Our own mortality weighs heavily on us humans. If only we could make ourselves immortal. Sound a bit heavy? Only because it’s true.

Picture those alchemists of old, hunched over bubbling potions, strange collections of ingredients lining the walls. See those scientists intent on their microbes in petri dishes and stem cells in… whatever receptacles stem cells are kept in. All of them focused on finding the way to extend life, perhaps forever.

Our human instinct towards survival is not only an instinctive concern with the survival of our species. It is a concern which each of us has with surviving as an individual for as long as possible.

How Long Can We Really Live?

Who knows what life expectancy in good health future generations may look forward to. Some scientists predict that in years to come it will be quite normal to receive your telegram from the Queen on your hundredth birthday. Happy days. And good news for the job security of admin staff at the Palace.

Sooner or later, though, the day must arrive for us all when we shuffle off our mortal coil (to quote the Bard). Go to meet our maker, push up the daisies, snuff it (to quote Monty Python – we all know the sketch!).

So Is That The End?

I’m not talking about an afterlife or reincarnation or being cryogenically preserved. That’s for other people to write about. I’m talking about living on in this world as yourself.

So, are you up for it? Want the secret?…

This is what you do…

Tell stories that captivate, that arouse the imagination and engage the emotions of other human beings.

Stories that captivate can change lives. Change the lives of others, and you can live on.

Would you love to learn how to tell stories that captivate? Join The Storytellers’ Academy.
Curious? Want to discover more? Join the FREE group I’ve Got a Story to Tell.

Think you don’t have the imagination to tell stories?

Yes, you DO!

First of all, let’s clarify what we mean when we talk about that phenomenon called ‘imagination’.

Imagination is the ability we humans have to conjure up pictures, sounds, smells, textures and tastes which are not actually there in front of us. That’s it.

It is a great mystery of life that our brains are biologically able to do this. When you think about it, it is pretty incredible that we can ‘see’ a familiar face without that person being in the room. It is amazing that we can ‘hear’ a song in our heads without it actually playing anywhere. But we ARE able to do it. When you do this, you are using your imagination.

Therefore, you definitely DO have the imagination to tell stories. Please… banish forever that false belief that some people have imagination and others are born without it. That is total codswallop.

I can’t make things up, though…

Firstly… so what?

Just like any other part of your body, the parts of your brain which control your imagination can be trained. You can start with imagining people and things you know well. Focus on recreating in your mind’s eye the colours, shapes and textures. Stretch and squash the shapes until you have them right. Imagine dripping drops of ink onto the picture until you have the right shade. Do the same with the sounds, altering them with a make-believe dial or buttons until the pitch, rhythm and quality is right.

When that becomes easier, move on to conjuring up things you’re less familiar with. This could be the time to add in other sensory details such as smells.

Once you’ve developed your skills in this way, you can turn your mind to creating a mental film of a city you’ve never been to in real life. You can even start creating images of things that don’t exist at all – the elements that make up the alien world in a science fiction story, let’s say.

Why you should never write a book

So what if you’ve always had that idea to write a novel? Big deal if the fabulous life events of a family member ought to be recorded for posterity in a book?

Nobody actually wants to read any book you could write, right? You haven’t written anything of that nature for years – not since you were in school. You don’t have the wit of Stephen Fry, or his vocabulary, come to that. Do you really think you could write enough? Books need to have thousands and thousands of words in them! Not to mention the effect it would have on your family and social life: everybody knows writers are loners; in fact, they mostly live tragic, isolated lives in a cold cottage somewhere on a blasted heath.

Actually, no.

How do you know nobody would want to read it? If the story grips your imagination, chances are it would grab other people’s imagination too.

School may be a long time ago (longer for some of us than for others!), but who says that learning stops when you leave formal education? School isn’t a place where all the knowledge and skills we could ever use are downloaded to our hard drives – it’s a place where we learn how to learn for the rest of our lives.

Why are you comparing your words with the words of other people? Of course you’re not Stephen Fry! Or Philippa Gregory. Or J.K. Rowling. Or… anyone else who isn’t you. Your voice is uniquely yours.