Creation of “The Story He Lives” Through Fiction Writing

Psychotherapy Process of an Adolescent Boy with “Unnarratability”

Abstract

This study examines a psychotherapy process in which an adolescent boy in the “developmental gray zone” constructed a personal life narrative through writing fiction. Initially unable to engage in dialogue or access his emotions, he expressed distress through somatic symptoms. As therapeutic interaction was supported by shared media such as games and videos, his expressive mode gradually shifted to fiction writing. Though formulaic at first, his stories became a space where internal images could take shape and be contained. Characters who regained their original forms through treatment symbolically reflected his emerging recognition and integration of aspects of himself. In later stages, he depicted the real-life separation from his therapist within the story world, indicating his ability to accept the ending and move toward a new reality. Fiction writing thus served as a medium for shaping “the story he lives,” with psychotherapy providing the field in which it could unfold.