NOTES FROM CLASS 2/19/15

The key features of a literacy narrative:

1. A well-told story:

• As with most narratives, those about literacy often set up some sort of situation that needs to be resolved. In other words, they contain a conflict. That need for resolution makes readers want to keep reading.
• You’ll need to describe what happens.
  • A good story dramatizes action by using active and specific verbs to describe what happens as vividly as possible.

2. Vivid detail:

• Details can bring a narrative to life for readers by giving vivid mental images of the sights, sounds, smells, tastes, and textures of the world in which your story takes place. Details can help your reader picture places, people, and events.
  • Use your five senses!
  • Also think about the key people in your story. Make a list of each person present in your narrative: how do they look, what do they sound like, how do they interact with you?
    • Maybe you’ll even want to include some dialogue to let readers hear these people, rather than just hear about them.

Remember: you are the main character in your story. We want to hear about the other characters, but you are the most important aspect of your story. You are the character the reader wants to know and understand.

3. Some indication of the narrative’s significance:

• By definition, a literacy narrative tells something the writer remembers about learning to read or write. But, the writer also needs to make clear why the incident matters to him or her.
  • The trick is to avoid tacking onto the end a statement about your narrative’s significance as if it were a kind of moral of the story.
• Make clear the ways in which any event you are writing about is significant for you now. How did this event change or otherwise affect you? What aspects of your life now can you trace to that event? How might your life have been different if this event had not happened or had turned out differently?

Some other things to keep in mind:

• A good narrative grabs readers’ attention right from the start. There are many ways to do this, including:
  • Jump right into the action.
  • Describe the context, providing background info.
  • Start with setting, especially if it’s an important element in your narrative.
• The opening hook is very important, but often times, it does not come to the writer first.  As you draft, keep in mind that you don’t need to start at the introduction and work toward the end. Sometimes, it’s easier to start writing in the middle, and once you’ve got the body of the essay down, go back to the beginning.

The most important thing to remember: your goal is to tell the story as clearly and vividly as you can, and to convey the meaning the incident has for you today.

HOMEWORK DUE THURSDAY, 2/24:

Essay #1 first draft due! You must bring a hard copy to class. The essay MUST BE COMPLETE—that is, the full two pages.