Anne Skyvington
  • Writing
  • Mythos
  • Travel
  • Australia
  • Book Reviews
  • Poetry
  • Memoir
  • Publishing
  • Guest Post
  • Psychology
  • home
  • ABOUT
  • Contact

Anne Skyvington

The Art of Creative Writing

  • Writing
  • Mythos
  • Travel
  • Australia
  • Book Reviews
  • Poetry
  • Memoir
  • Publishing
  • Guest Post
  • Psychology
Writing

the personas behind narration

written by Anne Skyvington March 8, 2018

View Post

Definitions of Narrative Personas

  1. According to Ernest Hemingway, the writer’s job is “to sit in front of the page and bleed”. But  it’s not the person in flesh-and-blood who is there in the page, but a persona called the narrator, who steps in for him or her. I’m the one who signs the book for you when it’s published.
  2. The narrator lives on the page, within and between the words, the images, and the dialogue, and directs the characters, as if they were marionnettes, performing at the end of strings. Although they may share lots of qualities, the narrator is not exactly the writer, even in a memoir. This fact, once the writer acknowledges it, may result in a sense of freedom, benefiting the writing as a result.
  3. The Character: A main character is called the protagonist. The character’s job is to enthrall the reader and s/he is always integral to the plot.  Dialogue spoken by a character will advance the plot and, at its best, utilise or suggest a certain voice that is basic to the meaning and rationale of the text.

     The Writer is not the Narrator and the Narrator is not the Writer

So where is the narraTor in this? Concealed behind the writer and the characters, and linked to voice.

A mistake I made for a long time—just up until a few minutes ago, in fact—even though I’d learnt this lesson at university decades ago (Funny that, eh?) is to confuse the Writer (me) with the Narrator (Not exactly me). It’s easy to forget this fact, especially when you change from “Reader” (Perhaps studying books at uni or in a book club) to “Writer”.

This was driven home to me once, long ago, when an author gave a talk and had the listeners eating out of her hand (Sorry for the cliché), laughing our butts off, (another one!) but when I read the book, it was disappointingly dull. (Oh oh, a boring adverb (!), it just crept in, sorry…). I decided, then and there,  that she was more of a Speaker than a Writer. I learnt afterwards that she had, indeed, joined the International Speakers’ Circuit. Oh well, good luck to her! I thought… But I, for some unknown reason,  wanted to learn how to write well.

“I know I know”, I hear you saying, “but I want to write a memoir. Aren’t I, as the Writer and the Narrator, one and the same thing?”  Uh uh, not exactly. That Speaker, I’ll call her “Janie”, was in fact talking about a memoir, telling about her travels as a young woman, while exploring exotic and dangerous countries overseas. She had had these amazing adventures, nothing short of super…how does it go? … supercalifragillisticexpiallidocious?  Sorry again, I borrowed that one…. Anyway, she could write correctly, but she failed to get the excitement, the terror, the humour and the colour onto the pages of the book, so evident when she spoke.

So, that’s another thing I’ve learnt: some of us are good at oral/aural (talking and listening), but not so happy about putting written words together to make into a text: a short story, a memoir, or a novel, that engages the Reader.

The Character is not always the Narrator and the Narrator is not always the Character

Yes, OK, some of you might just have the knack from birth or childhood onwards. You wake up one day and you find that you have a Voice that attracts the first publisher or editor, an agent even. But most of us, like me, need to learn the skills, and to go on learning them over a long period of time. It’s like learning any skill and PPP: practice, practice, practice makes perfect. Luck also comes into it, of course.

Decisions, Decisions…

Once you decide on whether you are writing memoir or fiction, and once you have a certain narrator, character, or plot line in mind, the next thing is to decide on point of view. Of course, whether you are choosing to write a short story or a longer work—such as a novel—will be important, too. And remember: Voice is important too.

Lastly, once you have learnt the rules, then you can throw caution to the wind and experiment with structure.

But of course, if you’re a born writer, you may not need any of this, and you can disregard all of it.

 

The character, the reader, the writer and the speaker

the personas behind narration was last modified: July 15th, 2021 by Anne Skyvington
Characters and narrators are often separate entities in a story.Is Point of View different from Voice?Is the narrator the same as the writer?What is Voice in creative writing?What role does the narrator play in a story?
0 comment
0
Facebook Twitter Google + Pinterest
Anne Skyvington

I have been a reader/writer all of my life as far back as I can remember. Blogging has opened me up to another world, where I can share my skills and continue to create through word and picture. Writing is about seeing the world and recreating it for others to see through different eyes.

previous post
a funny thing happened …
next post
Return to Croatia

You may also like

The Bridge at Mostar

October 15, 2016

Serendipity at the 2017 Sydney Writers’ Festival

June 10, 2017

Another Look at Point of View

April 20, 2019

Return to the Source

December 1, 2016

Favourite Places in Brisbane

May 12, 2013

Voice and Truth in Fiction

December 22, 2021

Seventies feminism in Australia

March 8, 2016

Copenhagen is Amazing!

October 15, 2016

Alone not lonely in Apartheid South Africa

December 17, 2018

A Bird’s Eye View

September 1, 2016

Leave a Comment Cancel Reply

You must be logged in to post a comment.

About The Author

About The Author

Anne Skyvington

Anne Skyvington is a writer based in Sydney who has been practising and teaching creative writing skills for many years. You can learn here about structuring a short story and how to go about creating a longer work, such as a novel or a memoir. Subscribe to this blog and receive a monthly newsletter on creative writing topics and events.

Buy Karrana my debut novel from Amazon online

EBook Cover

My How To book about Writing A Novel: The Big Picture

The Craft of Writing Included in Top Creative Writing Blogs

Top 30 Creative Writing Blogs, Websites & Influencers in 2020

Connect With Me

Facebook Twitter Google + Pinterest Linkedin Youtube Email

Recent Posts

  • An Amazing Story About Stuttering

    June 14, 2022
  • From the Archives: Australian Story

    June 14, 2022
  • Have You Ever Experienced The “Numen”?

    April 27, 2022
  • I visit the Ukraine in 1968

    February 25, 2022
  • In Search of a Voice

    February 19, 2022

I’ve joined ALLI

About The Author

About The Author

Anne Skyvington is a Sydney-based writer and blogger. <a href="https://www.anneskyvington.com.au She has self-published a novel, 'Karrana' and is currently writing a creative memoir based on her life and childhood with a spiritual/mystical dimension.

Popular Posts

  • Randwick Writers’ Group: Sharing Writing Skills

    May 7, 2020
  • 5 Further Publishing Facts

    April 1, 2020
  • Symbolism of Twins

    October 2, 2017
  • Facebook
  • Twitter
  • Linkedin

&copy: 2021 Anne Skyvington. All Rights Reserved. Site by Nate Hoffelder.


Back To Top