*Disclaimer: Here’s a little glimpse into my world. Please excuse the background noise in the video as my husband was splitting wood outside and didn’t realize that my students and I could hear it!
Watch clips of a recent lecture above that I gave on “How to Find Writing Inspiration,” and what it means to share your own personal “Universal Experience.”
For more notes on this subject, please read on below!
How do we make our book, story, film or production meaningful and relatable—something that speaks to people?
The answer? By creating what’s called a “Universal Experience.”
Learn more about story structure by reading my article on “Plot” and downloading my Plot Worksheet below.
The life path of every person weaves a beautiful story, a story that is unique to you. It defines and shapes the lens through which you view the world, molding you into who you are and who you will become. Like each of us, you experience the same universal emotions of love, betrayal, beauty, happiness, peace, and pain.
You filter.
You ask questions.
You heal.
You try to forget.
You find joy.
And you love again.
No other person on earth can or will experience things in the same way you do, because your story is your own.
No one owns your story. Only you do. And by taking ownership—in all its beautiful mountaintops and sorrowful valleys—you become the storyteller of your life.
This is your universal experience.
A universal experience is an experience that all humans can relate to regardless of culture, language, country, or socioeconomic background. Common universal themes include: love, death, war, overcoming tragedy, and good versus evil.
We humans want to experience something through the eyes of the author when we read. By describing such an experience to the Reader in a way that he/she can understand, you allow the Reader to go along on a journey with you, to experience everything with you.
This acts as a “hook” to draw the Reader into your story because of the common ground you are providing. It is an onramp for them to experience your story.
A universal theme is vital to bringing Readers into your story because they will be able to relate to it through their own similar experiences.
# 2 "Writing Inspiration & the Universal Experience"