what we all need-to-know

 

Burlington, Vt

If you are curious about the healing power of storytelling but you haven't started writing yet, I understand. I had a hard time getting started, too. I convinced myself I lacked the skills and talent and dedication required to line up words on the page, one after another...and then, to rearrange them, over and over again until they sounded right. Until they made sense. Until they rang true.

"Words are sacred. They deserve respect.
If you get the right ones,
in the right order,
you can nudge the world a little."
~Tom Stoddard~


It's hard to know how to begin, but instead of worrying about spelling, grammar, and punctuation...instead of fretting over literary style...or judging yourself before you even begin, you might start by asking yourself a couple of questions:

What about my story does the reader need to hear?

Why?

   

The reader needs to know he's not alone. It helps to know how someone else felt when the doctor pronounced the word "cancer" for the first time. What went through his mind? How did he cope? Where did he find the courage to go on?

 

Or maybe one of your readers needs to know how you helped your daughter when she suffered a miscarriage...and how you got through it. What did you say to her? What did you do to provide relief, or comfort, or solace to her? Where did you find yours?

 

"Write about what disturbs you, what you fear,

what you have not been willing

to speak about.

Be willing to be split open."

~Natalie Goldberg~



People need to know it's OK to cry. To rage. To rest. To ask for help, and to embrace it when it's offered.

People need to know there's hope, and when hope fails, it helps to know where others turn for comfort, consolation, and support.

Where do you turn? What story can you tell? Someone, somewhere needs to hear it. When will you begin?

"The healing that can grow

out of the simple act of telling our stories

is often quite remarkable."

~Susan Wittig Albert~

jan