Dear Creative,
I’m writing this letter to you on a Happy Wednesday! You may not find it in your emails or on this blog until days, months, or years later, but I hope this note will increase your joy whenever you read it. Moreover, I hope the offerings get you in the mood to write, design, draw, or do whatever you do with passion and purpose.
The majority of the letter focuses on storytelling. The method I suggest you utilize to do the work of storytelling is to: Do. The work. Of storytelling. If you are going to write a story, you cannot get stuck in the woods while on the writing journey.
Can you imagine Little Red Riding Hood never reaching Grandma’s house? Well, perhaps we could put a twist on the story. I must keep that in mind.
But for the sake of the famous Grimms’ children’s story, we need Little Red to get to her destination and encounter the Big Bad Wolf. The story is boring, not to mention meaningless if she doesn’t make it there.
So, carving out the time (as we learned last week) and sitting at the desk, alone, does not a story make. We must create characters and explore plots. And we must keep them moving throughout the pages.
You, as a metaphor, are a story, as well. You are a limited edition, for sure. There is no one like you.
The story of you is going to be either a best seller, easily forgotten, or somewhere in between. Wherever it lands on the shelves of history, it will have much to do with what you decide to do today.
Please take some time to sit down and do your work with a positive goal in mind. None of us can afford to be gullible and beguiled by the wolves, who will literally eat us alive.
The Writing Work
Now, to all the future authors, I want you to do these two things, especially if you are writing a novel. One, make sure your characters are worth reading about. Mainly, decide on a protagonist—the character who will carry the story. This person will take the most hits, heat, and licks and generally have the most lines. Think of your favorite movie and the star of the show. Whoever fills that role is the protagonist. The next thing you want to do is to give them a goal. What do they want out of life? Is it to get rich, become the president, save the world, cure a disease, find romance, right a wrong, or have a family? Start with these two first, writing everything you can about the protagonist and their big goal.
Get inspired to tell your protagonist’s story while you continue living your own. Really,
Leah
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