Tuesday, February 2, 2010

love of learning talk: write your love story



Every couple has a story they tell themselves and others, their original tale of how they met.

Today, we'll discuss how to take your oral story and write it down for each other, future generations, movie executives, etc.

As I tell my English composition students, you have four questions to ask yourself when you begin writing:

1. Who is my Audience?
2. What is my Purpose?
3. What is my Persona?
4. What is my Message?

Your answers to these questions will help you decide how to write your story.

There are several writing exercises that can help you recreate the memories of your first meeting and courtship. Check out the handouts of exercises from Julia Cameron, Natalie Goldberg, and Twyla Tharp. How might you use these exercises, alone or together, to craft your story?

You'll also need to consider whether you want to write your version of the story, write one story together, or craft some kind of collaborative, back-and-forth story.

And, you'll need to decide how much of your story you want to tell. Do you want your story to be told in an essay format? Through letters? Incorporating mementos from your time together? On a blog? You have so many exciting options!

My favorite movie, When Harry Met Sally, includes many examples of couples sharing their "meet cute" stories. You'll notice that each couple has their own storytelling dynamic.

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