Write Your Story: A Simple Framework to Understand Yourself, Your Story, and Your Purpose in the World

by Allison Fallon, Donald Miller (foreword)

Allison Fallon’s Write Your Story provides a simple framework that will help readers capture, in writing, the depth of life events and, in turn, to make sense of their lives.

Once you understand yourself and your life, you will live with more purpose and confidence.

We’ve all spent seasons reacting to the world around us, as though the world were telling a story and we were simply the audience, bystanders watching it all happen. The a life of regret and a feeling that we missed our purpose.

Author Allison Fallon has led thousands of people just like you to find greater meaning by helping them write their story. She’s witnessed the phenomenon of a person stepping back, analyzing their life, and realizing what they’re good at and what they are not, the types of people who hurt them and those who help, and the things that provide satisfaction and what leaves them empty. And in all this, they find their purpose. They find their story.

When you know your story, you know who you are and why you matter. You understand the many ways you can help others, and you develop a resilience over pain that can make you unstoppable.

Allison’s simple formula will help you process your life and get your whole story down—in only five pages! This isn’t a formula to teach you to write a book (although the exercises may lead to that), but it will help you understand yourself, your story, and your purpose.

We will never know who we are until we know our story. And we will never know our story until we take time to write it down. So let’s begin.

Genres: Writing, Nonfiction

223 pages, Kindle Edition

Published May 7, 2024

About the author

Allison Fallon is the author of The Power of Writing It Down, as well as Packing Light and Indestructible. She is a speaker, and the founder of Find Your Voice, a community that supports anyone who wants to write anything. She has helped leaders of multi-national corporations, stay-at-home moms, Olympic gold medalists, recovering addicts, political figures, CEOs, and prison inmates use the Find Your Voice method as a powerful tool to generate positive change in their lives. She has lived all over the country in the past decade but now lives in Pasadena, California, with her husband and daughter. You can follow Allison at www.allisonfallon.com.

Reviews

[Ariel Curry · Rating 5 out of 5]

I shy away from writing stories from my own life - it feels too vulnerable - and yet, Ally Fallon is so persuasive on the idea that writing your stories is healing and even transformative. And she provides a simple framework for doing so that completely de-mystifies story structure so that you can start doing it today. After reading this book, I was inspired to map out a whole new memoir!

[Cassie · Rating 5 out of 5]

4.5 stars rounded up.

This book is what I expected “The Power of Writing It Down” to be. I was left slightly disappointed there due to the lack of real concrete, practical application. Everything I wanted there was here. Fallon brings a perfect framework for writing down one’s story in a way that resonates with an audience and brings healing to the writer. I can see myself returning to this over and over again to process traumatic events or cherished memories. There is quite a bit of emphasis on being the narrator and hero of one’s own life, which could teeter on the edge of controlling your own destiny and forging your own path. I think it teeters here, but doesn’t fall over to that side. Fallon never encourages fabrication or exaggeration, but she does emphasize shifting the paradigm and perspective. Her method and message forces an examination of the narratives we tell ourselves and how that affects the trajectory of our ongoing stories. This little book is easy to read, but will be harder to put into practice. I should have or could have done it along the way, but I’ll pick it up again soon and get writing!

[Donya Dunlap · Rating 5 out of 5]

I bought this in support of the author thinking I would maybe gift it to a friend or use it to help with social media. I had no idea how much I needed to read it to make sense of my life right now.

If you have a story inside of you (and I believe we all do) then you need this book. I have never wanted to write a memoir, but this framework has me so excited to start if only as a tool to make sense of my struggles for myself.

It has also reignited my excitement for a novel that has been dormant on my computer for several years. I now have more clarity for how to rework that story to make it better and connect with a reader more. For the first time in months I’m actually looking forward to a good writing session instead of dreading it.

[Elizabeth Lacey · Rating 5 out of 5]

Excellent Exceptionally Well Written and Inspiring Book!

I stumbled upon this book yesterday when scrolling on Instagram. The title grabbed my attention so much that I went immediately went to Amazon and bought the Kindle version. I have completely devoured the book in just over 24 hours got the bonuses and can hardly wait to look through them. Allison Fallon has written not only a valuable instructional guide but also a compelling call to action that has the potential to humanize history for generations to come. Thank you Allison for your dedicated efforts.

[Tresta Payne · Rating 4 out of 5]

Excellent book. Allison writes about writing with compassion for those trying to tell their stories. This book gave me some key points for outlining my story and ended with an inspiring appealing to write our histories for future generations.

[Laurin Meredith · Rating 5 out of 5]

Very helpful book, even if you don’t want to write a book or even share your stories, this book helps shift your mindset around how you view your life and everyday events.

[Deb Alexander · Rating 5 out of 5]

Allison Fallon is one of my favorite nonfiction writers and teachers. Her first book about writing—The Power of Writing it Down: A Simple Habit to Unlock Your Brain and Reimagine Your Life - is one I refer to often. In her most recent book, the author shares the simple framework she uses as a writing coach to teach people how to write a short story—only 3-5 pages long—about an event in their lives. She reminds us that writing our stories helps us make sense of our lives and ourselves in a unique way, regardless of whether we publish our stories or not. If you have ever considered writing about your life, I highly recommend this book.

Words I’m remembering: “Whatever you do, don’t leave the telling of your story to someone else.”

And also, these: “Creativity thrives where there is permission to play.”