Writing Memoir with Main Character Energy

Main character energy: when a person lives, breathes,
and moves through the world as though they are the protagonist in a story

This term is having a moment in the pop culture zeitgeist at the time this blog post goes live. While I’m at an age where I no longer am tuned into any of the current slang, this term stuck with me.

Main character energy.

The question is, How are you showing up as the main character in your own writing life? Let’s talk about it.

What main character energy isn’t

Main character energy is not narcissism or self-centeredness. Embodying main character energy doesn’t mean that you stop seeing others’ needs or feelings, or that another’s experience is any less important than yours. Rather, main character energy is moving through the world expecting that everything that happens to you—good and not-so-good—is working out for you. Where do you see the opportunities in your life? Where are you moving and taking risks? Where do you see payoff, and where do you see lessons?

When you live with main character energy, you can see your value as a person and your potential as a writer. You see possibility and lean into growth.

Memoir and main character energy: You are the protagonist.

In memoir, you actually are the protagonist. You’re writing a memoir about your life, and so you need to treat yourself as an actual character with motivations, foibles, and a transformation. As a writer, you’ll need some objectivity and be able to separate yourself as the writer from yourself as the character.

Think about your favorite book character: What do they care about? Who do they care about? What are their motives? Why do they act the way they do? How do they handle conflict? How do they engage in their relationships? What are their blind spots?

Now answer these questions for the version of yourself you’re writing about. What’s coming up for you? Do you see the difference between who you are as a protagonist and who you are as a writer? The better you know yourself as a character (and can differentiate enough to write yourself as a character), the more clear you’ll find the writing process and your own transformation as the main character.

Memoir and main character energy: You are the writer.

Main character energy shows up for writers with how you show up in your writing life and the mindsets you adopt as a writer. What energy are you bringing to the writing process? Does it feel like a chore, or are you brimming with creativity and possibility?

Think about how you act when you’re feeling defeated, discouraged, or doubting. When those emotions lead my way, I hold back and invest minimally. I’m waiting for the other shoe to drop, and I don’t bring my full self to the process. The result? Half-baked ideas and subpar writing.

But about what about when I enter writing with inspiration, motivation, and focus? When I let those emotions lead, I’m open to new ideas, new processes, and have more creative stamina. This results in dynamic and focused writing (and usually easier revisions later on).

See the difference?

Main character energy as a writer means that you show up knowing that someone is waiting to read your words, that whatever it is you have to say matters and that your story deserves to take up space in the world. You carry a confidence that doesn’t depend on what others think and is rooted in what you think about yourself.

Embodying main character energy in your writing

Does this strike a chord? Is this something you want to explore further? Go and enroll in my free workshop, Identity: Reset and Realign Your Writing Life. In this hands-on workshop, you’ll develop mindsets and strategies that will help you see your story and yourself as a writer differently. You’ll learn how to embody main character energy in your day-to-day writing and truly become that writer you want to be.

If this resonated with you, you’ll want to check out episode 20 of The Memoir Method Podcast.