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The Memory List — This task is a core endeavor, strictly useful and strictly necessary.

People are always careful to say “There’s no magic bullet” when they offer advice.” Well …

The Memory List is as close to a “magic bullet” as you can get. You will be thrilled at how it facilitates your writing. 

A Memory List is made up of three-to-five-word memories of everything you can remember about an experience, a time, a person, an event, anything.

Don’t write without a Memory List. If you’ve already started to write your lifestory: Stop and compile your Memory List as soon as you finish reading this valuable tip. With a Memory List in hand, you will never again have to face the dreaded—and totally unnecessary—“writer’s block.” A Memory List is that good. (That’s why we think of it as a “magic bullet!”)

Your Memory List will take you a while to create but that needn’t be a reason you drop everything until it is done. No, give it a big push at the start of your writing.

You can begin to write your memoir from items in your developing list. Then keep adding to your Memory List as you are creating your memoir and more ideas come up. These additional items will likely lend your memoir more precision and focus. Eventually, your list can have hundreds and hundreds of items. In fact, it should. If it doesn’t include at least several hundred items, be patient and keep adding to your list, keep developing it. Having too few memories on your list doesn’t serve your memoir—but this is something that almost never happens!

On any day that I don’t know what to write about (not a frequent occurrence, by the way), I turn to my Memory List and choose something that captures my attention at the moment and begin to write about that memory. Later I will add this story in its proper place in the memoir.

With a Memory List, there will be no more “writer’s block.”

Imagine: No more “writer’s block”—ever. Just look your list over and write about something on it.

How’s that for a magic bullet!

 For more info on Memory Lists, click here

And remember: “Inch by inch, it’s a cinch; yard by yard, it’s hard.”

Good luck writing your stories!

Keep writing. Your memoir is important.

Best,

Denis

DL: This is a reprint of a post that appeared in September of 2022. It strikes me as pertinent for many readers of The Lifewriter’s Digest. The final publication of French Boy took another year. I republish this both to present a proven process and to own that I have my challenges, too.

I’m not perfect—just committed.

____

It occurred to me that I was putting off – does that really sound better than “procrastinating”?—doing the final edit of my memoir, French Boy / A 1950s Franco-American Childhood.

I had already gone through it rather extensively for the umpteenth time and had made changes in Microsoft Track Changes.

Now my task was to go through all of the changes both to make sure that I wanted those changes and also that I had not introduced new mistakes.

Showing up for my memoir

I had done precious little in the last couple of weeks to bring my manuscript to a conclusive end to this editing. It was only when I looked at my September schedule that I realized I had set several deadlines that I had to meet—wanted to meet—and was way off meeting them.

In short, I realized that I had put off showing up for my memoir to negotiate some of the last stages of writing a memoir.

A memoir does not get out in the world because of a hope and a prayer. It goes out because of attention—focused attention.

The next task

What I needed to prepare for was to send the book manuscript out to those people who had agreed to write blurbs or who had agreed to serve as beta readers. (The book had already been read by my siblings and I had gratefully inserted their suggestions both to add and to delete.)

In guise of an emergency measure, I decided that I would show up for my memoir by having this final check finished by the end of the day on Labor Day. This involved somewhat of a marathon session on Saturday, but it was quite satisfying to realize that I was showing up successfully and that the manuscript would be ready soon for its next stage.

In conclusion

As you read this, a number of copies have already gone out to blurbers and beta readers and the remainder will be finished by tomorrow.

This feels good. I have a sense that I’m now back on track. I have enjoyed writing this book – the experience of being immersed in another time of my life – but I feel that it is time for it to come to an end and for me to move on to other interesting projects.

Here is what I hope are takeaways for you:

  • A deadline (however arbitrary) can keep your nose to the grindstone.
  • When you get off your deadline, reevaluate whether getting back on it is what you really want.
  • If you need to show up, then, show up!

Good luck with your memoir and remember to work on it a bit every day.

For more information on coaching, click here.

To find help to finish writing your memoir, go to Write to the End, and use coupon code WTTE25 to save 25%

PS: I ended up making numerous changes that were requested and adding much material that I still wanted in French Boy. I offer this article to you as a guide of what you might expect. French Boy is now reaching its public. That feels VERY good!

 

Succeeding in writing a book of memoirs in an expeditious and meaningful fashion is important. If you dwell in your memoir project manager function for even a short while before you jump into your worker mode and write, write, write, you may be very pleased with how more smoothly and quickly you create.

I am not talking about outlining a story here. No, I am talking about setting writing schedules that don’t interfere with commitments, clearing unnecessary commitments so that they don’t nag at you, getting cooperation from other people in your household, and making sure you have the research capacity to pull off writing your memoir.

Writers love to dream and to do the writing. What they don’t like is planning their writing life. So… the planning is overruled and then the writing life is full of interruptions and rough going.

A Memoir Project Manager Helps You Set Goals for Your Memoir

(more…)

One memoir writer who had spent two or three years writing her story submitted her formatted manuscript to me for a final edit. She told me she hadn’t gotten help writing a memoir because she hadn’t wanted to be influenced.

As I read her story, I struggled to find its focus. There didn’t seem to be any.

Ouch!

The manuscript was full of vague (meaningless, really) sentences that really didn’t transmit much meaning. Lines such as: “The town I grew up in was in the middle of nowhere.”

Ouch!

(more…)

I want to share with you three decisions you can make to help you to succeed more quickly and easily at memoir writing.

Over the last two decades, I have coached many, many writers—more writers than I can remember. In those years, I have seen some people soar with the experience—it’s as if they can do no wrong—while unfortunately, I have seen others coach with me for periods of time without making any apparent change or progress.

This experience has enabled me to come up with three decisions a person who wants to succeed at memoir writing must make. These decisions will help you to reach publication faster than you can without them.

1. You must resolve to commit to the discipline necessary to succeed.

(more…)

Yesterday started out as a blah day. I was uninspired to do anything. I would gladly have moped all day! But, it was my gym day.

I thought of canceling my visit, but, no, I went ahead and showed up. I wanted to honor my commitment and not my feelings of the moment.

At the gym, it was like pulling teeth to get going, but I had said (a long time ago) I would go to the gym on a regular basis and so here I was—feeling like it or not!

Guess what happened? After a while, I began to enjoy myself and, by the end of the session, I was engaged. Great time, and great benefit. The session changed my day!

Now this predictable result from commitment (and engagement) reminded me of a video I published on YouTube. “Feel like writing? You write. Don’t feel like writing? You write.”

How can commitment be less complicated! It’s not about feelings. It’s about focusing on your goal and doing the work. Keep writing your memoir.

Click here to watch this video: Don’t Let Feelings Tyrannize You. Focus On Your Goal

Good luck with your writing and remember to write a bit on your memoir today. And remember: “Inch by inch, it’s a cinch; yard by yard, it’s hard.”

Good luck writing your stories!

Keep writing. Manage your time well. Your memoir is important.

Best,

Denis and The Memoir Network Team

We all wear many hats as we go through our days. In my case, I am a writer, a memoirist, a teacher, a memoir coach, a memoir editor, a co-author, a book publisher, and finally, a small business person. I wear those hats with pride and, I hope, some accomplishment.

Beyond these, I wear other hats as all of you do also. One is that of an athlete of sorts: there has been swimming, jogging, and weight lifting. In this post, want to focus on how I worked on my physical conditioning through deliberate practice and then apply that to memoir writing.

(more…)

You ask how memoir editing works. This is an important and reasonable question.

In this post, I will take you through a typical process. (The process explained here is one an inexperienced writer would take. An experienced writer can expect to shorten the process.)

How Memoir Editing Works

When I begin the memoir editing process with clients, I tell them that proper editing generally requires three “read-throughs.” Unless the manuscript is already at a high level of organization and polish, no editor can give a manuscript all the attention it deserves in one reading.

That’s simply how memoir editing works when done properly

Reading a manuscript without doing any specific editing and forming only a general impression has always seemed a good idea in theory, but I have not found a way to do so that is economical for the client. I have therefore evolved this concept of read-throughs as a memoir editing technique. (more…)

What is developmental editing and do you need it? If the big New York publishing houses NEVER publish a manuscript without extensive editing, why would you as a self-publisher?

A professional memoir editor can quickly and effectively help you tweak your lifestory so that you get to say more clearly and dynamically what you have been trying to say. You can’t write your best memoir without developmental editing—it’s game-changing.

Editors come in many stripes: some are copy editors, others are content editors while still another kind is a developmental editor.

In this post, I want to focus on developmental editing and how it will help you write a memoir you can be proud to send into the world.

(more…)

Showing up for my memoir

Showing up for my memoir– again!

By on February 20, 2024

DL: This is a reprint of a post that appeared in September of 2022. It strikes me as pertinent for many readers of The Lifewriter’s Digest. The final publication of French Boy took another year. I republish this both to present a proven process and to own that I have my challenges, too. I’m not […]

help writing a memoir

A Faulty Process Is—Well—Useless

By on February 8, 2024

One memoir writer who had spent two or three years writing her story submitted her formatted manuscript to me for a final edit. She told me she hadn’t gotten help writing a memoir because she hadn’t wanted to be influenced. As I read her story, I struggled to find its focus. There didn’t seem to […]

memoir editing process

So You Wonder How Memoir Editing Works

By on January 30, 2024

When I begin memoir editing with clients, I tell them that a proper editing requires three “read-throughs.” It is impossible to give a manuscript all the attention it deserves in one reading. Reading a manuscript without doing any specific editing and forming only a general impression has always seemed a good idea in theory, but […]