Telling Your Truth: Choose the Right Path

Photo by Damian Siodłak on Unsplash

There are so many ways to tell a story, be it fiction or nonfiction. But when it comes to telling true stories, the decision is especially important ... after all, you're dealing with real people's real lives. Quite the responsibility!

A range of nonfiction projects cross my desk during the course of a year. While they are always interesting in their own ways, I sometimes wonder if they may have been better had the writer taken a different approach.

There are plenty of factors that can influence the choice of genre, but the writer must first determine their objectives in telling their personal story. If the writer is aiming for publication, there are two motivations they should always avoid:

1. Catharsis (processing a significant life event and attaining some kind of  'closure')
2. Revenge (getting back at someone or something)

These motivations are too inward-looking and ignore the very existence of a reader. Instead, the writer needs to ask one critical reader-focused question at the outset: What do I want my book to do?

Reader-focused objectives include:

• INFORM: Sharing an interesting, entertaining or challenging life journey.
• INSPIRE: Encouraging others in the same boat to overcome certain obstacles or adopt new philosophies.
• INSTRUCT: Sharing knowledge and experience that others can replicate for success in relationships, business, wellness, and so on.
• ADVOCATE: Highlighting little known issues and/or making a case for change in attitudes and/or policy.

All of these objectives may play a role, but identifying a primary objective will help you figure out the right approach to writing your content, be it:

• Narrative (storytelling)
• Expository (explaining/informing)
• Persuasive (arguing/advocating)

If the thought of writing a no-holes-barred memoir might be too painful, think about framing your story as an inspirational book that can focus on the positive aspects of your journey. If you have learned lots of life lessons on your journey, perhaps an instructional book might be more effective. If you feel a strong sense of injustice about your experience, consider writing a persuasive book with a powerful call to action.

Picking the right path is a great first step. The next challenge is writing something powerful. Each of the approaches (narrative, expository, persuasive) require different writing skills, which the first-time writer should spend time developing before they dive into writing their book. They can do this by:

• Reading plenty of nonfiction, especially of the genre you're planning to write (perhaps find a nonfiction book club to join)
• Signing up for nonfiction writing courses/classes (again, genre-specific if possible)
• Joining nonfiction writing groups

Your story is important, so it's vital that you tell it as well as possible so that it can go out into the world and fulfil its mission ... and in doing so become a real book with spine!

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