A Risk Taker Wins Every Time - Telling the Story Others Can't Tell

Sometimes taking risks for you may be taking us to a place we didn’t really want to go, like talking about cancer, birth, painful divorce or break up – things others can’t bear to talk about themselves. Your story will always be unique, but it will have threads of life lessons or experiences that will be generic to most people.  

Recognize the risk involved: Sometimes you’ve got to start at the basic level of just admitting to yourself, “Hey, writing this novel is going to take lots of time and effort, without a guarantee it’ll be a success.” That’s a risk every writer takes. Some truly amazing writers go years without ever realizing they are wonderful at their choice career in writing. The risks got them to their writing status. Writing and publishing a book is a risk you’ll have to take if you ever hope to be an author.
 
Writing risk into a story is up to the writer: Risks on the creative side of writing is not often a make-it-or-break-it act. You can take the risk in writing the story and take criticism of why it should be taken out. But it’s always your choice as a writer. It all begins with your outlook on the idea you're wanting to get out there. Word choice and images play a big role, as they always will. But, if it is a cause dear to your heart, the risk you take to include it in your writing may make one casual story into a phenomenal one.  

Images involving risk stick with the readers: In a creative writing class I took in college, there was a student who made a risk in her writing. She added an image that still makes my teeth grind at the thought. In her story, she was stuck in a hole in the ground, trying to escape. In her moment of desperation, she clawed at the dirt wall until her fingernails bent backwards and began to bleed. Taste of earth caused her mouth to be parched. The fear struck me as plainly as if it were really happening to me. The vivid images were unpleasant to readers, which is where it became a risk. But the risk was successful. I still vividly remember the story 5 years later.  

Sir Winston Churchill once said, “Don’t give up on something you can’t go a day without thinking about.” Anyone can make an act or thought sound risky if they let loose their passion about it. Get excited about writing and don’t be afraid to make some risky moves in it. That’s what your readers are counting on – to tell the story that they can’t.  
 
Sources:  

Tepper, Susan. "The Risk-Taking Writer Is the Successful Writer." The Risk-Taking Writer Is the Successful Writer. The Review Review, Web. 07 July 2017. 

Dionne, Karen. "Taking Risks: The Marsh King’s Daughter by Karen Dionne." Writing.ie. The Arts Council and Foras Na Gaeilge, 19 June 2017. Web. 07 July 2017. 

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