5 Tips to Start Writing in Your Story
Everyone has something to tell and write your story is a way of show the world a little bit of yourself and leave something to the future. The Goodnight Journal is a good option for you to do that. Here I left some tips to help you start, good luck!
1. Start with Your Own Story
You are, without a doubt, the best person in the world to write your own story and that of your family. You are the only person on this earth who has your perspective and your life experiences. You know all the details. You were there. JK Rowling couldn’t tell her stories better than you can.
2. Tell Your Favorite Stories to Others
One of the reasons my cousin’s words touched me so deeply was because her family members are all great storytellers. They get together, reminisce, and repeat some stories over and over again. This practice adds structure to fragmented memories, making it easier to write them down later.
3. Make a Timeline of Major Life Events
In a notebook or a computer document, write down each year of your life. Leave a page or two between each year. Now start adding each year the big changes that have divided your life into stages: being born, going to school, moving house, changing schools, reaching religious goals, learning to drive, graduating, getting a job, changing jobs, get married, have children. Sad events, such as losses and deaths, should be on the list as well. Write down names, places, dates. If all you’ve completed in your personal history is this list of the biggest events in your life, that’s a start. If you are inspired to continue, you will have a great structure to write a completely personal story.
4. Be Specific
Add as many relevant details as you can when sharing a memory. If you make a claim, think about the evidence you would include if you had to prove that you are telling the truth. For example, my cousin Natalie wrote, “I remember Grandpa always took great care of things.” If she had stopped there, this would still be a true statement about Grandpa, but it became much more memorable when she added this detail: “If he used the lawnmower, he would clean it and put it back in the box.” This fact tells a story about how careful and meticulous Grandpa was. Not only did he keep the original box for years and years, but he also took the time to clean the dirty lawn equipment before putting it away. I loved this detail; I can imagine him doing just that.
5. Just Start
It doesn’t matter how far you feel you are in capturing your personal story. Start somewhere and start today. Even if you don’t have time to delve deeply into the past right now, make a regular habit of capturing and collecting current thoughts and memories. The most important thing is to capture them while they’re still fresh; you can always organize and rearrange your memories later.
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