Personal Narrative Essay - Easy Guide & Examples, writing a personal narrative essay.

When it comes to writing a personal narrative essay, students love to do it. It is one of the easiest types of essays. This essay does not confine you in a boundary, in fact, it allows you to openly use your thoughts.

You must wonder which element is not required for the personal narrative essay? For your information, the element not required for such an essay is the research. Since it is a personal essay and you do not need any reference from any source. And since you do not need references, you do not need to conduct research.

Being a college student, you will get to write personal narrative essays very often. Here are a few examples of well-written personal narrative essays to guide college students.

Keep in mind that the topic you choose matches the intended audience. Since it is the reader who decides the scope and success of your essay.

Personal Narrative Essay Definition

For a narrative essay, it is a must to be vivid enough to let the reader imagine the whole scene. This is why it is necessary that the reader uses as much descriptive language as possible.

For any essay, be it an argumentative essay, descriptive, or a personal narrative essay. It is very important to have some transition sentences and words. These transition words help to make a logical connection in all parts of the essay.

For any type of essay, a hook statement can be the game-changer. But, particularly for a personal narrative essay, hook sentences are very important.

A narrative essay tells a story. In most cases, this is a story about a personal experience you had. This type of essay, along with the descriptive essay, allows you to get personal and creative, unlike most academic writing.

The best kind of story for a narrative essay is one you can use to reflect on a particular theme or lesson, or that takes a surprising turn somewhere along the way.

The key difference is that a narrative essay is designed to tell a complete story, while a descriptive essay is meant to convey an intense description of a particular place, object, or concept.

Narrative essay assignments vary widely in the amount of direction you’re given about your topic. You may be assigned quite a specific topic or choice of topics to work with.

Table of contents

If you’re not given much guidance on what your narrative essay should be about, consider the context and scope of the assignment. What kind of story is relevant, interesting, and possible to tell within the word count?

Don’t worry too much if your topic seems unoriginal. The point of a narrative essay is how you tell the story and the point you make with it, not the subject of the story itself.

These skills are quite different from those needed for formal academic writing. For instance, in a narrative essay the use of the first person (“I”) is encouraged, as is the use of figurative language, dialogue, and suspense.

It was about two decades ago when, at the age of 16, I traveled a distance of approximately 100 miles to get to see a great holy personality. For almost a month, the media had been advertising the arrival of Shri Mataji Nirmala Devi, the founder of Sahaja Yoga Meditation. This religious fraternity has attained a reputation as a global movement of spiritual practices. Since my mother was a committed faithful, I decided to tag along as she made a journey she considered a religious obligation. Little did I know that in volunteering to accompany my mum, I set myself up for one of my most memorable experiences.

When writing personal narrative essay examples, writers focus on giving vivid descriptions of their experiences and not just telling the audience about them. In these three stories, an author has offered such descriptions, such as a personal state of mind, to enable readers to either be emotionally involved. For example, in the first story, an author talks about how he became “moody, lost appetite, developed a headache, and withdrew from family and friends.” In turn, this description makes readers empathize with a personal situation.

When we are arrived at the scheduled venue, an auditorium of a state university, I got nervous for some reason. Since the media had advertised her arrival, the place was a sea of humanity, as faithful and curious individuals like me fought for a space to see this revered lady. One could tell a religious adherent from a curious attendee- it was a tradition that everywhere Shri Mataji visited, people gifted her flowers as a sign of their admiration and reverence.

Writing personal narrative examples is an academic activity that enhances one’s writing, critical thinking, and reflection skills. When students get assignments to write a personal story, they get the opportunity to reflect on their life experiences and take one or several aspects of it to share. In this case, a narrative essay introduces a student as an individual and a writer to readers. Therefore, the challenge for students is to find a story to tell, one that they can recall clearly and tell through writing thoughtfully. In other words, detailing one’s experience is essential to meet the criterion of the “show, do not tell” technique, meaning that authors should focus on giving the audience details of their life experience vividly rather than just talking about them. Also, the audience must be able to visualize those experiences for emotional intensity.

Personal Stories in Narrative Essays

Today, almost two decades later, I look back to December 20, 1989, and wonder about the power of aspirations. Dreams are powerful, and no matter how long it takes, life always finds a way to bring them to bear. Indeed, I visited Kenya after graduating from High School, but not to witness the Safari Rally. This time, my visit was sponsored by a community organization dedicated to making the world a better place for orphans. Visiting Kenya brought back memories of a missed opportunity and the mark it left in my life. Indeed, dreams are powerful!

News about our Christmas trees spread like wildfire. Mike’s decision to publish pamphlets advertising our product was a genius marketing trick. Although we were willing to give people the product on credit, a majority ended up paying in cash. Within three days, we had sold about 20 Christmas trees, and as they say, the rest is history.

Growing up, I always heard people say work hard pays

In light of this, I was carrying a flower under the instructions of my mother. Probably, some also took flowers under the direction of those they accompanied. As soon as it was announced that Shri Mataji was about to enter the auditorium, my heartbeat started racing. The crowd seemed to go on a frenzy, as some tried to move closer to the podium. As Shri Mataji made her way into the packed venue, people approached her in an unrushed way, giving her flowers, one by one. In return, she gave short comments to each person like, “Thank you,” “Oh, such a lovely dress,” and such. I must admit, her stance caught me off-guard. I always thought a holy person never smiles

However, it doesn't end here. After coming up with your personal narrative topic, identify all events and details that you want to include in your paper. Create an outline of how events should occur. This prompts you to create appropriate words narrative papers.

If the answer to the questions on this list is yes, then you are on your way to understanding how to write a narrative essay.

Using complex words can confuse readers. Instead, use simple descriptive words that would convey the message you are trying to pass. Also, do not include all narrative ideas in the same paragraph.

Choosing the right narrative essay topics or presentation topics can have an impact on the grade that you score on your narrative essay. Also, not knowing the structure of a proper essay can make the process difficult and uninteresting. A well-written essay should capture the attention of a reader and get him or her involved with the events in your story.

Need more writing assistance?

An example of a personal narrative essay is sharing memory of a person the author saw in the childhood and who left a stark impression (e. g. due to exceptional qualities).

Before working on your assignment, think of what event in your life that relates to the class theme. This stage is known as prewriting phase. This is the point where you select your topic. Keep in mind that a topic can influence outcome of a narrative. Select a topic that is important to you so you can compose the best story.

Here is a little of 65, narrative essay topics for high school students and college/university attendants. You can use these personal narrative ideas to help you to choose titles for your creative writings. If this list is not enough, you can turn to our narrative essay helper for assistance.

Instead spread out narrative ideas between different paragraphs. Do not create in a clinical manner. Write the same way you would to your friends. Each description and statement should be vivid. After all, it's the only way to get readers fully engaged with your story.

Try getting some inspiration from these ideas and start writing your narrative essay. Besides an impressive topic, you should also be aware of the basic personal narrative essay structure. Feel free to consult with your teachers if you are still confused about which topic to use and how. Now let’s take a look at how to write a personal narrative essay.

1. Movies like Shoplifters and The Boy in the Striped Pyjamas show the importance of loyalty and friendship. Tell us about a time in your life when friendship played an integral role.
2. It is often said that animals are the best friends of humans. Describe a phase of your life when this saying proved to be true.
3. Your first job requires you to move to a different new city. Describe the steps you will take to prepare for this move.
4. Pick a particular adjective that suits you. Justify your choice through a real story in your life.
5. It is often said that one shouldn’t judge a book by its cover. Describe an experience where you misjudged someone or when someone misjudged you.
6. Dealing with disappointment or rejection tells a great deal about what is important to him or her. So, you can tell us about a time when you confronted disappointment and how you dealt with it.
7. Adolescents often promise themselves not to be like their parents when they grow up. However, we realize that there a lot of ways we are similar to our parents. Describe an experience when you felt you were behaving or reacting like your parent.
8. Significant life events such as a new job or the birth of a sibling have a major impact on us. Describe an event that had a considerable influence on you.
9. It is often said that you can't be hurt by things that you don't know. However, in reality, the opposite is what happens. Describe a time when you were hurt by something you didn’t know.
10. Parents are our first teachers. Describe a time when you learnt something valuable from your parents.
11. We often discover ourselves when we are forced to handle an unexpected situation. Describe a time when you too faced with something unexpected and what you learn from the process.
12. Preconceived notions are mostly false. Tell about a time in your life when you heard a preconceived notion about yourself and that turned out to be false.
13. Certain experiences in our life help us examine our basic beliefs and values. Tell about one of your experiences that helped you examine the same.
14. We have often talked about people who lost control and went beyond reason. Tell about such an experience along with the reasons.
15. We tend to get hold of some of our richest experiences by traveling. Tell me about such a memorable experience in your life.
16. Describe a time when you had to put yourself at risk to do something that was right.
17. We usually take nature for granted. Describe an experience that made you appreciate the natural world.
18. Most of us have to make certain hard decisions throughout our lives. Describe a time when you had to make such a tough decision.
19. Describe an experience that helped you to understand another person better and without any biases.
20. We all are afraid of something or the other. Describe an experience where you were forced to face your deepest fears. What did you do? How did you overcome the fear?

Introduce each character of your story and develop the characters as you proceed with the body paragraphs. Bring your thesis statement to life and make your essay memorable. Include as many details as you can to enhance the authenticity of your essay.

Do not forget to create a personal narrative essay outline before you start writing the paper. The outline can help you complete it on time and without any stress. Pick the topic from the ideas as shared above and write a perfect essay within your deadlines. Good Luck.

3 Simple Tips To Craft An Impressive Personal Narrative Essay

It’s okay if you don’t have any idea about where to start while working on your essay. There are tons of students who face this issue. So, check out the most interesting personal narrative essay ideas that can help you write a great paper without any hassle.

Like all other essays, a personal narrative essay also consists of three main elements- introduction, body, and conclusion. Organize your details logically throughout the paper to get a perfectly well-written paper done on time. Check out examples of a personal narrative essay that are available online for better references.

The most interesting thing about a personal narrative essay is that it gives vivid descriptions to the readers so that they can reach the right conclusion. However, you must follow these three major tips to write a well-structured essay that is appealing to your readers.