Why the story we tell ourselves is the most important we’ll ever tell…and the impact it has on our ability to manage our inner critic, imposter syndrome and to get our work done.
Dr. Julie Helmrich, psychologist and founder of Iron Psych specializes in change fluency and narrative, and is my guest this week, talking about psychological fitness for writers.
Links:
Dr. Helmrich’s site: https://juliehelmrich.com/
Writing prompt: https://storyaday.org/wow-customs
Culture infuses everything about our world, so ‘world-building’ is an important part of our writing. Today’s prompt encourages you to build a story around a cultural oddity.
Think about a cultural norm in the world of your story and explore its ramifications for your characters.
In which I talk about why we do this thing we do, and answer the top 10 questions I get asked, at StoryADay (including everything from where to put commas, to how to submit stories, to how to overcome imposter syndrome).
Grab a hot beverage and settle in…
Links
Short Story Structure: https://storyaday.org/framework
Imposter Syndrome: https://storyaday.org/imposter-syndrome/
The 3-Day Challenge: https://storyaday.org/3dc
The Prompt: Write the story of an inanimate object.
This prompt was inspired by a conversation with a StoryADay Superstar who had been waiting for a package to arrive for weeks. We speculated about what it had been up to on its travels, and now it’s your turn.
Write the story of an inanimate object
Humans don’t just experience their lives. We infect each other with shared memories of how it felt to be watching historic events or a baby take their first steps. We transmit meaning through emotion, through story.
Getting good at telling stories isn’t trivial. It isn’t frivolous. And it certainly isn’t selfish…
Links:
The Prompt: Write a story with a pivotal scene where your a character tastes a food they haven’t tasted since childhood.
Write a story with a pivotal scene where your a character tastes a food they haven’t tasted since childhood.
I liked this a lot.
It managed to be about magic and death and unrequited love and #metoo and revenge and yet have a lightness and beauty that I often find missing in modern stories, and which is hard to pull off with those themes.
Continue reading “[Reading Room] How The Trick Is Done by A. C. Wise”Welcome to the Serious Writers’ Accountability Group!
Post your goals for this month and let us know how you got on with last month’s goals.
Leave a comment below telling us how you got on last month, and what you plan to do next month, then check back in on the first of each month, to see how everyone’s doing.
(It doesn’t have to be fiction. Feel free to use this group to push you in whatever creative direction you need.)
Did you live up to your commitment from last month? Don’t remember what you promised to do? Check out the comments from last month.
And don’t forget to celebrate with/encourage your fellow SWAGr-ers on their progress!
Download your SWAGr Tracking Sheet now, to keep track of your commitments this month
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Examples of Goals Set By SWAGr-ers in previous months
So, what will you accomplish this month? Leave your comment below (use the drop-down option to subscribe to the comments and receive lovely, encouraging notifications from fellow StADa SWAGr-ers!)
(Next check-in, 1st of the month. Tell your friends!)
In this episode I look at goals and why it’s so uncomfortable getting from where you are now to where you want to be…and how you can make it happen.
Download the Annual Planning Bundle now
Also in this episode I answer a question about whether or not it’s bad to write more description than dialogue.
Links::
Get The StoryADay Annual Review Bundle: https://storyaday.org/annualplan
Learn how to P. A. C. E. Yourself https://storyaday.org/episode094
Take the 3-Day Challenge: https://storyaday.org/3dc
It’s not too late to meet some of your goals for 2020 (or some minimum viable version of that goal).
This article is a companion to the podcast episode 193 – Getting From Here To There
Remember: “At least I did that one thing” feels so much better than “I couldn’t even do …”
Looking back at the past year might bring in some fear, guilt or pain because of what you didnt’ achievel.
And that’s fine….as long as you don’t stay there.
Goal setting is seductive and fun because it allows us to live in that shiny place in the future where we’ve overcome all our shortcomings.
The bit in the middle, however, is the tricky part.
Here’s what I’ve learned this year: change is uncomfortable. It’s supposed to be. And it’s ok.
When we set goals and want to make changes, we know, intellectually that there are several steps we need to take.
HOWEVER…
Without a strong emotional story about WHY we are doing it, it’s much, much harder to get through that uncomfortable part in the middle. It’s much more comfortable to scurry back to the way we’ve always done things (of course it is!).
To make meaningful changes, you need to embrace the ugliness of the times you’ve failed in the past, and the emotional reason you want to move forward to a bright, new shiny place.
Use the StoryADay Annual Review Bundle to help you write that emotional story about each goal you set this year AND keep track of your motivation and progress throughout the year.
Annual Goals Overview Worksheet (set your motto and top goals for the year)
PACE Yourself Worksheet (for each individual goal – with emotions! Listen to this podcast episode to learn how to use it best)
Serious Writer’s Accountability Group monthly worksheet
Triumphs Tracker (log your successes throughout the year)
If you’re the kind of person who’s stopped setting goals because you never meet them, let’s figure out why!
Use these planners to
And more of all, keep writing!
![[Write On Wednesday] Nostalgia Foods](https://storyaday.org/wp-content/uploads/2021/01/bill-craighead-rYLpb6COS_I-unsplash-2.jpg)
