What is narrative writing? The purpose of a narrative writing is to tell a story. Narratives may be written as a story, poem or play and can be either fiction or non-fiction. Narrative stories include an orientation, complication, resolution and ending.

A narrative stories are written to entertain and share personal or fictional experiences with the reader. The Narrative Story Mountain shows how a narrative can build up suspense, reach a climax and resolve the problem or complication through a series of events.
Narrative Writing Structure includes:
Orientation:
This section of your narrative story includes a setting, time, main character and can introduce minor characters in your story.
Complication or Series of Events:
The complication is an event or series of events that involve the main character. There are often minor complications or conflicts that are designed to engage and entertain readers.
Resolution:
The resolution is the solution to the complication. It explains how the complication was resolved, who solved it and any details associated with resolving the complication.
Conclusion:
The conclusion shows what has changed and what the character has learnt. It often highlights a moral to the story and lessons learnt.
Language Features:
Transitional phrases
Transitional words and phrases help tie together ideas in a narrative story. They help ideas and paragraphs flow. Some example of transitional phrases are:
Beginning – One day; One evening; Initially; A long time ago
Middle – Meanwhile; Next, After That; Unfortunately; Also; Suddenly
End – Also; Eventually; In conclusion; As a Result; Finally
Appropriate paragraphs
Narrative writing has a specific paragraph structure, with a minimum of 3 paragraphs – orientation, complication, resolution.
Descriptive Words
Descriptive words help describe people, places, things and actions. They help entertain readers.
Concrete and Abstract Nouns
Concrete nouns can be detected and felt by our five senses: house, newspaper, dog, bird, coffee, bucket, airplane, glasses, elephant, book
Abstract Nouns are words that name something you cannot see hear, taste, smell or touch: Happiness, hurt, kindness, anxiety, power, relief, wisdom, pride, hurt, anger
Time Sequence Temporal
Beginning – One day; One evening; In the beginning; A long time ago
Middle – Next; Meanwhile; After that; Suddenly
End – Also; Eventually; Moreover; Furthermore; Finally
Literary Devices
- Metaphor
- Simile
- Alliteration
- Hyperbole
- Personification
If you are looking for graphic organizers and teacher notes for writing narratives, take a look here.

Narrative Writing Prompts also help students get rolling with their ideas too. Take a look at these narrative writing prompts for a range of grades. Learn more about resources for your grade here.