Tag Archives: Anne Rice

Use Real Life Experiences in Your Writing

Growing up I can remember many English teachers telling us to write using a memory or experience we went through. If you’ve ever attended a writing class you’ve probably heard the phrase, “write what you know,” more than once from an English professer. Hearing that advice, I immediately processed my life, and realized it was not exciting enough to write about. Many years past before I realized that I could use different experiences in my life. . Certain moments could be drawn back on to write about a similar experience perhap with a character. Using real life experience should only be done if it applies to the story. If there is a certain memory or feeling that you can convey in your story, and it fits, that’s when you should use your memories and feelings.

Many authors have done just this. Remember Stephen King, when he got into a car accident, he used that experience and wrote Misery.

Anne Rice is another example. In one of her books a vampire becomes human again and the detail of him eating food for the very first time is amazing. Where do you think these authors got such detail and feeling? They tapped into their own memories and wrote about it.

Using life events makes your story or novel more realistic to the reader. Think about strong moments or memories you may have, think about how you felt. How would your character feel if something similar happened to them? Think aboutt how you felt, what you were thinking etc. If you do use real life experiences in your novel, make sure the story benefits from it. If you can’t fit it in to your plot smoothly, don’t.

By using real life experiences in your writing you’ll not only connect with your readers, you’ll also make your characters more realistic.

To find out more check out real life experience. Or check out creative writing tips.

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