Nearly finished reading this book (listening to the audiobook actually, so I had SK's voice in my ear every morning during my walk - it was like Uncle Steve actually giving me his advice in person).
I'm so very struck by the commonalities in his story with my own. My father once wiped with poison ivy during a Boy Scout camping trip - I grew up hearing Dad tell me that story.
And, when I was in my teens, after I was done with swim team practice, and had just finished getting dressed to go home, two little boys and a girl ran through the women's locker room. The girl stopped in her tracks when she saw me, then said, "Since they ran through our locker room, do you want to run through theirs?"
Why yes, I did. Thankfully, the locker room was empty.
Guess what I noticed? That the men didn't have shower curtains on the showers! How odd. Oh, and they've got urinals. Huh.
I about fell over when SK described that in On Writing. It was one of the experiences that led to Carrie.
I think that it's commonalities in human experience like these that helps draw readers into stories. Maybe that exact thing hasn't happened to someone - but we all know someone it did happen to. Or maybe the experience didn't happen, but we can imagine what it would be like. It's part of what gives truth to writing, I think.
I'm so very struck by the commonalities in his story with my own. My father once wiped with poison ivy during a Boy Scout camping trip - I grew up hearing Dad tell me that story.
And, when I was in my teens, after I was done with swim team practice, and had just finished getting dressed to go home, two little boys and a girl ran through the women's locker room. The girl stopped in her tracks when she saw me, then said, "Since they ran through our locker room, do you want to run through theirs?"
Why yes, I did. Thankfully, the locker room was empty.
Guess what I noticed? That the men didn't have shower curtains on the showers! How odd. Oh, and they've got urinals. Huh.
I about fell over when SK described that in On Writing. It was one of the experiences that led to Carrie.
I think that it's commonalities in human experience like these that helps draw readers into stories. Maybe that exact thing hasn't happened to someone - but we all know someone it did happen to. Or maybe the experience didn't happen, but we can imagine what it would be like. It's part of what gives truth to writing, I think.
