Story writing challenge!

Whether you're writing a short story, memoir, or novel, I'm going to offer you a simple step-by-step process so that you gain invaluable insight into your project.

Now you're going to explore what story you’re writing.

Sometimes writers get so in the weeds of their stories, that they lose sight of what story they’re actually trying to tell.

And knowing what story you’re writing (even if you think you know, stay with me!), can help you get clear on where it needs to go.

I’m going to divide you all into two groups. The ones who don’t know what story they want to write yet (GROUP A), and the ones who’ve got their project under way (GROUP B).

Today’s prompt

Group A

Set a timer for 10-12 minutes. Then write (by hand) a list of 10 things you want to write about. This can be anything from I want to write about that seagull in that eagle’s talons to I want to write about the time I found that stray dog and how she changed my life.

In other words, it may be a fully formed idea, an image or a huge generalization (such as 'about my grandmother').

Go ahead and make the list. Don’t read on until you do.

Done?

Okay. Now read your list aloud and circle the one you’re most drawn to. Not the one you think you should write. But the one you’re called to write.

Once you’ve got it, you can try the Group B exercise. But if you’re not ready for Group B, just sit with what you’ve got and jot down another list of things you’d like to include in that story.

Group B

Figuring out what story you’re writing is all about distillation. So whether you have a thousand pages, or whether you have one, you’re going to distill your story into one sentence.

Why?! Because getting clear about what story you’re writing will save you veering off in a thousand million other directions.

Think about Romeo and Juliet. It’s a story about forbidden love, right? That love, and it’s tragic unrequitedness, is at the heart of the story, and every scene links to it somehow.

Or, a memoir such as Wild. It’s a story about a woman who goes from “lost to found on the Pacific Coast trail”. That’s at the heart. So essentially, Strayed begins the memoir showing the reader how lost she is, and then takes the reader on a healing journey–finding herself along the way.

So, now, what’s your story about?

Set a timer for 10-15 minutes and write a paragraph describing what you’re story’s about. Then, go for another 5 and get it down to one sentence. Does it resonate? Does it feel true? If no, do it again a second time. A third.

Once you know the heart of our story, the what, you can start writing with more clarity and intent. Your scenes start to connect. You see where there’s extraneous information or action. You see where the gaps are and you fill them.

If you were in Group A, you made a list of stories you want to tell–and chose the one that feels most alive for you right now. This gives you a jumping off place. The other ideas are down, and you can return to them later. But for right now, you’re being invited to focus on the idea with the most energy.

If you were in Group B, you distilled your story down to one sentence. This one sentence can act like a compass, so that if you go off course (ie. suddenly Romeo is looking for a new career or decides he’s had enough of Juliet and the Capulets and goes on an adventure), you can bring your narrative back to its heart.

Now you're going to explore the importance of your story.

Sometimes writers get so busy working on their stories that they forget why they wanted to write it in the first place.

And knowing why your story is important can remind you why you set out on this journey and encourage you to keep going.

Because here's the thing: your story matters.

Stories function on multiple levels.

There's the surface story, the what happens, and there's all this stuff underneath.

Call it the subconscious of the story. Or its intricate root system. More than just subtext, this underneath stuff is as vital to your story as breath to the body.

One of the portals into the underworld of your story is to find out why it's important for you to tell. Often we get caught up in end results and lose sight of the intentions we started with.

Or, we get swept away by inspiration, starting our project with great gusto, and then, when things get challenging, the inspiration gone, we languish in story limbo--writing and rewriting without direction. Or banishing the story to a drawer or hard-drive--unfinished forever.

So what's the juice?

PROMPT:

Both Group A and Group B can do the same exercises.

1. Take the results from yesterday’s challenge prompt, and get yourself an old fashioned paper and pen. (For this exercise, I highly recommend hand-writing.) Open to a fresh page and at the top write: Why is this story important for me to tell? Then set a timer for 10 minutes. Turn away from your screen (or turn it off), put pen to paper and start writing:

This story is important for me to write because...

Do not stop writing! If you get stuck, rewrite the prompt. Don't worry if the reasons seem trivial or absurd--that's your inner critic speaking--just keep going!

2. After your 10 minutes are over, read what you've written aloud. What resonates most with you? What feels most true? Maybe one or more things. Maybe all of it. Distill it down to something you can write on a sticky note and post it on the wall above your computer so it's visible at all times.

This is your North star. The purpose behind your story.

Now you’re going to delve deeper into how you want to write this story

You're going to look at two aspects of this how. The practical reality of getting words onto the page. And the structure.

First, the practical reality.

To write a book or a story, you have to actually sit down and write it. I know you know this--and I also know many writers struggle to find time.

To be clear, this process doesn’t look the same for everyone. So don’t panic if you don’t find yourself in the ‘write every day’ category.

Still, now you know what story you’re writing, and why you want to write it, you need to figure out how you’re going to sit down and do the writing your book or story requires of you.

Because if you just wander around saying you want to write a memoir, a novel, a short story, but you don’t figure out the logistics of sitting at your desk then, well, you know what happens–it never gets beyond thought.

Okay, that said, there’s also the pragmatic how element of structure.

Writers make a lot of craft choices when they write their books. Choosing one word over another, one point of view over the other. The overall shape or journey of the story.

Clearly to get into all those choices is beyond the scope of one little prompt. But I will get you to make one structural choice about your story today. That way you can have a clearer sense of where to take your story next.

Ready?

TODAY'S PROMPT:

Both Group A and Group B can do the same exercises.

1. Practical Reality Exercise. Okay–write down three or four things standing in the way of you and your writing time. Get really specific. If you say time, break it down. “I wake up at 7:15, have a shower at 7:40… etc” until you’ve gone through your entire day. Same with focus. Get specific. I can’t focus doesn’t say much. “When I sit down to write my brain feels like a big blank nothing. I end up doodling or starting a new story…. “ Or, “I want to write and then Sally calls me because her life is falling apart and I have to bring her a casserole… “

Do this for all three or four things.

Then look at what you need to remedy it. What would most help you to get to your pages? Accountability? Deadlines? Getting up early? Write those down. And then list three or four ways you’re going to resource those things for yourself. Put those on a sticky note or where you can see it. Circle and the one of thing you can do immediately!

2. Structural how elements.

We won’t dive too deep here, but I want to give you some insight in how choosing the form to tell your story makes a difference in how you write it.

What do you envision for your story–short story? memoir? personal essay? novel?

This may be a simple answer for you–longform! or Flash fiction! That’s great. Or, you may think, Jeez, maybe I actually want to write my story in shorter essays.

So once you have the first part of your answer, I want you to drill down a little more. Because as you get more specific on the structure of the story, the more that structure will help guide you forward as your write.

You’re going to look at story time. Time can move in all sorts of ways in story. And choosing how your story moves through time helps shape your story. And when your story has a shape it has a few more perimeters to help contain your story. Which keeps you from going all over the place.

So: How will time move in your story?

(Some examples include: Day in the life. Chronological. Past/present.)

If you don’t know yet, that’s totally okay. But then think about when your story begins, and when (if you know) it ends. This will help give you a sense of the ‘shape’ of your story, and what you need to fill it in.

Then scribble down the results of this prompt for your sticky note–you may even feel like drawing the answer into a picture!

Did you find this mini-challenge exciting? Did any of these tips help you in your novel writing stage? Tell me in the comments!