Introduction | digital-fiction

Pachler and Daly’s (2009) reference to narrative as a ‘conceptual tool for structuring, organising and reflecting on information’, represents a useful starting position for the personal narrative, and reflexivity as described in the Handbook of Qualitative Research (Ellis and Bochner 2000). In her work, Handbook of Narrative Inquiry: Mapping a Methodology, Clandinin (2007) talks about the development of the narrative:

While all narrative inquirers agree that narrative inquiry is the study of experience, there are differences in what narrative inquirers see themselves as studying.

Clandinin sees these new discussions as focusing on a central distinction:

We are studying either lived experiences as a storied phenomenon or the stories people tell about their experiences.

I expect that a narrative process will be used to reflect on the practice undertaken as I progress my digital fiction. Initially, narrative research methods were to be used throughout my research, but after reviewing my work I have decided it will be primarily be used as part of the reflection and analysis process. The images used in this section are all sharp and spiky to reflect my relationship with narrative methods of research, which has been spiky.