Write A Way: Journey to Creativity
Start Your Story Now by Sandra Lee Schubert
Everyone is necessarily the hero of his own life story. John Barth
When I created the course, Writing for Life: Creating a Story of Your Own, I wanted to give people the opportunity to share their stories in their own way.
Creating your life story is easy. You already know the main characters, the storyline, locations. Not only that you have complete control over how your story unfolds and how it ends. Most people worry about telling the truth, hurting the feelings of family and friends, or that it will be boring. Remember you are valuable. You don’t have to be a rock star or even a good storyteller to share your story. You can keep your story completely private or choose to share it more broadly.
First of all, decide what you would like to do with your story? Do you want to record the events of your life for personal use? Share a family history? Or do you envision your story being an inspiration for a wider audience? When you have decided what form your story will take then the writing will be easier.
Recording your life:
It will be easier if you break things down into sections-
- Childhood
- Teen years
- Adulthood. Smaller sections will make it easier to take on the task of writing.
Childhood: Do some free writing using a couple of prompts. What is your earliest memory? What did you do on the holidays? Who was your favorite teacher?
Prompts will reveal more memories and allow you to begin a narrative of your early years.
Always be nice to those younger than you, because they are the ones who will be writing about you. Cyril Connolly
Teen years: There is a lot of juice in our teen years. If you have a high school yearbook, use it to trigger some memories. What were your hopes and dreams? Did you have a high school sweetheart or were you a loner?
Adult years: This section is usually the easiest because memories are the freshest. But you also have so many memories that it is a challenge to narrow your focus. Pick a topic that has the most appeal to you. Is there a story you tell all the time? Maybe it is your honeymoon or the day you were promoted.
I can't think of anything to write about except families. They are a metaphor for every other part of society. Anna Quindlen
Don’t worry about getting things right. Just allow fifteen minutes to an hour every day and you will begin to lay out your story in a short time. At some point, you put it all together and decide whether to share or just have it for your pleasure.
Remember this is your life story. You can pick and choose what you want to write and how you want to share it. The writing for course lays this all out for you. It is up to you to take the first step. Start here and keep going.
Creative Writing Prompts:
Create a memory book. Begin gathering memories by collecting photos, rocks, and seashells from favorite outings. You can use a scrapbook format or a simple journal book, but just make sure the book is big enough to paste things into it.
Start Your Life Story Journey Now: If you have been sitting on the fence about writing your life story- please don’t waste any more time. Take the course and write at your pace and see the value of your life.