The universe is made of stories, not of atoms.
Muriel Rukeyser
One of a writer’s great fears is running out of words or fresh stories to tell. Our creative souls relish the adventure of unexpected twists and discoveries and translate our human experience into a literary form we can offer on a silver platter for others to consume and enjoy.
Today, I’m sharing a crazy-simple tool that will almost guarantee that you never have to worry about bankrupting your story bank again. This tool can inspire your writing world, whether you’re a novelist or a nonfiction writer.
A few months ago, my lead pastor, Ben, mentioned to me Matthew Dicks’ top-selling book StoryWorthy: . Dicks is a best-selling novelist and thirty-six time Moth StorySLAM champion.
A former elementary school teacher, Dicks has survived an armed robbery with a gun put to his head and the trigger pulled, being brought back to life by paramedics on two separate occasions, and tried for a crime that he didn’t commit. Yet, Dicks doesn’t rely on those dramatic stories to win storytelling competitions. “There’s nothing in the horror of a car accident for an audience to connect to. Nothing that rings true in the minds of listeners. Nothing that evokes memories of the past. Nothing that changes the way that audience members see themselves or the world around them.”
He believes that our most powerful stories are found in the small meaningful moments of our everyday lives. Dicks is best known for his exercise, “Homework for Life,” which I’ll share in a moment.
Whether you’re writing nonfiction or a novel, Homework for Life is a simple five-minute exercise that gifts you the chance to slow your life and not miss the gems of change, transformation, faith, or courage you need to persevere in what you do. In Storyworthy, Dicks writes, “The problem is that we don’t see these moments. We fail to notice them or recognize their importance; when we see one, we don’t reach out and catch it. We fail to keep these precious moments safe for the future.”
As you see, process and reflect on your life, that helps to make sure that your storybank never runs dry. So, if you’re uninspired or your writing feels repetitive, try the following exercise for one week. You’ll never have to worry about running out of stories again!
HOMEWORK FOR LIFE
- Grab a notebook or open the notes app on your phone and create a two-column Excel spreadsheet. Whether you’re using paper or digital, label “date” in one column and write your Homework for Life in the next column.
- Take five minutes at the end of each day to identify a meaningful moment or a moment of transformation. Here are some questions that Dicks suggests, and I’ve added a few of my own:
a. What made today different from yesterday?
b. What is my five-second moment of realization/transformation? (New thought or discovery? Change my mind? Reach acceptance? Failure? Choose a new path? Regret? Life-altering decision? Surrender? Kindness received? Courage?)
c. What is the most memorable important thing/moment that happened to me today?
I briefly began using this exercise in 2019 but returned to it a few weeks ago. It only takes a few minutes a day, but I love the thrill of knowing that I’m adding to my story bank and that my investment will pay off over and over again in the months and years to come. Here are a few of my entries:
1/4/2019 – I bought a shirt at Kohl’s, got home, and saw pit stains. Someone returned or re-racked it. It took me forever to find two medium-sized shirts. I was so happy I found what I was looking for that I didn’t check thoroughly to see if it was right.
1/7/2019 – I was stressed and putting butter on nachos when Abbie challenged me. I was passing judgment on someone else’s actions that I saw online. It was none of my business, but I let it jack me up, and my 18-year-old called me on it.
Apparently, one day I was spreading butter on nacho chips. Definitely not one of my best moments, but I would have forgotten it if not for Homework for Life.
While these moments seem inconsequential, they can be paired with applicable themes to illustrate the all-important journey of change and transition. At some point, I may develop these daily Homework for Life moments into full-out stories or keynote illustrations. Novelists can utilize these moments as parts of plots, reference points for character development and motivation, or to inspire new avenues of story research.
As storytellers, we rely on our bank of memories and experiences to inspire or support our work, whether fiction or nonfiction. Many of the stories we add come from moments that transpire in daily life. We take these moments for granted until we no longer have access to them.
In addition to Homework for Life, Dicks introduces other story-nurturing tools like Crash-n-Burn and Backpack. The book is a powerful and practical read!
JOIN THE CONVERSATION: How do you populate your story bank to keep fresh experiences and observations flowing into your life and writing? Share your approach below.
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Work Your Writer Website
I saw a cross by the roadside,
and I stopped to take a look,
not knowing then what would betide
that I’d begin a book
on the things that might have been
along that right-of-way,
and what God had surely seen,
and then put into play.
I have not seen that cross for years,
its place is now beyond my ken,
but I am told the book’s brought tears
to the hardest men
who are quite a bit like me,
with violent sentimentality.
I LOVE this!!! Thanks so much, Barb! So, something that has helped me is trying to write a small devotional each week and that keeps me looking through the week for small moments with potential. Also, I write down the funny quotes that I hear from my teens and others in my life. They are hilarious and always spark ideas for stories.
This is a great idea!!