Use of 了 when narrating a story

[MengJiaSheng]

Well, I was wondering whether there's any set rule when to use 了 and when not to do so when talking about the past, especially when narrating a story. Let's say I want to write about my Year 2008, what happened to me etc.

I know that you put 了 directly after the verb to indicate"past tense"(I know that past tense is not really a suitable term in the context of Mandarin). However I was told that it is often unnecessary to use it in a story. Especially if you tell in the beginning that you are talking about the past: e.g. 有一天..../昨天。。。. However even if you say that you are talking about the past you still sometimes have to use 了 dont you?

[tooironic]

了 doesn't indicate past tense per se, but rather has the potential to either a) express the completion of an action (placed at the end of a verb) or B) express the completion of of an event or a change of state of affairs (placed at end of sentence). To quote out of Mobo CF Gao's "A Reference of Mandarin Chinese", "That is why 了 is very often perceived to be a past tense particle when it occurs verb-finally and as a perfect particle aspect when it occurs sentence-finally" (30).

Please note however that they are only two of the most common usages - 了 is actually far more complex than that. Perhaps another poster can explain the more subtle ways it can be used. I could sit here and type out the rest of the chapter, but unfortunately lack the necessary time and will-power

[imron]

Perhaps another poster can explain the more subtle ways it can be used

Here's one we prepared earlier.