How’re you going with your life writing? Have you been working on it over the past two weeks? By now you should have a good idea of the structure and some possible themes. Possibly you have the foundation down for the body of the story, maybe even a first draft.
At this stage, the quality of your work will NOT be publishable. As much as we like to think that we can pen perfect prose in one sitting, this is very rare. There will be snippets of great work that you will like but most of it will need work. This is where the storytelling comes in. It’s after your first draft, when you’ve sorted out the structure and worked out what your story is focused on that you can now shape it to be more engaging to the reader.
Have you ever been in a social setting where someone has related a story to you in such a way that your eyes glaze over and you start looking for ways to exit the conversation? What was it about this exchange that bored you? Too much detail? Too much waffle? No point to the story?
There are many reasons why a story might be boring. It might simply be that the topic doesn’t interest you. It may interest someone else. Don’t expect that everyone will like what you write because it comes down to interest and taste but maybe you can sway someone who isn’t interested in your story by the way you tell it.
What makes a good story? You can probably answer this yourself by thinking about books you’ve read, or movies you’ve seen, and why you liked them. The style, tone, language all play a part. Most importantly, your voice needs to shine through.
How do you find your voice? This is probably the most important aspect of writing and can take work to discover. I can say that the more you write, the more chance you have of finding it. You’ll also know that you’ve found your voice because the writing flows well and you feel like you are in a comfortable space with your writing.
The exercise in part 1 of this blog series is a great exercise to try to help you find your voice because it helps you to access your authentic self. Even writing in a daily journal will help with this because the more you write, the more you find your writing self.
Good writing is about combining your facts with narrative in such a way that you communicate your message to your audience. This is the part that needs work. Some people are naturally good storytellers and can do it without much thought. For many, it’s about the details. What do you put in, what do you leave out? Once you have your first draft, this is when you go over it and assess it. This is where you ask yourself: am I waffling here? Do people care what I had for breakfast on that Friday in 1985? (yes, IF it adds interesting details to the story because you were broke and living on toast 24/7).
Good storytelling is also about good style: Writing that is accessible to the reader and flows well. That comes more easily when you discover your voice. Don’t try to be like another writer because they are a best seller but look at the way they write and see what things they do to engage you as a reader. There are many rules that apply to writing but many good stories that break the rules. Like any art form, it’s about finding what works for you.
Blaise the book chick
