“I ran because I truly believed there was something waiting in the woods that would hurt me”. At the age of five anxiety crept it’s way into my life, it came in the form of night terrors, thoughts of being kidnapped, and difficulty fitting in with other kids.

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“Stranger Danger” was preached to me by my parents, teachers, and even on television. It became so engraved in me that I started to perceive almost everything as a threat. There was one instance that I saw a man outside my school after the bell had rang, and in my little mind I thought he fit the bill of a kidnapper. The following day my mom brought me into the principal’s office, where I brought my tiny Ken doll’s shoes to help describe what the “suspect” looked like. As it turns out, the did track this man down and he was a parent, waiting to pick up his children. My vivid imagination combined with anxiety caused me to be perceived as a difficult child.

Throughout my childhood my anxious thoughts and feelings lead to many forms of punishment by the adults in my life. I was told I was a liar, and made to write “I will not lie” after thinking I was being followed home from day camp one day. My daydreaming often frustrated teachers, so I was forced to stand in the hallway for long periods of time. It was during my visits in these hallways that I experience what I now know as panic attacks.

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As The Years Passed

My feelings of unworthiness grew as I reached my teens. I experienced severe bullying in middle school, fueling the fire of my poor self image. I turned to self harming behaviours as a way to cope. This behaviour lead to:

• Depression
• Body Dysmorphia
• Social Anxiety
• Attempted Suicide
• Withdrawing from my academics

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We accept the love we think we deserve

The Perks of Being a Wallflower

In my teens and early 20’s I found myself stuck in toxic relationships and friendships. I turned to substance abuse, at first it was a way of fitting in. I began to see using substances as a tool to numb my pain and what I now can recognize as a way to dissociate. I was living a life of self sabotage.

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Enter Social Media

I was in my early 20’s when I actively starting using social media, I found it to be a really complex thing to navigate. I started to compare my lives to others, and what was meant as a way of connecting others, started to make me feel more alone than ever.

I followed many pages that I thought could boost how I was feeling about social media, and that would “drown out” my depression.

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I started prescribing to quotes such as:

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I placed so much pressure on myself to live up to these quotes. I grew frustrated when I couldn’t simple “choose to be happy”. I felt like I was weak. At social gatherings I had a constant worry that no one would want to be around me on my “off” nights because everyone would be able to sense that my “vibe” wasn’t good.

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My healing began when I started therapy in 2016. Then, in 2018 I was finally given a diagnosis – This was very bittersweet for me.

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I battled a lot after being diagnosed to make sure I didn’t let my mental illness define who I was and here’s what I found out:

Your mental or physical health does not define who you are.
You are so much more,

— Steff Happens (@Pclr_Petunia) December 2, 2020

Click here to see the entire story of “Happiness is (NOT) a choice” (Best listened to with headphones)

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“Great stories are those that are human. Great stories are those that evoke emotion, and those that cause a reaction. If you are a brand or business that is thinking of using digital storytelling as a new tool for engagement, consider the four ‘I’s of storytelling first. These are the four new principles that form the basis of the future of storytelling” – Simon Heyes

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Writing has been around for thousands of years, humans have always had a story to tell. From ancient symbols on cave walls to sending emojis over text message. What we’re going to talk about today is how to tell a good story! One that will capture your audience, whether you’re talking about selling sneakers, or what kind of mischief your pets got up to this week. Even if you think to yourself “Oh My Gosh, this is not even a story worth telling” I promise you, there is a way to make it worth writing!

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There are so many things to keep in mind before you begin your writing expeditions. The Four I’s of writing is a great place to start:

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I know what you’re thinking, “Cool Steff, some words… what am I supposed to do with those!?” I promise, I’m not going to leave you in the dark. Let’s dive a bit deeper into each of the four I’s.

The Four I’s:

1. Immersion:

You’ll want to consider details that help build your story. It could be describing the characters traits, the weather, clothing, food, music that’s playing. All of this cue’s will allow your reader to go deeper into the story.

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2. Interactivity:

This is your opportunity to allow your reader to influence or change a part of the story. My favourite example of this is the movie created by Black Mirror “Bandersnatch”. This is a very powerful, more personal way to engage your audience. It subtly blurs the boundaries of fiction and reality. In the digital it can be tricky to keep your readers focused, but this is a fabulous platform that will allow for more interactivity.

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3. Integration:

In 2020 integration is a key thing to keep in mind when you tell a story. Basically, you want to make sure that your story is versatile enough to be shared on many different platforms, ensure that it reads when both on a computer, ipad, and mobile device. Even if you think “Oh, I just want people to be able to access it on a mobile device alone” you should consider the fact that maybe someone will start out on mobile, maybe at work, and want to finish the story at home on their desktop. Show that you’re with the “times” and choose transmedia storytelling.

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4. Impact:

If you really want to leave an impact on your audience you’re going to need to evoke some emotion in your story.

I‘ve learned that people will forget what you said, people will forget what you did, but people will never forget how you made them feel.

Maya Angelou

The hope is to leave the viewer wanting to interact and share the content. Maybe it leads your reader wanting to make a purchase or donation. The story should inspire the viewers to take action, in some form.

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I really hoped you enjoyed reading all about the “Four I’s of Storytelling”. For more fun and useful writing blogs, hit that subscribe button!

Did you find information that you think will help you in your next writing endeavour? Leave a comment below to share your thoughts, what do you think the most challenging “I” would be in writing?