１　Particles は and が

 

First, let's learn the basic rules for “は” and “が”.

 

These two particles originally have completely different functions. “が” is a sentence-structuring particle that indicates the subject of the predicate. On the other hand, “は” is a context-setting particle that serves to introduce information already known to the speaker and listener (in novels, the writer and reader) as the topic.

 

Ex. 妹がチョコレートを食べている。

My sister is eating chocolate.

　→Indicates that the subject performing the action of eating is “妹.”

　　チョコレートは　妹が食べている。

　　　As for the chocolate, my sister is eating it.

　→We are talking about THE chocolate.

 

①私は昨日、京都に友だちと行った。

　→Now begins the story of MY experience.

②昨日は京都に友だちと行った。

　→Now begins the story of my actions yesterday.

③京都には昨日友だちと行った。

　→Now begins the story of Kyoto.

④友だちとは昨日京都に行った。

　→Now begins the story of my friend.

 

When a sentence is written without explicitly stating a subject, we can assume the subject has already been introduced in the preceding sentence. If no preceding sentence exists, the subject becomes the person present—that is, the “speaker” or “writer.” In ①, “I” is explicitly stated as the topic, and the sentence structure indicates that the subject of ‘went’ is the same. In cases ②, ③, and ④, precisely because it is not written, it is natural to read while understanding that the subject corresponding to the predicate verb is “I.”

 

が indicates the subject, so while there are exceptions, it is generally not used for anything other than the subject. It is omitted when the subject is clear from context. On the other hand, は is not limited to subject units. It can be used with various types of units. It can also be used with other particles. However, が and を are used so frequently that they become invisible when combined with は.

 

As explained above, が is used for the subject of new information, while は is used for information already known to the reader. Therefore, writing 私が in ②③④ intentionally presents the answer to the question “Who went to Kyoto with a friend yesterday?” as new information.

 

 

Now let's think about が and は while actually writing sentences.

 

①先週、新しいゲーム機が発売された。②そのゲーム機はグラフィックがとてもきれいで、持ち歩きやすく、ゲームソフトの種類もたくさんある。

①“a new game machine　新しいゲーム機” is information appearing for the first time in the entire sentence.

②“That game machine　そのゲーム機” refers to the game machine indicated by a.

 

Let's consider this as the opening of a novel.

むかしむかし、あるところに、おじいさんとおばあさんが住んでいました。

　Once upon a time, there lived an old man and an old woman.

　→おじいさんとおばあさんare new characters introduced in this story.

 

私は、その日銀座を歩いていた。

　I was walking through Ginza that day.

　→The writer begins the novel as if sitting before you, the reader, about to start telling past episodes like a friend. You already know who is speaking. That's why it's 私は.

 

The atmosphere and form of a novel are determined by the particles used in its opening sentence.

 

東京に新宿という地域がある。

　There is an area called Shinjuku in Tokyo.

　→The writer is introducing the Shinjuku area as new information to the reader. Since the writer assumes the reader probably doesn't know Shinjuku, we can expect an explanation of what kind of city Shinjuku is to follow.

 

新宿は、今日も人であふれていた。

　Shinjuku was overflowing with people again today.

　→The writer assumes the reader is already familiar with the city of Shinjuku. The writer is attempting to describe the current state of Shinjuku today.

 

新宿には、東京都庁がある。

　The Tokyo Metropolitan Government Building is located in Shinjuku.

　→The subject corresponding to ある is 東京都庁. This is new information. The case particle for 新宿 is に, indicating location, and is not the subject. The location 新宿 itself is presented as information the reader already knows. The next sentence will likely explain 東京都庁, which is new information.

 

Another easily confused element is the conjunctive particle “が”. Since it attaches to the end of a sentence, it differs from the particles that attach to nouns and form sentence structure.　

Ex. 今日は雨ですが、出かけようと思います。(conjunctive particle)

　　Cf. 雨が降っている。

 

 

２　Subjects within a paragraph

 

　私は、その日銀座を歩いていた。特に目的があるわけではなく、久しぶりの休みに外の空気を吸いたかったのだ。少し買い物をして、歩きながらショーウィンドウをのぞき、新しいカフェに休憩でもと思って足を踏み入れた。そこに、10年会っていない友人の山田がいた。

 

→This paragraph begins with 私は. The subject of this paragraph is 私, and the camera consistently follows 私’s actions. Therefore, the subject of every sentence except the last one is 私. Only in the final sentence does a new character appear. This new character is introduced with 山田が.

 

As in the last sentence, it is important to explicitly state the subject when you want to change it. Understand that in Japanese, the subject is only omitted when it is understood. It is only natural to explicitly state “information that is new to the reader.”

 

①私は、その日銀座に出かけた。②買い物をして、カフェで休憩している時に、突然名前を呼ばれた。③声をかけてきたのは、友人の山田だった。④山田は、このカフェで働いていたのだ。

→① The reader feels as though they are sitting face-to-face with the writer, listening to their story. Despite being the first sentence, “I” is the person the reader already knows.

　② This sentence has the same subject as the previous sentence. 私”I” was shopping and taking a break. The key point is the verb 呼ばれた. Since the subject is 私, it is in the passive form.

　③The fact that someone called out the name is indicated in the preceding sentence, so “は” is used to refer to「声をかけてきた」【の】（=人　person).

　④山田 has already been mentioned in the previous sentence.

 

If you want to change the subject, you must write a new subject and change the verb form at the same time.

私は、その日銀座に出かけた。買い物をして、カフェで休憩している時に、突然、友人の山田が現れて、私の名前を呼んだ。

→A new subject is introduced with 山田が, and the object 私の名前を is also explicitly stated.

 

However, changing the subject in this way shifts the viewpoint, much like a camera cut in a movie. Use it appropriately depending on the scene you want to write. When you don't want to change the camera (viewpoint), you must keep writing with the same subject, using passive form or similar techniques.

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As such, は serves various functions, such as presenting context or perspective. It also functions for “contrast” or “emphasis,” but first, let's learn its basic functions.

 

 

３　About Sentence Patterns

 

　As explained on Grammar for Reading Japanese Novels, Japanese sentence patterns are fundamentally of three types. (S=Subject)

　Noun Sentence  (SN)

　Adjective Sentence  (SA)

　Verb Sentence  (SV)

　It is important to be mindful of these sentence patterns when writing. There is no need to write long sentences. First, decide on the sentence structure (SN, SA, SV). Then add the necessary information. In Japanese novels, concise sentences tend to be preferred. If you want to explain more, you can write it in the next sentence.

 

彼は、学生だった。安いアパートに住んでいて、毎日、大学に行って帰ってくる。とても退屈だった。勉強しかしていなかったのだ。

 

ベスは、とても美しかった。特に目がきれいだった。いつもキラキラ光っていて、優しそうな目だった。

 

桜王国に、るりという少女が住んでいた。るりは元気がよくて、まじめな子だった。今、15歳で、もうすぐ学校を卒業する。

 

For more details on sentence patterns, please refer to the reading page.

 

 

4　About Tense

 

　Novels often take the form of writing about “events that occurred in the past,” so they are frequently written in the past tense. However, as readers become immersed in the novel's world, the scenes become vividly real before their eyes. Therefore, except for sentences explicitly indicating past events, it's perfectly acceptable to use the present tense. This is called the “dramatic present.” When you actually read novels, you'll notice that tenses alternate at regular intervals, like a beat: past tense, present tense, present tense, past tense...

 

5　About Units

 

　　In novels, except for dialogue, particles are rarely omitted. It is important that the written content is easy for readers to understand.

 

　In dialogue as well, we first write sentences with proper particles, then adjust the speech patterns to match the characters' personalities. Generally, the more educated or upper-class a person is, the fewer grammatical errors they make and the more precise their language becomes—this holds true in any language.

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6　About Types of Sentences

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　When writing sentences, start by constructing accurate simple sentences. Next, try combining them to form compound sentences.

 

　Complex sentences are very difficult to use. Please read the examples below.。

私は、昨日出かけたときに恋人に買ってもらって、持って帰ってきた帽子を眺めた。

　In this sentence, the most important subject and predicate—私は and 眺めた—are very far apart. This makes the sentence extremely difficult to understand. The sentence describing the 帽子 is simply too long.

 

私は、テーブルの上の帽子を眺めた。それは、昨日、恋人が買ってくれたものだ。私はうれしくて、大切に持って帰ってきた。そして寝る時に、テーブルにそっと置いたのだった。

　This paragraph is composed of short sentences linked together. The context is established by それは and そして. Don't force yourself to use complex sentences; start by writing freely in simple sentences.

 

7　About Kanji, Hiragana, and Katakana

 

(1) There are a few important rules for using Kanji. While these are standard practice today, they did not exist in older novels. Therefore, when reading older novels, you need not be concerned about these rules. However, when writing yourself, try to follow these rules. This is because the current system is designed to be easier to read.

 

・Subsidiary (Helping) verbs must always be written in hiragana.

私は娘が作ったケーキを一口食べてみた。

→～て＋みる　This みる has lost its original meaning of “to see” and is now used as a subsidiary verb conveying nuances such as “to try to do.”

明日、来てください。

→You may see it written as 下さい（ください） in kanji, but it is not used when it is an subsidiary verb.

 

・Some adverbs

たとえば、昨日の出来事だ。

→In older novels, the kanji for 例えば（たとえば） was often used, but nowadays hiragana is used.

 

(2) It is important to consider the reader and choose not to use difficult kanji. There is no need to feel obligated to write in kanji. Writing in hiragana also has the effect of softening the impression of the word.

　Conversely, when hiragana continues and makes it difficult to identify units, you can also choose to write some nouns in katakana.

町を歩いていると、せまい通りからネコがひょいと出てきた。

　These Katakanas are often used for the names of living things and objects.

コタツから出たくない～。

 

　Katakana is often used when a character is pronouncing a word but does not understand its meaning.

A：そうですな。これは……住血吸虫症と思われます。

B：はぁ……えぇと……ジュウケツキュウチュウショウ……？

　The crucial point in this conversation is that B does not understand what “schistosomiasis”「住血吸虫症　じゅうけつきゅうちゅうしょう」 is. Since the meaning will likely be explained in the following sentences, I recommend reading on before consulting a dictionary. The difficult kanji are deliberately used to highlight the fact that it is difficult.

 

(3) Finally, let's understand the visual characteristics of Kanji, Hiragana, and Katakana.

 

　Kanji generally evoke images of intellectualism, mental maturity, logical thinking, and masculinity. On the other hand, they also carry negative connotations such as stubbornness, out-of-dateness, and pedantry.

 

　Hiragana carries connotations of mental and physical immaturity, intuitive thinking, gentleness, calmness, and femininity. However, it can also evoke images of childishness and foolishness.

 

　Katakana conveys an image of coolness, youth, and trendy, fashionable appearances and speech, but it can also imply a lack of thoughtfulness or a frivolous personality.

 

　In any case, the spelling of a single word doesn't immediately determine a character's image. It's necessary to skillfully utilize the image based on the character's description and context, and beyond the examples given here, it's possible to expand the image infinitely.

 

8　Deictic

 

　Contexts in Japanese are created through particles, conjunctions, and deictics. Here, let's consider the role of deictics.

 

それ／そのnoun

　In novels and other written works, this is the most common usage. Generally, it refers to the noun closest to 「それ」「そのnoun」 in the preceding sentence. While exceptions exist, start by memorizing this fundamental rule.

昨日、私は本屋に出かけて、おもしろい本を買った。それは日本の歴史に関する本だった。

→In the previous sentence, the noun closest to それ is 本.

 

これ／このnoun

　When the speaker or writer perceives the topic or noun being referred to as psychologically close to themselves, they use 「これ」 or 「このnoun」.

　There are several situations where 「これ」 or 「このnoun」 is used. For example: ① When the speaker/writer introduces something, but the listener/reader does not yet understand what it is, and the speaker/writer feels they “must explain it in detail”; ② When the speaker/writer considers “this to be important to them.”

 

あれ／あのnoun

　These can be used in two situations. ① When the topic or noun being referred to feels distant in the speaker's/writer’s memory. This conveys both “it takes time to recall” and “it's a long-ago experience that feels very distant in time.” ② The other is used in conversation. It refers to information already known to both the speaker and listener. Imagine information floating above the space between two people, like a balloon or a speech bubble in a comic. When they point at it and confirm it together, 「あれ」 or 「あのnoun」 is used.

 

In addition to these, there are also words like 「こう」, 「そう」, and 「ああ」 that refer to the entire content of the preceding sentence, as well as words like 「こんな」, 「そんな」, and 「あんな」 that add value judgments. So, let's analyze them in actual novels and try using them.

 

9　Speaking Styles Tailored to Characters

 

(1) First-person Pronouns

 

It is well known that Japanese has many first-person pronouns. The impression also changes depending on whether kanji, hiragana, or katakana is used.

　俺　おれ　オレ

　僕　ぼく　ボク

　私　わたし　ワタシ　わたくし　ワタクシ　あたし　アタシ

　儂　わし　己　おのれ　某　それがし

　自分　じぶん　

　There are many more besides these. By researching the history of each first-person pronoun and who uses them, you'll expand your range of expression.

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What matters is that not only the first-person pronoun but the entire manner of speaking becomes part of the character's portrayal. For example, someone who uses the most formal first-person pronoun 私／わたくし in private is likely to speak in the polite form all the time.

 

Also, as I mentioned in section 6, Kanji, Hiragana, and Katakana each have rich imagery, so please look them up little by little.

 

(2) End of a sentence

 

　Alongside the first-person pronouns, sentence endings are crucial for character portrayal. In standard novels, the plain form is consistently used in narrative text. However, in novels written as someone's narration or in dialogue, sentence endings reveal various details about a character's personality, their current state of mind, and their relationship with others.

 

　Especially in dialogue, there are countless variations—not just honorifics, humble language, polite forms, and plain forms, but also sentence-ending particles and expressions. These are known to be influenced by the characters' life experiences, age, gender, and social status.

 

　Furthermore, even for a single character, the way they speak changes depending on the relationship: “an older person they’re meeting for the first time,” “a boss they’ve worked with for years,” “a neighbor they’ve lived next to for years but don’t get along with,” “a close friend,” “an annoying older brother who always asks for money when they meet,” “a couple whose marriage isn’t going well,” “a rebellious son and his parent,” and so on. Read various novels and collect examples of speech tailored to each character.