Your
experiences influence your writing, both fiction and nonfiction.
Have you ever struggled with the phrase “Write what you know”?
I know I have. I grew up in what I perceived as a rather sheltered, rather dull life. As a teenager, that was the last thing I wanted to write about, the last thing I thought people would want to read about. I wanted to write great adventures that took place in other worlds, and I spent my days imagining myself as a princess, a pirate, or a Jedi in a galaxy far, far away.
Then a funny thing happened. I grew a little older, went through some writing classes, and got out and met people. Those people, it turned out, were different than me. They thought differently than I did, wrote differently than I did, and—despite our similar demographics—had lived differently than I did. Suddenly, I wasn’t so ready to be done with my past. I wanted to look at my experiences again and figure out how, exactly, they had made me me.
You see, “what you know” isn’t just referring to the specific life you’ve lived, the events or people that have filled it. It’s how the life you’ve lived has shaped the way you understand the world.
If you write memoir or personal essays, you probably express these experiences pretty directly, filtering them through your own perceptions (past or present) of what you’ve gone through. When you write other types of nonfiction, you’re still expressing your experiences—even if you’re not writing directly about them, they’ll come through in your tone and the knowledge you share.
When you write fiction, “write what you know” doesn’t necessarily mean that you’ll be copying events or characters from your life into your stories, though that’s definitely an option. It means that even when you’re writing great adventures that take place in other worlds, even when you’re creating characters that are nothing like yourself, you’ll still be drawing on the experiences, emotions, lessons, and people that have influenced your worldview and personality.
Using prompts to find honesty
Sometimes, people aren’t particularly in tune with themselves. Their writing may still draw on the experiences of their past, but it’s often unintentional and sometimes poorly executed. They’re not thinking about what they’ve learned in life regarding how the world works and how people interact with it, and because of that, their writing doesn’t ring true.
Thankfully, things don’t have to stay that way! With practice, you can explore more of what you know and discover what it looks like to use that knowledge.
Today, I’m going to suggest practicing through writing prompts. I know not everyone does well with every kind of writing prompt, and that’s okay. Know yourself and your methods, but don’t be afraid to challenge yourself. Here’s what you can expect from the four prompts in this post:
These prompts are designed to get you thinking and writing about your own experiences, emotions, people, and lessons learned. You’ll get a feel for what it’s like to write about these categories realistically and honestly. I’m also including analysis questions for each prompt so that you can take what you’ve learned from real life and apply it to how you write about either yourself or your characters in the future.
Prompt #1—Experience: Write about a time you visited a museum.
Set aside a predetermined amount of time to write about this experience (I recommend 10-30 minutes depending on your day and how much writing you’d like to do). You can write by hand or by typing. When you are finished, ask yourself the following questions and take notes on what you discover.
- What one aspect of the experience stands out the most in your writing?
- What kinds of descriptions did you include?
- What details did you include or skip, and why?
- What would you write if you focused on a different aspect of your experience?
Prompt #2—Emotions: Write about a time you felt embarrassed about something you did wrong.
Set aside a predetermined amount of time to write about this emotion (I recommend 10-30 minutes depending on your day and how much writing you’d like to do). You can write by hand or by typing. When you are finished, ask yourself the following questions and take notes on what you discover.
- What physical or sensational reactions did you (or could you) include?
- How did you balance mental reactions with active reactions in your writing?
- How has your perspective changed from that moment to now?
- How has that emotional experience changed the way you act in certain circumstances? If it hasn’t, why not?
Prompt #3—People: Write about a person you met through a mutual friend.
Set aside a predetermined amount of time to write about this person (I recommend 10-30 minutes depending on your day and how much writing you’d like to do). You can write by hand or by typing. When you are finished, ask yourself the following questions and take notes on what you discover.
- Which aspect of the person did you remember and write about the most?
- What made that the most important/notable thing about them in your memory?
- How did that influence the way you interacted with them in the past? If it didn’t, what did?
- How did other aspects of that person all fit into the whole person they were/are?
Prompt #4—Lessons: Write about a time you learned a creative skill.
Set aside a predetermined amount of time to write about this lesson (I recommend 10-30 minutes depending on your day and how much writing you’d like to do). You can write by hand or by typing. When you are finished, ask yourself the following questions and take notes on what you discover.
- Did you want to learn this skill? Why or why not?
- Did you write about the experience in a mostly positive or negative light?
- What was it that finally made things “click” for you?
- How has your perspective on that skill changed from that time to now?
Watch your writing grow.
If you complete all four prompts, you will have practiced writing about experiences, emotions, people, and lessons learned. These specific stories might never wind up in your writing, but the skills you’ve just discovered will.
This is true no matter what you write. If you write memoir, for example, prompts like these are useful because they help you get more in tune with your past. For other nonfiction writing, your writing becomes stronger as you become more in tune with how your thinking and writing processes work and how that affects your written page. Finally, in your fiction, you’ll find that you’re more in tune with how perceptions, feelings, and personal growth worth. When you apply these discoveries, your writing will become stronger and more honest.
Did these prompts help you? Are you looking for more practice in writing honestly about what you know and what you’ve learned about the world around you? I’ll be continuing this series of prompts, including one each week in my Friday newsletter, which you can subscribe to at the bottom of this page. I’ll be working through the same prompts, and I would love to have you join me and share what you’re discovering along the way!
I’ve finally started writing what I know, and I’m now on much better terms with that phrase. As I write short stories, I get to set them in strange, far-off places—but they include the thoughts, ideas, and lessons that life has handed me along the way. Also, as I plot and outline a novel, I’m pouring in emotional reactions that make me love my characters and will hopefully make readers feel the same way—because their emotions are my emotions, and I’m learning to write about them honestly.
Don’t be afraid to write what you know—you know more than you think you do, and with practice, everything you’ve ever experienced will be right at your fingertips, ready to help you write engaging, honest stories or messages to share with the world.
Don’t forget to sign up for the newsletter to receive weekly prompts! I’d love to meet you in your inbox and see you in mine as well.