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• How to write a narrative essay | Example & tips

How to Write a Narrative Essay | Example & Tips

Published on July 24, 2020 by Jack Caulfield . Revised on July 23, 2023.

A narrative essay tells a story. In most cases, this is a story about a personal experience you had. This type of essay , along with the descriptive essay , allows you to get personal and creative, unlike most academic writing .

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Table of contents

What is a narrative essay for, choosing a topic, interactive example of a narrative essay, other interesting articles, frequently asked questions about narrative essays.

When assigned a narrative essay, you might find yourself wondering: Why does my teacher want to hear this story? Topics for narrative essays can range from the important to the trivial. Usually the point is not so much the story itself, but the way you tell it.

A narrative essay is a way of testing your ability to tell a story in a clear and interesting way. You’re expected to think about where your story begins and ends, and how to convey it with eye-catching language and a satisfying pace.

These skills are quite different from those needed for formal academic writing. For instance, in a narrative essay the use of the first person (“I”) is encouraged, as is the use of figurative language, dialogue, and suspense.

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Narrative essay assignments vary widely in the amount of direction you’re given about your topic. You may be assigned quite a specific topic or choice of topics to work with.

• Write a story about your first day of school.
• Write a story about your favorite holiday destination.

You may also be given prompts that leave you a much wider choice of topic.

• Write about an experience where you learned something about yourself.
• Write about an achievement you are proud of. What did you accomplish, and how?

In these cases, you might have to think harder to decide what story you want to tell. The best kind of story for a narrative essay is one you can use to talk about a particular theme or lesson, or that takes a surprising turn somewhere along the way.

For example, a trip where everything went according to plan makes for a less interesting story than one where something unexpected happened that you then had to respond to. Choose an experience that might surprise the reader or teach them something.

Narrative essays in college applications

When applying for college , you might be asked to write a narrative essay that expresses something about your personal qualities.

For example, this application prompt from Common App requires you to respond with a narrative essay.

In this context, choose a story that is not only interesting but also expresses the qualities the prompt is looking for—here, resilience and the ability to learn from failure—and frame the story in a way that emphasizes these qualities.

An example of a short narrative essay, responding to the prompt “Write about an experience where you learned something about yourself,” is shown below.

Hover over different parts of the text to see how the structure works.

Since elementary school, I have always favored subjects like science and math over the humanities. My instinct was always to think of these subjects as more solid and serious than classes like English. If there was no right answer, I thought, why bother? But recently I had an experience that taught me my academic interests are more flexible than I had thought: I took my first philosophy class.

Before I entered the classroom, I was skeptical. I waited outside with the other students and wondered what exactly philosophy would involve—I really had no idea. I imagined something pretty abstract: long, stilted conversations pondering the meaning of life. But what I got was something quite different.

A young man in jeans, Mr. Jones—“but you can call me Rob”—was far from the white-haired, buttoned-up old man I had half-expected. And rather than pulling us into pedantic arguments about obscure philosophical points, Rob engaged us on our level. To talk free will, we looked at our own choices. To talk ethics, we looked at dilemmas we had faced ourselves. By the end of class, I’d discovered that questions with no right answer can turn out to be the most interesting ones.

The experience has taught me to look at things a little more “philosophically”—and not just because it was a philosophy class! I learned that if I let go of my preconceptions, I can actually get a lot out of subjects I was previously dismissive of. The class taught me—in more ways than one—to look at things with an open mind.

If you want to know more about AI tools , college essays , or fallacies make sure to check out some of our other articles with explanations and examples or go directly to our tools!

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If you’re not given much guidance on what your narrative essay should be about, consider the context and scope of the assignment. What kind of story is relevant, interesting, and possible to tell within the word count?

The best kind of story for a narrative essay is one you can use to reflect on a particular theme or lesson, or that takes a surprising turn somewhere along the way.

Don’t worry too much if your topic seems unoriginal. The point of a narrative essay is how you tell the story and the point you make with it, not the subject of the story itself.

Narrative essays are usually assigned as writing exercises at high school or in university composition classes. They may also form part of a university application.

When you are prompted to tell a story about your own life or experiences, a narrative essay is usually the right response.

The key difference is that a narrative essay is designed to tell a complete story, while a descriptive essay is meant to convey an intense description of a particular place, object, or concept.

Narrative and descriptive essays both allow you to write more personally and creatively than other kinds of essays , and similar writing skills can apply to both.

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Top 20 Errors in Undergraduate Writing

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The Top Twenty: A Quick Guide to Troubleshooting Your Writing

Readers judge your writing by your control of certain conventions, which may change depending on your audience, purpose, and writing situation.  For example, your instructor may or may not mark errors in your paper if he’s more concerned with its argument or structure than he is with sentence-level correctness; he could also decide an error is not serious.  Some instructors may even see the errors listed below as stylistic options. However, a large-scale study by Andrea Lunsford and Karen Lunsford (2008) found that these errors are the most likely to attract readers’ negative attention.  Before handing in your papers, proofread them carefully for these errors, which are illustrated below in the sentences in italics.  

THE TOP TWENTY

1. wrong word.

Wrong word errors take a number of forms. They may convey a slightly different meaning than you intend ( compose instead of comprise ) or a completely wrong meaning ( prevaricate  instead of procrastinate ). They may also be as simple as a wrong preposition or other type of wrong word in an idiom.

Use your thesaurus and spell checker with care. If you select a word from a thesaurus without knowing its precise meaning or allow a spell checker to correct spelling automatically, you may make wrong-word errors. If prepositions and idioms are tricky for you, look up the standard usage.

Here are a couple of wrong word examples:

Did you catch my illusion to the Bible?

Illusion means “an erroneous perception of reality.” In the context of this sentence,  allusion was needed because it means "reference.”

Edmund Spenser’s The Faerie Queene is a magnificent sixteenth-century allergy.

A spell checker replaced allegory with allergy.

2. Missing Comma after an Introductory Element

Use a comma after every introductory element—whether word, phrase or clause—to clarify where it ends and the rest of the sentence begins. When the introductory element is very short, you can skip the comma, but including it is never wrong.

Without a comma after the introductory element, it’s hard to see the location of the subject (“they”) in this sentence:

Determined to make their flight on time they rose at dawn.

3. Incomplete or Missing Documentation

Documentation practices vary from discipline to discipline.  But in academic and research writing, it’s a good idea to always cite your sources: omitting documentation can result in charges of plagiarism.

The examples below follow MLA style.  In this example, the page number of the print source for this quotation must be included.

The Social Media Bible defines social media as the “activities, practices, and behaviors among communities of people who gather online to share information, knowledge, and opinions using conversational media.”

And here, the source mentioned should be identified because it makes a specific, arguable claim:

According to one source, it costs almost twice an employee’s salary to recruit and train a replacement. 

Cite each source you refer to in the text, following the guidelines of the documentation style you are using. 

4. Vague Pronoun Reference

A pronoun (e.g., he, this, it) should refer clearly to the noun it replaces (called the antecedent).  If more than one word could be the antecedent, or if no specific antecedent is present, edit to make the meaning clear.

In this sentence, it possibly refers to more than one word:

If you put this handout in your binder, it may remind you of important tutoring strategies .

In some pronoun usage, the reference is implied but not stated.  Here, for example, you might wonder what which refers to:

The authoritarian school changed its cell phone policy, which many students resisted.

To improve this sentence, the writer needs to make explicit what students resisted.

5. Spelling

Even though technology now reviews much of our spelling for us, one of the top 20 most common errors is a spelling error.  That’s because spell checkers cannot identify many misspellings, and are most likely to miss homonyms (e.g., presence/presents), compound words incorrectly spelled as separate words, and proper nouns, particularly names. After you run the spell checker, proofread carefully for errors such as these:

Vladmir Putin is the controversial leader of Russia.

Every where she walked, she was reminded of him.

6. Mechanical Error with a Quotation

When we quote other writers, we bring their voices into our arguments.  Quotation marks crucially show where their words end and our own begin. 

Quotation marks come in pairs; don’t forget to open and close your quotations.  In most documentation styles (e.g., MLA Style), block quotations do not need quotations marks.  Consult your professor’s preferred style manual to learn how to present block quotations. 

Follow conventions when using quotation marks with other punctuation. Here, the comma should be placed inside the quotation marks:

"A woman must have money and a room of her own if she is to write fiction", Virginia Woolf argues.

7. Unnecessary Comma

We often have a choice about whether or not to use a comma.  But if we add them to our sentences when and where they are not needed, then we may obscure rather than clarify our meaning.

Do not use commas to set off restrictive elements that are necessary to the meaning of the words they modify.  Here, for example, no comma is needed to set off the restrictive phrase  of working parents , which is necessary to indicate which parents the sentence is talking about.

Many children, of working parents, walk home from school by themselves.

Do not use a comma before a coordinating conjunction (and, but, for, nor, or, so, yet) when the conjunction does not join parts of a compound sentence.  In this example, no comma is needed before the word  and  because it joins two phrases that modify the same verb, applies.

  This social scourge can be seen in urban centers, and in rural outposts.

Do not use a comma before the first or after the last item in a series.

The students asked their TAs to review, the assignment rubric, a sample paper and their comments, before the end of the quarter.

Do not use a comma between a subject and verb.

Happily, the waiters, sat down during a break.

Do not use a comma between a verb and its object or complement.

On her way home from work, she bought, a book at the bookstore.

Do not use a comma between a preposition and its object.

On her way home from work, she bought a book at, the bookstore.

8. Unnecessary or Missing Capitalization

Capitalize proper nouns and proper adjectives, the first words of sentences, and important words in titles, along with certain words indicating directions and family relationships. Do not capitalize most other words. When in doubt, check a dictionary.

Financial Aid is a pressing concern for many University Students.

9. Missing Word

If you read your work outloud before submittingit, you are more likely to notice omitted words.  Be particularly careful not to omit words from quotations.

Soccer fans the globe rejoiced when the striker scored the second goal.

10. Faulty Sentence Structure

If a sentence starts out with one kind of structure and then changes to another kind, it will confuse readers.

The information that families have access to is what financial aid is available and thinking about the classes available, and how to register.

Maintain the grammatical pattern within a sentence.  Each sentence must have a subject and a verb, and the subjects and predicates must make sense together.  In the example above, thinking about the classes available does not help the reader understand the information families have access to.  Parallel structures can help your reader see the relationships among your ideas.  Here’s the sentence revised:

Families have access to information about financial aid, class availability, and registration.

11. Missing Comma with a Nonrestrictive Element

A nonrestrictive phrase or clause provides additional information that is not essential to the basic meaning of the sentence.  Use commas to set off a nonrestrictive element.

David who loved to read history was the first to head to the British Library.

The clause  who loved to read history does not affect the basic meaning of the sentence.  The clause could be taken out and the reader would still understand that David was the first to head to the British Library.  

12. Unnecessary Shift in Verb Tense

Verbs that shift from one tense to another with no clear reason can confuse readers.

Martin searched for a great horned owl.  He takes photographs of all the birds he sights.

13. Missing Comma in a Compound Sentence

A compound sentence consists of two or more independent clauses.  When the clauses are joined by a coordinating conjunction (for, and, nor, but, or, yet, so), use a comma before the conjunction to indicate a pause between the two thoughts.

Miranda drove her brother and her mother waited at home.

Without the comma, a reader may think at first that Miranda drove both her brother and her mother.

14. Unnecessary or Missing Apostrophe (including its/it's)

To make a noun possessive, add either an apostrophe and an s (Ed's phone) or an apostrophe alone (the girls’ bathroom). Do not use an apostrophe in the possessive pronouns ours, yours, and hers. Use its to mean belong to it; use it's only when you mean it is or it has.

Repeated viral infections compromise doctors immune systems.

The chef lifted the skillet off it’s hook.  Its a fourteen-inch, copper skillet.

15. Fused (run-on) Sentence

A fused sentence (also called a run-on) joins clauses that could each stand alone as a sentence with no punctuation or words to link them. Fused sentences must be either divided into separate sentences or joined by adding words or punctuation.

The house was flooded with light, the moon rose above the horizon.

He wondered what the decision meant he thought about it all night.

16. Comma Splice

A comma splice occurs when only a comma separates clauses that could each stand alone as a sentence. To correct a comma splice, you can insert a semicolon or period, connect the clauses with a word such as and/or/because, or restructure the sentence.

The students rushed the field, they tore down the goalposts. 

17. Lack of pronoun/antecedent agreement

Pronouns typically must agree with their antecedents in gender (male or female, if appropriate) and in number (singular or plural). Many indefinite pronouns, such as everyone and each, are always singular.  However,  they can be used to agree with a singular antecedent in order to use inclusive or gender-neutral language.  When antecedents are joined by or or nor, the pronoun must agree with the closer antecedent. A collection noun such as team can be either singular or plural, depending on whether the members are seen as a group or individuals.

Every guest left their shoes at the door.

18. Poorly Integrated Quotation

Quotations should be logically and smoothly integrated with the writing around them, the grammar of the quotation complementing the grammar of the neighboring prose.  They usually need to be introduced (with a signal phrase) rather than dropped abruptly into the writing.

An award-winning 2009 study of friendship "understanding social networks allows us to understand how indeed, in the case of humans, the whole comes to be greater than the sum of its parts" (Christakis and Fowler 26).

"Social networks are intricate things of beauty" (Christakis and Fowler xiii). Maintaining close friendships is good for your health.

19. Missing or Unnecessary Hyphen

A compound adjective requires a hyphen when it modifies a noun that follows it.

This article describes eighteenth century theater.

A two-word verb should not be hyphenated. 

The dealers want to buy-back the computers and refurbish them.

20. Sentence Fragment

A sentence fragment is part of a sentence that is presented as if it were a complete sentence.  The following illustrate the ways sentence fragments can be created:

Without a subject

The American colonists resisted British taxation.  And started the American Revolution.

No complete verb

The pink geranium blooming in its pot.

Beginning with a subordinating word

We visited the park. Where we threw the Frisbee.

These 20 most common errors can be avoided in your writing if you reserve time to proofread your final draft before submission.

Works Cited

Lunsford, Andrea A. and Karen J. Lunsford.  “Mistakes are a Fact of Life: A National Comparative Study.”   CCC 59 (2008) 781-806.

The Ultimate Narrative Essay Guide for Beginners

A narrative essay tells a story in chronological order, with an introduction that introduces the characters and sets the scene. Then a series of events leads to a climax or turning point, and finally a resolution or reflection on the experience.

Speaking of which, are you in sixes and sevens about narrative essays? Don’t worry this ultimate expert guide will wipe out all your doubts. So let’s get started.

Table of Contents

Everything You Need to Know About Narrative Essay

What is a narrative essay.

When you go through a narrative essay definition, you would know that a narrative essay purpose is to tell a story. It’s all about sharing an experience or event and is different from other types of essays because it’s more focused on how the event made you feel or what you learned from it, rather than just presenting facts or an argument. Let’s explore more details on this interesting write-up and get to know how to write a narrative essay.

Elements of a Narrative Essay

Here’s a breakdown of the key elements of a narrative essay:

A narrative essay has a beginning, middle, and end. It builds up tension and excitement and then wraps things up in a neat package.

Real people, including the writer, often feature in personal narratives. Details of the characters and their thoughts, feelings, and actions can help readers to relate to the tale.

It’s really important to know when and where something happened so we can get a good idea of the context. Going into detail about what it looks like helps the reader to really feel like they’re part of the story.

Conflict or Challenge 

A story in a narrative essay usually involves some kind of conflict or challenge that moves the plot along. It could be something inside the character, like a personal battle, or something from outside, like an issue they have to face in the world.

Theme or Message

A narrative essay isn’t just about recounting an event – it’s about showing the impact it had on you and what you took away from it. It’s an opportunity to share your thoughts and feelings about the experience, and how it changed your outlook.

Emotional Impact

The author is trying to make the story they’re telling relatable, engaging, and memorable by using language and storytelling to evoke feelings in whoever’s reading it.

Narrative essays let writers have a blast telling stories about their own lives. It’s an opportunity to share insights and impart wisdom, or just have some fun with the reader. Descriptive language, sensory details, dialogue, and a great narrative voice are all essentials for making the story come alive.

The Purpose of a Narrative Essay

A narrative essay is more than just a story – it’s a way to share a meaningful, engaging, and relatable experience with the reader. Includes:

Sharing Personal Experience

Narrative essays are a great way for writers to share their personal experiences, feelings, thoughts, and reflections. It’s an opportunity to connect with readers and make them feel something.

Entertainment and Engagement

The essay attempts to keep the reader interested by using descriptive language, storytelling elements, and a powerful voice. It attempts to pull them in and make them feel involved by creating suspense, mystery, or an emotional connection.

Conveying a Message or Insight

Narrative essays are more than just a story – they aim to teach you something. They usually have a moral lesson, a new understanding, or a realization about life that the author gained from the experience.

Building Empathy and Understanding

By telling their stories, people can give others insight into different perspectives, feelings, and situations. Sharing these tales can create compassion in the reader and help broaden their knowledge of different life experiences.

Inspiration and Motivation

Stories about personal struggles, successes, and transformations can be really encouraging to people who are going through similar situations. It can provide them with hope and guidance, and let them know that they’re not alone.

Reflecting on Life’s Significance

These essays usually make you think about the importance of certain moments in life or the impact of certain experiences. They make you look deep within yourself and ponder on the things you learned or how you changed because of those events.

Demonstrating Writing Skills

Coming up with a gripping narrative essay takes serious writing chops, like vivid descriptions, powerful language, timing, and organization. It’s an opportunity for writers to show off their story-telling abilities.

Preserving Personal History

Sometimes narrative essays are used to record experiences and special moments that have an emotional resonance. They can be used to preserve individual memories or for future generations to look back on.

Cultural and Societal Exploration

Personal stories can look at cultural or social aspects, giving us an insight into customs, opinions, or social interactions seen through someone’s own experience.

Format of a Narrative Essay

Narrative essays are quite flexible in terms of format, which allows the writer to tell a story in a creative and compelling way. Here’s a quick breakdown of the narrative essay format, along with some examples:

Introduction

Set the scene and introduce the story.

Engage the reader and establish the tone of the narrative.

Hook: Start with a captivating opening line to grab the reader’s attention. For instance:

Example:  “The scorching sun beat down on us as we trekked through the desert, our water supply dwindling.”

Background Information: Provide necessary context or background without giving away the entire story.

Example:  “It was the summer of 2015 when I embarked on a life-changing journey to…”

Thesis Statement or Narrative Purpose

Present the main idea or the central message of the essay.

Offer a glimpse of what the reader can expect from the narrative.

Thesis Statement: This isn’t as rigid as in other essays but can be a sentence summarizing the essence of the story.

Example:  “Little did I know, that seemingly ordinary hike would teach me invaluable lessons about resilience and friendship.”

Body Paragraphs

Present the sequence of events in chronological order.

Develop characters, setting, conflict, and resolution.

Story Progression : Describe events in the order they occurred, focusing on details that evoke emotions and create vivid imagery.

Example : Detail the trek through the desert, the challenges faced, interactions with fellow hikers, and the pivotal moments.

Character Development : Introduce characters and their roles in the story. Show their emotions, thoughts, and actions.

Example : Describe how each character reacted to the dwindling water supply and supported each other through adversity.

Dialogue and Interactions : Use dialogue to bring the story to life and reveal character personalities.

Example : “Sarah handed me her last bottle of water, saying, ‘We’re in this together.'”

Reach the peak of the story, the moment of highest tension or significance.

Turning Point: Highlight the most crucial moment or realization in the narrative.

Example:  “As the sun dipped below the horizon and hope seemed lost, a distant sound caught our attention—the rescue team’s helicopters.”

Provide closure to the story.

Reflect on the significance of the experience and its impact.

Reflection : Summarize the key lessons learned or insights gained from the experience.

Example : “That hike taught me the true meaning of resilience and the invaluable support of friendship in challenging times.”

Closing Thought : End with a memorable line that reinforces the narrative’s message or leaves a lasting impression.

Example : “As we boarded the helicopters, I knew this adventure would forever be etched in my heart.”

Example Summary:

Imagine a narrative about surviving a challenging hike through the desert, emphasizing the bonds formed and lessons learned. The narrative essay structure might look like starting with an engaging scene, narrating the hardships faced, showcasing the characters’ resilience, and culminating in a powerful realization about friendship and endurance.

Different Types of Narrative Essays

There are a bunch of different types of narrative essays – each one focuses on different elements of storytelling and has its own purpose. Here’s a breakdown of the narrative essay types and what they mean.

Personal Narrative

Description : Tells a personal story or experience from the writer’s life.

Purpose: Reflects on personal growth, lessons learned, or significant moments.

Example of Narrative Essay Types:

Topic : “The Day I Conquered My Fear of Public Speaking”

Focus: Details the experience, emotions, and eventual triumph over a fear of public speaking during a pivotal event.

Descriptive Narrative

Description : Emphasizes vivid details and sensory imagery.

Purpose : Creates a sensory experience, painting a vivid picture for the reader.

Topic : “A Walk Through the Enchanted Forest”

Focus : Paints a detailed picture of the sights, sounds, smells, and feelings experienced during a walk through a mystical forest.

Autobiographical Narrative

Description: Chronicles significant events or moments from the writer’s life.

Purpose: Provides insights into the writer’s life, experiences, and growth.

Topic: “Lessons from My Childhood: How My Grandmother Shaped Who I Am”

Focus: Explores pivotal moments and lessons learned from interactions with a significant family member.

Experiential Narrative

Description: Relays experiences beyond the writer’s personal life.

Purpose: Shares experiences, travels, or events from a broader perspective.

Topic: “Volunteering in a Remote Village: A Journey of Empathy”

Focus: Chronicles the writer’s volunteering experience, highlighting interactions with a community and personal growth.

Literary Narrative

Description: Incorporates literary elements like symbolism, allegory, or thematic explorations.

Purpose: Uses storytelling for deeper explorations of themes or concepts.

Topic: “The Symbolism of the Red Door: A Journey Through Change”

Focus: Uses a red door as a symbol, exploring its significance in the narrator’s life and the theme of transition.

Historical Narrative

Description: Recounts historical events or periods through a personal lens.

Purpose: Presents history through personal experiences or perspectives.

Topic: “A Grandfather’s Tales: Living Through the Great Depression”

Focus: Shares personal stories from a family member who lived through a historical era, offering insights into that period.

Digital or Multimedia Narrative

Description: Incorporates multimedia elements like images, videos, or audio to tell a story.

Purpose: Explores storytelling through various digital platforms or formats.

Topic: “A Travel Diary: Exploring Europe Through Vlogs”

Focus: Combines video clips, photos, and personal narration to document a travel experience.

How to Choose a Topic for Your Narrative Essay?

Selecting a compelling topic for your narrative essay is crucial as it sets the stage for your storytelling. Choosing a boring topic is one of the narrative essay mistakes to avoid . Here’s a detailed guide on how to choose the right topic:

Reflect on Personal Experiences

• Significant Moments:

Moments that had a profound impact on your life or shaped your perspective.

Example: A moment of triumph, overcoming a fear, a life-changing decision, or an unforgettable experience.

• Emotional Resonance:

Events that evoke strong emotions or feelings.

Example: Joy, fear, sadness, excitement, or moments of realization.

• Lessons Learned:

Experiences that taught you valuable lessons or brought about personal growth.

Example: Challenges that led to personal development, shifts in mindset, or newfound insights.

Explore Unique Perspectives

• Uncommon Experiences:

Unique or unconventional experiences that might captivate the reader’s interest.

Example: Unusual travels, interactions with different cultures, or uncommon hobbies.

• Different Points of View:

Stories from others’ perspectives that impacted you deeply.

Example: A family member’s story, a friend’s experience, or a historical event from a personal lens.

Focus on Specific Themes or Concepts

• Themes or Concepts of Interest:

Themes or ideas you want to explore through storytelling.

Example: Friendship, resilience, identity, cultural diversity, or personal transformation.

• Symbolism or Metaphor:

Using symbols or metaphors as the core of your narrative.

Example: Exploring the symbolism of an object or a place in relation to a broader theme.

Consider Your Audience and Purpose

• Relevance to Your Audience:

Topics that resonate with your audience’s interests or experiences.

Example: Choose a relatable theme or experience that your readers might connect with emotionally.

• Impact or Message:

What message or insight do you want to convey through your story?

Example: Choose a topic that aligns with the message or lesson you aim to impart to your readers.

Brainstorm and Evaluate Ideas

• Free Writing or Mind Mapping:

Process: Write down all potential ideas without filtering. Mind maps or free-writing exercises can help generate diverse ideas.

• Evaluate Feasibility:

The depth of the story, the availability of vivid details, and your personal connection to the topic.

Imagine you’re considering topics for a narrative essay. You reflect on your experiences and decide to explore the topic of “Overcoming Stage Fright: How a School Play Changed My Perspective.” This topic resonates because it involves a significant challenge you faced and the personal growth it brought about.

Narrative Essay Topics

50 easy narrative essay topics.

• Learning to Ride a Bike
• My First Day of School
• A Surprise Birthday Party
• The Day I Got Lost
• Visiting a Haunted House
• An Encounter with a Wild Animal
• My Favorite Childhood Toy
• The Best Vacation I Ever Had
• An Unforgettable Family Gathering
• Conquering a Fear of Heights
• A Special Gift I Received
• Moving to a New City
• The Most Memorable Meal
• Getting Caught in a Rainstorm
• An Act of Kindness I Witnessed
• The First Time I Cooked a Meal
• My Experience with a New Hobby
• The Day I Met My Best Friend
• A Hike in the Mountains
• Learning a New Language
• An Embarrassing Moment
• Dealing with a Bully
• My First Job Interview
• A Sporting Event I Attended
• The Scariest Dream I Had
• Helping a Stranger
• The Joy of Achieving a Goal
• A Road Trip Adventure
• Overcoming a Personal Challenge
• The Significance of a Family Tradition
• An Unusual Pet I Owned
• A Misunderstanding with a Friend
• Exploring an Abandoned Building
• My Favorite Book and Why
• The Impact of a Role Model
• A Cultural Celebration I Participated In
• A Valuable Lesson from a Teacher
• A Trip to the Zoo
• An Unplanned Adventure
• Volunteering Experience
• A Moment of Forgiveness
• A Decision I Regretted
• A Special Talent I Have
• The Importance of Family Traditions
• The Thrill of Performing on Stage
• A Moment of Sudden Inspiration
• The Meaning of Home
• Learning to Play a Musical Instrument
• A Childhood Memory at the Park
• Witnessing a Beautiful Sunset

Narrative Essay Topics for College Students

• Discovering a New Passion
• Overcoming Academic Challenges
• Navigating Cultural Differences
• Embracing Independence: Moving Away from Home
• Exploring Career Aspirations
• Coping with Stress in College
• The Impact of a Mentor in My Life
• Balancing Work and Studies
• Facing a Fear of Public Speaking
• Exploring a Semester Abroad
• The Evolution of My Study Habits
• Volunteering Experience That Changed My Perspective
• The Role of Technology in Education
• Finding Balance: Social Life vs. Academics
• Learning a New Skill Outside the Classroom
• Reflecting on Freshman Year Challenges
• The Joys and Struggles of Group Projects
• My Experience with Internship or Work Placement
• Challenges of Time Management in College
• Redefining Success Beyond Grades
• The Influence of Literature on My Thinking
• The Impact of Social Media on College Life
• Overcoming Procrastination
• Lessons from a Leadership Role
• Exploring Diversity on Campus
• Exploring Passion for Environmental Conservation
• An Eye-Opening Course That Changed My Perspective
• Living with Roommates: Challenges and Lessons
• The Significance of Extracurricular Activities
• The Influence of a Professor on My Academic Journey
• Discussing Mental Health in College
• The Evolution of My Career Goals
• Confronting Personal Biases Through Education
• The Experience of Attending a Conference or Symposium
• Challenges Faced by Non-Native English Speakers in College
• The Impact of Traveling During Breaks
• Exploring Identity: Cultural or Personal
• The Impact of Music or Art on My Life
• Addressing Diversity in the Classroom
• Exploring Entrepreneurial Ambitions
• My Experience with Research Projects
• Overcoming Impostor Syndrome in College
• The Importance of Networking in College
• Finding Resilience During Tough Times
• The Impact of Global Issues on Local Perspectives
• The Influence of Family Expectations on Education
• Lessons from a Part-Time Job
• Exploring the College Sports Culture
• The Role of Technology in Modern Education
• The Journey of Self-Discovery Through Education

Narrative Essay Comparison

Narrative essay vs. descriptive essay.

Here’s our first narrative essay comparison! While both narrative and descriptive essays focus on vividly portraying a subject or an event, they differ in their primary objectives and approaches. Now, let’s delve into the nuances of comparison on narrative essays.

Narrative Essay:

Storytelling: Focuses on narrating a personal experience or event.

Chronological Order: Follows a structured timeline of events to tell a story.

Message or Lesson: Often includes a central message, moral, or lesson learned from the experience.

Engagement: Aims to captivate the reader through a compelling storyline and character development.

First-Person Perspective: Typically narrated from the writer’s point of view, using “I” and expressing personal emotions and thoughts.

Plot Development: Emphasizes a plot with a beginning, middle, climax, and resolution.

Character Development: Focuses on describing characters, their interactions, emotions, and growth.

Conflict or Challenge: Usually involves a central conflict or challenge that drives the narrative forward.

Dialogue: Incorporates conversations to bring characters and their interactions to life.

Reflection: Concludes with reflection or insight gained from the experience.

Descriptive Essay:

Vivid Description: Aims to vividly depict a person, place, object, or event.

Imagery and Details: Focuses on sensory details to create a vivid image in the reader’s mind.

Emotion through Description: Uses descriptive language to evoke emotions and engage the reader’s senses.

Painting a Picture: Creates a sensory-rich description allowing the reader to visualize the subject.

Imagery and Sensory Details: Focuses on providing rich sensory descriptions, using vivid language and adjectives.

Point of Focus: Concentrates on describing a specific subject or scene in detail.

Spatial Organization: Often employs spatial organization to describe from one area or aspect to another.

Objective Observations: Typically avoids the use of personal opinions or emotions; instead, the focus remains on providing a detailed and objective description.

Comparison:

Focus: Narrative essays emphasize storytelling, while descriptive essays focus on vividly describing a subject or scene.

Perspective: Narrative essays are often written from a first-person perspective, while descriptive essays may use a more objective viewpoint.

Purpose: Narrative essays aim to convey a message or lesson through a story, while descriptive essays aim to paint a detailed picture for the reader without necessarily conveying a specific message.

Narrative Essay vs. Argumentative Essay

The narrative essay and the argumentative essay serve distinct purposes and employ different approaches:

Engagement and Emotion: Aims to captivate the reader through a compelling story.

Reflective: Often includes reflection on the significance of the experience or lessons learned.

First-Person Perspective: Typically narrated from the writer’s point of view, sharing personal emotions and thoughts.

Plot Development: Emphasizes a storyline with a beginning, middle, climax, and resolution.

Message or Lesson: Conveys a central message, moral, or insight derived from the experience.

Argumentative Essay:

Persuasion and Argumentation: Aims to persuade the reader to adopt the writer’s viewpoint on a specific topic.

Logical Reasoning: Presents evidence, facts, and reasoning to support a particular argument or stance.

Debate and Counterarguments: Acknowledge opposing views and counter them with evidence and reasoning.

Thesis Statement: Includes a clear thesis statement that outlines the writer’s position on the topic.

Thesis and Evidence: Starts with a strong thesis statement and supports it with factual evidence, statistics, expert opinions, or logical reasoning.

Counterarguments: Addresses opposing viewpoints and provides rebuttals with evidence.

Logical Structure: Follows a logical structure with an introduction, body paragraphs presenting arguments and evidence, and a conclusion reaffirming the thesis.

Formal Language: Uses formal language and avoids personal anecdotes or emotional appeals.

Objective: Argumentative essays focus on presenting a logical argument supported by evidence, while narrative essays prioritize storytelling and personal reflection.

Purpose: Argumentative essays aim to persuade and convince the reader of a particular viewpoint, while narrative essays aim to engage, entertain, and share personal experiences.

Structure: Narrative essays follow a storytelling structure with character development and plot, while argumentative essays follow a more formal, structured approach with logical arguments and evidence.

In essence, while both essays involve writing and presenting information, the narrative essay focuses on sharing a personal experience, whereas the argumentative essay aims to persuade the audience by presenting a well-supported argument.

Narrative Essay vs. Personal Essay

While there can be an overlap between narrative and personal essays, they have distinctive characteristics:

Storytelling: Emphasizes recounting a specific experience or event in a structured narrative form.

Engagement through Story: Aims to engage the reader through a compelling story with characters, plot, and a central theme or message.

Reflective: Often includes reflection on the significance of the experience and the lessons learned.

First-Person Perspective: Typically narrated from the writer’s viewpoint, expressing personal emotions and thoughts.

Plot Development: Focuses on developing a storyline with a clear beginning, middle, climax, and resolution.

Character Development: Includes descriptions of characters, their interactions, emotions, and growth.

Central Message: Conveys a central message, moral, or insight derived from the experience.

Personal Essay:

Exploration of Ideas or Themes: Explores personal ideas, opinions, or reflections on a particular topic or subject.

Expression of Thoughts and Opinions: Expresses the writer’s thoughts, feelings, and perspectives on a specific subject matter.

Reflection and Introspection: Often involves self-reflection and introspection on personal experiences, beliefs, or values.

Varied Structure and Content: Can encompass various forms, including memoirs, personal anecdotes, or reflections on life experiences.

Flexibility in Structure: Allows for diverse structures and forms based on the writer’s intent, which could be narrative-like or more reflective.

Theme-Centric Writing: Focuses on exploring a central theme or idea, with personal anecdotes or experiences supporting and illustrating the theme.

Expressive Language: Utilizes descriptive and expressive language to convey personal perspectives, emotions, and opinions.

Focus: Narrative essays primarily focus on storytelling through a structured narrative, while personal essays encompass a broader range of personal expression, which can include storytelling but isn’t limited to it.

Structure: Narrative essays have a more structured plot development with characters and a clear sequence of events, while personal essays might adopt various structures, focusing more on personal reflection, ideas, or themes.

Intent: While both involve personal experiences, narrative essays emphasize telling a story with a message or lesson learned, while personal essays aim to explore personal thoughts, feelings, or opinions on a broader range of topics or themes.

A narrative essay is more than just telling a story. It’s also meant to engage the reader, get them thinking, and leave a lasting impact. Whether it’s to amuse, motivate, teach, or reflect, these essays are a great way to communicate with your audience. This interesting narrative essay guide was all about letting you understand the narrative essay, its importance, and how can you write one.

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How to write a Narrative Essay Step-by-Step, Tips and Examples

Carla johnson.

• June 14, 2023
• How to Guides

What You'll Learn

Learn How to write a Narrative Essay Step-by-Step, Tips and Examples

Narrative essays are a type of academic writing in which the writer tells a story from their own experience or point of view. Other types of essays require a lot of research and analysis, but narrative essays are more about telling a story to get a point across. Students and writers like them because they let them express their ideas in a more creative and personal way.

The goal of this article is to help you learn how to write a narrative essay by giving you tips, examples, and ideas for topics . We’ll look at the most important parts of a narrative essay, talk about the different ways to write one, and give you some useful writing tips that will help you create a compelling story. Whether you’re a student who wants to get better grades or a writer who wants to get better at what you do, this article will give you the tools you need to write great narratives.

Learning how to write a narrative essay is important because it helps you improve your writing skills and find a more interesting and meaningful way to say what you want to say. You can connect with your readers on a personal level in a narrative essay by taking them on a journey through your experiences and feelings. By learning how to write a compelling story, you can not only do better in school, but you can also make it easier for people to understand what you are trying to say. So, let’s jump into the world of narrative essays and find out how to tell a good story.

Understanding Narrative Essays

A narrative essay is a type of essay that tells a story from the author’s point of view. It often uses the author’s own experiences and feelings to make a story that is interesting to read. Narrative essays are different from argumentative or analytical essays because they focus more on the art of telling a story than on making a convincing argument or analysis.

There are different kinds of narrative essays, such as personal narratives, fictional narratives, and autobiographical narratives. Most essays are personal narratives, which are often used in creative writing classes or as part of essays for college admissions. Fictional narratives, on the other hand, use fictional characters and settings to tell a story , while autobiographical narratives focus on the author’s own experiences and are often found in memoirs or personal essays.

The most important parts of a narrative essay are a clear introduction that sets the scene for the story, a well-developed plot with a beginning, middle, and end, vivid descriptions that help the reader picture the setting and characters, and a conclusion that ties everything together and leaves the reader with a lasting impression.

Choosing a Topic for Your Narrative Essay

The success of your narrative essay depends on your choice of topic. The first step is to know why you are writing your essay and what you want your readers to learn from it. Are you trying to make them laugh, teach them something, or move them? Once you know what you want to do with your essay, you can start coming up with ideas for it.

One way to choose a topic is to pick something that is meaningful to you. Think about things you’ve done in your life that have changed you in a big way or taught you something important. These experiences can be good or bad, but they should have some meaning for you.

You can also use brainstorming to come up with ideas for your narrative essay. Freewriting is a common method in which you write down everything that comes to mind about a certain subject. This can help you come up with ideas and get your mind working . You can also organize your ideas and find links between them with mind mapping or clustering.

Examples of narrative essay topics include:

1. A significant event in your life that changed your perspective

2. A memorable trip or vacation

3. A childhood memory that had a lasting impact on you

4. Overcoming a personal challenge or adversity

5. A significant achievement or accomplishment

6. An experience that taught you an important life lesson

7. A meaningful relationship or friendship

8. A time when you had to make a difficult decision

9. An experience that challenged your beliefs or values

10. A humorous or embarrassing moment from your life.

By choosing a topic that is meaningful to you and using brainstorming techniques to generate ideas , you can create a compelling narrative essay that engages your readers and helps you achieve your writing goals.

Planning and Preparing to Write a Narrative Essay

You should plan and get ready before you start writing your narrative essay. This means making an outline of the essay , coming up with a thesis statement, developing the plot and characters, setting the scene, and choosing the right point of view.

An important part of planning for a narrative essay is making an outline. The outline should have the beginning, middle, and end of the story, as well as any important points or events you want to include. This will help you stay on track and make sure that the structure of your essay is clear and makes sense. It’s also important to write a thesis statement . This sentence should tell the reader what the story is about and what the main point of the essay is. It should be easy to understand, short, and interesting.

Creating the story and the people in it is another important step. Your narrative essay should have a clear beginning, middle, and end, as well as a central problem or conflict that the main character must solve. The characters should be well-rounded and easy to understand, with clear goals and reasons for what they do.

Creating atmosphere and setting the scene are also important parts of a good narrative essay. Setting should be described in detail, using sensory details to paint a clear picture in the reader’s mind . Care should be taken to make the setting fit the story’s mood and tone.

It’s also important to choose the right point of view. Most narrative essays are written in the first person because it lets the writer use personal experiences and feelings to make the story more real and interesting. But there are also narrative essays that are written from a third-person point of view, which can give a more objective and detached view.

Narrative Essay Outline

I. Introduction  Hook: Start with an intriguing question, a thought-provoking quote, or a vivid description to capture the reader’s interest.   Background information: Provide relevant background details about the time, place, and circumstances surrounding the story you’re about to tell.  Thesis statement: Clearly state the main idea, purpose, or lesson you want to convey through your narrative essay.

II. Body Paragraph  A. Paragraph 1  1. Topic sentence: Introduce the beginning of your story by setting the scene and introducing the main characters.  2. Details and descriptions: Describe the setting in vivid detail, using sensory language to help the reader visualize the environment. Introduce the characters and their personalities, providing physical descriptions and relevant background information.  3. Use descriptive language and figurative devices (e.g., similes, metaphors) to paint a clear picture in the reader’s mind.

 B. Paragraph 2  1. Topic sentence: Smoothly transition to the next sequence of events in your story.  2. Details and descriptions: Narrate the unfolding events, providing specific details about the actions, thoughts, and emotions of the characters involved.  3. Use dialogue and action to create a sense of movement and progress in the story.

 C. Paragraph 3 (and more, if needed)  1. Topic sentence: Introduce the climax or the most crucial part of your story.  2. Details and descriptions: Provide vivid descriptions and sensory details to heighten the tension and build towards the climax.  3. Use techniques like foreshadowing, suspense, and dramatic irony to keep the reader engaged and invested in the story.

III. Conclusion  A. Restate the thesis statement: Remind the reader of the main idea, purpose, or lesson you aimed to convey through your narrative essay.  B. Summarize the key points: Briefly recap the most significant events or details from your story, highlighting their importance or impact.  C. Closing thoughts: Share any final reflections, insights, or lessons learned from the experience you narrated. You can also discuss the broader implications or significance of your story.

Remember, this outline is a flexible guide, and you can adjust it to suit your specific narrative essay. The key is to engage the reader with a well-structured, descriptive, and meaningful story that leaves a lasting impression.

Writing the Narrative Essay

After you’ve thought about and planned your narrative essay, it’s time to start writing. A narrative essay has three main parts: the introduction, the body, and the end.

In the beginning, you hook the reader’s attention and set the scene for the story. You can do this by starting with a quote, a question, or a vivid description of the setting. The thesis statement should also be in the introduction. It tells the reader what the main point of the essay is and what to expect from the rest of the story.

In the main part of the essay , you tell the story. This means describing what happens, who is involved, and what the problem or conflict is that the main character has to solve. The main part of the story should be well-organized, with each paragraph focusing on a different event or part of the story. It should also include details that the reader can feel and dialogue that brings the story to life.

In the ending, you wrap up the story and leave the reader with something they’ll remember. This can be done by thinking about what the main character learned or how the event changed him or her. The ending should also be well-written and give the reader a feeling of completion .

To sum up, to master the art of writing narrative essays, you need to know the different types of narrative essays, how to choose a topic that interests you, and how to plan and get ready to write. It also involves developing the plot and characters, setting the scene, and making the right atmosphere to draw readers into the story. It’s important to start a narrative essay with a strong introduction that grabs the reader’s attention and has a clear thesis statement. The body should be well-organized and include sensory details and dialogue to bring the story to life.

Last, the ending should wrap up the story and leave a lasting impression on the reader. By using these tips and tricks, you can learn how to write great narrative essays and tell great stories.

How to Edit, Proofread and Revise Your Narrative Essay to improve storytelling

Editing and revising are important steps in the writing process that can help you improve the quality and effectiveness of your narrative essay. Here are some tips for editing and revising your work:

– Take a break: Step away from your essay for a few hours or even a day or two to gain a fresh perspective.

– Check for coherence and clarity: Make sure that your ideas are presented in a logical and organized manner, and that your writing is clear and easy to understand.

– Eliminate unnecessary words: Look for any words or phrases that don’t add value to your writing and eliminate them.

– Check for spelling and grammar errors: Use a spell-checker and proofread your work carefully to ensure that there are no errors.

– Read your essay aloud: This can help you catch any awkward phrasing or sentences that need to be revised.

Common mistakes to avoid when editing and revising your narrative essay include:

– Overusing adjectives and adverbs: While descriptive language can help bring your story to life, too much of it can be distracting and take away from the overall impact of your writing.

– Failing to show, not tell: Instead of simply telling readers what happened, show them by using sensory details and vivid descriptions.

– Neglecting to revise the ending: The ending of your narrative essay is just as important as the beginning, so make sure that it wraps up the story effectively and leaves a lasting impression on the reader

Getting feedback from others is also an important part of the editing and revising process . Ask a trusted friend or family member to read your essay and provide feedback. You can also seek feedback from a writing tutor or instructor, or join a writing group to receive constructive criticism and support.

Narrative Essay Examples

To help you better understand the art of narrative essays, here are ten fascinating examples of narrative essays:

1. The Last Day of Her Life” by Robin Marantz Henig

2. “The Fourth State of Matter” by Jo Ann Beard

3. The Death of My Father” by Steve Martin

4. “The Fourth of July” by Audre Lorde

5. “The Chase” by Annie Dillard

6. “The Fourth State of Matter” by Jo Ann Beard

7. “The Best Day of My Life” by Tameka Cage Conley

8. The Raven” by Edgar Allan Poe

9. “The Fourth State of Matter” by Jo Ann Beard

10. “The Night” by Maxine Hong Kingston

Each of these narrative essays is effective in its own unique way, using vivid descriptions, sensory details, and compelling characters to create a powerful story. By analyzing these examples and understanding what makes them effective, you can gain a better understanding of how to write a successful narrative essay.

Narrative Essay Topics

If you’re struggling to come up with a topic for your narrative essay, here are 50 ideas that can help get you started:

1. The first day of college

2. A life-changing event

3. A memorable vacation

4. An experience that taught you a valuable lesson

5. A moment of personal growth or self-discovery

6. Overcoming a fear or phobia

7. A significant accomplishment

8. A time when you faced a difficult decision

9. A childhood memory

10. A relationship that had a significant impact on your life

11. A day you will never forget

12. A moment of true happiness

13. A time when you felt lost or alone

14. A time you had to stand up for yourself or someone else

15. A time when you had to overcome a setback or failure

16. A moment of courage or bravery

17. An experience that changed your perspective on life

18. A time when you had to make a sacrifice

19. A moment of true friendship

20. A time when you felt truly inspired

21. A significant romantic relationship

22. A moment of cultural exchange or immersion

23. An experience that taught you the value of hard work

24. A time when you had to adapt to a new situation

25. A moment of unexpected kindness

26. A time when you had to confront your fears

27. A moment of triumph over adversity

28. A time when you had to make a difficult ethical decision

29. A moment of realization or epiphany

30. A significant family event

31. A time when you had to learn to forgive

32. A moment of unexpected humor

33. A moment of deep sadness or loss

34. A time when you had to confront a personal challenge

35. A moment of true love

36. A time when you had to take a risk

37. An experience that taught you the importance of perseverance

38. A moment of clarity or understanding

39. A time when you had to learn to trust yourself

40. A moment of spiritual or religious significance

41. A time when you had to reconcile with someone

42. A moment of true beauty

43. A time when you had to confront a personal flaw or weakness

44. A moment of inspiration from nature

45. A time when you had to confront a social issue

46. A moment of unexpected grace

47. A time when you had to overcome a physical challenge

48. A moment of true bravery

49. A significant achievement in your life

50. A moment that changed your life forever .

Tips for College Narrative Writing

Writing a narrative essay can be a daunting task for college students, but with the right tips and techniques, you can craft an engaging and memorable piece. A narrative essay is an essay that tells a story, often from a personal experience. It’s a type of essay that allows you to express yourself creatively while still adhering to academic writing standards.

Narrative Essay Definition

Before we dive into the tips, let’s first understand what’s a narrative essay.

• A narrative essay is an essay that tells a story from beginning to end. It’s usually written in the first-person point of view and follows a chronological order. The purpose of a narrative essay is to engage the reader and provide a vivid, descriptive account of an experience or event.
• A narrative essay is a type of essay that tells a story. It’s a personal essay that allows you to share your experiences, thoughts, and emotions with the reader. Narrative essays are often used in college admissions or as part of a personal statement.

Tips for Writing a Narrative Essay

Now that you understand what a narrative essay is, let’s dive into some tips to help you craft a compelling and engaging piece.

1. Choose a Captivating Topic

The first step in writing a narrative essay is to choose a topic that is engaging and meaningful to you. Pick an experience or event that left a lasting impression or taught you an important lesson. A captivating topic will not only make the writing process more enjoyable, but it will also help engage your readers.

2. Show, Don’t Tell

One of the most important tips for narrative writing is to show, rather than tell, your story. Instead of simply stating what happened, use vivid descriptions, sensory details, and dialogue to bring your story to life. This will help your readers feel like they are experiencing the events themselves.

3. Use a Clear Structure

Like any other essay, a narrative essay should have a clear structure, with an introduction, body paragraphs, and a conclusion. The introduction should grab the reader’s attention and set the scene for your story. The body paragraphs should follow a chronological order and provide the details of your experience. The conclusion should bring your story to a satisfying end and tie everything together.

4. Incorporate Literary Devices

To make your narrative essay more engaging and impactful, consider incorporating literary devices such as metaphors, similes, and imagery. These devices can help you convey emotions, create vivid mental pictures, and add depth to your writing.

5. Proofread and Edit

Once you’ve finished writing your narrative essay, it’s important to proofread and edit your work. Check for spelling and grammar errors, as well as clarity and coherence. You may also want to have someone else read your essay and provide feedback.

Writing a narrative essay can be a rewarding and creative experience for college students. By following these tips and using the techniques mentioned, you can craft a compelling and engaging story that not only showcases your writing skills but also provides a glimpse into your personal experiences and growth.

Example of a Narrative Essay

Read more on narrative paper example

In conclusion , mastering the art of writing a narrative essay involves understanding the different types of narrative essays, choosing a topic that resonates with you, and planning and preparing your writing.

It also involves developing the plot and characters, setting the scene, and creating the right atmosphere to draw readers into the story. Editing and revision are important steps in the writing process, and seeking feedback from others can help improve the quality and effectiveness of your writing.

With the help of the 50 narrative essay topics and the tips and techniques provided in this article, you can practice and perfect the art of writing a compelling narrative essay. Remember, the key to success is to practice, revise, and refine your writing skills until you become a skilled and confident storyteller.

FAQs about Narrative Essays

Here are some frequently asked questions about narrative essays:

1. What is a narrative essay?

A narrative essay is a type of essay that tells a story from the author’s perspective, often drawing on personal experiences and emotions to create a compelling narrative.

2. What are the elements of a narrative essay?

The elements of a narrative essay include a clear introduction that sets the stage for the story, a well-developed plot with a beginning, middle, and end, vivid descriptions that help the reader visualize the setting and characters, and a conclusion that ties everything together and leaves a lasting impression on the reader.

3. How do I choose a topic for a narrative essay ?

Choosing a topic for a narrative essay involves understanding the purpose of your essay, choosing a topic that resonates with you, and using brainstorming techniques to generate ideas.

4. What is the structure of a narrative essay?

The structure of a narrative essay typically includes an introduction, body, and conclusion, with each part serving a distinct purpose in telling the story.

5. What is the difference between a narrative essay and a descriptive essay?

While both narrative and descriptive essays use vivid language to create a compelling story, the main difference is that a narrative essay tells a story from the author’s perspective, while a descriptive essay focuses on describing a particular person, place, or thing in detail.

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3 Great Narrative Essay Examples + Tips for Writing

General Education

A narrative essay is one of the most intimidating assignments you can be handed at any level of your education. Where you've previously written argumentative essays that make a point or analytic essays that dissect meaning, a narrative essay asks you to write what is effectively a story .

But unlike a simple work of creative fiction, your narrative essay must have a clear and concrete motif —a recurring theme or idea that you’ll explore throughout. Narrative essays are less rigid, more creative in expression, and therefore pretty different from most other essays you’ll be writing.

But not to fear—in this article, we’ll be covering what a narrative essay is, how to write a good one, and also analyzing some personal narrative essay examples to show you what a great one looks like.

What Is a Narrative Essay?

At first glance, a narrative essay might sound like you’re just writing a story. Like the stories you're used to reading, a narrative essay is generally (but not always) chronological, following a clear throughline from beginning to end. Even if the story jumps around in time, all the details will come back to one specific theme, demonstrated through your choice in motifs.

Unlike many creative stories, however, your narrative essay should be based in fact. That doesn’t mean that every detail needs to be pure and untainted by imagination, but rather that you shouldn’t wholly invent the events of your narrative essay. There’s nothing wrong with inventing a person’s words if you can’t remember them exactly, but you shouldn’t say they said something they weren’t even close to saying.

Another big difference between narrative essays and creative fiction—as well as other kinds of essays—is that narrative essays are based on motifs. A motif is a dominant idea or theme, one that you establish before writing the essay. As you’re crafting the narrative, it’ll feed back into your motif to create a comprehensive picture of whatever that motif is.

For example, say you want to write a narrative essay about how your first day in high school helped you establish your identity. You might discuss events like trying to figure out where to sit in the cafeteria, having to describe yourself in five words as an icebreaker in your math class, or being unsure what to do during your lunch break because it’s no longer acceptable to go outside and play during lunch. All of those ideas feed back into the central motif of establishing your identity.

The important thing to remember is that while a narrative essay is typically told chronologically and intended to read like a story, it is not purely for entertainment value. A narrative essay delivers its theme by deliberately weaving the motifs through the events, scenes, and details. While a narrative essay may be entertaining, its primary purpose is to tell a complete story based on a central meaning.

Unlike other essay forms, it is totally okay—even expected—to use first-person narration in narrative essays. If you’re writing a story about yourself, it’s natural to refer to yourself within the essay. It’s also okay to use other perspectives, such as third- or even second-person, but that should only be done if it better serves your motif. Generally speaking, your narrative essay should be in first-person perspective.

Though your motif choices may feel at times like you’re making a point the way you would in an argumentative essay, a narrative essay’s goal is to tell a story, not convince the reader of anything. Your reader should be able to tell what your motif is from reading, but you don’t have to change their mind about anything. If they don’t understand the point you are making, you should consider strengthening the delivery of the events and descriptions that support your motif.

Narrative essays also share some features with analytical essays, in which you derive meaning from a book, film, or other media. But narrative essays work differently—you’re not trying to draw meaning from an existing text, but rather using an event you’ve experienced to convey meaning. In an analytical essay, you examine narrative, whereas in a narrative essay you create narrative.

The structure of a narrative essay is also a bit different than other essays. You’ll generally be getting your point across chronologically as opposed to grouping together specific arguments in paragraphs or sections. To return to the example of an essay discussing your first day of high school and how it impacted the shaping of your identity, it would be weird to put the events out of order, even if not knowing what to do after lunch feels like a stronger idea than choosing where to sit. Instead of organizing to deliver your information based on maximum impact, you’ll be telling your story as it happened, using concrete details to reinforce your theme.

3 Great Narrative Essay Examples

One of the best ways to learn how to write a narrative essay is to look at a great narrative essay sample. Let’s take a look at some truly stellar narrative essay examples and dive into what exactly makes them work so well.

A Ticket to the Fair by David Foster Wallace

Today is Press Day at the Illinois State Fair in Springfield, and I’m supposed to be at the fairgrounds by 9:00 A.M. to get my credentials. I imagine credentials to be a small white card in the band of a fedora. I’ve never been considered press before. My real interest in credentials is getting into rides and shows for free. I’m fresh in from the East Coast, for an East Coast magazine. Why exactly they’re interested in the Illinois State Fair remains unclear to me. I suspect that every so often editors at East Coast magazines slap their foreheads and remember that about 90 percent of the United States lies between the coasts, and figure they’ll engage somebody to do pith-helmeted anthropological reporting on something rural and heartlandish. I think they asked me to do this because I grew up here, just a couple hours’ drive from downstate Springfield. I never did go to the state fair, though—I pretty much topped out at the county fair level. Actually, I haven’t been back to Illinois for a long time, and I can’t say I’ve missed it.

Throughout this essay, David Foster Wallace recounts his experience as press at the Illinois State Fair. But it’s clear from this opening that he’s not just reporting on the events exactly as they happened—though that’s also true— but rather making a point about how the East Coast, where he lives and works, thinks about the Midwest.

In his opening paragraph, Wallace states that outright: “Why exactly they’re interested in the Illinois State Fair remains unclear to me. I suspect that every so often editors at East Coast magazines slap their foreheads and remember that about 90 percent of the United States lies between the coasts, and figure they’ll engage somebody to do pith-helmeted anthropological reporting on something rural and heartlandish.”

Not every motif needs to be stated this clearly , but in an essay as long as Wallace’s, particularly since the audience for such a piece may feel similarly and forget that such a large portion of the country exists, it’s important to make that point clear.

But Wallace doesn’t just rest on introducing his motif and telling the events exactly as they occurred from there. It’s clear that he selects events that remind us of that idea of East Coast cynicism , such as when he realizes that the Help Me Grow tent is standing on top of fake grass that is killing the real grass beneath, when he realizes the hypocrisy of craving a corn dog when faced with a real, suffering pig, when he’s upset for his friend even though he’s not the one being sexually harassed, and when he witnesses another East Coast person doing something he wouldn’t dare to do.

Wallace is literally telling the audience exactly what happened, complete with dates and timestamps for when each event occurred. But he’s also choosing those events with a purpose—he doesn’t focus on details that don’t serve his motif. That’s why he discusses the experiences of people, how the smells are unappealing to him, and how all the people he meets, in cowboy hats, overalls, or “black spandex that looks like cheesecake leotards,” feel almost alien to him.

All of these details feed back into the throughline of East Coast thinking that Wallace introduces in the first paragraph. He also refers back to it in the essay’s final paragraph, stating:

At last, an overarching theory blooms inside my head: megalopolitan East Coasters’ summer treats and breaks and literally ‘getaways,’ flights-from—from crowds, noise, heat, dirt, the stress of too many sensory choices….The East Coast existential treat is escape from confines and stimuli—quiet, rustic vistas that hold still, turn inward, turn away. Not so in the rural Midwest. Here you’re pretty much away all the time….Something in a Midwesterner sort of actuates , deep down, at a public event….The real spectacle that draws us here is us.

Throughout this journey, Wallace has tried to demonstrate how the East Coast thinks about the Midwest, ultimately concluding that they are captivated by the Midwest’s less stimuli-filled life, but that the real reason they are interested in events like the Illinois State Fair is that they are, in some ways, a means of looking at the East Coast in a new, estranging way.

The reason this works so well is that Wallace has carefully chosen his examples, outlined his motif and themes in the first paragraph, and eventually circled back to the original motif with a clearer understanding of his original point.

When outlining your own narrative essay, try to do the same. Start with a theme, build upon it with examples, and return to it in the end with an even deeper understanding of the original issue. You don’t need this much space to explore a theme, either—as we’ll see in the next example, a strong narrative essay can also be very short.

Death of a Moth by Virginia Woolf

After a time, tired by his dancing apparently, he settled on the window ledge in the sun, and, the queer spectacle being at an end, I forgot about him. Then, looking up, my eye was caught by him. He was trying to resume his dancing, but seemed either so stiff or so awkward that he could only flutter to the bottom of the window-pane; and when he tried to fly across it he failed. Being intent on other matters I watched these futile attempts for a time without thinking, unconsciously waiting for him to resume his flight, as one waits for a machine, that has stopped momentarily, to start again without considering the reason of its failure. After perhaps a seventh attempt he slipped from the wooden ledge and fell, fluttering his wings, on to his back on the window sill. The helplessness of his attitude roused me. It flashed upon me that he was in difficulties; he could no longer raise himself; his legs struggled vainly. But, as I stretched out a pencil, meaning to help him to right himself, it came over me that the failure and awkwardness were the approach of death. I laid the pencil down again.

In this essay, Virginia Woolf explains her encounter with a dying moth. On surface level, this essay is just a recounting of an afternoon in which she watched a moth die—it’s even established in the title. But there’s more to it than that. Though Woolf does not begin her essay with as clear a motif as Wallace, it’s not hard to pick out the evidence she uses to support her point, which is that the experience of this moth is also the human experience.

In the title, Woolf tells us this essay is about death. But in the first paragraph, she seems to mostly be discussing life—the moth is “content with life,” people are working in the fields, and birds are flying. However, she mentions that it is mid-September and that the fields were being plowed. It’s autumn and it’s time for the harvest; the time of year in which many things die.

In this short essay, she chronicles the experience of watching a moth seemingly embody life, then die. Though this essay is literally about a moth, it’s also about a whole lot more than that. After all, moths aren’t the only things that die—Woolf is also reflecting on her own mortality, as well as the mortality of everything around her.

At its core, the essay discusses the push and pull of life and death, not in a way that’s necessarily sad, but in a way that is accepting of both. Woolf begins by setting up the transitional fall season, often associated with things coming to an end, and raises the ideas of pleasure, vitality, and pity.

At one point, Woolf tries to help the dying moth, but reconsiders, as it would interfere with the natural order of the world. The moth’s death is part of the natural order of the world, just like fall, just like her own eventual death.

All these themes are set up in the beginning and explored throughout the essay’s narrative. Though Woolf doesn’t directly state her theme, she reinforces it by choosing a small, isolated event—watching a moth die—and illustrating her point through details.

With this essay, we can see that you don’t need a big, weird, exciting event to discuss an important meaning. Woolf is able to explore complicated ideas in a short essay by being deliberate about what details she includes, just as you can be in your own essays.

Notes of a Native Son by James Baldwin

On the twenty-ninth of July, in 1943, my father died. On the same day, a few hours later, his last child was born. Over a month before this, while all our energies were concentrated in waiting for these events, there had been, in Detroit, one of the bloodiest race riots of the century. A few hours after my father’s funeral, while he lay in state in the undertaker’s chapel, a race riot broke out in Harlem. On the morning of the third of August, we drove my father to the graveyard through a wilderness of smashed plate glass.

Like Woolf, Baldwin does not lay out his themes in concrete terms—unlike Wallace, there’s no clear sentence that explains what he’ll be talking about. However, you can see the motifs quite clearly: death, fatherhood, struggle, and race.

Throughout the narrative essay, Baldwin discusses the circumstances of his father’s death, including his complicated relationship with his father. By introducing those motifs in the first paragraph, the reader understands that everything discussed in the essay will come back to those core ideas. When Baldwin talks about his experience with a white teacher taking an interest in him and his father’s resistance to that, he is also talking about race and his father’s death. When he talks about his father’s death, he is also talking about his views on race. When he talks about his encounters with segregation and racism, he is talking, in part, about his father.

Because his father was a hard, uncompromising man, Baldwin struggles to reconcile the knowledge that his father was right about many things with his desire to not let that hardness consume him, as well.

Baldwin doesn’t explicitly state any of this, but his writing so often touches on the same motifs that it becomes clear he wants us to think about all these ideas in conversation with one another.

At the end of the essay, Baldwin makes it more clear:

This fight begins, however, in the heart and it had now been laid to my charge to keep my own heart free of hatred and despair. This intimation made my heart heavy and, now that my father was irrecoverable, I wished that he had been beside me so that I could have searched his face for the answers which only the future would give me now.

Here, Baldwin ties together the themes and motifs into one clear statement: that he must continue to fight and recognize injustice, especially racial injustice, just as his father did. But unlike his father, he must do it beginning with himself—he must not let himself be closed off to the world as his father was. And yet, he still wishes he had his father for guidance, even as he establishes that he hopes to be a different man than his father.

In this essay, Baldwin loads the front of the essay with his motifs, and, through his narrative, weaves them together into a theme. In the end, he comes to a conclusion that connects all of those things together and leaves the reader with a lasting impression of completion—though the elements may have been initially disparate, in the end everything makes sense.

You can replicate this tactic of introducing seemingly unattached ideas and weaving them together in your own essays. By introducing those motifs, developing them throughout, and bringing them together in the end, you can demonstrate to your reader how all of them are related. However, it’s especially important to be sure that your motifs and clear and consistent throughout your essay so that the conclusion feels earned and consistent—if not, readers may feel mislead.

5 Key Tips for Writing Narrative Essays

Narrative essays can be a lot of fun to write since they’re so heavily based on creativity. But that can also feel intimidating—sometimes it’s easier to have strict guidelines than to have to make it all up yourself. Here are a few tips to keep your narrative essay feeling strong and fresh.

Develop Strong Motifs

Motifs are the foundation of a narrative essay . What are you trying to say? How can you say that using specific symbols or events? Those are your motifs.

In the same way that an argumentative essay’s body should support its thesis, the body of your narrative essay should include motifs that support your theme.

Try to avoid cliches, as these will feel tired to your readers. Instead of roses to symbolize love, try succulents. Instead of the ocean representing some vast, unknowable truth, try the depths of your brother’s bedroom. Keep your language and motifs fresh and your essay will be even stronger!

Use First-Person Perspective

In many essays, you’re expected to remove yourself so that your points stand on their own. Not so in a narrative essay—in this case, you want to make use of your own perspective.

Sometimes a different perspective can make your point even stronger. If you want someone to identify with your point of view, it may be tempting to choose a second-person perspective. However, be sure you really understand the function of second-person; it’s very easy to put a reader off if the narration isn’t expertly deployed.

If you want a little bit of distance, third-person perspective may be okay. But be careful—too much distance and your reader may feel like the narrative lacks truth.

That’s why first-person perspective is the standard. It keeps you, the writer, close to the narrative, reminding the reader that it really happened. And because you really know what happened and how, you’re free to inject your own opinion into the story without it detracting from your point, as it would in a different type of essay.

Stick to the Truth

Your essay should be true. However, this is a creative essay, and it’s okay to embellish a little. Rarely in life do we experience anything with a clear, concrete meaning the way somebody in a book might. If you flub the details a little, it’s okay—just don’t make them up entirely.

Also, nobody expects you to perfectly recall details that may have happened years ago. You may have to reconstruct dialog from your memory and your imagination. That’s okay, again, as long as you aren’t making it up entirely and assigning made-up statements to somebody.

Dialog is a powerful tool. A good conversation can add flavor and interest to a story, as we saw demonstrated in David Foster Wallace’s essay. As previously mentioned, it’s okay to flub it a little, especially because you’re likely writing about an experience you had without knowing that you’d be writing about it later.

However, don’t rely too much on it. Your narrative essay shouldn’t be told through people explaining things to one another; the motif comes through in the details. Dialog can be one of those details, but it shouldn’t be the only one.

Use Sensory Descriptions

Because a narrative essay is a story, you can use sensory details to make your writing more interesting. If you’re describing a particular experience, you can go into detail about things like taste, smell, and hearing in a way that you probably wouldn’t do in any other essay style.

These details can tie into your overall motifs and further your point. Woolf describes in great detail what she sees while watching the moth, giving us the sense that we, too, are watching the moth. In Wallace’s essay, he discusses the sights, sounds, and smells of the Illinois State Fair to help emphasize his point about its strangeness. And in Baldwin’s essay, he describes shattered glass as a “wilderness,” and uses the feelings of his body to describe his mental state.

All these descriptions anchor us not only in the story, but in the motifs and themes as well. One of the tools of a writer is making the reader feel as you felt, and sensory details help you achieve that.

What’s Next?

Looking to brush up on your essay-writing capabilities before the ACT? This guide to ACT English will walk you through some of the best strategies and practice questions to get you prepared!

Part of practicing for the ACT is ensuring your word choice and diction are on point. Check out this guide to some of the most common errors on the ACT English section to be sure that you're not making these common mistakes!

A solid understanding of English principles will help you make an effective point in a narrative essay, and you can get that understanding through taking a rigorous assortment of high school English classes !

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Melissa Brinks graduated from the University of Washington in 2014 with a Bachelor's in English with a creative writing emphasis. She has spent several years tutoring K-12 students in many subjects, including in SAT prep, to help them prepare for their college education.

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Editor’s note: Below is a collection of 16 common fiction writing mistakes by Writers.com instructor Rosemary Tantra Bensko . It forms a great companion to her short story writing checklist (much of which is applicable to fiction writing of any length). If you want to know common errors fiction writers make—and how to address them—then dive in!

What are some of the most frequent mistakes I see in student fiction?

Story-Level Mistakes in Fiction Writing

Let’s start with important matters of the story itself.

1. Not writing fiction!

Fiction is in narrative format. Very often, beginning students will write expository prose, instead, reporting from a distance rather than letting us see the details and interpret them ourselves. Expository is essay format, telling us about something rather than showing us one action following the next. Within a short story, maybe a paragraph or two of expository prose is fine, or a sentence here and there. The usual recommendation is to avoid it at the beginning, though, so you can immediately hook readers with action. When you write predominantly expository, the action isn’t anchored in one time and place with a character experiencing things with her senses. The readers feel ungrounded, waiting for the story to happen, and the plot isn’t following scene structure. In fact, there is no plot if it’s mostly expository. We must have one action follow another to be narrative, shown not told. If you see phrases like “we often went,” “we would go on Sundays,” “whenever we got too late,” etc. you know you’re writing expository, as it’s summing up what happens over a time period or periodically. Try picking one of those iterations of the event and slow down to show it second by second, including rather than paraphrasing the dialogue, with one sentence per action, employing the senses to immerse us in the moment.

2. Too much backstory.

We need to know at all times where the main character is and when the action is happening. Each story needs one current timeline. It’s fine to jump around here and there for flashbacks and expository backstory, as long as the readers are dying to be filled in with that information because the action created mystery they want solved. But beginning writers very often lose the thread and readers can’t keep track or even guess when anything is happening. Often the actual story ends up being a tiny bit of the whole, the rest being backstory or expository. And that is very weak. A story must be complete, and that’s not possible if there’s only a bit of it floating within the confusion.

3. Forgetting to include a plot.

That’s fine if it’s experimental Literary fiction, but with Genre fiction, especially, the formula must be fulfilled. There must be a protagonist with a goal thwarted by an antagonist. In a Literary tragedy, the protagonist may be given opportunities to change in order to achieve the goal and fail. Otherwise, there is victory at the end, which the protagonist gains through what he learned through the encounters with the antagonist. Usually the protagonist’s arc is indicated at the beginning through the flaw that needs to resolve, and we root for him as he learns the hard way what he needs to succeed. In a short story, the success can be implied after an epiphany, whereas in a longer piece, we should see that victorious battle scene play out as the most dramatic, rousing part of the narrative.

4. Lack of suspense.

Suspense arises from hope and fear. We hope the protagonist will achieve what she needs, even if it’s just bare survival. We fear she won’t—maybe she’ll even die if she can’t bring herself to change, or if she is resistant to figuring out the mystery of a Whodoneit. Lots of backstory and expository tends to kill suspense. Low stakes leave us nothing vital to worry about. Including too much material that is extraneous to the plot weakens suspense. Long paragraphs without pauses, repeated sentence structures, wandering away from the current time of the narrative, and head hopping prevent us from emotionally engaging.

Paragraph-Level Mistakes in Fiction Writing

There, that wasn’t too bad. Let’s zoom in slightly and look at paragraphing tactics for ease of reading and most impact.

5. Paragraphs that are about more than one subject.

If it goes on for too long, with multiple subjects, actions, thoughts, revelations of new information, etc., it can sound like the narrator is deranged, manic or unorganized. If you want your narrator to seem functional, break the paragraphs and let the topic breathe. Reading long paragraphs is very difficult for people, anyway, so keep it easy to process. We need the white space to let our brains take a beat to think about and feel the weight of what just happened. Then we can move on to accept new information and feel entertained. Otherwise, it becomes an unpleasant, tiring and overwhelming chore. When you break it, you let what just happened reverberate. You honor it.

6. “Head hopping” with multiple point-of-view (POV) characters in a scene.

Ideally there is only one POV character in a scene, as otherwise, it tends to be head hopping. But if you are writing Omniscient POV, though it’s not recommended as it’s out of favor, you may include multiple characters in a scene that we see inside: we listen to their thoughts. If that’s the case, it’s far preferable to stick to just one character per paragraph.

7. Writing all your paragraphs the same length.

This isn’t an error, but it doesn’t fully take advantage of creative options. When this happens, people often also write most of the sentences in the same structure. The effect can be monotony and tedium. Keep us awake by changing things up. Try a one sentence paragraph for a sassy ironic statement. Try short paragraphs for suspenseful action, followed by a longer paragraph when things calm down and characters are analyzing the situation.

Formatting Mistakes in Fiction Writing

Now let’s look at some formatting issues.

8. Forgetting to make the first sentence of a scene flush left.

All the other sentences should begin with the first sentence indented, but not the beginnings of scenes. A scene in fiction occurs after a break in time. Sometimes it’s similar to movies in that a new location will also begin a new scene. Sometimes the narrative can be continuous in time, but an author will switch to a new scene, and that’s because the scene has been completed. How can you tell if the scene is complete? A scene traditionally begins with its main character pursuing a goal that is made hard to achieve because of the antagonist, and then the protagonist fails at her mission. If she succeeded easily, there would be no story. Then, she has to rethink because of her new dilemma, and makes a decision about how to move forward in her next scene.

9. Using improper fonts, etc.

Most commonly writers use 12 Times New Roman, .05 indented first line, left justified, with no extra spaces between lines. When submitting to a class, beta reader, editor, magazine, agent or publisher, it’s double spaced. It’s standardized this way because it’s easier to read, and you don’t want to distract people by making them struggle to mentally process it. If you are formatting it yourself when preparing for publishing, it’s single spaced and there is some leeway with font. Don’t manually indent but set it up so it happens automatically.

10. Dialogue with more than one speaker in the same paragraph.

Always break for each new speaker. Keep all the descriptions of the speaker and his actions and thoughts all within the same paragraph as the spoken words. When someone else is nodding, smirking, etc., that’s pretty much the same as dialogue, so it is in a new paragraph.

Sentence-Level Fiction Writing Mistakes

Lastly, let’s look at niggling details at the sentence level.

11. Writing Further when you mean Farther .

These are two different, valid words. Further refers to conceptual distance, like: “I’ll look into it further.” Farther refers to spatial distance, like: “I can see farther than you can because I’m taller.”

12.  Writing in American English but using a British spelling randomly, such as writing Grey instead of Gray .

That’s been done so much lately in informal writing, it’s not frowned up with the lips turned down as much as they used to be. But so far, in published fiction, we basically still only see Gray .

13. Inconsistency in numbers: sometimes spelling them out, and randomly using numerals.

There are different rules that are acceptable, but the most commonly used rule in fiction is to spell out all numbers under 100. Some people instead choose to spell out words under 10. Whatever scheme you pick is OK as long as you stick with it. Otherwise, it becomes distracting and it seems like you aren’t in control of your prose.

14. People “laying out on the beach,” or “laying down.”

Nope, that may be what you say to your friends out loud, but unless it’s in dialogue and meant to suggest someone speaking informally and colloquially, write it grammatically. People lie down and lie on the beach.

15. Comma splices (c/s) scattered throughout a story.

When two complete sentences that could stand alone are joined with a comma, that’s a comma splice. An example: When Mary went to the market, she ran into George, she’d guessed she’d see him that day, because her nose was twitching like crazy. You could fix this by using a colon, semicolon, conjunction or period. But don’t go wild and put semicolons and colons where they don’t belong, like “Joe thought she was great; because she beat him at thumb-wrestling.”

16. Putting extra spaces between sentences.

That rule went out in 1978. Time to get with the program.

Make These Common Fiction Writing Mistakes, then Grow Past Them

All right, there you have it! If you do any of those things, you aren’t alone! And taking classes in which you make these errors and have them pointed out can be a great way to discover you’re doing it. Mistakes need to be made: just reading about them often isn’t enough. So, get your hands dirty, make some naughty mistakes, and then wash your hands of them forever.

Rosemary, thanks for this post. I’ve bookmarked it and will definitely will reference it often. I was, however, surprised that you said that Omniscient POV, is out of favor. What POV style is in favor?

Rosemary, this is such a handy list of reminders! Thank you very much for sharing. I’ll print it and keep it close by!

I’m 82 and working on my first novel (historical fiction/romance). I’ve been writing in a spiral binder with my feet up in my recliner while my husband watches endless TV. Maybe not what I’m supposed to do but it works for me. I’ve looked everywhere for information about fonts, page set-up, etc. and was so happy to come cross your site. Thank you so much, Rosemary; now I can get started putting everything into the computer. Any other tips anyone can give me about how the manuscript should look (margins, etc) would be greatly appreciated. LORI

Hi Rosemary, Thank you for sharing your article. I learn something new on the tips that I never apply from my previous experience in writing a book. Writing is a specialty that requires both skills and talents. I learn by doing, by committing my errors, and afterward observing where I turned out badly.

Cheers! Greg

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What Is a Narrative Essay? Definition & 20+ Examples

Ever wondered how life’s vibrant, personal experiences could transform into compelling stories? Welcome to the world of narrative essays, where the art of storytelling meets the essence of self-expression.

This vibrant genre paints vivid pictures, provoking emotions and connecting readers to experiences, perhaps similar to their own or completely novel. Embark on this literary journey with us as we delve into the heart of narrative essays, unearthing the magic of narrating tales spun from threads of personal experiences, historical events, and more.

Prepare to immerse yourself in the fascinating universe where life and literature intertwine.

Table of Contents

Defining Narrative Essay

A narrative essay is a genre of writing that tells a story, often from the writer’s personal perspective. In this type of essay, the author provides a series of events, characters, and settings, allowing readers to immerse themselves in the experience. Although typically written in the first person, narrative essays can be written in the third person as well.

The purpose of a narrative essay is not only to entertain but also to convey a meaningful message or lesson. These essays can be drawn from real-life experiences or fictional scenarios, but they should be engaging and create an emotional connection with the reader. Narrative essays are often used to explore personal growth, relationships, and various worldviews and experiences.

In a narrative essay, it is essential to use vivid, descriptive language and a clear structure to help the reader follow the narrative. While engaging the reader’s emotions, the essay must maintain a consistent point of view and avoid unnecessary complexity or ambiguity.

History of Narrative Essay

The narrative essay has its roots in oral storytelling traditions dating back to ancient civilizations. The art of telling stories has been present across cultures and continents as a means to communicate, preserve history, and entertain. Early examples of narratives were usually passed down through generations of storytellers, which led narratives to transform and adapt over time.

In the Middle Ages , the invention of the printing press allowed for written narratives to become more widely accessible, leading to the rise of written narrative essays. Literature, like Chaucer’s “Canterbury Tales” and Boccaccio’s “Decameron,” showcased the importance of storytelling as a medium to understand and reflect on human experiences.

During the Romantic period in the 18th and 19th centuries , the narrative essay took on new life as authors like Samuel Taylor Coleridge and Edgar Allan Poe explored the genre’s creative and intellectual potential. They used narrative essays to express their individual perspectives and encouraged readers to think beyond conventions and social norms.

During the 20th century , the narrative essay became even more prevalent, with the rise of digital technology and the internet making it easier for writers to share their stories via blogs , social media , and online literary publications .

Today , the narrative essay has evolved into a versatile genre that continues to remain a popular form of expression in literature and the digital age.

Although the format of narrative essays has changed over the years, their central purpose — to share personal experiences , entertain readers , and reflect on the human condition — has remained consistent, contributing to the genre’s enduring appeal.

Functions of Narrative Essay

Storytelling.

Narrative essays serve as an effective platform for storytelling. Through these essays, writers impart exciting and entertaining tales to their readers as they incorporate essential elements such as plot , setting , and character .

One primary function of a narrative essay is to engage the audience by keeping them hooked. With its descriptive and vivid language style, it captures the reader’s imagination and evokes curiosity.

Narrative essays also play a role in imparting valuable knowledge and life lessons. They can portray real-life events and experiences that provide readers with a deeper understanding of the world.

These essays offer a medium for reflecting on personal experiences, growth, and emotional journeys, allowing both the writer and the reader to gain valuable insights from past events and decisions.

Though narrative essays primarily tell stories, they can also serve as a tool for persuasion. By presenting a narrative from a specific perspective, writers can subtly influence the reader’s opinions and beliefs on a particular topic.

Through sharing personal stories and experiences, narrative essays help build a connection between the writer and the reader. They create a sense of empathy and relatability, bridging the gap between different backgrounds and perspectives.

Exploration of Themes

Narrative essays allow for an in-depth exploration of themes ranging from morality to the complexities of human relationships. Writers can weave these themes into their stories to provoke thought and discussion.

Character Development

Character development is an essential aspect of narrative essays. By showcasing the growth and transformation of a character, the essay becomes more engaging and dynamic while also revealing insights into human behavior and psychology.

Characteristics of Narrative Essay

Narrative essay tells a story.

A narrative essay presents a story with a clear beginning , middle , and end . The writer’s goal is to engage the reader with vivid descriptions and captivating events, drawing them into the story and encouraging them to experience the emotions and events alongside the characters.

First-Person Perspective

Often written in first-person perspective, narrative essays allow the writer to share their experiences and thoughts with the reader. This point of view connects the reader with the protagonist, creating a more personal and intimate experience.

Characters and Dialogue

Well-developed characters and believable dialogue contribute to the overall authenticity of a narrative essay. The writer achieves this by creating dynamic characters with distinct voices and personalities, with the dialogue often propelling the story forward.

Descriptive Language

Using descriptive language helps paint a picture in the reader’s mind, immersing them in the story’s setting and atmosphere. Adjectives, sensory details, and imagery are essential tools in crafting a vivid narrative.

Plot and Structure

A narrative essay must have a clear, well-structured plot with a beginning, middle, and end. The writer unfolds the story in a way that builds tension and excitement, driving the reader to anticipate the resolution.

Chronological Order

Events in a narrative essay usually unfold in chronological order, following the natural progression of time. This allows the reader to follow the story easily and maintain their engagement.

Theme or Message

Narrative essays often explore themes or convey a message to the reader. The writer subtly weaves this message throughout the story, allowing the reader to understand and appreciate the underlying meaning gradually.

Conflict and Resolution

Conflict drives the story forward, creating excitement and tension that keeps the reader engaged. The narrative essay should present a central conflict that the characters encounter and, ultimately, resolve.

Narrative essays frequently include reflective moments, during which the writer pauses to consider the significance of the events, characters, or conflicts they are describing. These moments help the reader gain a deeper understanding of the writer’s thoughts and the message they are conveying.

Importance of Narrative Essay

Narrative essay enables individuals to articulate their emotions.

Narrative essays enable writers to express their thoughts, feelings, and experiences. They provide an opportunity for individuals to articulate their emotions and insights through storytelling. This promotes a sense of self-awareness, helping individuals better comprehend their own actions and beliefs.

Narrative Essay Engages Readers

Narrative essays engage readers by presenting stories in artistic and imaginative ways. They captivate the audience through vivid descriptions, colorful language, and emotionally resonant themes. This creates an immersive experience, allowing readers to not only learn from the writer’s experiences but also feel emotionally connected to them.

Narrative Essay Enhances One’s Communication Skills

Writing narrative essays enhances one’s communication skills. It requires clear and concise language, as well as the ability to convey ideas in an organized and coherent manner. This practice hones one’s writing ability and overall communication skills.

Narrative Essay Promotes Empathy

A well-written narrative essay promotes empathy by allowing readers to experience events from different perspectives. It encourages understanding and appreciation for the distinct viewpoints of other individuals, fostering respect and appreciation for diversity.

Narrative Essay Challenges a Writer’s Critical Thinking

Developing a narrative essay challenges a writer’s critical thinking ability to evaluate experiences and draw meaningful conclusions. This process of reflection provides an opportunity for personal growth and learning, ultimately cultivating a well-rounded individual.

Narrative Essays Convey Themes or Messages

Narrative essays often relay themes and messages that reflect the writer’s beliefs or values. By sharing these themes, writers provide insights that readers may relate to and learn from, leading to personal growth and understanding.

Narrative Essay Builds Empathy

Sharing personal stories through narrative essays can help build empathy among readers. By connecting with the experiences and emotions presented, readers have the opportunity to develop a deeper understanding of others and foster compassion in their own lives.

Narrative Essay Encourages Individuals to Explore

Narrative essays entice readers with engaging stories that are interesting and emotionally impactful. This motivation to read can foster an appreciation for literature, encouraging individuals to further explore and engage with written works.

Elements of Narrative Essay

In a narrative essay, the plot is the sequence of events that make up the story. It typically follows a chronological order and includes an exposition , rising action , climax , falling action , and resolution . Each event should contribute to the overall theme and message of the essay.

Characters are the people, animals, or other beings that participate in the story. They have individual personalities, motivations, and conflicts. The main character, or protagonist , is the central figure in a narrative essay, and readers often empathize with them as they undergo various experiences.

The setting is the time and place in which the story occurs. It can be a specific location or a more general environment. The setting contributes to the overall atmosphere and mood of the narrative essay, and it can influence how characters interact with one another.

Point of View

Point of view refers to the perspective from which the story is told. In a third-person narrative essay, the author uses “he,” “she,” “it,” or “they” to tell the story. This allows the writer to provide a more objective view, showing events and character actions without the bias of a first-person narrator.

Conflict is the struggle between opposing forces that drives the plot forward. It can be internal, within a character’s own mind or emotions, or external, between characters or against an outside force. Conflict creates tension and keeps the reader engaged in the story.

Theme refers to the underlying message or central idea that the writer wants to convey through their narrative essay. It can be a commentary on society, human nature, or other universal concepts. A strong theme helps to tie the essay together and contributes to its overall impact on the reader.

Dialogue is the conversation between characters in a narrative essay. It helps to establish character relationships, reveal information, and move the plot forward. Effective dialogue should sound natural and reflect the speaker’s personality and voice.

Narrative Structure

The narrative structure is the organization and arrangement of events in the essay. It includes elements like flashbacks , foreshadowing , and parallel plotlines to create a cohesive and engaging reading experience.

Description

The description is the use of sensory details and vivid language to help the reader visualize the story. It can include the appearance of characters, settings, and objects, as well as sounds, smells, and other sensory details. Effective description enhances the reader’s immersion in the story and supports the emotional impact.

Reflective Aspect

The reflective aspect of a narrative essay refers to the author’s insights and personal growth as a result of the events in the story. It is an opportunity for the author to analyze and reflect on the experiences and emotions they have conveyed, providing a deeper level of understanding for the reader.

Structure of Narrative Essays

Introduction.

Narrative essays generally begin with an introduction that presents the background and sets the stage for the story. This section introduces the main characters, their relationships, and the setting or context in which the story takes place.

The introduction also establishes the purpose or main idea of the essay, grabbing the reader’s attention and sparking their interest in the unfolding events.

Rising Action

The rising action includes a series of events or experiences that create tension and suspense, gradually building toward the pivotal point of the story. In this section, the writer conveys the various challenges and obstacles faced by the main characters while developing the plot and providing insights into their personalities and motivations.

The rising action helps the reader become emotionally invested in the characters and their journey.

The climax is the turning point or the most intense moment in the story, where the central conflict reaches its peak. It is at this stage that the main characters confront the challenges or adversities they have been facing, often resulting in dramatic, emotional, or transformative consequences.

The climax is a crucial moment in the narrative essay, as it determines the outcome of the story and the eventual fate of the characters.

Falling Action

Following the climax, the story enters its falling action phase . In this section, the events and repercussions of the climax begin to unfold, and tensions start to subside. The writer gradually moves towards a resolution of the main conflict while also tying up loose ends and potentially introducing ancillary outcomes that result from the central events.

Conclusion or Resolution

The conclusion or resolution offers a sense of closure or finality by addressing the outcome of the story. It may present the characters reflecting on their experiences, lessons learned, or the consequences of their actions. Ideally, the resolution leaves the reader with a feeling of satisfaction, having followed the characters on their journey and reached an appropriate conclusion.

A narrative essay may also include a reflection section, where the writer discusses the significance of the story or its broader implications. This section allows the writer to share their personal insights, thoughts, or feelings about the events in the narrative and may offer a deeper perspective on the themes or messages explored in the essay.

The reflection, when included, can help to elevate the narrative by adding depth and context to the overall story.

Popular Narrative Essay Topics

Personal experiences.

Narrative essays often focus on personal experiences as they allow the writer to share a unique story with their readers. These topics could include a memorable childhood event, a life lesson learned, or overcoming a significant obstacle.

Travel Experiences

Travel experiences are also popular in narrative essays, as they provide rich and vivid details for the reader to imagine. The writer can recount a fantastic trip, a cultural exchange experience, or even a challenging adventure, capturing the essence of the journey.

Achievements and Failures

Writing about achievements and failures enables the writer to reflect on their personal growth and share the lessons they’ve learned. Topics can range from winning a competition, conquering a fear, or overcoming failure to succeed in the end.

Relationships and Interactions

Narrative essays on relationships and interactions capture the emotions, lessons, and insights gained from interacting with others. The writer could tell a story of forming an unlikely friendship, navigating a challenging relationship, or learning from a mentor.

Historical or Current Events

Addressing historical or current events in narrative essays allows writers to share their perspectives and analyses. Stories could focus on significant moments in history, political events, or social movements, detailing how they’ve impacted the writer and their understanding of the world.

School and Work Experiences

School and work experiences can serve as compelling sources of inspiration for narrative essays. Writers can recount stories of innovative projects, first-time experiences, or memorable teachers and coworkers, sharing valuable insights and reflections.

Techniques Used in Narrative Essay Writing

When writing a narrative essay, authors should use various techniques to create an engaging and well-written piece. These techniques will help to capture the reader’s attention, establish a connection with the audience, and effectively convey the story.

Showing Rather than Telling

One critical technique used in narrative essay writing is showing rather than telling. It involves the use of vivid imagery and descriptions to draw the reader into the story. This allows the reader to create mental images of the events and experiences described in the essay.

For example, instead of merely stating that a character was sad, a writer could describe their frowning face or a tear rolling down their cheek.

Including conversations between characters helps to bring the story to life and provides insight into the thoughts and feelings of those involved. When writing dialogue, it’s essential to maintain a consistent tone and voice and pay attention to punctuation to ensure clarity for the reader.

The use of chronological order is also important when composing a narrative essay. Presenting events in the order they occurred is the most straightforward approach and helps the reader follow along effortlessly. While some writers may choose to mix up the sequence for a more dramatic effect, it is crucial to ensure that the narrative remains clear and easy to understand.

Character development plays a significant role in creating a compelling narrative essay. The thoughts, emotions, and experiences of the characters should evolve throughout the story. A well-developed character with realistic reactions and growth helps engage the reader and creates a deeper connection to the narrative.

Strong Narrative Voice

Employing a strong narrative voice is crucial to a successful narrative essay. The narrative voice can be the author’s own or a fictional character, but it should be consistent and engaging. The voice should provide a unique perspective on the events taking place and help guide the reader through the story.

Types of Narrative Essay

Personal narrative essay.

A personal narrative essay is written from the author’s perspective and shares a personal story or experience. This type of essay often involves reflection on the significance of the event, as well as how it has shaped the author’s life.

Biographical Narrative Essay

A biographical narrative essay focuses on telling the life story of an individual other than the author. It may cover key events or experiences from the person’s life and often requires research to gather accurate information about the subject.

Literacy Narrative Essay

A literacy narrative essay explores an individual’s experiences with reading , writing , or language . It can discuss how these experiences have shaped the individual’s understanding and use of language, as well as any challenges they have faced in their literacy journey.

Historical Narrative Essay

A historical narrative essay tells the story of a significant event, era, or person within a historical context. This type of essay requires the author to research and gather accurate historical information while weaving it into a well-structured narrative.

Reflective Narrative Essay

A reflective narrative essay involves the author discussing an experience or event in their life and examining its impact on their personal growth and development. The focus is on how the event has shaped the individual’s values, beliefs, or understanding of the world.

Descriptive Narrative Essay

A descriptive narrative essay aims to paint a vivid picture of a person, place, or situation through detailed observations and sensory language. It can evoke emotions and immerse the reader in the setting, creating an engaging narrative experience.

Examples of Narrative Essay in Literature

Short story, examples of narrative essay in pop culture, creative writing, how to write a narrative essay.

A narrative essay is a type of essay that tells a story or recounts an event, often through the author’s personal experiences. Writing a narrative essay can be an enlightening and engaging experience for both the writer and the reader.

Impacts of Narrative Essay on Literature

Narrative essays play a significant role in literature, as they provide authors with a platform to express their thoughts, feelings, and ideas in a compelling manner. They enable readers to connect with the story, allowing them to empathize with the author or the characters.

Understanding of Human Experience

Narrative essays offer an opportunity for writers to share their own life experiences, making them relatable and captivating to readers. This form of writing encourages a deeper understanding of human emotions, challenges, and growth.

Exploration of Themes and Issues

Through narrative essays, authors can delve into various themes and issues, such as love, loss, friendship, conflict, and societal norms. This allows readers to see multiple perspectives, fostering critical thinking and empathy.

Development of Narrative Skills

Aspiring writers can hone their narrative skills by writing narrative essays, learning to organize their thoughts, developing interesting plotlines, and creating captivating characters. This process helps writers improve their storytelling techniques, making their work more engaging.

Reflection and Learning

Writing narrative essays encourages self-reflection and introspection, allowing authors to analyze their own experiences and learn from them. It serves as a therapeutic outlet and a learning tool for personal growth and development.

Versatility

Narrative essays are versatile forms of writing that can be adapted to various genres and styles, such as fiction , nonfiction , and even poetry . This flexibility allows writers to experiment with different forms and voices, expanding their creative horizons.

Influence on Other Literary Forms

The narrative essay format has had a profound impact on other literary forms, such as novels , short stories , and memoirs . The storytelling techniques developed through writing narrative essays contribute to the richness and depth of these other literary works.

Frequently Asked Questions

What are some common mistakes to avoid in a narrative essay.

Common mistakes to avoid when writing a narrative essay include a lack of focus, insufficient development of the story, and an unclear message. To avoid these pitfalls, ensure that the story has a clear central theme, develop the narrative with ample details, and convey a discernible message or lesson.

What is the difference between a narrative essay and a short story?

While both a narrative essay and a short story tell a tale, the main difference lies in their purpose. A narrative essay aims to share a personal experience and often a lesson learned from it, while a short story primarily aims to entertain. Narrative essays are usually written in the first person, while short stories can be written from any point of view.

Can a narrative essay be fictional?

Yes, while many narrative essays are based on personal experiences, they can also be entirely fictional. The key is to tell a compelling story that conveys a clear theme or message, whether it’s based on real events or is a product of the author’s imagination.

Narrative essays offer a compelling medium to share your unique stories, experiences, and perspectives. By weaving together the threads of plot, character, setting, and conflict, you can create an engaging narrative that captivates your readers, immerses them in your world, and leaves them with a lasting impression.

Remember, each narrative essay is not just about recounting a tale; it’s an opportunity to express personal growth, share lessons learned, and convey themes that resonate. So, the next time you have a story to tell, consider a narrative essay, where life’s experiences transform into a literary tapestry of meaning and connection. Happy writing!

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5 Common Mistakes to Avoid When Writing Essays

This article was written based on the information and opinions presented by Jordan Sanchez in a CollegeVine livestream. You can watch the full livestream for more info.

What’s Covered:

Essay length, cohesive writing, reusing essays.

In this post, we discuss mistakes to avoid when writing your college essay . For more information, check out this post about how to write this year’s Common App essays . 

A common college essay mistake is writing an essay that’s too short. For example, the word limit for the Common App essay is 650 words, and you should try as hard as you can to reach that number. A 400-word essay is definitely too short. Make sure you’re using all the words available to you.

If you’re having difficulty meeting the word limit, your essay topic may be too specific. Also, you may not be including enough details or descriptive language. Conversely, if your essay is too long, you may have sections that could be simplified. Look for any areas where the writing may be repetitive or redundant. Consider whether your essay is too broad. Are you trying to cover multiple topics? It can be helpful to break down your essay paragraph by paragraph and ensure that everything you’ve written aligns with the goals of the essay.

Since supplemental essays tend to have low word limits, you can do more telling than showing when writing these. That said, while you don’t want to waste words, if there’s an opportunity to add a bit of personality to a supplemental essay, you should take it. 

Another common mistake is incohesive writing. Cohesive essays are easy and enjoyable to read. If an essay is jumping around and doesn’t have a clear narrative or connection between ideas, it can be distracting. The reader will be wondering what’s relevant and what they should be caring about, which takes attention away from the content and purpose of your essay.

Incohesive writing happens in two major ways. The first is when a writer doesn’t use effective transitions. These show the reader how different ideas are related, and without them, an essay can be disorganized and difficult to understand. Transitions can be as short as one or two sentences or as long as a whole paragraph.

Incohesive writing can also happen when the writer is inconsistent. Your essay should maintain the same tense, point of view, and writing style from beginning to end. Don’t use extremely complicated vocabulary in one paragraph and incredibly simple language in the next. Write in your natural style and voice, and you’ll never go wrong. 

To check the cohesion of your writing, go over your first or second draft and answer the following questions: “What is the main idea of this paragraph? Does it align with the central theme of the essay? How does this relate to the previous paragraph? Do I illustrate the connection here or later in the essay? What point of view is this written in? What about tense? Is it narrative or creative? Distant or close and engaging? Informative or persuasive?” Your answers should be the same or similar for each paragraph. 

It’s crucial to write your essay in the correct form. The Common App essay is similar to a narrative or memoir in that it’s a short personal story. Many students have little to no experience writing in this form, and if you’re one of them, that’s okay, you’re not alone.

Keep in mind that this is not a five-paragraph essay. You won’t have an introduction or conclusion in the traditional sense. Your introduction will be the hook of your essay, whether it comes in the form of dialogue, descriptive language, or imagery. The conclusion will be a short wrap-up, perhaps a few sentences in length. 

The essay isn’t a thought piece either. You shouldn’t be writing something speculative. You want to include specific personal details from your life. This will ground the essay so it doesn’t feel lofty, and it will help the reader get to know you better. 

Not sounding like yourself is a big issue in college essays. The admissions committee is not expecting the most beautiful prose or intelligent language. They want to read an essay by you and about you, so be sure to write your essay in your own voice.

Don’t include words in your essay that you don’t use regularly. You don’t need big, fancy words to impress admissions officers. Your character and your story will impress them for you. In the same vein, your essay should center around who you are today. It’s okay to write about something that happened in the distant past, but the bulk of your essay should be about events that occurred between 10th and 12th grade. Don’t talk too much about your past without connecting it back to who you are today. 

Throughout the college application process, you’ll write several essays, including personal statements and supplements. A few of these essays can be used in applications for several schools, but be careful not to reuse the wrong ones.

Admissions officers can tell when you’re reusing an essay that you shouldn’t. It shows carelessness and a lack of interest in the school and can lower your chances of admission. To avoid this mistake, before writing any of your supplemental essays, copy and paste all the prompts into a single document, and take inventory of how many you’ll actually have to write and how many you can reuse.

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Common essay writing mistakes and how to avoid them

Whether you’re writing a research paper , an argumentative essay , or an exploratory essay , there are some key mistakes that you want to avoid. In this post, we discuss common essay writing mistakes and how to avoid them.

1. Failing to stay on topic

One common mistake when writing essays is failing to stay on topic. It's important to stay focused on the main idea and avoid introducing tangential information that does not contribute to the overall argument.

The best way to counteract this is by revising your work throughout the writing process. If you revise your work systematically, you will catch those places in your paper where you might be going off topic.

2. Not properly citing sources

Another common mistake is not properly citing your sources. It's important to give credit to the authors of any sources that you use in your essay, whether you’re quoting directly from a source or simply paraphrasing it.

Not citing your sources can lead to plagiarism , which can have serious consequences. To help avoid plagiarism, use an accurate citation generator like BibGuru . A citation app like BibGuru will also save you time.

3. Poor structure and organization

Because academic essays are often written in multiple steps, papers can become disorganized and disconnected. It's essential to have a clear introduction , body, and conclusion in your paper, and to make sure that each paragraph is focused on a specific point that supports your overall argument.

To combat poor structure or organization, try creating an outline and reading your drafts aloud. These methods will help you construct a more organized paper.

4. Quoting too much

Another mistake to avoid is relying too heavily on quotes, without providing your own analysis or interpretation. While it's necessary to support your arguments with evidence, it's also important to demonstrate your own understanding and critical thinking skills.

Choose quotes wisely and be sure to provide adequate analysis. A basic rule of thumb is that your analysis should be at least as long as the quote that you’re analyzing.

5. Not supporting claims with evidence

Whenever you make a claim in your essay, you need to support it with proper evidence and analysis. Many writers make the mistake of making claims that are not backed up by research. To avoid this, make a clear outline that connects each claim with accompanying evidence from your sources.

You should always strive to avoid making generalizations that cannot be properly proved. Also, choose the best possible evidence from your research, not simply the first few results from Google or an academic database .

6 . Not proofreading

One of the biggest mistakes that academic writers make is not planning enough time to properly proofread their papers. Make time for proofreading your work before you turn it in.

Watch out for spelling or grammar mistakes and make note of places in your essay that may be confusing or overwritten. Aim for a tone that is appropriate for the audience and purpose of your essay.

7 . Procrastination

Finally, avoid procrastination. Writing an essay can be a time-consuming process and waiting until the last minute can lead to rushed and poorly written work. Make a plan and set aside dedicated time for researching, outlining, and writing your essay.

The bottom line

By avoiding these common mistakes, you can improve the quality of your essays and achieve better grades. Remember to give yourself enough time to plan, research, and write your essay, and to seek feedback from others to help improve your writing skills.

Frequently Asked Questions about common essay writing mistakes

Firstly, you should avoid procrastinating when you’re writing an essay. Other things to avoid include plagiarism, poor organization, and not proofreading.

A bad essay is poorly organized, full of grammar and spelling mistakes, wordy and digressive, and/or plagiarized.

Common essay writing mistakes include: failing to stay on topic, not properly citing sources, poor organization, quoting too much, not providing enough evidence and analysis, not proofreading, and procrastination.

The best essays have a well-written introduction, a clearly identifiable thesis, strong signposts, a state of the field or literature review, solid body paragraphs that present evidence and analysis, a clear conclusion, and an accurate bibliography.

Different types of essays may be harder to write than others. However, many writers struggle to come up with a clear and defendable thesis statement. Students also struggle with creating accurate citations and bibliographies.

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Last updated August 1, 2024

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Blog > Common App , Essay Advice > 9 Biggest College Essay Mistakes

9 Biggest College Essay Mistakes

Admissions officer reviewed by Ben Bousquet, M.Ed Former Vanderbilt University

Written by Alex McNeil, MA Admissions Consultant

Key Takeaway

Sometimes the best way to learn how to do something is to learn how not to do something.

Learning from the mistakes of others can be one of the most effective ways to improve because you can skip the trouble of making the mistakes yourself.

Some mistakes have minor consequences, but college essay mistakes can seriously hurt your chances of admission. You want to avoid them at all costs.

In this post, I break down nine of the biggest mistakes I see students making when writing their college essays.

These mistakes range the gamut, from college essay themes to tone. By the end of the post, you’ll know exactly what not to do.

Let’s dive in.

Mistake #1: Staying shallow.

College essays aren’t a time to mess around. As I’ve described at length in the college essay writing guide , they are a time to be deeply personal, even vulnerable.

Shallow personal statements tell an admissions officer nothing about who you are as a person or student. They ooze boredom, and an admissions officer is likely to simply skim your essay. A shallow essay is one you can get the gist of pretty quickly because you’ve already read hundreds of essays just like it. It has few to no unique identifiers and makes generic statements about life.

So what does it mean to write vulnerably instead? It means taking your essay beyond a surface-level look at who you are. I recommend doing this by honing in on one or two of your core strengths.

By writing about a strength, you immediately get at one of the central characteristics that makes up who you are. You show an admissions officer something personal about yourself, and you clearly demonstrate how your strength influences the way you interact with the world around you.

College essay writing requires courage to be so personal with readers you’ve never met. But pushing yourself to write meaningfully instead of superficially will have a big payoff.

Mistake #2: Trying to game the system

I said you need to focus on your strengths. But the strengths you choose to highlight in your college essay matter. There are good strengths to highlight and, well, less-good ones.

The main type of "bad strength" I see students regularly talk about (like, in half of the essays I read, especially the ones that come from places like Reddit) are those that focus on achievements or skills. When students write about strengths that are actually covert ways to try to game the system, admissions officers can see right through it.

Often these essays will start out with a false problem: “Oh god, I can't seem to perfectly master my argument for the debate championship!”

Then, they'll proceed to a "revelation" that feels a bit... fake? "Then it hit me: I just needed to allow my creative spirit to work alongside my analytical one!"

Finally, they finish stronger than before: "Now, as a debater who unifies my left and right brains, I am truly capable of anything at the podium."

There are a couple reasons why this doesn't work. First, this kind of essay progression violates the basic rules I laid out in the college essay writing guide about choosing a truly meaningful topic. While debate may be very meaningful to you, the story feels like a convenient way to write about an accomplishment rather than a deep, organic transformation in the way you see or operate in the world. It reads like a vessel to highlight your capacity for self-improvement.

When students write these essays, they’re unwilling to be real about the struggles or meaningful periods in their life. They think schools want to hear neat stories about "overcoming obstacles" or "undergoing self-improvement."

They may seem safe, but they're actually the most damaging essays you can write because they feel ingenuine and fail the main goal of the personal statement: to make you stand out as an individual human being with real experiences to write about.

Don't be this person. Don't try to mind game admissions offices and write an "impressive" essay. Focus on the real but dark stuff, or talk with unbridled enthusiasm about something you love. Always go for real emotions and complexity over a simple, linear narrative that handily resolves itself by the final paragraph.

Mistake #3: Not focusing on yourself

Lots of writers have a tendency when writing about someone (or something) who has played a big role in their life to allow that thing to become the subject of the essay.

I think a grammar lesson here can be helpful. Remember the difference between the subject and the object of a sentence?

Alex used the broom. "Alex" is the subject of the sentence, and "broom" is the object. In this sentence, which is about an action I took, the focus is on me.

Here's a different sentence: "The broom was a perfect instrument for Alex to clean the house." While I'm still the one performing the action here, cleaning the house, the new sentence construction has placed the broom front and center. The sentence is about how good the broom is as a tool. It's no longer about my action.

Analogously, many students will write an essay about a family member, a loved one, or something in their life, which ends up taking the subject position rather than the object position.

A subject-position essay says too much about the person/thing in question, foregrounding them in the essay. An object-position essay, by contrast, foregrounds YOU as the subject and talks about your development using them to illustrate your growth. But you remain at the "beginning of the sentence."

That may be a bit abstract. Ask yourself this question to evaluate whether you need to go back to the drawing board:

If someone I've never met were to read my essay, would they come away with more information about me or about ______?" (With _______ meaning the person or thing that shares the spotlight.)

If the answer is even a close tossup, that's a sign you might need to rethink your approach.

Mistake #4: Getting lost in the sauce

Lots of essays get lost in the sauce. They start off well, maybe giving a long exposé about a topic that connects to the writer's life and development. But then they never bring it home to focus on themselves. They spend half the essay on an extended metaphor about how split pea soup is a major metaphor for personal growth or for the greatest lessons one can learn in life. They revel in the creative writing process but don’t sufficiently personalize their essay.

At the end of the day they may be left with a solid essay with personal elements, but a pretty lousy personal reflection.

You can avoid getting lost in the sauce by forming a plan upfront for your essay and sticking with it.

Try to identify the core strengths and themes that you'll anchor your essay around. Usually, you can do this as soon as you know what story you're going to be telling. Or sometimes, you can even identify the values you want to hit first and then find a meaningful story that fits.

But after you have this basic combination—an idea about your values and a story to encase them in—you can identify the basic "shape" of your story.

A story shape is like an outline, but even less granular. You can think about it as a set of instructions that you'll rely on to make sure your personal essay gets from point A to point B. A basic idea of the direction your essay needs to take will help you avoid situations where you veer hopelessly off course and fail to make a coherent point or narrative.

Don't get lost in the sauce. Don't just start writing stuff. Have a basic plan in place before you start writing and stick to it as faithfully as you can. (Need help formulating your plan? Read the college essay writing guide.)

Mistake #5: Feeling obligated to write about a specific topic

We’ve all heard the conflicting advice. You should write your college essay about your greatest trauma. No, you should write about an academic interest. Wait—no, you should write about an achievement. Maybe the perfect topic is actually a combination: an academic interest that showcases an achievement but actually traumatized you…? Of course not. That’s how ridiculous that advice is.

Forget all of it.

You’re not obligated to write about any specific topic. When an admissions officer opens up your essay, they aren’t sitting on the edge of their office chair saying, “Wow, I hope this one’s about something sad.” or “This person better tell me about their robotics final.” Admissions officers are way too busy for that.

What they are saying is, “I can’t wait to get to know this student.”

The best college essay topic is the one that’s right for you. There’s no shortcut, no hack. What is perfect for you might be the worst choice for someone else. Choosing the right topic is a simple matter of thoughtful reflection on your strengths and experiences.

Mistake #6: Writing something other than a personal statement

A personal statement isn’t an academic essay. It’s not a diary entry or a school newspaper article. It’s probably unlike anything you’ve written before.

Because a personal statement is its own kind of writing, there are specific conventions for you to follow.

In short, your personal statement should…

• be strengths-based and communicate something positive about yourself.
• have a clear theme or central message.
• be written in your authentic voice.
• show some level of creative writing and personal reflection.

If your college essay isn’t doing any of these things, then you might consider some revisions. Your personal statement is the centerpiece of your cohesive application narrative , so it's important that it's doing its job.

Mistake #7: Being too negative

One of the biggest issues students have when trying to write about a serious topic is being too negative. This issue is often perpetuated by the idea that your college essay should be about something sad to increase your chances of admission. But this isn’t a good approach.

Don’t get me wrong. Your college essay can definitely be sad, somber, poignant, or difficult. If that’s the story you want and need to tell, then by all means go for it.

But there are many ways to approach essays about hard topics, and some are better than others.

One of the worst ways is to revel in the negative emotions. Whether that means harping on someone you don’t like or hounding your reader with unnecessary sad details, being too negative doesn’t do you any good. You might need to write out all those negative emotions, but they probably shouldn’t make it to your final draft.

Why shouldn’t your essay be too negative? Because it goes against the underlying purpose of a personal statement. Remember that, at the end of the day, your personal statement is intended to get you into college. Lingering on negative emotions also leaves your readers—the admissions officers who decide whether or not to admit you—with negative emotions. They want to see your strength and resilience, so it’s important to end whatever you write on at least a small note of hope. If you don’t feel that you’re ready to do that, then you might explore different topic options.

I’ve written before about u/AdmissionsMom’s concept of “more phoenix, fewer ashes.” The idea is from the mythology of the phoenix, which comes to life from the ashes of the phoenix before it. It essentially means that your essay should focus less on the rough stuff—the ashes—and more on the positive stuff—the new life. This approach is a perfect way to imagine a college essay about a negative topic because it helps you keep the course and write an essay that is ultimately hopeful in its message.

Mistake #8: Bragging too much

On the flip side of being too negative is being too braggadocious. While your college essay should convey a core strength, leaning too far into positive emotions can lead to an essay that sounds inauthentic and braggy.

One of the worst ways you can use your college essay is to restate your resume. Remember that admissions officers can already see your activities section; you don’t need to write an essay that lists all of your accomplishments again. Doing so might even make your accomplishments less impressive because it’ll look like your accomplishments are the only noteworthy thing about you. Similarly, going on and on about why you’re so amazing paints you as a one-dimensional person.

Answering a question about what diversity you bring to a community, for example, by saying something like “I care more than the average person” is akin to answering an interview question about your greatest weakness with something like “I work too hard.”

This approach doesn't work. These essays fall flat because they are boring, inauthentic, and reductive. It goes back to mistake #2. Admissions officers will see right through the brags to the lack of substance underneath.

Instead of writing an essay that brags, write one that is vulnerable and shows the good, bad, and real parts of you and your life. That doesn’t mean that your essay necessarily has to have a negative component, but it’s important to be realistic in how you portray yourself.

If you want to write your personal statement about winning a big essay competition, you wouldn’t say, “I won the competition because I was the best writer in my district. I was born naturally gifted with words, and I know how to write beautifully about anything.” No. You’d write about the effort it took to get there, the emotional work you went through, the care you spent revising and revising again, or the fact that this was the fifth time you’d submitted a piece. While the former is boring (and, frankly, annoying), the latter shows that you’re a whole human being, an interesting person an admissions officer would love to meet.

Mistake #9: Overthinking

It may seem like BS advice to tell you "don't overthink" in a college essay. But I'm gonna say it anyway.

Don't overthink.

If you try to play mind games with admissions officers, anticipating the formula for the perfect college essay, you'll lose. Not because they're smarter than you or better at mind games. There just is no formula for a perfect essay. Go out and read 100 example essays. You'll find merit in each one, and you'll probably notice that each one has an entirely different structure, tone, and emotional arc. Some will be funny, others poignant, some inspirational and others will seem like an indulgent reflection about some niche intellectual topic.

There is no perfect formula for an essay. Heraclitus pointed to the river and said that the only constant was change itself. With college essays, the only constant indicator of quality is your ability to fashion a meaningful story out of your own voice and genuine expression. That's really, really hard to do. But successful essays come from that place—from careful, genuine writing—not from any formula that derives the perfect essay.

When we're working with students, a lot of our time is spent reading between the lines of a resume, listening for moments when students lose themselves in a story. Often, their whole demeanor will change, even though they may not realize it. That's where the pay-dirt lies: in a meaningful story that may or may not have anything to do with your formal accomplishments.

Now you know exactly what not to do in your college essays. Instead of writing surface-level pleasantries that don’t do much for you (and can actually make things worse for you), write authentically about your strengths.

With these mistakes in mind, go forth and write your essays. If you want more information about the right way to approach your college essays, you can find a step-by-step walkthrough in our ultimate guide to college essays . 

Liked that? Try this next.

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Most Common Writing Mistakes: Overpowering First-Person Narrator

First-Person : “I went to school today.”

Third-Person : “She went to school today.”

First-person is often a narrative perspective that’s tricky to get right. The first-person narrator, more than any other type of narrator, is inclined to lapse into self-centered telling, in which the narrating character overpowers the story at the expense of other characters and even the plot itself.

3 Pitfalls to Avoid When Using a First-Person Narrator

Let’s take a look at some of the common pitfalls of the first-person narrator and how to avoid them.

1. Beginning Every Sentence With “I”

The first-person narrator tempts writers into focusing on the narrating character to the exclusion of other subjective nouns. The result is a stultifying string of sentences that all feature the same subject. Mix and match subjects to electrify some life into your syntax.

Wrong: I fled down the stairs, heart pounding. I could hear the zombified giant clomping after me. Ahead, I could see the cellar door offering me the chance to escape and hide. I reached the door, wrenched it open, and dove inside.

Right: My heart pounded as I fled down the stairs. Behind me, the zombified giant clomped after me. Five feet ahead, the cellar door offered the chance to escape and hide. I reached the door, wrenched it open, and dove inside.

2. Telling Thoughts Instead of Showing

In the first-person narrative, everything you write is straight out of the main character’s brain. You don’t need to clarify the character’s thoughts by placing them in italics or qualifying them with an “I thought” tag.

Wrong: I couldn’t believe this was happening. Zombified giants don’t really exist, do they? I thought to myself. Maybe I’m dreaming.

Right: This couldn’t be happening. Zombified giants didn’t really exist, did they? Maybe I was dreaming.

3. Inserting Lengthy Narrative at the Expense of Action and Dialogue

First-person narration offers the temptation to share with readers everything the character is thinking. Beware of lengthy narrative rabbit trails when you should be allowing action and dialogue to carry the story .

Wrong: “What’s up with you lately?” Kirsten asked.

I heaved a sigh. Kirsten had no idea how insane my life had become. She had no idea that zombified giants—huge and ugly and stinky—were after me.

[Insert lengthy description of zombified giants, narrator’s life, history of friendship with Kirsten, etc.]

Right: “What’s up with you lately?” Kirsten asked.

I heaved a sigh. “You have no idea how insane my life has become.” I threw my backpack into my locker, shot a surreptitious glance up and down the hallway, then leaned forward to whisper in her ear, “Zombies! Big ones!”

[Insert witty, conflict-ridden dialogue that conveys the important information about zombified giants, narrator’s life, history of friendship with Kirsten, etc.]

Utilizing a first-person narrator can be an exciting way to create an immediate and intimate story readers won’t be able to turn away from. Make sure you aren’t stumbling over these common mistakes, and you’ll be more than ready to knock readers (and zombified giants) off their feet with your powerful narrative.

>>Click here to read more posts in the Most Common Writing Mistakes Series.

Wordplayers, tell me your opinions! Do you prefer writing in first-person or third-person? Tell me in the comments!

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K.M. Weiland is the award-winning and internationally-published author of the acclaimed writing guides Outlining Your Novel , Structuring Your Novel , and Creating Character Arcs . A native of western Nebraska, she writes historical and fantasy novels and mentors authors on her award-winning website Helping Writers Become Authors.

I prefer to write in the third-person viewpoint for a novel. I do not like books written in the first person because I get bored reading them after the first paragraph. I like the third-person narrator as the voice for the story, a narrator who mostly just sees what’s going on but every so often can get behind the eyeballs of the protagonist. That’s what I read, and that’s what I write.

I suppose I could try to write a book in the first person. But my reaction to that is “but I wouldn’t like it very much.”

For the most part, I prefer third-person as well. I wrote a short story in first, which I was very pleased with, and my current WIP features a few short scenes in first. But, generally, as a writer, I find third more versatile and less of a hassle. As a reader, I enjoy both, when they’re well written.

Help! I can’t find info on this. Here is my problem. I have been writing in first person. Now I am trying to write in third, but I have a issue. The narrator starts sounding like the main character. For example the main character is a nerd, and when he went out side, I’d say something like — Jason went out side and noticed that the night sky was gray, the color of a Klingon battleship. (Whatever) To me the narration is getting muddled. If I said that JASON thought that the sky was the color of a Klingon battleship, that would be fine, but what is the rule on the narrator talking and thinking like the character?

If you’re writing a tight third-person narration, then it’s going to sound very similar to a first-person narration, in the sense that most of the narration will reflect the character’s own thoughts and personalities. So you should be fine.

I just want to say that this was very helpful. thanks so much. I’m just 15 years old right now and I want to be a writer. this was beyoned helpful “help” thanks again!!!

I’ve been thinking about using first person for the novel I’m about to start. This gives me a little more insight into some of the challenges that would entail. Thanks!

Glad the post was timely! Have fun with that new story.

Love the new layout!

I have experimented with first person and have recently begun reading more books using it, but I prefer the freedom and scope third person offers.

Personally, I enjoy writing in first person far more than third, as I find I can get deeper into the character’s thoughts, but I tend to use third person for my more “professional” stories. I am, however, going to attempt a novella in first person.

I get turned off when writing first person, mainly because I am no good at it. I have a tendency to make the narrator’s voice sound “realistic,” and a realistic 12 year old is not a writer. Certain books I’ve read do this same thing and it turns me off to read “totally cool” in prose. However, there are a great deal of first person novels that I enjoy. So it CAN be done really well. Just not by me! 🙂

@Miss Cole: Thanks! I don’t generally make a conscious choice, in my reading, between first and third. I’m reading a first-person narrative right now and didn’t even really think about the fact that it was written in first until this post went live this morning. Talk about a sign that it’s well written!

@Eldra: I find it interesting that authors (myself included) find writing in first “deeper,” when, really, a deep third can be just as intimate and intense. In fact, it’s an interesting exercise to take a piece written in first person and switch all the pronouns to third person (or vice versa). Sometimes when I’ve having trouble getting into a third-person narrative, I’ll write a scene or two in first to find the voice, then switch it around.

@Christine: Many beginning writers assume first-person is easier than third, just because it’s so intuitive. But it’s really the trickier of the two. Mastering it can take a lot of time and effort.

Great analysis. So many books–even published ones–make the mistakes you’re talking about. I prefer writing in first person, because it helps me get more into the character, but as a reader, I have to admit I prefer reading third person limited. So I often write the 1st draft in 1st and rewrite in 3rd.

Interesting that your writing and reading preferences are different. Perhaps because you write in first, it makes you hyper-aware of its problems when reading it?

This is very informative. I’ll proceed to see the rest of the series. I too am writing in first person most of the time and it annoys me to no end how easy it is to make that mistake. I mean, talk about self-centered stories… But I guess it has its advantages too, so here’s to hoping my characters will improve in the future. 🙂

The self-centered problem isn’t limited to the prose alone. First-person seems to push writers into the pitfall of *creating* self-centered characters. If we can pull the narrating character’s focus outward a little bit, away from himself, many of the prose tips I outlined in this post will fall into place that much more easily.

I prefer third but I find first to be fun when I want to hide the other point of view. Sometimes need for my readers to figure it out along with the protagonist.

Often, the more limited the POV, the more powerful the story – just because it concentrates all the emotion and action into the experience of one person. Multiple POVs are great for telling big, sprawling stories, but they definitely dilute the effect.

It’s interesting, because first person is used a lot in YA, presumably because it “draws you into the story better.” While I like first person, using third person to draw readers into the MC’s mind is can be done, but it’s harder, and that’s why I prefer it. Third person allows for peeks into different characters’ minds, and provides a better understanding of the story as whole.

Deep third varies very little from the first-person narrative. In essence, the author is writing a first-person narrative with third-person pronouns. It’s a sneaky trick that gives us the best of both worlds.

So far all I’m really doing with my writing is just blogging about my everyday life with my family. Since I love writing as much as I do I try to keep my blog entries interesting rather than a boring online journal listing daily accomplishments or family trips. Your writing advice is very helpful to me even though I’m not writing a novel! I use first person narrative more than third person but I was excited to read this post and see that for the most part I’m not making the mistakes you pointed out. I can always improve of course.

Yep, these first-person tips apply as much to blog posts, newspaper articles, and personal letters as they do to fiction. In this instance, good writing is good writing all the way across the board.

LOL @ zombified giants. I recall reading somewhere that writing in the 1st person is best when the narrator has a strong, distinctive voice that adds to the story. Scout from “To Kill A Mocking Bird” comes to mind, and I am sure many of us can think of others. I’ve written in first and third person. I understand what people mean by preferring to move from character to character, but this has to be carefully structured like every other part of a novel. Not every third person view point needs to be completely omniscient.

Good advice. It’s much easier to get away with a generic voice when writing in third-person. I was just reading something Hugo award-winner David Gerrold said about multiple first-person-narrator stories only working when each POV offered a distinctive voice – and, as we all know, that’s much easier said than done.

I very much enjoy reading first person POV! I enjoy it for more fast paced books, especially with a large quantity of unknown. I don’t feel played with when details are witheld because the MC didn’t remember them either!(Unless they play a dastardly horrible and bad writer-ish trick and show the MC something they don’t me. =|)

That’s a point worth bringing up. Within the limitations of POV – whether it’s first or third or omniscient – authors have to play fair. No whispers of “now, here’s the plan,” which then devolve into indecipherable mumbles!

I prefer third person because I like to give the reader different opinions of events. However I wrote my first novel ‘Call me Aphrodite’ in the first person present tense. I found this very difficult to keep up but I enjoyed trying. The reason I did it this way was because the first draft was a diary but I didn’t like that so when I converted it to a novel it seemed obvious to keep it in the first person and use the present tense – I used first person past for a flashback. I’ll probably stick to third person in future.

I wrote my WIP primarily in third-person present tense, with an opening and closing scene in first-person present tense. It’s been a wonderful experience, and I’m very happy with the results. But I think I’ll be returning to third-person past tense for the foreseeable future, if only because it’s so much more flexible.

I thought I preferred third-person, but after writing and slaving over my very first novel in that perspective I got sick to death of it and needed something new, a new challenge, or feeling. I agree with Stephen, some books can be obnoxious if written in first and they don’t do it well. But I have loved others, who do a great job and have an awesome voice. Any perspective can be bad or good depending on how well the author carries it.

I tried as an experiment with the first five chapters of my book. I had changed it from third person past tense to third person prest tense. It was a bad fit. Whew. It took m y brain a while to go back to the old narration too. Ouch!

Lesson learned, save experiments for another book.

I’m actually messing around with both 1st- and 3rd-person in my latest WIP, trying to decide which is appropriate. Will probably end up going back to 3rd.

Hope you find what one works best for lots of chapters are changed. I’m still fixing the mess that last change made.

Thanks! And looks like I’m going to keep it in third, so that makes everything easy!

That’s good. Easy? Oh that’s right you’ve written lots of them. It seams like there’s a never ending list of things to add in take out fix and correct. For new authors … phew, the learning curve is high!

Easy in that it’s already *in* third, so I don’t have to change it to first. But, in general, third is easier to write than first.

Typo: seems

I found another helper in an effort to spot errors:

Slick Write addon for Firefox browser.

what it does:

This extension makes it easier to proof your writing with the Slick Write web service. It works with WordPress, Google Docs, selections, and most text boxes.

I like that it’s pretty good at spotting clunky words phrases. Some can’t be taken out for style choices but 90% of them can. Pretty good until I learn to spot them on my own.

As a writer, I love experimenting with different styles. Every technique gives a story a new feel, a new voice. The trick, of course, is discovering which feel and voice is appropriate, and which aren’t.

The same problem can show up in third person with heavy use of ‘she’ or ‘he’. It’s the first thing I look for now when I edit. My novel (currently still being written) is in 3rd person, however I have written a couple of 1st person short stories. Writing a novel in 1st person would be a huge challenge for me, because longer stories play like movies in my head.

This is such a helpful post. My problem with writing in first is that I use too many “I’s” and way too much dialogue because the narrative feels too tell-y. I’m currently editing/writing a series that switches between first and third, which seems to be an easy transition so far since it just started out as more of an experimenting story.

Thanks for stopping by!

Definitely. These principles apply just as much to same problems in third-person narratives, although third person isn’t usually as inclined to falling into them.

@J.C.: I’ve been fond of first and third combinations ever since Dickens introduced the idea in Bleak House . Sounds like fun!

I don’t *think* it is. From what I’ve heard from prospective readers of my novel that using first person makes it more real and more intense. You tell me: http://gfanthome.wordpress.com/excerpts/

If you’re getting good feedback from readers, chances are you’re doing things right. Good job!

I’m working on a novel in which the narrator is the son of the main character and is relating events of his father’s life while the narrator was still a child (he’s actually telling the story many years later). The narrator was present during some of the action, but otherwise is relying on what his father told him had happened. So there’s some element of the unreliable narrator in it. I find this way avoids much of the “I did this” and “I did that” first-person-style narration, but I’m afraid I’m not allowing the narrator to be a fully-realized character in the process. How can I avoid this problem?

If you feel the character isn’t being fully realized on the page, the problem probably goes deeper than the narrative technique of avoiding too many “I’s.” You might find some solutions by delving deeper into the narrator’s mind. Are you showing what he’s thinking about events as they unfold? Is he sharing with readers what he’s feeling? The best way to characterize a narrator is to make sure every word he “says” is deeply colored by his own personality.

I love writing in first person. Many people say, oh, it’s too difficult, you’re too restricted. Yep, that’s the challenge. Telling a compelling story within those limitations.

Well said. Truthfully, the limitations – no matter the form – are what make writing so enjoyable. If it wasn’t a challenge, would we still find it so rewarding?

I know this is an old post but…I am writing in first person current and find it a major challenge. However my agent has informed me she loves my POV and could not see it writen any other way. Look at the Hunger Games trilogy and how easy it was to fall in love with Katniss? Yes you miss things, yes your book is constantly being sent back for re-writes by agent and editor alike but if done well the story is magical. However it is not for everyone as it is a daunting lover in deed. My current YA book is third person and wow how easy it has been to write and re-form. However working with two styles is another challenge in itself as you find yourself crossing over now and then. OOPS! I can say FP is not for everyone and I believe you need to LOVE your character and have a strong one of a kind story to tell or honestly don’t even try because you will flounder.

A deep connection with our characters is important no matter what narrative viewpoint we use, but because of the immersive, intimate nature of first-person, you definitely want to choose a character whose mind you’ll enjoy spending that much time in.

If I were to write a story in the first person, would it be correct to loosley describe other characters feelings?

Because first-person is the story as seen directly through the narrator’s eyes, you would only be able to describe other characters’ feelings as the narrator observes them .

I’m a walnut in a bowl of peanuts here. I love writing first person stories. It works for me mainly because I write weird fiction (atmospheric/picture of moods/ see “on writing” written by the famous author H.P. Lovecraft). I wish I could write really interesting characters but mood and message is my overall forte. Well, each of us is gifted in different ways. But I’m still young and who knows what the future holds.

First-person stories are wonderful. Don’t feel like you *shouldn’t* be writing them. So long as you have a strong narrating character, you’re almost more likely to create a quicker, stronger connection with readers via 1st-person, rather than 3rd.

Thanks, I was beginning to feel outnumbered! 🙂

I’ve subscribed to you posts for some months and find them very helpful, although I don’t manage to read/listen to all of them. This one is old but very relevant for me: I’ve started writing a historical novel (my first) in the first person, present tense – quite a challenge! Most people warn me against it, but you suggest it can work if I’m careful. Thanks for the encouragement. I have an extract at http://www.aquilaelba.info/trial-by-trek/ . If you have the time, I’d really appreciate your comments as to whether or not you think it works.

Glad you’re enjoying the post! Unfortunately, my schedule doesn’t allow me to critique stories, but I do wish you all the best with your first-person narrative. So long as you’ve got a narrator with a great voice (and, of course, you avoid the pitfalls in this post!), you should have no problem.

I prefer FIRST PERSON. I have my reasonable reasons

The best reasons always are. 😉

The short story I recently submitted to a contest here in Tucson was written in third person, even though it began as first person.

I used the pronoun “he” to substitute the character’s name (he was nameless, and it was 2500 words or less for submission to the contest).

This was a great post, as I’m currently working on a first person POV for two separate characters.

Depending on how deep a third-person narrator we’re using, sometimes we can just switch out the pronouns for first-person pronouns without needed to make any other substantial changes. Handy when it works out that way!

Hi, I just started writing because I woke up on be fatty and had this supper brilliant idea. I’m using a first person narrative but I’m not that confident about it, tooused to writing in n essay form. I was wondering which of your books are written in first person narrative and if you can think of other books written in first person (other than books by Darren Shan) for me to refer to as a guide. Thanks, oh and love the tips!!

The only story in which I’ve used first-person is my short One More Ride in the Rain . But you might also want to check out The Guernsey Literary and Potato Peel Pie Society , The Hunger Games , and The Name of the Wind .

I’m trying to write a novel in first -person my issue is I’m a screenplay writer and I’m so use to writing tons of dialogue. How does dialogue between two or more people work in first -person?

Pretty much the same as it works in any other POV. The only real difference is that the narrator refers to his own dialogue with “I” tags: “I said,” “I shouted,” etc.

I found this post while searching for information on first person narrating. My question is how do you prevent a 1st pers narrator from sounding as if they are narrating their own story? (Yes, I’m aware of how contradictory that sounds!) I’m writing in 1st pers past tense and want the narrative to sound immediate.

To some extent, this effect is unavoidable – because, as you’ve noted, the character *is* narrating the story. You might want to play around with present tense. But even in past tense, the basic principles in this post will help you create a more active narrative that focuses as much on the action and the character’s surroundings, as the character himself.

Thanks for this wonderful information. I Googled first person limited and I didn’t find much. I’ve been writing my first novel in first person limited, present tense. I’m still on my first draft. The more I write the more questions I have. Thanks for listing a few books that are written with this POV. I want to read some books written in the same POV to see what I can do to improve.

I sometimes find it hard to make my sentences clear and concise. I find too many little words in some sentences and when I try to rewrite them I end up in a different point of view or tense, which won’t work. I’m not sure if it’s that I’m a novice or if it’s the style.

Do you have any tips for making sentences clearer using first person. Is it the same for all POV’s?

I’m sure I’m using the correct POV for my story, I can’t imagine telling it any other way. The instructor in my creative writing group continues to give me positive comments. She says I need to get rid of the little “fleas” in my sentences – not sure what that really means, but I think it refers to the little words that drag down the sentence. Maybe it’s the use of weak verbs. (one of the students makes comments like this isn’t a common POV and very few people can pull it off… but keep on working at it she says – it brings down what little confidence I have) So now I’m rattling and not even sure if my question is clear. Thank you for sharing you knowledge.

First, your classmate is incorrect that first-person limited is an uncommon POV. It’s very common, particularly in YA these days.

Second, you might find this post on complex prose helpful.

Very useful – I’m currently writing a rather large fantasy space-opera in first person.

I’ve re-read my current work and noticed a few too many “I ” and have re-written them to be more acceptable.

First-person can a tremendously exciting POV, as long we keep it versatile in our phrasing. Have fun!

When I create a First Person novel with a touch of Dystopia, it’s so confusing using Italic. What does Italic letters affect your story? And… what’s the difference between characters thoughts with characters thoughts with Italic letters. It means a lot to me but I can’t define very much. Help me @KMWeiland Thanks for sharing this.

Italics are just one method of differentiating “direct thoughts” from the rest of the narrative. Generally, I recommend against direct thoughts, since they can jar readers out of the intimacy of the narrative. In a deep narrative (whether it’s first- or third-person), everything that’s being said should essentially be your characters’ thoughts anyway. More on that in this post: https://www.helpingwritersbecomeauthors.com/5-ways-to-write-character-thoughts/

Thanks for this article! Can you explain how to use time lapses in present and past tense? I’m writing a present tense romantic novel (simultaneously writing in past tense too). So, can I skip days or months in present tense novel and directly start the story from next event?

Yes, you can skip time whenever necessary. Just make sure to orient readers in the change.

“What’s up with you lately?” Kirsten asked

If it’s 1st person we’re discussing, shouldn’t it be: “What’s up with you lately?” Kirsten asks

Actually, what you’re differentiating between here is past tense (asked) vs. present tense (asks). You can use both past and present with both third-person and first-person.

I prefer third-person when writing, but I do love the challenge of writing a first-person story. Great advice!

I prefer first person present tense. I think it’s more intimate and engaging.

Although I’ve read a mixture of third person. 🙂

When it’s done well, I love present tense.

This website claims it has 6 tips, but it only has 3. False advertising

I think you must be referring to the “#6” in the title? This post is Part 6 of the Most Common Writing Mistakes series. You can find the other parts here: https://www.helpingwritersbecomeauthors.com/category/most-common-writing-mistakes/

Hello. I stumbled upon this article while searching for information about time lapses, but since I am writing my story in first person, I figured I’d respond to this. I don’t have any problem with the first and third mistakes you pointed out, but I do use the second mistake throughout my writing (though I never considered it a mistake). I am writing about my life, so my story covers from birth until five years ago ( I am almost 38 now). I use italics to separate my actual personal thoughts in that moment in time from the overall recounting of the story. As the narrator, I have knowledge about the overall scene – past, present, and future, but as the character in the story, I only know that moment and some of the past, so I feel like showing specific thoughts in italics helps the reader to understand the difference between what I know now as I look back and recount the story and what I knew then as it was happening. Have you seen this accomplished in other books without the italic thoughts?

If I’m understanding you correctly, you’re basically using “present you” as a distant first-person narrator who is looking back and telling the story of “past you,” who is the main character. This is a technique we don’t see a whole lot and definitely one that requires some specialized techniques. As such, I think you’ve probably made the right choice to allow “past you” to have direct thoughts separated from “present you’s” overall narrative.

I wasn’t expecting so quick of a response! Though I have been writing since I was six, this will be my first published work and I worry way too much about it not being “perfect”! Yes, I am writing as a “present me” describing the events of the “past me”, and that’s why I wanted to find out if the tip about italic thoughts still applied to this type of story. Thanks for your response.

Glad to be of help!

Thanks for the great article, I am writing my first novel in first person because I really want the reader to feel like they are right there in the situation this has been incredibly helpful to me thank you for sharing your knowledge .

First person is arguably the most intimate of all the narrative voices, so it’s definitely a good choice for pulling readers deeply into the narrator’s psyche. Glad you enjoyed the post!

Thank you very much for this thorough article on first person POV. Third person is best for most genre novels, of course.

I have found that some exceptional writing situations work better with first person, such as, if you will, the personal battlefield experiencesa of a soldier. Recounting his unique experiences and insights, becomes a candid report of what really occurred. The battlefield account written in third person might have less “skin in the fight”.

Definitely. Intimacy is the chief benefit of first-person. In some stories, that’s not necessarily a good thing. But in those where it is, first-person can bring a lot of power to the table.

Hello, I have an issue..How to difference the reader and the character in my writing…I mean,directing the reader in the first paragraph as “you” because I want the reader to relate with my writing and then the character also as “you,”.the biggest part of the writing im addressing to my character ,so it would be better to change the first paragraph and the last one into first person narration or the body of the writing in third person prospective or any other suggestion.Thanks in advance!

Second-person (which uses the pronoun “you”) is a very tricky POV and one to be approached only with careful forethought. Personally, I would recommend avoiding it and sticking with first-person. There’s rarely a good reason to break the fourth wall and directly address the readers.

Hello. I’ve been having a hard time with figuring out how with first person you would use dialogue. For example would it be;

“Can I help you?” he asks moody and voice raspy from sleep.

There was something we can both agree on. We were both not morning people, we like to have our sleep. We’re are not happy campers when we are woken or disturbed when in the middle of it.

“Did you just fall on the floor?” I try to hold in my laugh.

His eyes narrow, which confirms what I suspected.

“Get ready we got to be at school soon, in case you forgot such a thing does still exist”

He rubs his eyes, glaring at me even more and I give him a wide smile.

Or would it be something like this;

“Can I help you?” he asked moody and voice raspy from sleep.

There was something we can both agree on. We were both not morning people, we liked to have our sleep. We are not happy campers when we are woken or disturbed when in the middle of it.

“Did you just fall on the floor?” I tried to hold in my laugh.

I’m having a hard time figuring out if it should be proper to use “Ask or Asked” or things like “She said or She says” while in first person. Or would they both be correct if used in the right context? Thanks.

The difference you’re presenting here is between past tense (asked) and present tense (asks). This actually has nothing to do with first-person. You can use either past or present with either first-person or third-person. It really just depends on how much immediacy you’re trying to create. With first-person, present tense usually creates *more* immediacy; with third-person, present tense actually creates more distance. Neither choice is wrong. Just make sure you’re consistent with it.

I love writing stories, I too also normally write third-person but have now started writing first-person. It was going really well until I wanted to add my other male main character having a conversation to a few other characters after my main female had left the room. but I have no idea how to do that as the story is meant to be in the eyes of my main female character. Any advice on how I could achieve this?

Unless you’re going to be using the male main character’s POV *throughout* the story, I would recommend sticking solely to the female’s perspective. Inserting a one-time POV just for the sake of one scene usually isn’t worth the drawbacks of a scattered narrative. You can find other ways to share the same information, including having the female character learn about it later. Remember: readers very rarely *need* to know information the main character herself doesn’t know. It’s usually best to allow the readers’ progression of understanding to evolve at the same rate as your protagonist’s.

Thank you for the advice 🙂 I have been writing this story since High school and just want to finally have it finished. I was able to at the age of 11 have a poem published through winning a competition so it gave me the confidence to write more 🙂

How would I go about getting someone to prof read what I have already wrote and give pointers on what could be changed?

You can find beta readers online–through writing forums or social media. If you can find others who are writing in your genre, just offer to trade critiques. Most writers are just as eager to find a beta reader as you are!

I had a couple of questions: 1) How do I show actions that the first person POV character does? Example I want to say that the first person POV walks from his bathroom to the bed. Now a normal person doesn’t think about it consciously while doing so. Let the position of the person is important to the scene. 2) How do I introduce characters and conversations with other characters? 3) Is it a huge red flag if I switch POV between chapters?

Think of the narrative as if the 1st-person narrator were *telling* the story to the readers. As such, it makes perfect sense for the narrator to describe her own necessary movements.

Same with conversations. Let the narrator introduce them, just as you would in a third-person narrative.

As long as you’re consistent with your POVs (i.e., you introduce them all early and use them at regular intervals throughout the story), it’s fine to switch between first-person POVs or between a first-person and a third-person POV. Just make sure the narrative voices are differentiated and readers are always clear whose POV they’re in.

Help is this First person okay? Please reply ASAP!

Everything is so bare, not that it should surprise me I’ve moved 8 times in the 15 years I’ve been alive. I shamble along the downstairs looking through the kitchen for forgotten items, found none. I go on to the soon to be living room, which was like the rest of the house grey, old with cracking walls. I then peaked in the bathroom, just glanced at the dining area, and checked the closet under the stairs out finding empty boxes in it. I move towards the stairs. Down or up? UP. There is no question to be answered I hate basements. No matter if they are cool they scare me. Not to mention they make me feel more claustrophobic then I usually do in a regular room. I wander aimlessly through the second floor. I look in all the rooms, but seeing none I really want. I find another set of stairs going up. I wonder what’s up there. I climb the stairs slowly clasping my hands so tightly I think I am losing circulation. Opening the door is hard. It finally jostle open. It is my dream room with windows on all sides, a bathroom, and a walk in closet. It is a little smaller than the master bedroom which no doubt my parents would take. Its wall are old grey and crack also like the rest of the rooms, but I knew it has to be mine.

Yes, this is first-person–because you’re using the first-person pronoun “I” for the narrator.

Yes but is it some what exciting. I mean for describing a house

First person gives me the chance to become someone else. Writing becomes a performance, like an actor using words. You see actors like Meryl Streep, and they seem like they can transform into anyone. That’s first person to me, as you develop a voice for the character, you discover who he is, in a much more personal way. I find that fascinating. As a reader, I really don’t mind. But as a writer, my preference is obvious.

This is an old post, but you sent me the link and people are still leaving comments so here goes –

When reading, I don’t think I have a preference between first or third, but when I started writing I was much more comfortable with first person past. Recently I read the first chapter in a preview of “The Hunger Games” and the present tense really threw me off, making it hard for me to follow along.

My story is heavily based on my own experiences, so it seemed natural to use first person. I really was I, allowing me to step into the part as the main character and narrator. Recently I’ve come up with another story idea that has nothing to do with my personal experiences, and I reckon it will be much easier for me to do that in third person.

Thank you for sharing this. I’ve always been fond of writing in 1st person POV. Eventually, I’d like to try my hand at writing in 3rd person, but it’s a beast I won’t take on until my current WIP is complete. I love reading your posts. Keep them coming!

K.M., I am a ya writer. I use third person when writing and first person when the character speaks in POV. My co-author has merfolk or mer-people, elves, humans, shape shifters, gods-human or mer, and also dwarfs. I have no vampire or werewolves. I am getting tired of those books like in the twilights series. Enough all ready. The characters live on a fictional planet. Yes, it edit, revise, and edit again so the book becomes published. What writing program do you use and is it hard to use?

I use Scrivener . It has a learning curve, but is the best writing software I’ve encountered.

I am seeing a new mistake that beginning writers are making in the Wattpad.com writing site and even in Amazon. This is taken from the “Introduction” chapter of a new writer that has asked me to look at their book:

Just a few things to help while reading.

Certain images will appear at points in the story to show a change in time line or place or POV

A row of XxxxxxxX = time line or location.

A row of = (magnafying glasses)change of POV + Location.

A row of (paper icons)= POV.

I did this while proof reading for plot and spelling I got just a little lost. I hope this helps. Made it a little easier for myself.

If you have a better idea after reading. Let me know. As always enjoy

I’m trying to explain to him that this isn’t making things different in a good way, but that he is telling not showing and needs to work these things into his prose. So if you get the chance please add this problem to this page. Here is a screen shot of the chapter:

http://oi64.tinypic.com/110iypz.jpg

Yiii! this is the wrong way to try and make a story different. In my option it just makers them as a complete newbie.

Dang it still has typos, sorry about that: *This, *makes

No wait, not makes: marks.

A beta reader referred me to this column because she doesn’t like my use of italics for interior thoughts. I’m writing in first person POV because my protagonist lives in her head, is self-centered, lies often, and seldom says what she really thinks.

For an example using Leave It to Beaver character Eddie Haskell’s POV:

“Gee that is a nice dress you have on, Mrs. Cleaver.” [i]It looks like the drapes my mother threw out. [/i]

“Why thank you, Eddie,” said Mrs. Cleaver. “It was nice of you to notice.”

To me, rewriting internal dialog interspersed with dialog into past tense like the narrative takes you out of the moment. What do you recommend for internal dialog that happens during conversations?

I gotta back up your beta reader on this one. When you’re creating a deep narrative in which every single word is essentially being told by the narrating character, there’s no reason to pull readers out of their intimate narrative to point out which thoughts are *really* that character’s thoughts. It’s actually much more disruptive to interrupt the past-tense narrative with present-tense thoughts, rather than the other way around.

What about if your first person narration is supposed to be the main character telling a story of what happened to him when he was younger?

“I must have drifted off to sleep after that because the next thing I rememebered was waking up in a sweat at 2am. I had been having another dream about the man in black. This time I was in my own bedroom. He was just standing in the corner staring at me again. I was on my bed terrified. ”

I know that doesn’t sound very good. I see what you mean about too many I’s. But this is him telling his story, so don’t I have to use I a lot?

This approach is tricky (although doable), since you have to basically create a framing device that uses the older narrator only occasionally, but still allows the story to be told in a more immediate tense (dropping all those extra hads and haves for the most part). Honestly, my first instinct would be to either drop the “future self” narrator or use him only as a brief frame in a prologue and epilogue. The big pitfall is that his presence risks distancing readers too much from the immediacy of the main narrative.

This reminds me of “The Catcher in the Rye” (have you read it yet?) in which the first person narrator partially describes his predicament, says, “Now let me tell you about my story…” then doesn’t return to the present “and here I am…” until the last couple pages.

It’s how he jumped from the end of the story to the epilogue that still has me wondering why after 60 years I can’t find anyone else who shares my interpretation.

I think I write better in first person as I need the emotion to come across and find it easier that way…but I have other characters in my story that I would like to be independent from the main so what would I use for them :/ please help I’m very new at this

I recommend practicing writing in various POVs. It’s a great exercise to stretch your skills and teach to explore different characters’ voices. If it helps, you can think of deep third-person as basically first-person–just with different pronouns.

I am extremely conflicted. I have been researching differences between first person and third person limited, trying to figure out which narrative is going to be able to convey my characters thoughts, feelings and experiences in the moment. As the writer and creator of these characters I already know what they’re thinking, feeling, and experiencing in the moment, in flashbacks, etc. and it’s important to story that I am able to intimately convey to my readers not just one character’s thoughts, feelings, and experiences- their past, their present, etc. but that of two characters, as they are both equally essential. I’ve read books where sections are separated by a character’s name instead of a ‘chapter’ heading, letting the reader know who’s POV we’re now reading from. I’ve also read books where a scene is told from one POV, only to later be retold by another POV, revealing things unknown by the first POV, deepening the story. When watching a scene in a film with two characters, the viewer knows what’s happening with both characters simultaneously thanks to facial expressions, body language, tone of voice, etc.; the viewer receives all of this information at once. I can visualize these scenes in my mind, and again, because I’m writing them, I already know what the characters are feeling, thinking, and experiencing, but I need to be able to successfully and fluidly translate both POVs, so that the reader can connect to both. Writing from first person allows the writer to become that person just as playing a role in a production, and I’m basically trying to play two roles. It is imperative the reader feel both characters; without both the translation is lost. But at the same time, writing from third person limited is more natural for me and also allows me to write about supporting and minor characters. Though, I suppose I can still write about other characters in first person, but from said person’s POV. However, the reader doesn’t know if what they’re reading is an opinion or fact. There must be a way to seamlessly execute first person AND third person limited together. I apologize for the article, as you may have noticed, I am quite overwhelmed. :/

There is. 🙂 The traditional of intermingling first- and third-person POVs goes all the way back to Charles Dickens’s Bleak House .

I really enjoy writing in first person. This perspective allows me to release or enhance emotion in many ways and proves to be a clean re readable product. Often frustration overcomes my love for creating on paper hence why I arrived at this beautiful explanation of first person narrative writing which has cleared up quite a bit of my fog. Thanks. -infinite peace, love and balance. – a free bird

Any tips on helping a fellow writer get that their characters narrative is way to long (in most chapters the characters thoughts take up at least half.) She keeps expling it away that she has a reason for this in that she wants readers to understand how her characters feel. Personality, I feel it could be condensed and have the characters show more. Any thoughts on this?

Sometimes you just can’t talk someone out of something. 😉 But you might send her this post: The Do’s and Don’ts of Internal Monologue .

I prefer to write in 3rd person for some scenes that have a lot of action in them and 1st person for ‘deep’ scenes I guess you’d say. I’m kind of in the middle and at war with my inner editor over writing in 3rd person vs 1st in my novel. Both sound pretty good but 1st person sounds better a lot of the time, so I think that’s what I’ll go with. Hope it all goes well…

I don’t think it’s what sounds best 1st or 3rd but who you narrator is – is it you the author or is it an omniscient narrator with their own personality or is it a character and how close to them do you want to get? Suss out your narrator first and pov should fall into place.

It finally occurred to me my writing partner is a little conceded well, maybe a lot. Even after showing her this website and a few others she has fallen in the defensive response of saying that it’s her style and that all writing advice is wrong for her book. Sounds fair enough right? Well, there’s I, me, and such everywhere, huge blocks of backstory taht go on for chapters, and about 6 + characters that each get a chapters switching back and forth until I get whiplash. Along with the names looking alike (lots start with a K.)

I really need a better reading/writing it then wattpad most members are very green or cant see the ‘forest’ at all. I’ve tried writing.com but the drop-down menus keep breaking or disappearing so it’s unusable. I found a site called inket.com but it is greedy and tries to make a worlds rights grab. I want an adult writing/reading site. Why are they all for teens or a scam? ;-;

You might find something here: 15 Places to Find Your Next Beta Reader .

Some years back, a new lady in my writers group asked me to edit her 1st work. She had 19 “I-me-my-mine” etc in one paragraph. Tedious. A careful rewrite enabled me to drop 16 of them and wonder of wonders, she got it! We joke about it still. Her work today is wonderful as she has discovered the power of “writing to the reader.” .

Sounds like you gave her a great critique!

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liars liars liars

Mistakes to avoid when crafting a narrative essay.

Writing is one of the most crucial skills that both college and university students should have, especially when it comes to ESL learners. When assigned to create a narrative essay, students find out that it is more difficult to produce narrative essays than to write regular papers.

The point is that information is the number one ingredient that you need to have in order to write a strong personal essay. It is impossible to craft a top-notch piece without knowledge. At the same time, you have to avoid a range of mistakes that a lot of students make when attempting to write narrative essays for the first time. We’ve listed some of them below.

1. Too Much Information

Sometimes students include so many details in narrative essays that they fall into real trouble when trying to logically tell the story. Information overload will take the readability of your project to the lower level and make your work look cheap. Even if you make sure to develop great characters and come up with an extraordinary plot, your target readers will stop reading halfway if they find it too hard to get through all the details.

Resist the urge to add loads of events and characters to your story! Your readers should be able to deduct the key idea of the story without any extra help.

2.Taking too Long

When working on a narrative essay, it is better to dive right into things. Many students tend to take too long before getting to the core of their work.

Instead, choose to open up your narrative essay somewhere in the middle of your story and then get back to the beginning of it. Thus, your target readers will be hooked from the very beginning.

3. Mistakes with Pieces of Dialogues

A lot of undergrads push away their readers with access lot a bunch of dialogues throughout the narrative story. This becomes a real ‘turn off’ to your target audience. That is why it is recommended to use functional paragraphs and include short and logical dialogue segments to keep your readers interested in your story.

When it comes to a narrative story, dialogues are excellent tools to use. However, you have to do it wisely. There’s no need to explain every other detail in a dialogue! Instead, ensure to break up a long conversation into smaller chunks of dialogues. As a result, the whole story will become more powerful.

4. Don’t Tell – Show!

A lot of inexperienced writers tend to simply start throwing in facts, dialogues, descriptions, and figures without proper narration. When you write a narrative essay, it is essential to make it personal, while telling a story about what you felt, saw, experienced, and heard.

If you fail to add important details, your readers will get bored when reading it. After all, they are hoping to read an interesting story but not a business document or a portfolio.

5. Lack of Suspense

One of the reasons why many students decide to buy narrative essay from some trustworthy online custom writing company is that they fall short in hooking the readers because of a lack of suspense. It’s no doubt, online reps of a custom writing service can produce a top-notch paper for sale that you buy then.

They know how to create a narrative story with solid suspense building. But with some effort, you will provide your audience with an opportunity to guess and wonder at the unknown. Little by little, make sure to give slight clues and hints to your readers. When it’s time to end the narrative, you will reveal the full story.

6. You Fail to Take Your Readers Somewhere

A professionally written narrative essay is like a good road trip. In other words, it should go somewhere. In a perfect paper, your readers arrive somewhere different from the place they stated. However, it is important that you take your time with that ‘trip’ and its details. If the narrator simply jumps straight to the end of the story, s/he robs the readers of all the exciting details about the written piece. Ensure you reach your conclusions step by step.

The other mistakes that college students tend to make in narrative essays include:

• A character who happens to unexpectedly have certain knowledge or skills.
• An event that has zero connection with the preceding events.
• An event that is impossible to happen in the universe that you created.
• An event that occurs without any particular reason.
• A character that does/says something that has nothing to do with his or her personality – just because you want them to do it.

These are the most common mistakes students make when working on a narrative essay for college. As a result, the poor-quality piece doesn’t speed up their academic progress . If you take them into account, you will hone the manner in which you write this or any other type of essay.

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The Common App Opens Today—Here’s How to Answer Every Prompt

Aug 1, 2024

Today, the Common Application opens for the 2024–25 application cycle. As the platform opens, officially signaling the start of the college admissions season, many students are starting the daunting process of crafting their personal statements. The personal statement is a crucial opportunity to showcase individuality, character, and intellectual depth. In only 650 words, students should seek to encapsulate their authentic voice and perspective through a compelling and creative narrative. The process requires thorough brainstorming, strategy, and editing to produce an essay that is distinct from those of thousands of other applicants vying for seats at top colleges.

As students choose a prompt and begin brainstorming essays, here are the key points to consider in order to create a stellar essay for each prompt:

• The Meaningful Background Prompt

Prompt : Some students have a background, identity, interest, or talent that is so meaningful they believe their application would be incomplete without it. If this sounds like you, then please share your story.

This prompt invites you to share an aspect of your identity or experience that is central to who you are. Start by thoughtfully considering aspects of your identity that are unique to you; then, try to think of a specific anecdote or experience that provides a portrait of those qualities. While detail and specificity are critical for all engaging essays, they are particularly important in this one, as you should show (rather than tell ) admissions committees the things that are quintessential to who you are.

Your essay should also have a takeaway—aside from just telling admissions officers what the background, identity, interest, or talent is, you should also focus on what you’ve learned from this piece of your identity, how it has developed over time, and how you will apply it in college and beyond.

• The Overcoming Obstacles Prompt

Prompt : The lessons we take from obstacles we encounter can be fundamental to later success. Recount a time when you faced a challenge, setback, or failure. How did it affect you, and what did you learn from the experience?

This prompt is an opportunity to demonstrate resilience and the capacity to learn from adversity—qualities that elite universities value highly. Begin by choosing a specific incident where you faced a significant challenge or failure—this could be an academic setback, a personal loss, or a time when you were out of your comfort zone. Students often fall into one of two common mistakes when tackling this question. First, many students rely on cliches and overused tropes. Keep in mind that admissions officers will likely read hundreds of essays recounting stories of students missing the game-winning goal or flunking a test in sophomore English. Try to select a story that only you can tell, and if you choose a topic you worry might be popular among other students, consider how you might recount it in a unique and unexpected way. On the other hand, some students fall into the opposite problem, sharing about a particularly personal, traumatic, or triggering experience that impacted them. Though it should convey personal insights, the personal statement is still a professional document, and you should not make your reader uncomfortable or unsettled by the information you share.

Finally, note that admissions officers are not primarily interested in the challenge itself, but in how you responded to the challenge. Focus on the steps you took to overcome the obstacle, what you learned about yourself in the process, and how this experience has shaped your future actions and mindset. Highlight any new skills, perspectives, or motivations that emerged from this experience, demonstrating your ability to grow and adapt in the face of adversity.

• The Changed Perspective Prompt

Prompt : Reflect on a time when you questioned or challenged a belief or idea. What prompted your thinking? What was the outcome?

Top colleges seek to admit students who are willing to engage in critical thinking and who possess the intellectual courage to question norms or ideas. For this essay, consider beginning with an anecdote—starting the essay in media res can be an engaging way to catch the reader’s attention and quickly establish the stakes of your narrative. As you share your story, remember that the essay’s focus is to demonstrate your open-mindedness, your commitment to seeking the truth, and your willingness to engage deeply with complex issues. It also shows your ability to respect differing viewpoints while developing your own reasoned stance. As such, you should take the admissions committee through your process of growth and change step-by-step, clearly articulating how the experience impacted you and how your changed perspective will enhance their campus community should you enroll.

• The Gratitude Prompt

Prompt : Reflect on something that someone has done for you that has made you happy or thankful in a surprising way. How has this gratitude affected or motivated you?

Like the two prior prompts, this prompt requires students to share a particular anecdote, and students should consider beginning with their narrative before zooming out to explore the broader theme of gratitude. Start by recounting a specific instance where someone did something for you that made you feel unexpectedly grateful. This could be a small act of kindness, a significant gesture, or a moment of support that made a lasting impression on you. Then, explore how this experience of gratitude has affected your actions or attitude. As you do so, be sure to avoid platitudes or vapid buzzwords—rather than expressing that the experience made you feel “good” or “appreciated” or the equivalent, share how it has affected your perspective or actions going forward. The best responses are those that illustrate actionable change rather than fuzzy feelings.

• The Personal Growth Prompt

Prompt : Discuss an accomplishment, event, or realization that sparked a period of personal growth and a new understanding of yourself or others.

A student’s college years are all about growth and transformation, and this prompt invites students to demonstrate their capacity for self-reflection and teachability. Thus, while this prompt might invite you to describe a major event or accomplishment, what you really want to show is a transformative period and the resulting reflection. Don’t feel as though the accomplishment, event, or realization needs to be especially earth-shattering or ground-breaking—sometimes the small things can make an impression in a big way. Finally, if you do choose to write about an accomplishment, be sure that you are not bragging. The prompt is an opportunity to show self-awareness, rather than to tout your achievements.

• The Captivating Concept Prompt

Prompt : Describe a topic, idea, or concept you find so engaging that it makes you lose all track of time. Why does it captivate you? What or who do you turn to when you want to learn more?

Intellectual curiosity and authentic passion are distinguishing characteristics in the landscape of top college admissions. For this prompt, zoom in on a particular topic that genuinely fascinates you, whether it’s a specific academic subject, a philosophical idea, or a creative pursuit. Many students manufacture a response to this prompt based on what they assume will impress admissions officers—but if you aren’t truly interested in Kantian ethics, an admissions officer will be able to tell. However silly, mundane, quirky, or bizarre your “captivating concept” may be, if it’s true to you—write about it!

While your response should describe how a specific aspect of this topic captivates your interest and why it resonates with you on a deeper level, it should also demonstrate how you have taken the initiative to explore this topic in unique ways. Have you sought out books on the topic? Taken an online course to elevate your knowledge? Started a club to connect with others who share your interest? Developed a passion project that mobilized your interest in service of your community?

• Share an essay on any topic of your choice. It can be one you’ve already written, one that responds to a different prompt, or one of your own design.

If none of the above prompts allow you to effectively express yourself, remember that the Common App includes an open prompt, wherein you can write on a topic of your choice! This is an excellent opportunity to share a story that doesn’t fit neatly into the other prompts but is crucial to understanding who you are. If you choose to pursue this prompt, make sure your essay is well-structured and cohesive, with a clear theme or message that ties everything together.

The Common App essay is more than just a component of your application; it’s a chance to speak directly to admissions officers and present your authentic self. Taking the time to brainstorm and edit will allow you to submit an essay that showcases your unique voice and original perspective to admissions officers at top colleges. For more on the Common App essays, check out Command Education’s complete guide !

Originally published on Forbes .

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Home News How to Write a Personal Statement for Graduate School

How to Write a Personal Statement for Graduate School

Preparing to apply for graduate school? If so, then there’s a good chance that your program of choice will require you to submit a personal statement as part of your application. Specifically, a personal statement is a short essay that allows applicants to showcase their unique qualities, aspirations, and other traits that may make them a good candidate for the program.

Still, if you’ve never written a personal statement before, the thought of writing an essay about yourself may seem daunting. The good news? With some practical tips and tricks in mind, it doesn’t have to be.

Understanding the Purpose of a Personal Statement

Before you start writing or even brainstorming, it’s important to understand the purpose of a personal statement in a graduate school application. Ideally, this essay should complement the other components of your application by providing additional context, showcasing your personality, and demonstrating the passion that you have for your chosen field. This can provide the admissions committee with a more holistic view of you as a person.

The Role It Plays in Your Application

There’s a good chance that your application will be one of just dozens or even hundreds to get into your program of choice. Admissions committee members, then, must sift through all kinds of application material to help them make their final decisions.

Many admissions committees utilize personal statements as a means of assessing an applicant’s writing ability, critical thinking skills, and their overall fit for the program. These essays can be especially useful in distinguishing applicants who may have similar academic backgrounds or who may otherwise look similar “on paper.”

What Admission Committees Look For

So, what exactly are admission committees looking for when they read a personal statement or sift through other application materials? Some of the most important elements they are seeking include:

• Evidence of thorough program research and aligned goals.
• A demonstrated passion for the field or discipline of study.
• Articulated potential for success.
• Effective written communication skills.

Crafting Your Narrative

Not sure how to write a personal statement for grad school? One of the best ways to start is to transform your experiences, challenges, and pivotal life moments into a compelling narrative that really showcases where you’ve been and where you hope to go.

Identifying Your Unique Qualities and Experiences

This begins with doing a little self-reflection to uncover the distinct qualifications, experiences, and skills that make you a great candidate for the program. Take some time to write down what you believe to be the most pivotal moments of your academic and/or professional life. Can you pinpoint what sparked your interest in your chosen field?

How to Tell Your Story Effectively

From there, it’s all about using language to tell your story in a way both engaging and compelling. You can do this by using vivid language with plenty of concrete examples. When crafting your personal statement, it’s also important that the narrative is structured with a clear beginning, middle, and end. Outlining before you write your first draft can be a great way to keep yourself on track in this regard.

Key Elements to Include in Your Personal Statement

There are many important components you won’t want to leave out of your personal statement, ranging from specific academic achievements and career goals to professional experiences and research interests.

Academic Achievements and Research Interests

Your admissions committee wants to hear about your academic accomplishments and research interests, so don’t be modest here. Now is the time to let your accomplishments shine and to make connections between these achievements and your chosen program of study.

Professional Experiences and Goals

If you can incorporate any of your professional experiences and career goals into your personal statement, be sure to do this in a way that demonstrates your commitment to the field and the potential contributions you could make to the program itself.

Personal Motivations and Aspirations

Be sure to articulate your personal motivations for pursuing a graduate degree in your chosen field, including a detailed discussion of your future aspirations. Optimally, you’ll be able to connect these to the program’s specific values and offerings as well.

How to Write a Stand-Out Personal Statement for Grad School

As you get started in drafting your personal statement for graduate school, here are some tips and best practices to keep in mind.

Starting With a Strong Opening

Never underestimate the power of a strong opening. Preferably, you’ll want to begin with an attention-grabbing opening that hooks the reader and really sets the tone for the rest of the essay. A personal anecdote, quote, or surprising statistic can work well here, but don’t hesitate to get creative!

Maintaining a Cohesive Structure

Make sure your personal statement is well organized in a way both logical and coherent. This will ensure a smooth flow of ideas and a clear narrative arc. If you’re not sure how to do this, try outlining your essay first. When you read the outline back to yourself, the basic idea(s) should come across clearly.

Employing Vivid Descriptions and Examples

Using specific details, concrete examples, and vivid language can be a great way to bring your personal statement to life and make it more engaging for your readers. Vivid and descriptive writing can also help make your essay more memorable, which can work in your favor.

H2: How Long Should a Personal Statement Be?

When it comes down to how to write a personal statement for grad school, most notably how long should a personal statement be, the best way to determine this is to review the specific application requirements on your program page. Different schools and programs may have different requirements for number of pages, word count, and formatting. Typically, it is common for a personal statement to be about two pages long.

Common Mistakes to Avoid

As you write and revise your personal statement, there are also some common mistakes that you’ll want to avoid as much as possible.

Overused Phrases and Clichés

Admissions committees want to see unique, authentic writing. With this in mind, it’s important to avoid phrases and clichés that may be overused by other applicants. Some examples of phrases to avoid may include:

• “My passion was sparked when…”
• “I believe I am a good fit for this program because…”
• “I have been interested in this field since I was X years old…”
• “I am extremely passionate about…”

Neglecting the Program-Specific Details

Your personal statement should also demonstrate that you’ve actually taken the time to read through the details of the program and understand the curriculum. With this in mind, it’s important that you tailor your essay to the program itself. Don’t leave out details that will help highlight your understanding of the program and what it will entail.

The Revision Process

Completing a first draft of your personal statement is certainly an accomplishment, but it’s still important to revise and edit your draft multiple times before you submit it.

Seeking Feedback From Mentors and Peers

One of the best ways to get valuable feedback about your personal statement is to ask your trusted friends, classmates, and even professors to read it and identify areas of improvement. The people who read your essay don’t even need to be familiar with the program itself to provide useful feedback and perspectives .

Fine-Tuning Language and Tone

As you revise, work on fine-tuning your own writing to make sure your essay is as clear and concise as possible without sacrificing professionalism. You can avoid redundancies in your writing, for example, by using the active voice as much as possible and removing unnecessary prepositional phrases.

Finalizing Your Personal Statement

As you prepare your personal statement for submission with the rest of your application materials, there are a few more steps you should take to ensure that you’re submitting your absolute best work.

Proofreading for Grammar and Spelling Errors

First, make sure to proofread meticulously to avoid any spelling or grammatical errors. Understand that word processing software won’t always catch every typo, so it’s a good idea to read through your essay manually a few times. Another great way to catch typos that a spell-checker might miss is to actually read your essay word-for-word backwards .  Give it a try for yourself!

Ensuring Adherence to Application Guidelines

Finally, be sure to double-check that your personal statement adheres to all requirements outlined by your school/program. This means ensuring that the essay is formatted correctly, meets all length/word count requirements, and is in the proper style, like MLA or APA . Failing to follow application guidelines when you write your personal statement can throw off red flags for admissions committee members that an applicant doesn’t know how to follow directions, which may not bode well for your admission decision.

Ready to Apply for a Graduate Program?

There’s quite a bit to keep in mind when it comes to writing a compelling personal statement for graduate school. At the end of the day, you’ll want to remember that your personal statement is a unique opportunity to showcase what makes you such an ideal fit for the program to which you’re applying. By following these tips, you should be in good shape.

Still looking for the right graduate program to help you accelerate your career? Marymount University offers 17  master’s degree programs , seven doctorate programs, and 22 certificate programs to meet your needs and interests.  Learn more  by reaching out or get started with your online  application  for enrollment today!

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The Common App Opens Today—Here’s How To Answer Every Prompt

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Writing the Personal Statement for the Common Application

Today, the Common Application opens for the 2024–25 application cycle. As the platform opens, officially signaling the start of the college admissions season, many students are starting the daunting process of crafting their personal statements. The personal statement is a crucial opportunity to showcase individuality, character, and intellectual depth. In only 650 words, students should seek to encapsulate their authentic voice and perspective through a compelling and creative narrative. The process requires thorough brainstorming, strategy, and editing in order to produce an essay that is distinct from those of thousands of other applicants vying for seats at top colleges.

As students choose a prompt and begin brainstorming essays, here are the key points to consider in order to create a stellar essay for each prompt:

1. The Meaningful Background Prompt

Prompt: Some students have a background, identity, interest, or talent that is so meaningful they believe their application would be incomplete without it. If this sounds like you, then please share your story.

This prompt invites you to share an aspect of your identity or experience that is central to who you are. Start by thoughtfully considering aspects of your identity that are unique to you; then, try to think of a specific anecdote or experience that provides a portrait of those qualities. While detail and specificity are critical for all engaging essays, they are particularly important in this one, as you should show (rather than tell ) admissions committees the things that are quintessential to who you are.

Your essay should also have a takeaway—aside from just telling admissions officers what the background, identity, interest, or talent is, you should also focus on what you’ve learned from this piece of your identity, how it has developed over time, and how you will apply it in college and beyond.

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Nyt ‘strands’ hints, spangram and answers for thursday, august 1st, russia releases evan gershkovich and paul whelan in massive 26-person prisoner swap—here’s what we know, 2. the overcoming obstacles prompt.

Prompt: The lessons we take from obstacles we encounter can be fundamental to later success. Recount a time when you faced a challenge, setback, or failure. How did it affect you, and what did you learn from the experience?

This prompt is an opportunity to demonstrate resilience and the capacity to learn from adversity—qualities that elite universities value highly. Begin by choosing a specific incident where you faced a significant challenge or failure—this could be an academic setback, a personal loss, or a time when you were out of your comfort zone. Students often fall into one of two common mistakes when tackling this question. First, many students rely on cliches and overused tropes. Keep in mind that admissions officers will likely read hundreds of essays recounting stories of students missing the game-winning goal or flunking a test in sophomore English. Try to select a story that only you can tell, and if you choose a topic you worry might be popular among other students, consider how you might recount it in a unique and unexpected way. On the other hand, some students fall into the opposite problem, sharing about a particularly personal, traumatic, or triggering experience that impacted them. Though it should convey personal insights, the personal statement is still a professional document, and you should not make your reader uncomfortable or unsettled by the information you share.

Finally, note that admissions officers are not primarily interested in the challenge itself, but in how you responded to the challenge. Focus on the steps you took to overcome the obstacle, what you learned about yourself in the process, and how this experience has shaped your future actions and mindset. Highlight any new skills, perspectives, or motivations that emerged from this experience, demonstrating your ability to grow and adapt in the face of adversity.

3. The Changed Perspective Prompt

Prompt: Reflect on a time when you questioned or challenged a belief or idea. What prompted your thinking? What was the outcome?

Top colleges seek to admit students who are willing to engage in critical thinking and who possess the intellectual courage to question norms or ideas. For this essay, consider beginning with an anecdote—starting the essay in media res can be an engaging way to catch the reader’s attention and quickly establish the stakes of your narrative. As you share your story, remember that the essay’s focus is to demonstrate your open-mindedness, your commitment to seeking the truth, and your willingness to engage deeply with complex issues. It also shows your ability to respect differing viewpoints while developing your own reasoned stance. As such, you should take the admissions committee through your process of growth and change step-by-step, clearly articulating how the experience impacted you and how your changed perspective will enhance their campus community should you enroll.

4. The Gratitude Prompt

Prompt: Reflect on something that someone has done for you that has made you happy or thankful in a surprising way. How has this gratitude affected or motivated you?

Like the two prior prompts, this prompt requires students to share a particular anecdote, and students should consider beginning with their narrative before zooming out to explore the broader theme of gratitude. Start by recounting a specific instance where someone did something for you that made you feel unexpectedly grateful. This could be a small act of kindness, a significant gesture, or a moment of support that made a lasting impression on you. Then, explore how this experience of gratitude has affected your actions or attitude. As you do so, be sure to avoid platitudes or vapid buzzwords—rather than expressing that the experience made you feel “good” or “appreciated” or the equivalent, share how it has affected your perspective or actions going forward. The best responses are those that illustrate actionable change rather than fuzzy feelings.

5. The Personal Growth Prompt

Prompt: Discuss an accomplishment, event, or realization that sparked a period of personal growth and a new understanding of yourself or others.

A student’s college years are all about growth and transformation, and this prompt invites students to demonstrate their capacity for self-reflection and teachability. Thus, while this prompt might invite you to describe a major event or accomplishment, what you really want to show is a transformative period and the resulting reflection. Don’t feel as though the accomplishment, event, or realization needs to be especially earth-shattering or ground-breaking—sometimes the small things can make an impression in a big way. Finally, if you do choose to write about an accomplishment, be sure that you are not bragging. The prompt is an opportunity to show self-awareness, rather than to tout your achievements.

6. The Captivating Concept Prompt

Prompt: Describe a topic, idea, or concept you find so engaging that it makes you lose all track of time. Why does it captivate you? What or who do you turn to when you want to learn more?

Intellectual curiosity and authentic passion are distinguishing characteristics in the landscape of top college admissions. For this prompt, zoom in on a particular topic that genuinely fascinates you, whether it’s a specific academic subject, a philosophical idea, or a creative pursuit. Many students manufacture a response to this prompt based on what they assume will impress admissions officers—but if you aren’t truly interested in Kantian ethics, an admissions officer will be able to tell. However silly, mundane, quirky, or bizarre your “captivating concept” may be, if it’s true to you—write about it!

While your response should describe how a specific aspect of this topic captivates your interest and why it resonates with you on a deeper level, it should also demonstrate how you have taken the initiative to explore this topic in unique ways. Have you sought out books on the topic? Taken an online course to elevate your knowledge? Started a club to connect with others who share your interest? Developed a passion project that mobilized your interest in service of your community?

7. Share an essay on any topic of your choice. It can be one you've already written, one that responds to a different prompt, or one of your own design.

If none of the above prompts allow you to effectively express yourself, remember that the Common App includes an open prompt, wherein you can write on a topic of your choice! This is an excellent opportunity to share a story that doesn’t fit neatly into the other prompts but is crucial to understanding who you are. If you choose to pursue this prompt, make sure your essay is well-structured and cohesive, with a clear theme or message that ties everything together.

The Common App essay is more than just a component of your application; it’s a chance to speak directly to admissions officers and present your authentic self. Taking the time to brainstorm and edit will allow you to submit an essay that showcases your unique voice and original perspective to admissions officers at top colleges.

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THE ANALYSIS OF COMMON GRAMMATICAL ERRORS IN WRITING NARRATIVE ESSAY OF ENGLISH STUDY PROGRAM STUDENTS AT JAMBI UNIVERSITY

• Reni Heryanti , Muhammad Hadi Sucipto , M. Makmur
• Published 12 December 2017
• Linguistics, Education

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An investigation into grammatical errors in essays written by vietnamese efl high school students, the common grammatical errors in writing narrative essay of students at the youth resource center, savannakhet, indonesian efl students’ errors in writing the narrative text: a study of high achiever students (has), native language interference in learning a second language, grammatical errors made by the eleventh grade students in english argumentative writing, students’ writing error in using english causative.

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