Everybody has a story to tell, but few of us know how to put that story to words. When it comes to writing about our life experiences, we choke at the thought of exposing our souls on paper. We convince ourselves that nobody cares about our life, or who we are. Why would anyone want to read what we write?

Well, there is an answer to that dilemma. Write your story as a fictional tale. Don't get too hung up on the facts or the reality of the situation. Instead, concentrate on the end result of the experience. What did you learn? How did things fall into place? Can others learn by that same experience?

Now, add your characters and put them into a situation where that lesson applies.

I used this technique on a story that originally started out as my autobiography. The original title was "This is Not The Life I Ordered!" When I lost that book during a fatal hard drive incident, I was devastated. It was my youngest son who said, "Mom, that story kind of sucked anyway." I was crushed.

Later that night, we all sat around a bonfire discussing my dearly departed story. Soon, we were all laughing about how each scene would play out if I were able to make things happen the way I wanted. The Spirian Saga was born.

"Protected," book 1 of the Spirian Saga is the story of my life manifested as fiction. It was great fun to write and I was able to relate the wisdom earned from many events in my life.

My mother is applying this technique to her own life story and is amazed at how easy it is to put her experiences to paper.

So, if you have a story to tell, go ahead and tell it. Have fun and remember—there is a fine line between illusion and reality.