Daily Photos and Journaling Help with Character Development

Since the pandemic and forced time at home, I frequently turn to my writing for comfort and creativity. My composing was going so well for a few weeks, writing chapter after chapter for a new book in record time.

Then it ceased. Silence. I became incredibly withdrawn. The virus continued to spread, but my writing groove diminished. After weeks of moping around, I finally took action to uplift my mood and my writing from a dark place.

Challenge Accepted

I learned that July is Social Wellness Month. With my own social engagement and writing dwindling, I knew I needed to recharge my inspiration and attitude with engaging and supportive tasks.

My mother-in-law who lives in New Orleans was feeling sad too. She normally visits us twice in the summer when my children are out of school. With travel restrictions and safety precautions, this isn’t happening. Instead, we decided to take on a daily writing and photo challenge to stay connected and elevate our social wellness. By working on 30-day personal challenges together, we are facing our own struggles in enhanced ways.

Why Take On a Challenge?

You may be thinking we are crazy. With enough external challenges in our everyday lives, why would anyone want to take on personal challenges? Let me explain. Our personal challenges are OUR choices to take on. We can control them. We can change them as we see fit. They are not challenging in the same manner as a pandemic.

Is a Picture Worth a Thousand Words?

First, we agreed to take on a 30-day photo challenge. My 12-year-old daughter, 21-year old niece, 67-year old mother-in-law and 41-year-old me take pictures with our cell phones for 30 days using a list of ideas we found online. The photos give us something to look forward to each day. Pictures can say so much without using any words. They are uniting us across generations and distances.

They are also helping me include more descriptive words in my chapters. As I snap that nature photo, I consider what my characters are seeing too. Maybe that’s where the expression a picture is worth a thousand words came from – a frustrated writer?

Daily Journal Gives Daily Insights

Another significant challenge we chose is 30 days of self-love journal prompts. Each day we answer a question that helps us reflect. Then we share our responses. The prompts include writing about our favorite memory, giving a compliment, setting three short-term and long-term goals, talking about our favorite personality trait, discussing how we define confidence, and more.

As I began to do this for me and to bond with my mother-in-law, it quickly evolved into a way to deepen and strengthen my characters. After I reflect on my own life, memories and traits, I apply it more to the characters in my book. I think from their point of view. How would they answer those same questions? What would they say about themselves?

Self-Challenges Helps with Writing Challenges

These daily challenges have given me more fuel, more building blocks to dig deeper into my beloved characters. Looking at my picture choices and thinking about my own inner quirks assists me in considering the people in my story. This experience has been a beautiful journey – one of self-discovery, one bringing me closer to my family, and now, bringing me closer to telling a better story through my writing.

I encourage you to seek a daily or monthly challenge to boost your writing.