How to Tell Your “Not Good Enough” Stories So They Become Nail-Biters.

Writing is really a means of transportation.

Photo by Josue Isai Ramos Figueroa on Unsplash

Picture this story over an image of a Lambo:

I used to wonder how I would take care of my family.

I was unemployed, and I knew nothing about the online world.

When my wife told me she was pregnant, I was both happy and worried.

We were a few months away from being out on the street. At one point, my wife almost left me.

Then, one day, I stumbled upon a unicorn, and now I make a gazillion dollars in my sleep.

Let me show you how in this masterclass that’s helped thousands of people like you become millionaires.

It’s valued at $99999, but now only, you can get it for $149.

I hate these ads.

But they still work.

Maybe not as well as before, but they do. People do make a gazillion dollars selling courses on crypto, writing, social media, SEO, self-development, losing weight, and so much more.

And they make it even though they use the same old type of story repeatedly.

So why does this work so well?

And more importantly, can it work for you?

What if you could learn to write stories that make people click, buy, or subscribe?

What if you could write them in your Medium articles, in your SM posts, in your ads, in your newsletters, everywhere?

Well, you can, and here’s how.

Tale as old as time.

Certain tropes in storytelling never go out of style. Zero to hero. Good vs. bad. The chosen one. The reluctant hero and the quest. Enemies to lovers.

These stories work because they mimic life — or at least how we want life to be.

They’re not just fairytales, either. We all have them. If you think you don’t have good stories — and lots of them — I’m sorry, but you’re an idiot.

You went from zero to hero on that job you started a while back, didn’t you?

You were the reluctant hero when you first found out you’d have a kid.

You were in a good vs. bad trope when you had to deal with that difficult client.

Unless you literally sit on your couch 24/7, you have a story worth telling, and by the way, sitting on your couch 24/7 is also a good story.

I used to think the people with the coolest stories don’t have a boring day in their lives. So much happens to them it overflows out of their fingertips and onto a keyboard.

Total BS.

They just know how to find the stories worth telling, dust them off, and dress them up nicely for all of us to enjoy.

So how do they do it?

Dedicated idea-generation time. Everything changed when I started taking the time to come up with ideas instead of waiting for ideas to fall on my head. Think back to your life, or last year, or even yesterday. Everything can be a story.
Appreciate stories for what they are. Most beginning content creators think they always have to share lessons. No need! Your stories can be inspirational, funny, educational, thought-provoking, and more. Appreciate them for what they are.
Discover what makes you emotional. What in your past do you miss the most? Why? What are you most impatient about? Most scared about? Why?
What’s super quirky about you? Like, if you were on the Today’s show, what story would you tell them? When I was 10, I “cursed” Leonardo Di Caprio not to get married until he met me. I’m pretty sure that’s why he’s not married yet. That’s one of my “If I’m ever famous” stories, and I’ve used it to highlight the importance of childhood dreams as guiding lights.
What’s something interesting you’ve tried lately? What’s something you really wanted to try but didn’t? Why didn’t you?

If you go through these bullets and think about each question, you should end up with a list of ideas.

Now, choose one, and let’s work through it.

Give us a lot to feel.

Why read a story if you’re not going to feel anything?

The stories that work are packed with relatable, familiar emotions: anxiousness, fear, rejection, worry, self-doubt, relief, joy, happiness.

I kind’a hate that most online writers use the names of the emotions too much. It’s like you tell the reader how to feel. “I was afraid.” “I was worried.”

Master writers show these emotions. I bit my nails. Tapped my foot. Couldn’t eat. Couldn’t sleep. See the difference?

Yet, I understand the crazy world we live in. People are so overstimulated that telling them how to feel works better for online writing.

Ok, you were afraid. Then what happened?

Whether you choose to do it one way or the other, give us something to feel, and you’ll have our attention.

Dive deep.

Little details matter. This story by Linda Caroll is chilling. Do you notice the level of detail?

It’s dark when we race to the hospital.

It’s a beautiful summer day, and we pull off the gravel road and bumpety bump onto the grass by the cemetery.

I know what you’ll say. This is a story about death. Anyone can write a chilling story about death.

Not true. Because if we delete the words “hospital” and “cemetery,” this is still super vivid.

It’s dark when we race to the (gym).

Bumpety bump onto the grass by (my favorite spot).

It still gives you context, you know? It transports you there. Get specific so you can transport people somewhere. Writing is really a means of transportation.

This applies to all writing.

I recently watched Eve Arnold break down a landing page she wrote for one of her products that exploded her results, and the headline was something like:

You can make 4 figures on Medium even if you have a day job. It will only take one hour per day.

I’m quoting by memory, so this may be off, but the idea was that it’s super specific. It transports you to your dream scenario.

In contrast, her first landing page said something like, “Write to make money.”

Again, do you notice the difference?

Final words.

If so many people can make so much money writing on the internet, so can you.

Have your stories ready, train your consistency muscle daily, and you’ll be good to go.