WRITER'S BLOCK: "PERSONAL STORIES"

I have not directly talked about writing your "personal story."  And yet, when I talk about writing in a freewriting format, it may well happen that you will write your personal story.  Here, in today's blog, I'm actually suggesting that you start by writing your personal story.  It's another way that gets freewriting going, and a way to access material that may prove fruitful for you personally and for your writing  both in terms of growth and creativity.

You can start with a simple sentence. "Here is my personal story."  Or, "My personal story is…."  Or, "Let me tell you a little about myself."

Likely you will find that you will only just begin to tap your personal story, even if you have written your personal story before.  There is so much to say about yourself, no matter your age.  Likely you will find that this beginning writing will give you an opportunity to pick up at a later date and write more of your personal story.

Personal stories are a way of us finding out what is important to us at a given moment in time.  This means as well that our personal stories will change depending on what's going on in our lives at the time.  Sometimes the material will be different and new, and sometimes how we view the material will be different and new.

As a writing coach I have worked with writers who could not, at times, freewrite.  Even by repeating a word or a phrase over and over as I frequently suggest.  They were unable to move into a flow (see Flow: The Psychology of Optimal Experience (P.S.)).  Yet, the simple act of writing "My personal story is…." brought material to light that these writers hadn't realized was meaningful.  And, a flow began that allowed access to other writing that they had as a goal but had been unable to get a handle on.

So, what's your "personal story" for today?