers first get to know the main focus of the essay, which is race, right from the beginning of the essay. However, as the story continues to manifest itself and the point narrows down, readers are made to understand how the writer got to the issue at hand and what prompted him/her to write about race and the connection between it and the just concluded US election. The writer then brings his/her main point to the readers’ attention by mentioning how people had these issues before but only used President-elect Trump’s win as the means to openly express how they feel. While this might not be true, the writer makes his/her point to the readers and whether a reader agrees with it or not is not the issue but that the writer has managed to communicate his point to his readers.
Question
How to end a narrative essay?
Answer
Memorable endings are hard to write, but as it is with all essays, writers need to find a memorable ending to their story. Some writers complain about the difficulty of starting a narrative essay but as some have come to find out the hard way, how to end a narrative essay can also be an issue. Some writers often end their essays with a piece of advice to their readers and thus reinstate the lesson they should take from the essay. The above is not wrong but makes for obvious reading. Instead of being obvious and sticking to the norm, writers need to make their essays more interesting and study many other people ‘endings to understand how they turn their essays intro mysteries. Ambiguity should be embraced when writing the conclusion and readers are not supposed to be directly led to the conclusion. Ending with a closure is also a strategy which can be embraced and while this is obvious, it is the most preferred. It is also important to consider ending an essay with either an action, image, reflection, or dialogue. These help to make the essay more interesting and less obvious. Below is an example of how to conclude a narrative essay.
Conclusion for a narrative essay example.
My views on race are as clear as they can be: I hate racism and resent racists. However, feelings of distaste cannot help end or fight this malaise. It is often said that if one cannot stand for something, they will fall for anything. The people against racism need not stand on the sidelines but act. I believe we are many and can, with time, eliminate it by using love as the weapon. It is quite a tall order, but I am a believer, and while I may not be alive when it happens, I will surely rejoice wherever I will be.
Question
How long should narrative essay be?
Answer
How long a narrative essay should be is a question that some people often get wrong, and the result is they end up with either long essays or short essays which fail to tell the entire story. First of all, it is essential for all writers to know how many paragraphs a narrative essay has. A narrative is not supposed to be long, but this is entirely dependent on the events that are being described by the writer. If the events are many, then the use of many paragraphs will be inevitable. However, it is important to note that a standard narrative essay often has 5-6 paragraphs.
Narrative essays are naturally short, and albeit close to being a non-issue, writers need to understand that it is one of the narrative essay tips.
Writers often struggle with the question how to write a good narrative essay, but as they mature in their language and delivery, it becomes easier and less troublesome.