I have written these three rules to help me remember the things that have worked for me in my writing life as I continue to carve out time and motivation to write more stories.
RULE #3
Write stories in order to ask questions, not answer them.
Whenever I begin writing a story in order to ‘impart my wisdom or interesting perspective,’ my creativity dries up.
(It’s okay – you can be grateful for that. I know I am.)
On the other hand, something magical happens when I set out to explore difficult questions that seem unanswerable or the problems that hit me where it hurts the most.
Once I know what my question is, I find my story.
It’s eerie how effortlessly the story proceeds compared to when I try to write a story in order to share ‘my genius.’
I take it as proof of a muse.
As a good friend and I often joke – you don’t get to take credit for the good bits in your stories, or the muse will abandon you.
So let me rephrase my earlier comment: Once I know what my question is, the story finds me.
I don’t write stories as my way to contribute something to the world. Some authors do this, and I am grateful to them for it. There are amazing books out there written for reasons very different than my own.
I do get mixed results, and this rule has looked different with every story I’ve written.
Even though it takes different forms, asking questions that I don’t know the answer to has proven to be my kind of method.
That concludes the “My Rules for a Writing Life” series. I will be back next Friday!
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