Nonfiction Writing: Tell Your Unique Story

Nonfiction Writing: Tell Your Unique Story

“Thank you for writing!! This is the final part of our course and I want to thank you for taking this journey through notebooks, pencils, ink, words, and blank pages. Although we’re finishing the course, your writing is just beginning. You will see that this is like cooking: your first try might not get as good as you want, but hey, you’re cooking your meal and you should be proud of yourself! Once you try a few more times, you will be ready to invite everyone to sit at the table and enjoy your creation. I want to review with you the steps that we followed to write a project. Maybe you did it in the same order, or maybe you found your own route and pace; it is possible too that you’re still in the middle of it. Whatever stage in the process you are in, reviewing our lessons will help to identify your strengths and the places where you can improve ––and trust me, you will. Choose a subject that speaks to you, that makes you feel excited and eager to start. I always recommend starting by writing about something that we already know about and identifying what are the things that we know and make us the best person to tell that story. Consider working on a wide subject, like an event and the story behind it, or on a more specific piece, like a profile of someone who you know well. Tip: after COVID-19 times, we have witnessed so many stories of unsung heroes, that we might need more than one project to cover the braveness and solidarity shown by our communities during these hard times. Gather all the information that you can, even if you’re not sure if you will use it. A handwritten note, a weather forecast, a napkin with the logo of the place where you met with someone, can unexpectedly bring back a memory that you can include in your story. Remember the effect “you made me feel that I was there”.

Own the page. Write your byline and start with one true sentence. Keep building from there until you have a strong paragraph, and then a strong page. Once you have finished writing your text, remember to review it and dismiss any information that is not truly helpful ––repeated ideas, words that don’t say much, baroque phrasing ––one of my personal flaws, to be honest. Ask a peer to review your story and stay open to a friendly critique. In our case, your coursemates can be the ideal peer to give advice! You can share experiences and even think about collaborative work in the future. Use the forum to share your thoughts with me, I’ll be more than happy to stay part of your journey. Thank you for your trust and your hard work! ”

Partial transcription of the video

“Final Project Thank you for writing. This is the final part of our course. And I want to thank you for taking this journey through notebooks, pencils, ink, blank pages, and words. Although, we're finishing the course, your writing is just beginning, and you will see that this is just like cooking. You might try the first time and maybe it's not that good, but come on, you are cooking your meal, you should be proud of it. I want to review with you the steps that we followed to write your final project. Maybe you were doing it in the same order, maybe you just found your root and your base, o...”

This transcript is automatically generated, so it may contain mistakes.

Course summary for: Nonfiction Writing: Tell Your Unique Story

• Level: Beginner
• 98% positive reviews (99)
• 2741 students
• 4 units
• 11 lessons (1h 46m)
• 6 downloads

• Category

  Writing

• Areas

  Communication, Narrative, Non-Fiction Writing, Storytelling, Writing