3 Benefits of Keeping a Journal
Keeping a journal can be a useful tool when you are writing your memoir. When keeping a regular journal, some people feel a release of energy they don’t have in other writing forms. (more…)
A Narrator Issue: Who is Writing Your Memoir?
Who is writing your memoir? This may sound like a trick question but it’s not. In fact, it is a very serious question that will determine—or at least greatly influence—the tone and the theme of your narrative. “But, I’m writing my memoirs!” you might answer. Yes, of course. You! But, which you? We’ve all had […]
How to Write More Efficiently #2
In a previous post, I had developed the concept of writing on a deadline. In this post I will stay with the concept of writing close to the finish. (more…)
How to Write More Efficiently #1
Is it possible to write more efficiently? Too many writers (I have been among them) allow the book-writing process to go on and on. We lack efficiency which is a practice and, like all practices, it is possible to learn to write more efficiently. There are many ways to learn to write more efficiently but […]
Finishing a Memoir—How Do People Get Snagged?
Many people who seek us out at The Memoir Network are not beginners at memoir writing. Many have already composed 5, 10, 15 or more stories or vignettes. They have been working on their memoir for a significant length of time but they are spinning their wheels. They are not moving forward and seem to […]
Listen Up: Grow Your Memoir Business
Again this week I’m offering something a little different — this post offers you a link to a podcast. Kansas City-based Amy Woods Butler speaks to Denis Ledoux of the Memoir Network on How to Grow Business as a Memoir Professional. Click here to listen. “Denis started as a writer of autobiographical fictional. When he […]
The Problem With Writing Prompts
Is there a problem with writing prompts? This is my issue with writing prompts: they tend to lead to isolated stories, stories that are searching for humor, searching to be shared with a group that is perhaps looking for entertainment. They are not, by and large, searching for meaning lost in the morass of your […]
Regular Writing Practice: An Important Decision!
Many people set off to write their memoirs with considerable enthusiasm. Frequently however over the months and years it takes to complete the manuscript, their enthusiasm wanes and the memoir project that had seemed so interesting now begins to bore the writer is soon abandoned. I don’t think there was ever a writer whose interest […]
The Difference between a Memoir and an Autobiography
The difference between a memoir and an autobiography can be rather minimal—or they can be fairly large. “So what is the difference between a memoir and an autobiography?” you may persist in asking as so many people do. Practically speaking, for most people, there is no difference. In common speech, the terms are interchangeable. But […]