Self-Editing Tip #7: Every Picture Tells a Story and Every Story Paints a Picture

So have a personal story or example in your blog post

Medium is an informal publication.

That’s while you’ll see me change most of your I am’s to I’m’s, etc.

The emphasis is on learning life lessons or wisdom through personal experience.

I like to start my posts with a personal story.

My health posts begin with how I’m dealing with that particular issue, be it my cardiologist recommending I eat more salt, or swearing by wearing compression socks. I start the post with my own experiences whenever possible.

And we here at Middle-Pause encourage our writers to as well.

Why?

Stories hook the reader in and set them up for the information to follow. Anecdotes help balance any drier factual information that may need to be in your post, though we want to make that as dynamic as possible, too.

Sometimes it makes sense to make a factual point and illustrate it with a personal example. Or present a series of personal anecdotes followed by the lesson or information the story points to.

Think of your story as a verbal illustration of the points you’re making.

If you’re having trouble coming up with a story for your post, ask yourself why am I drawn to writing about this? Why do I care? Something may have happened to a loved one or colleague that’s moved you to write about an issue. Your connection to that person makes it a personal story.

Or if it’s a larger-than-life event, like 9/11, where were you when it happened? How did you learn about it? How has it changed or impacted you, your life, and/or your perspective on things? Some of us stopped flying. Some of us protested President Bush’s Iraq invasion. Some of us did our best to support Muslim women and their right to wear hijabs without harassment.

In other words, show us your heart. Help us feel how you do or did.

That’s the point.

Stories engage readers emotionally. Yes, we want to learn how to be healthier or how to treat hot flashes naturally.

But when we feel your pain, it becomes our pain. Now we’re primed to hear whatever you have to say. Lay it on us.

Your engagement is contagious. The reader can’t connect to your topic any deeper than you do. The reason you’re writing this piece at this time undergirds your words. Let us see that if you can.

To see all the Self-Editing Tips, check out this list:

Marilyn Flower is a sacred fool who writes every day — fiction, poetry, and blogs — inspired by a process called SoulCollage®. She’s the author of Creative Blogging and Bucket Listers, Get Your Brave On. Follow her Sacred Foolishness or SoulCollage® for Writers, and Stay in touch!