Stories usually consist of characters talking to one another or talking to themselves. But within some stories, there’s another great source that can speak for any and all things.

A narrator is the great voice I speak of. A narrator is responsible for giving commentary and simply giving their account of something within the story. A narrator can be utilized in many ways, and can provide much needed cushion to the writer at hand. They’re a valuable tool that can be used to manipulate a story in many ways. Finding countless ways to execute is what some authors are forced to do, and narration seems to do the trick. Here’s ways on how narration can help out an author and how authors tend to utilize this tool.

Within a story there may be a certain piece of information that the author wants to present. But specific pieces of information may not always make sense coming from a character’s mouth. For instance, if there’s a piece of lore that the author wants to present towards the reader, but the author doesn’t quite have a character that can say it, due to the possibility of plot holes or inconsistencies spawning due to a certain character knowing set information.

The best way to go would be the outside source known as the narrator. The narrator knowing any piece of information could never cause an issue. They are basically the higher source, simply there to tell the story how it is. Nothing more and nothing less, there’s no bias for the narrator, just the truth.

Narrator’s also provide confirmation for certain points of the story and can add on information at any time. A narrator can basically work as an extra form of communication, having them help explain what a character is thinking, feeling, or doing. They also help explain any element of the story. This tool is a jack of all trades, probably one of the greatest.

If it’s either being the pathway to new information or assisting on explaining past information, a Narrator can do both and plenty more. Depending on the story, the usage of a narrator varies. There are even stories where narration can be at a complete minimum.

When reading a story, I think it’s cool to pay attention to the usage of a narrator and pinpointing how important their role can be. Also, when writing a story I think using narration is a good tool to keep in your back pocket.