What is inner work in storytelling?

 

As the name suggests, “inner work” is basically the work related to the inner world.

There are activities that we do to chase goals in the external world, and there are those that we do to sort out our inner world, which is called “inner work.”

 

It is an active process of exploring, understanding, and healing our own thoughts, emotions, subconscious beliefs, nervous system responses, and past traumas instead of trying to fix the external situations. It is also about “connecting the dots,” making sense of experiences, and taking accountability.

 

It is usually not a linear process, but a messy, long-term practice and it is deeply connected to storytelling.

 

Often times, we wonder that our story is a plain sequence of events, our plot is too flat, or that we have cardboard characters. So this usually happens because the writer or the storyteller hasn’t done the inner work. Inner work is like the missing piece of the puzzle that helps the writer process their own emotional baggage and the inner world while they write the story.

 

There are various ways we can do this inner work as a writer.

 

For instance, you can look back at your own stories and identify the recurring plot themes, the points, the character flaws, and the narratives that you have created, for example: “nobody loves me” or “I am a warrior” etc.

 

Then, movement is very important. Connect your mental states to your physical sensations to understand your mind-body connections. In storytelling, this will help you describe your characters in more vivid detail. For example, if a character is nervous, you’ll be able to say that their legs are trembling, maybe they are clenching their fingers, or their hands are sweaty, or something like that.

 

Another way is to unlabel and unlearn the concepts, for example, love, anger, heroism, and conflict, and redefine them and shift your perspectives.

 

Fourth way is self-observation. You can record your daily triggers, your limiting beliefs and your day-to-day experiences. Tap into the experiences. Write morning pages and get out your raw, unfiltered thoughts on these experiences.

 

Consider your emotions and feelings as data rather than enemies to be repressed, bypass, or buried.

 

 

 

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