Narrative writing

In 45 minutes you can write about two sides of a story well. Keep it small:

• one or two characters, so you can make them real;
• one setting, described in detail;
• a short time: an hour or an evening, not years;
• one turning point, where something changes.

A simple narrative arc works well:

1. Hook: an opening that makes the reader curious.
2. Build-up: the character, the setting and a problem.
3. Turning point: a discovery, a decision or a shock.
4. Ending: a resolution, or an ending that leaves the reader thinking.

Examiners reward stories that are crafted, not just told. Try one or two of these:

• Cyclical ending: finish where you started, with a change. A story that opens with a locked door might end with the same door, now open.
• Zoom from wide to detail: open with the whole scene, then narrow to one small, telling object.
• A single moment slowed down: stretch a few seconds over a paragraph, describing every sensation.
• Starting in the middle of the action, then explaining how the character got there.
• A one-line paragraph at a key moment, to make it hit hard.

Write the opening part of a story about a journey that goes wrong.

The bus had been gone for eleven minutes when Maya realised her phone was still on the seat.

She stood at the stop with her hand in her empty pocket, as if the phone might grow back. Around her, the village had already shut for the night: the shop blinds down, the pub's windows yellow and steamed. A single car passed and didn't slow.

Twelve miles. She knew the number because Dad had said it at breakfast, laughing, when she'd told him she'd be fine.

The road out of the village bent left into the trees and disappeared.

Maya pulled her hood up, counted to three, and started walking.

The first line is the hook. There is one character, one setting and a clear problem, and the one-line paragraphs slow the pace before she sets off.

• Too much plot. Car chases, explosions and five locations leave no time for good writing.
• Too much dialogue. A little speech brings characters to life; pages of it don't show off your writing.
• A rushed or unbelievable ending, such as ‘and then I woke up and it was all a dream’.
• Forgetting the task. If it asks for an opening, you don't need an ending.