How to Turn Anything Into a Story in 3 Easy Steps
If I’ve heard it once, I’ve heard it a million times,
“I don’t have any stories to tell.”
“My life isn’t exciting, I don’t have anything to write about.”
I’m going to bring you to task on this, because I guarantee at least three things happened today you could turn into a story. By the time you’re done reading this, I want you to be ready to pick one and write a story about it.
If you think your favorite social media personalities, bloggers, writers, etc have crazy, insane, exciting lives every day all day, you’re wrong. What they do have that you don’t (yet), is the know-how to turn any event, big or small, into an interesting and engaging read.
In one of my Facebook groups, I was challenged to write a story about something that happened in my life today.
I ran down a mental list of things I’d done so far:
Picked up a friend from the auto shop
Went to the gym
Stopped by Target
Ate breakfast
Hmm… What to write?
I knew I could tell a story about the conversation my friend and I had at the gym. Or about my decision to change budgeting tactics that came while I was waiting for her at the auto shop. Or maybe something humorous about my adventure trying on activewear at Target. Instead, I opted for a breakfast story, because it was easily the most mundane task I’ve done today, which posed more of a challenge.
Here’s the story:
My stomach growled in anticipation as I reached into the cabinet to retrieve my favorite bowl. We’ve had this set of white plastic bowls for as long as I can remember. Reaching for one is like reaching back in time.
I close my eyes and I’m standing barefoot in the kitchen, in the house that raised me. Blue cabinets with ceramic white knobs hang above white tiled countertops my dad tediously installed himself back in 1992.
I’m dreading my walk to school and the homework I didn’t do last night. One of my best friends is in the midst of some crisis or another. We don’t have cell phones yet to stay in constant contact while she struggles through it.
Ms. Kitty, the family cat, weaves between my feet, hoping whatever I’m about to eat falls off the counter and into her domain. The morning sun washes in through the window over the sink, warming my bare arms and the floor beneath my feet. Everything feels safe, familiar, like home.
I opened my eyes to find myself standing back in my kitchen; natural wood cabinets and dark wood floors. Not the kitchen that raised me, but the one that has held me for the last year. I set my bowl on the counter, pulled the Kashi box from the lazy-suzan in the corner and emptied its contents into my bowl.
Today's breakfast is best served with a side of memories.
Now, here’s the truth behind that story:
I did not pause while reaching for my cereal bowl to immerse myself in the memory I wrote about. That memory didn’t come until I sat down to write about breakfast.
My process was more like this:
What was I feeling when I walked into the kitchen?
Hungry. My stomach was growling.
What objects were involved?
A plastic white bowl, a spoon, Kashi cereal, milk, the fridge, the cabinets I had to open.
Wait one minute! We’ve had these bowls forever! DING DING DING!! I can write about those! What do these bowls mean to me? How much of my life have I spent eating cereal out of them?
That’s how my story was born.
Here are 3 steps you can follow to turn anything into a story:
1. Use all your senses
To do this, you’ll need to allow yourself to go back to the moment you want to write about. What were you seeing, hearing, touching, smelling and tasting? What were you thinking about? Why were you doing whatever it was you were doing?
You may not fully remember, because when we’re doing mundane tasks, we’re usually thinking about 100 different things. But, allowing yourself to go back to that moment and slow it down, will allow you to pinpoint the essence of the activity.
A bonus: The more you practice this, the better you’ll get at being present moment to moment.
2. Consider the history
My story came together because I stopped to consider the history of the plastic bowl. Think about a story you could tell, is there an object involved? Where did it come from? How long have you had it? Do either of those things hold any significance? Was there much debate about buying the thing? Did someone you love give it to you? If so, use it in your story!
3. Finally, Set the scene
If you set the scene properly for your reader, you can write about anything and make them feel whatever it is you want them to feel. You do this my describing what you were hearing, smelling, seeing, thinking, feeling, tasting, etc.
Maybe all you did was take a walk today. Saying, “I went for a long walk. It was nice. The weather was warm. I broke a sweat,” does not a story make.
What made you decide to go for a walk? Were you facing any challenges? Why did you go when you did? What made the walk nice? How did the warm weather make you feel? How did the sweat feel?
Here’s how I turned a mundane walking story, into something worth reading:
My alarm went off an hour earlier than usual. Damn me for thinking a new morning routine was a good idea. The mattress and I both groaned a little as I rolled over to shut off the annoyingly peppy ringtone I’d set as my wake-up tune.
Feet on the floor, Ronni. That’s all you have to do.
Against every desire I had to lay back down, I stood up and headed to the dresser. I grabbed my favorite pair of running shorts I never ran in, a too-tight sports bra circa-2012, my obnoxiously neon-orange tank top and my favorite pair of black and grey ankle socks.
After a quick stop in the bathroom to empty my too-full bladder, brush my teeth and smear SPF all over my face, I was ready to slip on my comfiest pair of Saucony tennis shoes and head out the door.
I inhaled deeply as I made my way toward the end of the driveway, the smell of yesterday's freshly cut grass still hung in the air. It was a warm August morning, the kind we’d all be missing in another couple of months, when the balmy morning breeze is replaced by the crisp autumn kind. It wouldn’t be long before the soundtrack to my morning walks is the crunching of leaves beneath my feet.
As I rounded the end of the driveway, I picked up my pace. One block down, I anxiously thought about all the things I needed to get done for the day. Two blocks down, my thoughts shifted to friends I haven’t spoken to in far too long. Six blocks down, I could feel the waistband of my running shorts dampening from the sweat that formed on my lower back. Ten blocks down, I stopped thinking about everything but the rhythm of my breathing and the way the sky faded from pale pink to lavender to blue.
By the time I saw my driveway reappear in the distance, my mind was clear, my body was awake and for the first time since I started working from home, I felt calm, relaxed and ready to conquer my day.
See how I went from telling you what I did, to providing an experience that pulled you into the walk with me?
Now, I challenge you to pick a mundane part of your day, the more mundane the better, and write a story about it. I promise, you’ve got one to tell.
