an unreliable narrator is a narrator who is, well, unreliable! when a book is described as having an unreliable narrator, it means that the perspective the book is set from is untrustworthy. this is used to deliberately misguide the reader, so that they question the storyteller's reliability. some well known books featuring an unreliable narrator include:
we were liars by e. lockhart
american psycho by bret easton ellis
the girl on the train by paula hawkins
a series of unfortunate events by lemony snicket
it's definitely not the most common perspective for a novel to be told from, but an unreliable narrator does have its unique benefits! these include:
providing a different perspective (however inaccurate) on the text
the perfect setup to add in a plot twist later on
(possibly) engaging your readers more than a reliable narrator would
if you've decided to tell your story from the perspective of an unreliable narrator, i would definitely recommend reading a few books with this style of storytelling first! this is the easiest way to get a good idea of what an unreliable narrator is, and how they work.
when using an unreliable narrator in your work, there's still a few usual “rules” to remember! these include:
write from a first-person perspective
still make sure the most necessary information is correct (even if it's told from your unreliable narrator)
your narrator will either be reliable or unreliable from the start
(note these aren't always the case, but usually should be done)
the main guideline when writing an unreliable narrator is to make them untrustworthy - and always untrustworthy. it's unlikely they'll start off the book as reliable, and then suddenly become unreliable.
it's also important to understand that most of your readers will automatically assume that your narrator is reliable - and telling the truth. as such, it's important that throughout your novel you hint to your readers that the narrator is unreliable. it's also good to drop clues as to why your narrator is unreliable - are they the enemy of one of the main characters, or do they suffer from a condition?
lastly, decide how unreliable you want your narrator to be. while all narrators will suffer from some sort of bias/unreliability, it's up to you to decide where on this scale your narrator will sit. this will completely alter the perspective from how you tell your story - a level 1 unreliable narrator will have a different turn of events to a level 10 unreliable narrator!
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