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Our memoir writing exercises are different from those found on other sites. We do not provide ready-made writing prompts such as: “Which would be your go-to zoo if you were a captured panda?” or “Three things you will do after you receive a million dollars?” or “You are in the same taxi as X [insert the name of a famous person]. What would you ask or say?”

Titillation is not our goal.

Memoir writing prompts can be entertaining, and when the writing they generate is shared in a group, they can be fun enough, but they are an example of writing from the outside in—which promises a miss—and not from the inside out as we advocate throughout this site.

The habit a writer needs to develop, a sure part of the writer’s life, is to be seeking “what do I really mean to write here?” and “What is most true of me [or my characters] as human beings.”

Memoir writing exercises about “three things you would do if you were abducted in a flying saucer” does not produce the writing-from-inside-out that the best memoirs exhibit.

Instead of writing prompts

We advocate organic memoir writing exercises that are likely to lead to a deepening of your insight rather than to titillation for your entertainment — which is what we think of most memoir writing prompts.

Our premier memoir writing exercise is the Memory List, but as this category demonstrates, there are many other possibilities to hone your skills.

In conclusion

Read the many posts below to see for yourself how the memoir writing exercises we suggest are better than any writing prompt that asks you to write about “It’s the year 2500 and you are…”

Writers Learning About the Memory List at a "Turning Memories Into Memoirs" Workshop

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 […]

writing a better memoir

Four Tips for Writing a Better Memoir

To write a better memoir, make use of the core memory list. The extended memory list does not make value judgments about the quality of your memories. The core memory list, however, distinguishes between two sorts of memories— the important from the unimportant.

manwriting2x

Telling the Truth About your Life

In a world where we are constantly being bombarded with subtle—and not so subtle—messages about who we ought to be, it is a bold statement to take a stand for personal truth and authenticity.

The telling of your stories is a revolutionary act.

—Sam Keen, Writer

One of the most transformative statements an individual can make is to tell his/her story with honesty and objectivity. At its best, this is what a memoir is—a statement that declares “this is who I am, who I think of myself as being.”

Lest you think that telling the truth is only about revealing scandals and unmasking abuses, let me assure you that it is more often about smaller issues, issues more within the realm of the everyday experience. [Free Membership required to read more. See below. ]

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memoir or autobiographical fiction

Which Voice Will Write Your Memoir?

Choose A Voice To Write From Choosing a voice is imperative. This may sound like a joke, 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. It’s you! […]