An open page featuring “A time for everything” from Ecclesiastes 3:1| Photo by Brett Jordan from Unsplash

Authors influence other people’s lives through their stories that convey a solid message of valuable lessons and thoughts that challenge the norms.

Stories from books, films, or plays can impact the lives of their audiences. Authors influence other people’s lives through the journey of their characters. Sometimes, their stories evolve over time as they catch up with relevant themes or transform people through new metaphors and meanings.

Karen R. Blake, author of Lessons from the Sidelines, conveys her message through her experiences. Her book chronicles her life as a sports mom, who supports her sons in their school sports. The book advocates that children seek advice from other school athletes to improve their performance. It conveys encouragement for children to pursue their passions and participate in sports, becoming better individuals in the process.

Here are ways how authors influence other people’s lives:

Shaping Social and Political Movements

Authors influence other people’s lives by challenging the status quo. Writers use their platform, be it fiction or nonfiction prose and poetry, to criticize societal norms, people, the government, societal discussions, and injustices. With this, they can impact how people (their readers) opine and behave in society.

Inspiring Empathy and Understanding

Using impeccable storytelling tools, authors influence other people’s lives with style. In their stories are characters that undergo challenging tasks that help them develop into stronger and better individuals. Through a character’s difficult and meandering journey, readers can relate to the story. The harrowing adversities in the story allow the readers to connect through empathy.  With this, people understand society more through the characters that they love.

Promoting Mental and Emotional Health

Writing has always been a therapeutic task for writers as the process will allow them to de-stress by writing down their thoughts. Some of these authors influence other people’s lives by offering valuable advice and helping their readers de-stress. Self-help and growth books allow people to see themselves in the shoes of the authors, who experienced and survived the difficult challenges in life.

Shaping Personal Identity and Values

Authors influence other people’s lives by helping them discover their identities, beliefs, and principles. An author’s book may contain stories for entertainment, but most of their characters and storylines are used to enlighten readers about certain subjects, challenging societal norms. With this, some people get inspired to advocate for their cause.  Authors also use their platform to mentor those who need some guidance in their current trajectory.

Educating and Informing

The impact of authors on readers does not stop at the open page of a book. The information that these authors share provides knowledge that they can pass on to future generations. For example, one’s knowledge about science or mathematics has been passed down through the books used in schools.

Other than that, authors influence other people’s lives by giving them the idea about cultural preservation. An author can write a book that immortalizes a culture and introduces it to other parts of the world. Educated individuals may also utilize their reference sources of information to help promote cultural awareness.

Encouraging Creativity and Imagination

Stories in books allow readers to become more creative and imaginative. The relatability of the stories also lets the readers find a community with the same level of imagination, connecting them while creating a new culture. Authors influence other people’s lives through compelling stories that entertain and trigger creative minds.

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Preserving History and Memory

Authors influence other people’s lives by sharing a glimpse of their lives. Some authors immortalize the family heritage through their books. They would document their experiences to educate the next generations. With this, they also share lessons with their readers.

Memoirs and autobiographies also provide detailed information that may be needed in history books. For example, readers can get to know more about the past U.S. presidents through their biographies and memoirs.

Karen R. Blake’s Lessons from the Sidelines is a book that shares an insight into the life of a sports mom supporting her sons in their endeavors in school sports. It provides advice and the lessons learned through the author’s experiences. This book offers ideas for moms who also have kids who are joining school sports.

FINAL THOUGHTS

Stories can impact people’s lives as they delve deep into the pages of influence, imagination, and information. Beyond the pen is the real world, where people interact and make use of the lessons and impacts of stories that convey societal messages beneath each passage.