Unlock the Power of Your Expertise to write captivating Fiction

Fiction writing is often seen as a realm of pure imagination, free from the constraints of reality. However, even in the wildest of fictional worlds, there is still a need for specific facts and details. They will make the story more believable and credible to readers.

Facts provide a foundation that helps create the sense of immersion your readers need, and research is an excellent method to achieve it. Yet, I’m here to ask you: what do you know best?

What’s your field of expertise? What’s the topic you know a lot about?

Academic knowledge is not the only valuable knowledge

If you have a degree in a certain field, you are more than qualified to write about it, but that’s not all. When I’m talking about expertise and knowledge, I’m not talking about technical books. I’m talking about stories.

Integrating something you know a lot in your stories makes them richer and more believable. I’m not even talking about academic knowledge. You can be genuinely interested in a topic and know everything about it simply because you care.

So, use that knowledge and put it into a story. Make it interesting to your readers.

You’re probably thinking right now that some fields are more interesting than others. At first sight, you’re right, but that’s when your imagination and endless creativity come into it. So what can you do with that knowledge in your story?

I advise you to consider what made you read about it, study it, or follow it academically. If nothing else, your story will touch people like you.

My personal experience

I’ve been thinking a lot about it because one of these days, I was watching some show on TV where they were reproducing a therapy session. There was this moment when I thought, “What? This would be the worst therapist ever! You can’t say that!”

Then, it stroked me, “Wait, I know exactly what a true therapist should do, should say, how should they behave. So why not use it in my writing?”

I sat on my computer and started writing a therapy session. Mostly the patient speaking. It felt good, and right now, I have seven sessions that could be the therapy session of any average 30-year-old woman.

It is very raw and very in the beginning, and I have no idea what I will do with it… but it has been a pleasure to work on this project. It gives me a lot of creative freedom and confidence that I know what I’m doing, so no matter your field, give it a try!

Improve by the truth

Incorporating facts and details can make your story more vivid, realistic, and plausible. So look into your knowledge, interests, and hobbies and find ways to incorporate them into a story or start a new one using them. You may be surprised by the results.

Ultimately, the writer’s imagination and creativity can turn any topic into a captivating story.

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Sharing your writing: what a scary thing to do!

One of the greatest pleasures of writing is solitude and peace when you’re doing it. Yet, at some point, you’ll need to share your writing with the world. That’s scary, but it’s also a good thing.

Sharing will give you some feedback from different people on your work. This feedback might be useful sometimes (others not so much, unfortunately) for you to improve and grow as a writer.

With sharing, comes…

When you share your writing, you’re putting yourself outside for the whole world to see. That brings bad and good stuff. That’s why sharing what you write is the biggest fear of most writers, and that’s normal. No one likes to be criticized, and you can end up hurt. So, how to deal with it?

First of all, share your writing only when you’re ready to do it. This way, you’ll be stronger to face whatever comes in your direction.

Then, there are so many things you must keep in mind. Let’s see, one person’s opinion is exactly that. It’s one person’s opinion. Writing is a form of art, and art is very subjective. The appreciation of a book depends on the readers’ personal preferences and experiences. Those will help them to identify themselves with the characters, the environment, the dilemmas.

Besides, in the end, it’s always your decision. If you believe in your manuscript, if the criticism doesn’t make sense for you and you’re sure it’s good, then go ahead! Remember that many famous successful novels had been rejected several times. Eventually, someone accepted to publish them.

Sharing options

Waiting for a big publisher to find you is definitely not the best course of action. Before you go for a big publisher, you should have already shared your writing to get feedback. Other people’s opinions and notes might help you to improve your work. Never forget.

You have many options to do this. Start by sharing your writing with your relatives and friends. Keep in mind that they are not exactly impartial, but it’s a good start.

Create a blog and form a writer’s group. In the first one, you’ll have the possibility to reach more people. With a writer’s group, you’ll probably get more “professional” opinions. Also, it is excellent feedback about the styles and tools you may use.

And, of course, you’re not stuck with publishers, remember? You can self-publish your work. Don’t be afraid of doing it. Magazines are also a good option, especially for short stories. Do some research, look at magazines, and find the ones that publish some work similar to your own. Look for their “guidelines” for submission and try it!

Confidence and Courage

Be brave! It is tough to deal with criticisms. They can be cruel. Yet, if you want to be a successful writer, you must get used to it. Listen, evaluate their worth, and move over. Use the good ones to improve, and ignore the others.

Be prepared and stay strong.

One Story, Multiple Stories

When you’re a writer, every single thought can be a potential idea for a story. You never know, which of those thoughts will actually make the story happen. They are simple, yet complex, plentiful and you can’t really use all of them, which turns out to be really frustrating.

So what should you do, when plenty of them seem good? How to work with it? How to deal with so much information? Should you try to merge or conciliate most of your ideas within a single story? Should you write different stories, and multiple ones at the same time? Should you ignore all the ideas that don’t seem to fit in with the story you’re currently writing? If so, how to choose the best ones?

There isn’t a definitive answer to these questions and, in the end, it’s your personal preference that matters and should prevail. However, there are plenty of reasons not to focus yourself on a single story or work. Let’s think about it, really.

When you spend all your energy on a single story, you mostly end up frustrated. It’s too much pressure that falls on a single goal and each requisite step to get there. Also, something that initially seemed to be a, or THE, great idea doesn’t always turn out to be that good when finally put on paper, or even be something that you’d love or want to work on, let alone finish. This feeling can be overwhelming and it ends up with you giving up your dream of writing.

In your writing career, many stories will never leave your computer or your desk and if you invest many a month, sometimes years in a single one of them, without having anything else… Well, it’s something that can really make you crazy, right?

Besides, it’s really boring to do the same thing all the time… Even if you really love your story and your ideas, there will come the day when you just can’t look at it anymore… It’s a natural process in any long term project and you can’t run from it. So, now what? After so many time spend writing it… What will you do? Give up? Of course not.

So, instead of putting all your efforts down on a single story, just one, instead try to have three or four ideas for different stories and just pick up the one that best fits your mood that day.

But! There are always a but, right? Please be careful, because this work methodology can also be a wonderful way of procrastinating. It needs constant attention on your end, to make sure you keep up with your work, stick to at least a semblance of a routine and change your plans any time it’s definitely needed.

Who says that you have to follow the very same schedule, for each of your stories, from the beginning until the end? 😉