That is, what are the most recent and / or the most relevant events that have occurred in my main character’s life? What brought the main character to this moment, to the current situation or state of affairs?

For this, I took a day over winter break and did my own year-end-review. I made a written list of all of the major or meaningful moments from the past year that I could remember. I scrolled through social media posts and pictures on my phone to help me recall some of the moments I’d forgotten.

I probably could have done this exercise in less than a day, but I allowed extra time for sentimentality and emotional segues and side roads I tend to wander down when reflecting on the past.

Storytelling and Letter-Writing as Backstory Exercises

Earlier in the year, I’d also done a couple of storytelling exercises that helped me clarify my backstory.

One was a series of recorded interviews with my grandmother. By listening to her stories, I could see how my own life story was a continuation of hers and how much I could draw from her story to help shape my own.

[NEW YORK TIMES Article: Record and Share Your Family History in 5 Steps ]

The second was a letter-writing exercise in the book, ‘Write Yourself Into Your Dreams’. The book guides its readers through a process for unpacking unhealed trauma and unresolved inner conflict with one’s parents.

Though I was initially skeptical of the process, it was surprisingly impactful and helped me to offload some emotional baggage that the main character of my soon-to-be-written life story did not need to be carrying around.

[PSYCHOLOGY TODAY Article: Transactional Writing: Letters That Heal]

[SNAILED WITH LOVE: Letter Writing to Create Connections]

Next: Outlining the Plot