The Living Book

I believe everyone has a story within them. Yes, every single person who has ever walked this earth. Your very existence is a story. Before you are born, you have a blueprint: a general plan of what you hope to accomplish in your life and key points that are not an option, but rather your destiny. Then from the moment you take your first breath in this life until the moment you take your last, you fill in your blueprint with your story to create the whole. These are your life experiences. Your thoughts and feelings. Your observations. Your actions. Your perceptions. You weave these threads along the way, joining the billions of others to create the tapestry of life. No moment is wasted. Even just sitting in front of the television fills in your story because there’s a reason why you’ve chosen to do this activity.

Over the years, I have heard people say, "I’ve always wanted to write a book, but I'm boring. No one would ever want to read about me." Or, "I’ve had an idea for a book, but I’m just not a writer."

How wrong they are! I have met people who thought no one would care about what they would have to say and who are "not writers," only to find that they are amazing storytellers in just normal conversation. Want to hear from an amazing storyteller, too? Just ask someone about their life. Start the conversation, but then allow them to talk and really listen. You’ll be surprised at how the words flow when someone feels like they’re actually being listened to and being engaged with.

The same people who believe they have led boring, uneventful lives always have a story about their past, someone they knew, an incident they witnessed, or a story told to them by a stranger. Perhaps it was a wild dream they had. Or a tidbit about the area you live in that makes you want to discover more. I have found that when people truly feel they have an audience, they are eager to offer more. It feels good to feel heard. I’ve learned more about the history of my township from the mouths of neighbors than I ever had trying to research it online. So the next time, you want to jump in because you’re anticipating ahead of time what they might say or want to add in your own two cents, don’t. Just don’t. You might miss a true gem of a story because now you’re no longer truly listening.

These are the kinds of stories that have left me wanting to hear more. They are the kinds of stories that you repeat to someone else. Then that person repeats it to others they know. It's the gift that keeps on giving.

Why? Because there's something within that story that resonates with the human experience. It's a moment that helps you better understand the person or a place, find answers to your own dilemmas, be inspired by, or know that you're not alone in your own experiences. It could also be a tall tale or local lore that awakens your own imagination and starts to create a storyline within your mind.

Some of the most fascinating writings I have read were not in a published book, but the many diaries my Grandma Bowles left behind when she passed away. While reading them, I did not see just my grandma, but a woman whose depth of feelings and grasp on the world around her astounded me.

My Great-Grandma Iona Belle Bowles wrote a “letter” to her children—she had 19—and described her personal story of when she was a child. She fit it all in within several pages, but that’s all what was necessary because the imagination and vision of the reader can fill in the rest. She had passed away before my dad was born, so I never got to know her. But just that simple letter painted a picture of her that brought her to life for me. She became a real person, and not just a name on our family tree. Last year I got to travel through the area where she was born back in the 1860s: London, Kentucky. Being in her place of birth made me want to know even more about her, perhaps because I wanted to know more about myself through her.

Then there’s the oral stories. Cultures around the world have long been passing down their stories through the spoken word before there was even the written word. Oral traditions, however, are getting far and few between with such treasures being lost forever. That’s why it’s so important to write things down and create something that will far outlive you.

Have an idea for a fiction book? Your wonderful imagination was given to you for a reason. Imaginations are meant to manifest into your outer world. If you can create stories in your mind, you can write. You’ve already been doing it for a very long time, after all. You find inspiration in real world events, people you’ve known, experiences you’ve had, or even come up with things that have no wordly basis because you’re not afraid to allow your mind roam without restrictions and boundaries.

If you’re like me, you’ve not only thought of a storyline, but have written entire paragraphs and chapters in your head, complete with dialogue. I’ve looked at an elderly couple walking their bikes across the street before getting back on them to continue down the bicycle path, and relayed to Rob an entire story about them. None of it probably true, but I was inspired by what I saw and went with it. That’s how some of the greatest works in this world have started. Something sparked, clicked, and then was brought to life.

Perhaps you had a dream and woke up thinking, “What a wild dream! That would make a great book!” Just ask the author Stephen King. He’s been inspired by the same in his best selling novels. While you may not remember the dream in its totality, you can start with what you do remember. Use that as your writing prompt, and then fill in the rest with your wonderful imagination. Why not? It doesn’t matter whether anything ever comes of that story or not. What matters is that you have begun the writing process. You will find yourself overcoming any fears, self-doubts, lack of confidence, and blocks. The more you write, the more your mind is going to come alive and breathe a sigh of relief because now it can really stretch its legs and find release for all that has been pent up inside.

Want to write about your life? Who knows you better than you? It doesn’t matter if it’s your perception of the world around you or not. What does matter is that it’s your story. Depending on what you do in life, your story could become someone else’s book or logged into historical records. Then others have to guess what you were really thinking, how you were feeling, and why you chose to do the things you did.

Be your own storyteller before someone else distorts your own personal history. A great example of this is my supposed ancestor, Chief Red Bird—the reason why I traveled through London, Kentucky to begin with. He’s in historical records and in many books, but they had his story wrong from the late 1700s until sometime in the 1930s, when other records showed that the official narrative was incorrect. The state of Kentucky decided not to fix it since it was logged into official government historical records. This includes a historical marker about him that was engraved with the wrong story. Chief Red Bird’s story went from being an innocent, peaceful, elderly Cherokee murdered in his sleep along with his friend and his body thrown into a river—because two white men from Tennessee decided to kill the first “Indian” they came across—to a false tale that he died in a violent battle with the white settlers over furs. He had been a friend and helper of the white settlers. Not a hell raising warrior killing them. That would be Rob’s possible ancestor—another Cherokee chief from the area—but that’s a story for another day.

As we drove across the river where his body was so callously thrown into and stood in front of the petroglyph rocks (moved to a park for protection) that were the backdrop of the caves and rock walls he lived near, all I could think of was the injustice of it all and the misconception people had of him. For a visitor to these historical places who have no attachment to him, they will simply believe what they read. As a possible ancestor (there’s still some question), my heart cries for him because I know the truth. Thankfully, there are people—bloggers, ancestry researchers, book authors—who have written his real story from the research they’ve been able to gather.

As Rob and I were driving back out the Daniel Boone Forest, we were both in deep thought. Suddenly, something swooped down right in front of our windshield. I was looking down at the time, but Rob got a very full view of what it was: a bright red cardinal. The very bird Chief Red Bird’s name came from: Datsuwa. Just that split second moment in time is a wonderful writing prompt!

Forget about the worry about finding your audience, publishing houses, and trying to find an agent. You can always self-publish. You can even just put it into a homemade book of stapled pages. Louise Hay, founder of the major publishing company Hay House, did just that with her very first book You Can Heal Your Life. She didn’t need permission or the financial backing of others to write about something that she felt passionate about. She had a copy machine and a stapler. That one little book became a mega hit and lead her to create her own publishing company. Oh, and she was also 60 years old the first time she self-published her book. Just in case you are thinking that you’re too old to start. Laura Ingalls Wilder was 65 when she found success. It’s never too late.

You do not need permission, approval, or backing of a publishing powerhouse. You already have everything you need. A story and the willingness to breathe life into it. Take the stressors of how you think writing a book should be or look like and kick them to the curb. Throw out all the excuses you’ve been telling yourself for years. Get rid of any self-doubt dialogue in your mind that can block your creativity and hold you back. Just write! Even if it remains in a notebook, journal, file on your laptop, or however else you manifest it from your mind out into the world, you’ve finally jumped into the flow.

You are a walking, talking, living story. Reach back on the shelf where you pushed aside your desire to become a writer and get going!