The narration may be limited to what happens to several characters, or it may be all knowing (omniscient)įirst and foremost, works of fiction always require a carefully chosen narrator.

He/she may have access to the thoughts of several characters, which they share with the audience.He/she may share the points of view of several characters.He/she can tell the story either subjectively or objectively (may or may not express opinion).He/she essentially anonymous, though the reader can find out more about him/her from how the story is told.Your story will be told in the third person.If you use a narrator who is outside of the story… Your story may be somewhat vague, exaggerated, or one-sided, since you only hear one person’s perspective.The reader should be able to witness some of that persons thoughts, feelings, opinions and reactions about what goes on.He/she is usually personally involved or has some kind of stake in what goes on.He/she typically supports and empathizes with the protagonist.He/she should usually be either the person who the story is about (the protagonist), or someone very close to that person.Your story will be told in the first person.These are just some guidelines! If you use a narrator who is a character in the story… Of course, there are no rules about who a narrator can and cannot be. Through the narrator, an author can make their audience side with the “good guy” or empathize with an evil character, depending on how they let the reader see what happens. Everything that a reader knows is relayed to them from the narrator, so who you choose to tell the story will decide how the story itself is understood and perceived. To do so, you have to think about whose point of view you really want the reader to hear. Choosing a narrator is one of the most important steps in writing a story.

Narrator of story