Everybody Has a Story

You read magazines and books filled with stories of famous people and you may never realize that your life stories are as interesting as the ones from them. Maybe you wonder how you could capture the events in your life and make a story out of them that would be interesting for others. And even if you have a story in your mind, you may struggle with a pen and a blank sheet of paper, not knowing where to begin.

This article will guide you through the process of discovering stories in your life, and trying on the writer’s hat.

Where are the stories in your life?

Imagine having a dinner with a friend. At some point you probably say something like “Oh, guess what?” or “I wanted to tell you about…” and continue with something that happened to you, or to somebody you know, something you thought about, or something you wanted to discuss. All of these are great examples of stories.

Whenever you think about something you’d like to share with somebody else, stop for a while and make a note.

You now have a story in your hands!

Your friends know you well. However, the readers of a single story from your life wouldn’t have the advantage of knowing all the facts from “the previous episodes”. Try to think what the summary of the story could be. It may be something like “A coworker took advantage of my work again”, or “My mom is always making me laugh” or “Finally, I know why my brother was acting so weird last Sunday”.

Find the point you are trying to make.

And now, imagine talking to a stranger who wants to know more about the situation.
You would probably give him a little introduction, but just enough for him to understand what you are going to say next. You may omit unnecessary long descriptions, because you don’t want to lose his attention. And to keep him entertained, you’ll probably sprinkle some juicy parts here and there to keep his curiosity high. You can do it, everybody can. Just watch yourself a couple of times and you will see how good you actually are.

We are all natural storytellers.

In today’s era filled with computers and word processors it’s easy to write, rewrite, edit, move text around, or save now and continue later. You can start from the main point, from the introduction, from the closing paragraph, or from special words that you want to use in your story… it’s all up to you.

Just start writing!

Don’t be afraid to point out your vulnerabilities, failures, silly mistakes, or misunderstandings – everybody’s life is filled with them and your story is real. Right?

Don’t be shy to share your victories of what you’ve learned about yourself and others. Add flavors to the facts: feelings, metaphors, opinions, or your interpretations.

Avoid preaching – it’s easy to get caught up in telling other people how they should behave. But would you like to read that kind of story? Write what you think and include authentic examples.

I hope you can see now that you have many stories in your life .Your stories can motivate, educate, inspire or just simply entertain. Don’t let them be forgotten and share them with others.