Definition
A braided narrative interweaves three or more storylines that regularly cross, influence, and respond to one another. Unlike parallel narratives that run side by side, braided storylines actively touch and diverge, with events in one thread causing ripples in the others. Think of it like an actual braid: the strands take turns being on top, each one shaping the pattern that emerges from the whole.
Why It Matters
When you have a story too big for a single perspective, braiding lets you do justice to multiple characters and timelines without losing cohesion. The technique rewards attentive readers who catch the connections between threads, and it naturally builds suspense because you're always cutting away at a moment of tension to pick up another strand. Done well, it makes the finished story feel larger than any individual thread.
Types of Braided Narrative
Famous Examples
Two braided timelines and two braided character perspectives slowly converge on a single building in Saint-Malo during a bombing raid, making the structure itself a source of unbearable tension.
Thirteen chapters that function almost as standalone stories but braid together through shared characters, with each chapter recontextualizing events from earlier ones.
Nine characters' stories begin separately, then gradually braid together around the fight to save old-growth forests, mirroring the interconnected root systems of the trees themselves.
Common Mistakes
Map your braid visually. Chart which storyline appears in each chapter and where the intersection points fall. A timeline on a whiteboard or sticky notes on a wall can save you from tangles.
The moments where strands cross need to feel significant, not just logistically convenient. Each intersection should change something for at least one of the storylines involved.
Introduce your strands gradually. Let readers get grounded in one or two threads before adding more, or they won't have time to care about any of them.
Try It Yourself
Pick three characters who are all in the same building but don't know each other: a janitor, a CEO, and a delivery driver. Write three 150-word scenes, one per character, set during the same ten-minute window. Now find one small event (an elevator breaking, a fire alarm, a spilled coffee) that connects all three. Rewrite the scenes so each character experiences that event differently.
Keep your braided storylines from tangling
Novelium's Story Planner lets you visualize multiple narrative threads side by side, tracking where they intersect and making sure no strand gets dropped. See your entire braid at a glance.