"Write what you know".

I promised myself that the first non-introductory post on this blog wouldn't be political, so here goes.

I am a writer. I write. I want to write, and it is enjoyable for me. There's a problem, however. I am told to write what I know. That's the advice that everyone gives you. That's the tried and true method, and it's one that I use. The thing is, you're told to write what you know, but you're not told how to do it.

Oh sure, I can take my knowledge of history, my experiences as a Mormon, and my knowledge of the architecture of Salt Lake City, but nobody tells you how to make your personal experience into an interesting story. You're just told to use your personal experience, with no advice on how it's done.

What's worse is that you're not told what parts of your personal experience would be interesting to someone who doesn't have the same background as you. I mean, I find a few bits of my background boring, and I don't know what would be terribly interesting to someone not of my faith or culture.

So how can I write what I know, when I don't know what should be written?

Sorry for the first real post of this blog being a rant, it's just been an issue I've been annoyed about for years.