Narrative writing tells a story or part of one. Follow the task’s scope: it may ask for an opening rather than a complete plot. AQA 8700 Paper 1’s updated narrative option from summer 2026 asks for an opening; see the dedicated Paper 1 lesson for the current format.
For a complete story, one possible plan is hook, build-up, climax and resolution. Other shapes can work. For an opening, establish a purposeful start without rushing to a full resolution.
Keep the cast and setting manageable within the available length. One or two characters can work well, but there is no universal required number.
An original story outline
Techniques
Openings: start in the middle of action, with a vivid detail, a line of dialogue or an intriguing question.
Characterisation can use actions, speech, thoughts, description and direct summary. Select details that serve the narrative.
Dialogue: punctuate correctly with a new line for each speaker, and use it to reveal character or move the plot.
Control pace through detail, sentence patterns, pauses and the order of information. Short sentences can hurry action or isolate and delay a moment.
First person uses a narrating “I” or “we”; third person may be limited to one character or offer a wider view. Control whose knowledge and perceptions the reader receives; signal deliberate shifts.
A station as a story setting
Endings
Choose an ending that serves the story: resolution, an opening motif revisited, a prepared twist or a purposeful unresolved question. Avoid relying on an unprepared dream reveal merely to stop writing.
A repeated motif can change
Technical accuracy
Use paragraphs for changes of speaker and significant shifts of focus, time or place. Keep tense relationships clear, signal deliberate shifts, and check spelling and punctuation.
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