He follows it brilliantly with some exposition that gives you insight into the two characters in this scene: She’d thought that she was beyond tears, too tough for self-pity and too hardened to be moved by the plight of anyone else. Here’s a spot of narrative from Koontz’s novel that breaks the tension in a dialogue between two characters: Narrative lets you set the scene and give background information. When to Use ThemĪll of your writing should be a balance between narrative, exposition, and dialogue. Unlike narrative that tells you something, exposition shows your reader using description to inform and move the story forward. Face to the sun, eyes closed, striving to empty her mind of all thought, yet troubled by insistent memories, Micky had been cooking for half an hour when a small sweet voice asked, “Are you suicidal?”.Using Koontz’s same novel from before, consider the following exposition: Think of exposition as “showing” your reader something important. This is where you give important information that will give your reader better insight and help to move your story forward.
Narrative tells you something, perhaps a character revelation, but it merely tells.
Splints, casts, miracle drugs, and time can’t mend fractured hearts, wounded minds, torn spirits. Take, for example, Dean Koontz’s One Door Away From Heaven. Some stories begin with a bit of narrative. It’s a way to inform your reader without really moving the story forward. Narrative is the way you, as the writer, give your readers information that’s non-essential or non-active.