History SoYouWantTo / MakeTheNarratorACharacter

An important tonal decision to make is whether your narrator is ''aware'' s/he is telling the story. ''Literature/TheCatcherInTheRye'', for instance, is very specifically a novel-length monologue by Holden Caulfield, being told to you while you visit Holden in a mental institution. The titular ''Literature/JaneEyre'' takes it a step further by directly BreakingTheFourthWall to address the audience directly ("Reader, I married him" is how the final chapter starts). However, other first-person narratives are a sort of on-the-spot record of what's going on in the person's head, such as ''Literature/{{Twilight}}'' and ''Literature/ASongOfIceAndFire''. These novels present the thoughts of their narrators (Bella Swan for ''Twilight'', many characters for ''Ice and Fire'') ''as they have them'', not after the fact. Precisely how the author stole those thoughts out of the characters' heads is [[HandWave typically not addressed]].

!! The Narrator is TheChick?!

An important tonal decision to make is whether your narrator is ''aware'' s/he is telling the story. ''Literature/TheCatcherInTheRye'', for instance, is very specifically a novel-length monologue by Holden Caulfield, being told to you while you visit Holden in a mental institution. The titular ''Literature/JaneEyre'' takes it a step further by directly BreakingTheFourthWall to address the audience directly ("Reader, I married him" is how the final chapter starts). However, other first-person narratives are a sort of on-the-spot record of what's going on in the person's head, such as ''Literature/{{Twilight}}'' and ''Literature/ASongOfIceAndFire''. These novels present the thoughts of their narrators (Bella Swan for ''Twilight'', LoadsAndLoadsOfCharacters for ''Ice and Fire'') ''as they have them'', not after the fact. Precisely how the author stole those thoughts out of the characters' heads is [[HandWave typically not addressed]].

* AndThatLittleGirlWasMe is best suited for a story in which there are a lot of flashbacks or an autobiography. Or a story with hints of the authors past or a lot of AuthorAvatar's.

Having the main character being the narrator is typically done by having the hero tell the story in the first person or NarratingThePresent. However TheHero can be the narrator through LetMeTellYouAStory and [[AndThatLittleGirlWasMe that hero was me]]. Depending on the hero being BookDumb, BookSmart, GenreSavvy, or whatever else can make narration different. It can show how TheHero changes during the story, what lessons they learn, who they come across and how they are maturing throughout the story. This is something to consider.

This decision can alter the story, because when telling a tale "after the fact," we have time to work on the presentation. Whilst writing, we often go back to smooth the prose, and to make sure we have actually said what we are trying to say; an oral recitation can also involve this sort of VerbalBackspace. This is why AllFirstPersonNarratorsWriteLikeNovelists. There can also be poor recollection; ''Series/HowIMetYourMother'', whose lead character is narrating the story to his children some 20 years later, famously has an episode in which one of Ted's dates goes by "Blah Blah" simply because he can't remember her actual name anymore. It also allows the prospect of an UnreliableNarrator--someone who is either unwilling or unable to tell the whole truth--to rear its mysterious head. Doing this is difficult, since the narrator's lies need to be self-obvious, but can really add to the narrator's CharacterDevelopment; the lies we tell ourselves are potent indicators of our priorities and weak spots. ''HIMYM'' also tackled this, though largely in its [[YourMileageMayVary contentious]] finale ([[spoiler:in which the story of "How I Met Your Mother" actually turned out to be, "Why I Want To Get Back Together With My First Love"]]).

An important tonal decision to make is whether your narrator is ''aware'' s/he is telling the story. ''Literature/TheCatcherInTheRye'', for instance, is very specifically a long, rambling monologue by Holden Caulfield, being told to you (The Reader) while he (Holden) is in a mental institution, and the titular ''Literature/JaneEyre'' even BreaksTheFourthWall by addressing the audience directly ("Reader, I married him" is but the most famous quotation). However, other first-person narratives go along as a sort of on-the-spot recording of what's going on in the person's head, using the (not-very-questioned) literary conceit that we can see into their thoughts ''because'' they are a narrator. ''Literature/{{Twilight}}'' and ''Literature/TheHungerGames'' both take this tack, amongst others.

The key element of this decision is that it can alter one's language use. When writing a story, we often go back to smooth the prose, and to make sure we have actually said what we are trying to say; an oral recitation, taking place after the fact, can also involve this sort of VerbalBackspace. It also allows the prospect of an UnreliableNarrator, someone who is either unwilling or unable to tell the whole truth, to rear its mysterious head. But from Katniss Everdeen, or Bella Swan, we assume that we are hearing the unvarnished truth, precisely because of the literary conceit of the narration. What Susanne Collins and Stephenie Meyer wrote is (supposed to be) the character's thoughts ''at the moment she has them'', with no time ''for'' VerbalBackspace or other self-censoring. Additionally, an "in-the-moment" narration requires a bit more WillingSuspensionOfDisbelief, since there's no FramingDevice whatsoever, though if it works it has a greater sense of urgency and propulsiveness. Finally, there is enormous room for a {{deconstruction}} of the entire trope, with your narrator becoming ''aware'' that readers are peeking in to his or her thoughts--though this is even more likely to toss readers off the Suspension Of Disbelief train.

Having a member of the main cast narrating the story may be difficult for some. Since most literature is written in third-person from a seemingly omnipresent narrator or told from first person from the main character's point of view, having a character that's not the main character may seem like a strange idea to some. To do this the following options may work:
* ChangingPOV