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Memoir Mentoring Right Now: Today

Offering you our knowledge and experience for your next — and every — step of writing


Write your best memoir

The Classic Text for Serious Memoir Writers
Now with FREE S&H and a choice of e-books.

You have the heart of a teacher, not just an editor, and I have become a much better writer because of your attention. A commercial publishing professional who subsequently reviewed the manuscript told me that the writing was good and engaging. I have you to thank for that. You were very helpful.

Click on the blue links below to find what you need to facilitate writing your memoir.
  • Our newsletter: The More Skillful Writer brings you writing posts, alerts of upcoming events, announcements of new programs available to you, subscriber-only sales and more. It is your regular connection with The Memoir Network—like receiving a letter from home.
  • Memoir Writer’s Blog—Over 600 posts to guide and support you to write more and better. (Check below for current posts.)
  • CoachingDevelop fundamental writing skills and techniques. There is much to learn, and much help is available. Don’t spin your wheels. Get coached.
  • EditingTighten and polish your memoir before sending it into the world. Sometimes this can include what’s called developmental editing. You can write your best memoir.
  • Ghostwriting—A professional writer will help you create your memoir. We can all be authors but we are not all writers. Let us be your writer. We’re good at story writing.
  • Proofreading—Be sure there are no technical mistakes littering your memoir. Every story needs proofreading—not just spell check but a more sophisticated scrutiny.
  • Book Production—You can self-publish a professional-looking book—as if it came from one of the big publishing houses. We also create e-books.
  • CoursesLearn at home on your own at your pace.
  • Memoir Store—Access quality, proven materials to help you proceed on your own.

Plus…

  • How to Become A Memoir Writing Professional—When you want to prepare yourself as best you can to do memoir work in your community. Lead workshops, coach, edit, and ghostwrite. You can complete your training sooner than you think to earn an income as a memoir professional.
  • Memoir Professional Blog contains hundreds of posts on launching and thriving as a Memoir Professional.
What sort of help is best for a memoir writer?

The answer to your question is necessarily an individual one. It might be coaching, editing, ghostwriting, proofreading or book production. Any reputable company will offer a free consultation to help you define the options and select the one best for you.

What if I have not begun to write and don’t know what to write about but still want to create a memoir?

This is a frequent challenge for new writers. Coaching will get you to explore possible topics. Writing your best memoir is a big commitment, and you ought to be focused on something important to you. You need to take the time it takes to discover your topic.

What if I have already done a lot of writing?

Editing is your best choice. A developmental editor will advise you on how to strengthen your manuscript if that is needed and will show you how. A content editor can help you polish your existing prose. A copy editor / proofreader will prepare your final draft for publication.

What if I don’t want to learn to write but still have a story I want told?

A ghostwriter can help you to create a manuscript that is told in your voice and reflects your personality. You be the author; let us be the writer.

What if I’ve already written my book and am satisfied with what I have but I am just looking for publication services?

We have worked as the publication desk for many writers who want help to get their book published under their own imprint. We’ll work with you to produce a great-looking book.


Our most recent Memoir Writer’s Blog publications…

 

distance learning

Distance Learning: A Precious Opportunity

For most emerging writers, enrolling in an adult-learning program is an exciting experience. At long last, for a period of time that is long enough to make a difference, you have the opportunity to immerse yourself in learning the “best practices” of the writing craft that you has been so wanting to learn for a […]

calling yourself a writer

Does calling yourself a writer make you a writer?

“How do you become a writer?” people ask me. While many of my memoir-writing clients are one-time authors, not everyone is in that category. Many people join The Memoir Network secretly wanting to become “a writer” and hoping that memoir writing will be their ticket into the writer’s life. I might, in all seriousness, respond, […]

discipline in memoir writing

Bringing Discipline in Memoir Writing

A big part of success is showing up and doing the work. The same is true in writing a memoir. To succeed you have to do some writing; you have to demonstrate some discipline, some nose to the grindstone. Now the writing process is not straightforward or linear and there are many unexpected twists and […]

My Mother Passes

On this blog, I have frequently offered excerpts of my mother’s memoir, We Were Not Spoiled. It has been such a satisfaction for me to have written her story and to have been able to hand her a copy. One day, after I had presented her with the hard copy of We Were Not Spoiled, […]

last chapter of a memoir

How to Write the Last Chapter of a Memoir

“How do I write the last chapter of a memoir?” coaching and editing clients will sometimes ask me, wondering how to end a memoir.It is a good question because the last chapter of a memoir is your final shot at affirming your theme and at creating a satisfying and meaningful ending to the story the […]

staGES OF WRITING A MEMOIR

3 Stages of Writing a Memoir

A guest post Three Stages of Writing a Memoir: Own Your Truth, Find Your Voice and Tell Your Story In December 2011, I decided to take a trip to my home country, Azerbaijan. I had a property to sell and family to visit there. More importantly, I was on a mission to find my father’s […]

writing memoir

Writing the right memoir

not writing the right memoir can constrict your writing. The person who has put down one memoir a number of weeks, or months or even years ago, may not be able to pick it up again because the energy that had initially informed it is gone. The memoir has become the wrong memoir to be […]

teach memoir writing Memoir Professional Package

There Can’t Be That Many Types of Memoir!

There used to be one memoir type. The one kind of memoir genre was that written by famous people about the important events in history that they had taken part in. Mostly, these accounts were about how wonderful they were and how important their roles in history had been. Oftentimes, these memoirs were about excoriating […]