About Denis Ledoux

I hope this blog post has been helpful to you to write a better memoir. It is a brief—and, I believe, high quality—assist in a facet of your writing, but there is much better I and my team can provide you. The best ways always come down to a Memoir Network professional coaching and editing your memoir. As your coach or editor, we don't give you just theory as in this blog post (beneficial to you by the way). You and your Memoir Network professional plunge deep into your story and develop it so it "comes alive" for your readers. To explore this option in a free consult, email me at [email protected] for an appointment. Want to try a launcher, do-it-yourself option? Try The Memorable Story / Write Your First Memoir Draft Program. Over the coming weeks, you will learn to write better, deeper memoir and to write more quickly and with more satisfaction. Enroll today. Another option is my classic book Turning Memories Into Memoirs / A Handbook for Writing Lifestories and my many other memoir-writing books. My Start to Write Your Memoir FREE five lesson e-course will help you to calibrate—or recalibrate—your memoir writing. Join our FREE My Memoir Education membership. It's easy to register, and you'll receive tons of free materials.

Author Archive | Denis Ledoux

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The Life of a Fille du Roi After She Settles into New France

By Denis Ledoux

This is the story of the life of a fille du roi, of one of my first female ancestors in Canada. For more stories about Marthe Quittel, click on the tag words Marthe Quittel and Franco-American women. French sail ships generally used the north channel of the Saint Lawrence there where the Ile d’Orléans splits […]

A Fille du Roi Marries

By Denis Ledoux

This story is taken from Here to Stay, a history of my 17th century ancestors. A fille du roi was a ward of the state sent to New France to marry. September 22 fell on a Tuesday, a good as any day for a wedding. (more…)

A “Fille du Roi” Enters into a Marriage Contract

By Denis Ledoux

It is unlikely that either Barthélémy Verreault or Marthe Quittel, my maternal ancestors, came to their marriage with an expectation of romance. Marriage was a state of life, a way of surviving, of producing children who could take care of you in your old age. So much the better if the proposed partner was attractive […]

Waxler’s Memoir Revolution Helps Writers Understand a Cultural and Literary Revolution

By Denis Ledoux

Jerry Waxler is clearly a man who knows his way around memoir writing. Those of us who have been following his blog, post after post, at Memory Writers Network and have immensely enjoyed his thoughtful commentary on memoir writing, his in-depth profiles of leading memoirist and memoir professionals, and his penetrating reviews of hot-off the […]

Filles du Roi/Daughters of the King Meet their Prospective Husbands

By Denis Ledoux

The “daughters of the king” were introduced to prospective husbands at the Ursuline convent in the Upper Town of Québec (more…)

How to Self-Publish with a Book Packager

By Denis Ledoux

You are joining the ranks of some of the most well-known authors, including Deepak Chopra, James Joyce, Gertrude Stein and Anais Nin. In fact, you probably have several self-published titles in your own library. What Color is Your Parachute by Richard Nelson Bolles and Irma Rombauer’s The Joy of Cooking are two examples. (more…)

New France History: Filles du Roi / Daughters of the King

By Denis Ledoux

Realizing the role of women in increasing the population from within (vs. migration from without), Louis XIV encouraged female wards of the state to migrate to Canada by offering them incentives. Known as the daughters of the king… (more…)

A Maine Franco Memoir: My Sister Gertrude Almost Gets Spoiled

By Denis Ledoux

An excerpt from We Were not Spoiled by Lucille Ledoux as told to Denis Ledoux. While our family was already large by today’s standards—there were already 6 kids, it was to grow even larger. In the spring of 1929, my mother was pregnant again and she made arrangements to have the baby in the hospital […]

Here to Stay: Developing Nationhood and Community in New France

By Denis Ledoux

Here to Stay: Developing Nationhood and Community in New France Here to Stay: Developing Nationhood and Community in New France is excerpted from my historical memoir Here To Stay. Here I write about my maternal ancestors Bartélémy Verreault and Marthe Quittel. As I recorded genealogical information—the births, marriages and deaths of my ancestors, I began […]