Narrative papers really are a well-liked type of academic writing. Both high school and college students write loads of them. A narrative essay shows your creativity, character, and ability to tell a compelling story.

Telling a great story could be a challenging task. That�s why our writers has compiled a list of things you need to know before writing a personal narrative essay.

What Is a Narrative Essay?

A narrative essay is a piece of academic writing that tells a story. As the author, your purpose is to create a lifelike experience for the reader. You must place them in the middle of the action and keep them engaged. You would typically tell this story from your point of view.
Use vivid and evocative detail to create an atmosphere for the reader. You need to be specific with the information you use. Pick the type of vocabulary that sounds most realistic to your scenario. This will support the atmosphere you want to create.
There are several types of narrative essays to discuss.

Autobiographical Narrative Essay

This assignment prompts you to describe a memorable event that happened in your life. It's not an autobiography, contrary to what the title suggests. You must think of a specific incident that matters to you and explore it. Focus on the story and its purpose, instead of details.

You might also be interested in discovering how to write an autobiography

Descriptive Narrative Essay

In an autobiographical essay you focus on the story without exaggerating details. In a descriptive narrative essay, you have more creative freedom. You must describe a situation, memory, or experience in vivid detail. Your goal is to paint a picture for the reader and tell a beautiful story.

A well-written descriptive narrative paper is usually straightforward. It takes a complicated story and narrows it down, allowing the reader to infer the rest. Great writers avoid over-exaggeration and stick to their purpose. There are always some limits to the amount of content you can provide to your readers. Keep this in mind when choosing what to describe in your work.

The tricky thing about the narrative essay is that there are always some limits to the amount of content you can provide your readers with. Ideally, a well-written narrative paper is one papers for college that takes a complex story and crunches it down into a limited number of words while always remaining relevant to the purpose. At the same time, keeping the attention of the audience is crucially important.

10 Good Narrative Essay Topics and How to Pick One

When it comes to topics, there are several things you need to take into account. Start by carefully reading the directions of your assignment. Teachers will often tell you what they are looking for in your narrative essay. Most of them share a few common characteristics:

  • A Conflict/Challenge: An inciting incident that creates the tone and sets the story in motion.
  • A Protagonist: A relatable character that faces the conflict or challenge against overwhelming odds.
  • A Change or Growth: Overcoming the conflict or challenge sparks some change in the protagonist. A realization may have sparked this change. This realization can also be an after-effect of the characters development throughout the story.

These variables are the essentials of storytelling. You need to spend time brainstorming to connect all the dots and create great story ideas. Search your memories and experiences, and you�ll find something worth writing about.

Here are some narrative essay ideas to help you brainstorm:

  • Overcoming Fear
  • Facing a Challenge
  • A New Experience or Discovery
  • A Moment of Excitement
  • Learning a Tough Lesson
  • A Thrilling Moment of Adrenaline
  • The Moment You Stood Up for Yourself
  • A Relationship Experience
  • A Discovery That Changed Your Life
  • A Rebellious Act

These are a few typical examples that students tend to explore. Consider making a story based on your personal life experiences. The most vivid memories are usually the ones that tell a great story.

Don't know how to start your narrative essay? Get help from our professional writers.

Narrative Essay Outline

Narratives have a standard format. This includes the Introduction, the Body, which is composed of 3 paragraphs, and the Conclusion. Each body paragraph should contain a new idea. Some narrative essays follow the 5 paragraph essay outline.

  • The Introduction must lay out the setting and kick-off the movement of the story.
  • The Body Paragraphs travel through the story describing it in viv Narrative essay outline from EssayPro

Check our video guide for more details:

Introduction

The Introduction must accomplish 3 main goals:

  • The narrative essay should start with a strong hook. It carries the reader through the introduction and gets them engaged in the story. To create a strong hook, you can:
    • Bring up a future scenario as an initial starting point.
    • Offer a quote that will be relevant later in the essay.
    • Place your reader in the middle of the action.
  • Set the scene for the reader:
    • As authors, we want to throw the reader�s boat into a chaotic storm and get them engaged.
    • However, it doesn't hurt to give them