Step 1: Finding a Topic

One of the most important—and most challenging—steps in writing a narrative is the first one, when you have to ask yourself, “What should I write about?” While sometimes the narrative prompts are very straightforward, such as “write about the time you were most happy” or “write about your favorite vacation,” oftentimes the prompt will be much more open-ended, so you will have to decide on your topic. Remember that the story you tell needs to have significance to you, and hope that it will be meaningful to your reader as well. That said, this does not mean that your story needs to be about a huge or earthshaking event in your life, like the time you saved a child from drowning or traveled to some faraway country. In fact, the best narratives are often smaller stories that have gained greater significance to you upon reflection. Early in his narrative “Shooting an Elephant,” George Orwell writes, “One day something happened which in a roundabout way was enlightening. It was a tiny incident in itself, but it gave me a better glimpse than I had had before of the real nature of imperialism—the real motives for which despotic governments act” (par. 3). So, when you are thinking of topics, focus on the “tiny incidents” that may have given you a glimpse into something enlightening about yourself or others.

242

ACTIVITY

Brainstorm for possible stories using the following categories to help you generate ideas:

  • Firsts, such as the first time you won a class spelling bee

  • New, such as the time when you were the new person in class

  • Conflicts, such as the time you got into a disagreement with a teacher about the grading policy

  • Realizations, such as the time you realized that you are really good at art