How to Spot a Good Story: From Life Experience

I was sitting beside a friend who I’ve gotten to know at my local writing café. He’s a chef, formerly from Texas, in his early 60’s. Through our conversations I’ve gleaned that he has had a fascinating life. As we got to know each other and I told him about my new writing coaching business which focuses on how to unearth compelling narratives from people’s experiences and ideas, he said, “I used to write in college. But I don’t have anything interesting to say.”

Later, while we were chatting, when I told him that I finally went for a run after a month hiatus, he mentioned how he used to run all the time, up in Nova Scotia where he was a chef at a quaint inn, and would go out into the woods every morning.

I asked him, “Do you listen to music when you run?” (I do).“

I love to listen to Led Zeppellin,” he said. “But up there I can’t, because the bears will sneak up on you. So I’d run with a stick in my hand.”

I asked more probing questions, as I do. What kind of stick? Have you ever had to actually fend off a bear? How many did you see? Weren’t you scared?

He mentioned that the property has 80 acres of blueberry farm, and that (fun fact) bears love blueberries.  On his first run he saw spoor (yeah, bear poop) with blueberries stuck in them. We joked that he should drop the stick and instead, stuff his pockets with blueberries and just throw them when a bear approaches.  I also couldn’t help but think how intriguing (and bold) it is to commit to that daily activity, at the risk of a fatal bear attack. I’ve never heard of that perspective or experience before.

My eyes lit up excitedly with “there’s an idea in here” look, and I promptly pulled out a blank piece of paper, plopped it down in front of him with a pen (while apologizing for being bossy – sort of), and instructed him to write the first paragraph of his story in two minutes.  

He chuckled, surprised and hesitant. “Write it in third person,” I said. “It gives you a buffer and will feel more literary. Just start with a guy running, stick in hand. Music playing. Write down what you just told me.”

Two minutes later, he handed me two beautifully written paragraphs. “There’s a wonderful short story in here,” I told him. “Maybe after the guy goes for a run we see him cooking at the inn. Maybe a local tells him he’s silly to be afraid of the bears, or something happens (a call from home) that stresses him out, and the next day when he goes running, he naively abandons that stick….”

You get the idea (about the idea). 

The most satisfying part of it is that a half-hour later, a friend, an insecure writer who had jettisoned that path and desire long ago, was alight with excitement and purpose.

When he folded up the paper and stuffed it in his backpack along with his crossword puzzle and scraps of recipes, I told him, “I expect to see another 500 words next week.”

“You got it,” he said. “Thank you. I never thought that blueberries and bears could turn into a story.”  

“Learn how to see. Realize that everything connects to everything else.” Leonardo DaVinci