If you’ve restarted your book more than twice… It’s not a motivation problem. It’s a clarity problem. Think about it, you can have a heck of a lot of motivation, but if you don’t have the direction, how are you getting there? Many famous authors have a structure at the beginning to help guide them on their path. 💥Dan Brown: Employs detailed outlines that include research, character motivations, and specific plot points to create high-stakes, suspenseful narratives. 💥George R.R. Martin: Uses extensive planning to manage intricate storylines and world-building, which ensures his complex plots maintain direction (think of the books he has completed from this. It has come to my attention that he has fallen off of consistency since readers are still waiting for his new book. This shows us that everyone can have times where they lose their direction.). 👉 What part of your story keeps changing every time you restart? Share your answer in the comments. That’s the piece we lock in first and helps us understand the hole you have within your story. Book a time for us to chat, and let’s find a solution together.

Not just your time. It’s asking for your honesty. Your attention. Your willingness to not run when it gets uncomfortable. Think about this for a moment. There’s something that our stories want from us more than time. This could be self-reflection, thinking as your ideal reader, understanding what is needed in the story, and many other things that play a role within a book. 📕 When I teach Story First, it helps you find your path within your book and it helps lighten the load further down the process. Now, I want you to ask yourself this question and then write your response in the comments below! 👇 👉 What is your story asking from you right now? Answer that… and you’ll know your next step.

Ernest Hemingway believed that the most powerful writing doesn’t explain everything. He called this the Iceberg Theory. The reader only sees the tip of the iceberg, but the deeper meaning exists beneath the surface. Instead of explaining emotions directly, the writer lets actions and small details reveal the truth. The underline meaning in a story, beneath the surface is something that many great authors use. It’s also something that I teach writers to find with the Story First method since I truly believe the power of the inner story. A wonderful book has an inner story and an outer story. 📖 Something great that you can do, especially as a newbie writer, is practice other techniques, play with the writing styles. This is how you find your own personal way of getting your words onto paper. 📑 If you’re an experienced writer, what a great way to hone into your skill than by trying other writing techniques! 😁 ✅ Your Challenge Write a short scene where a character is experiencing a strong emotion — but you cannot name the emotion. We’ve done a challenge similar to this in the past. But now, we are trying it out with more details. Don't use words like: 😢sad 😡angry 😱afraid 😄excited 🥺heartbroken Instead, show it through: 💥body language 💥small actions 💥dialogue 💥environment details Example: Instead of saying "He was nervous." 😬 Try something like: "He checked his watch again, then wiped his palms on his jeans." Let the reader feel it without being told. Bonus Challenge Write the same scene again but with the opposite emotion.

Now, you might be wondering, “What does she mean?” 🤔 Every strong story holds because something connects it all. 🔗 It’s not the scenes or the characters. It’s the spine that holds it ALL together! 🙌 Think about it. 💭 What is holding your book together? 📕 Is there an underline meaning, message? What keeps the story moving? 📖 👉 If you had to describe your story in one sentence, what would it be? Keep it simple. We will refine later. Share it in the comments below! 👇

So many of us have dreamed of having our book turned into a movie. 🍿 The lights, the camera, the action! 🎦 Think of the: 🎬 Title 🎬 Tagline 🎬 Opening scene Let’s imagine it fully alive. ✨ Paint us a picture of your movie! 🎥 Drop yours below.