Satisfy the Writer in You?

There’s never a perfect time to start writing. You simply have to take that first step. And, sometimes that first step comes before you sit down at the computer.

Here’s some advice from author Alice Munro, who was given the Nobel for Literature in 2013. She dedicated her writing life almost exclusively to the short story. When asked whether she always plot a story first, she stated: 

Usually, I have a lot of acquaintance with the story before I start writing it. When I didn’t have regular time to give to writing, stories would just be working in my head for so long that when I started to write I was deep into them.
To add to this, you could keep a voice recorder or use the voice note function on a smartphone to record ideas or sentences for your novel as they occur to you. This will help you keep creating even when you have fewer moments to sit down and write.

The short story, or vignette, is a great way for new writers to experience the satisfaction of completion without having to commit the kind of time it takes to write an entire book. This is true for both fiction and memoir writers. With the completion of one vignette, you see that “YOU CAN WRITE.” It gives you the feel of writing a beginning, the middle, and an end—the setup, the buildup of the story, and the resolve. It brings satisfaction to your process and helps you understand what it takes to be a writer.

One of my students said, “I like the vignette style of writing because that way I don’t have to tie everything together. I can go to the meat of each event without having to concern myself with how one piece will fit with another.”

It’s always about taking that first step – even if it’s simply a short one.

Enjoy!

Jasmyne