#AmWriting – So I Told Myself A Story

My first audience is always me.

I’m the first to meet the characters, to hear their stories, to explore their world. I wander through their lives, peering into closets and looking at what they keep under their beds. I watch them make decisions, make mistakes, make corrections. Their laughter is unheard until my ear hears it first. The same for their crying. I follow along, sometimes the passive observer, sometimes pushing them in a different direction. We create the strong bones of the story, and even add some flesh..

And then I’m bored.

All this happens before the process of writing the story down ends. Stories rarely begin on a page. And they arrive at their end before I begin to write sometimes as well. Plus once I have captured all the details on the page, there is still the editing phase to complete. So I finish telling myself the story long before I’m done writing it.

In the past, that was a problem for me. Once I knew the story and how it came out, I lost interest. That’s a great way to amuse yourself, but a lousy way to be a writer. I need to get that story down “on paper” so I can share it. “Storyteller” is a central part of my understanding of who I am. Telling stories only to myself doesn’t live up to my expectations of that concept. I want to tell my stories to other people.

So, this is a problem I had to solve.

One of the most effective ways is to write down as much as I can as soon as I can. That’s not always right away, because, life. Whenever “as soon as I can” arrives, I try to get as much of the central idea of the story down as I can. Sometimes that’s notes on paper, sometimes it’s a note in my computer. Sometimes it’s a verbal note on a digital recorder. I try to have one with me, so in those moments when I can’t write it down, I can hang onto the idea. It’s a great solution when you’re in the car. Your smartphone may be able to take audio notes, so you don’t need an extra piece of equipment.

The other thing I’ve learned is that I need to get as detailed as I can. In my “Ideas” folder, I have slips of paper with a single word, or a short phrase written on them. I keep them in the hope that one day I will remember the story that went with them. Because I don’t remember it now. The best solution is to begin writing the story. If I have 15 minutes and someplace I can write, then I should get out my travel laptop, or my notebook (they are always in my backpack, and my backpack is almost always with me) and get writing. There is no magic to the 15 minutes. It could be ten, it has to be more than five. If there are fewer than five minute, it feels rushed. Feeling rushed inhibits my writing. That’s when a digital recorder can help.

The other part of the equation is to remember that I’m a writer. The storyteller weaves the tale, but the writer has to make sure the warp and woof are tight. I wear several hats in the process of writing a story. Storyteller, writer and editor. My goal is to keep one role from interfering with another (letting the editor stick his oar in too soon will always mess things up). By giving each role time and space, I can maintain my interest in the story for as long as needed.

And if I can’t? Then the story probably isn’t worth invessting the time in.

Peace.

(Before the weaving nomeclature police of the world descend on me, let me explain. “Warp and woof” are terms describing the vertical and horizontal threads in a piece of cloth. There is an alternate usage of “warp and weft”. The words woof and weft mean the same thing, and both words have long histories in the art form. Some people have preferences, and as is so often the case, can become strident in defense of their preference. I recogonize and acknowledge that both have adherents. I am not a weaver, but I prefer the “texture” of the warp and woof option.)