Below, I share two ideas about how to use time wisely to write your memoir. Time has many permutations and I would like to take you on a coaching journey. We’ll make a couple of stops to help you hone your ability to use time wisely. I hope you enjoy reading these ideas and let them inform your writing. 1. My first stop is with clock time and how we relate to that. Writing requires a commitment of time. Have you wondered what distinguishes one writer who perseveres and completes a memoir from one who does not? I have worked (more…)

This is an excerpt from my unpublished book, Here to Stay, which is the story of my patrilineal and matrilineal seventeenth-century ancestors. For more excerpts, click here. September 22, 1665 As was the custom in the colony, the wedding was set for a date soon after the contract signing. These were exceptional times. Winter was just three months away, and if Barthélémi and Marthe were to survive the long, cold months at the new farm in Chateau-Richer, there was much to be done. Until she was married, Marthe would remain with her host family, the Marsolets, separated from the work (more…)

We thought you might enjoy brushing up on your grammar. Here’s a little fun post on “good grammar” to brighten your day. This list has been making its way around the internet, and we thought it was enough of a new twist on grammar that it would make your high school English teacher’s hair stand on end. (I can’t vouch that it’s all good grammar!) New Rules like you never knowed Verbs has to agree with their subjects. Prepositions are not words to end sentences with. And don’t start a sentence with a conjunction. It is wrong to ever split (more…)

Eight Reasons to Share the Inner You Our lives are composed not only of facts and dates but also of dreams, expectations–realized or denied—and hopes. You are not alone in having lived an inner life. Others too have experienced much of what you felt and dreamed for yourself and are likely to identify with some, or even much, of what you say. You are more likely to attract praise rather than scorn for sharing your inner life. You’ll derive several benefits when you share the inner you. 1) If there is a place where you can say, “This is who (more…)

Have you wondered why even writers of the highest caliber need a top memoir editor?

Is memoir editing really important?

Following are reasons even the Hemingways, the Kerouacs, and the Woolfs need editors. As you (and they) write day after day, over the months and years it takes to complete a manuscript, some of the pitfalls we all become prey to include any three of the following:

becoming attached to your prose. Often, we are enamored of particular scenes and go from tolerating their extraneous quality to feeling comfortable with the fact that they do not contribute to your memoir. Aren’t they so well-written and such good memories! In our self-editing, we become indulgent and leave the “little darlings” in. Many writing workshops justly talk about “killing your little darlings”—that is, editing them out. When you work with The Memoir Network, rest assured your editor will kindly put your “little darlings” to their deserved rest! You deserve no less from a top memoir editor.

(more…)

It’s time to commit to creating an effective writing schedule.

You’ve already taken several steps in lifewriting. You have begun to write your stories and memories. Perhaps the summer got in the way of your perseverance or perhaps it was something else—an illness, a temporary job, travel. Now you need to recommit to memoir writing by creating an effective writing schedule for yourself.

Rather than think in the general terms of “I’ll write as much as I can” (who are we kidding here!), base your writing schedule on a specific time or a page quota.

1) Decide how much time per week you want (or have) to devote to writing schedule.

(more…)

Word Redundancies Practitioners in every endeavor or field have tools that are specific to accomplishing their work. These people use tools with discrimination and, one hopes, effectiveness. A carpenter uses a ball peen hammer and a claw hammer and a club hammer. Each is different and each has a different use. While a carpenter might on occasion, perhaps to save the time to fetch a tool for a very small task, use one of those hammers in an inappropriate way, he will be embarrassed doing so and, if caught, he will make some comment to demonstrate he knows the difference. (more…)

People everywhere have an urge to make their stories public—in any format that will satisfy the impulse. Because in human development, speech comes first and writing later, the impulse to make a story public is almost certainly to speak it initially and only subsequently to write it. But this can be dangerous for chanelling your writing energy to a memoir. Talking over a cup of tea may be just as satisfying a release for the tension inherent in needing to tell a story as shaping a memorable written lifestory—or poem or novel. But speaking can be a dissipatory indulgence—in terms (more…)

You want to get your memoir going again, but you feel stuck. Get your memoir going again today. Writing a memoir is a long-term project. Like all long-term projects, it has its ups and downs. The ups are easy to deal with but the downs are a bit more challenging. 1. Set a schedule for writing. Many people work better when they commit to a schedule. Try this to get your memoir going again: Write down specific days on which you will work and specify your start and stop hours. Modify this as meets your needs but be vigilant about (more…)

Use Time Wisely to Write Your Memoir

By Denis Ledoux

Marriage in New France: Barthélémi and Marthe Wed

By Denis Ledoux

As was the custom in the colony, the wedding was set for a date soon after the contract signing. These were exceptional times. Winter was just three months away, and if Barthélémi and Marthe were to survive the long, cold months at the new farm in Chateau-Richer, there was much to be done. Until she […]

Good Grammar Like You Never Knowed

By Denis Ledoux

Eight Reasons to Share the Inner You

By Denis Ledoux

Our lives are composed not only of facts and dates but also of dreams, expectations–realized or denied–and hopes. You are not alone in having lived an inner life. Others too have experienced much of what you felt and dreamed for yourself and are likely to identify with some, or even much, of what you say. […]

A Top Memoir Editor Gets the Job Done

By Denis Ledoux

Top editors commit totally to your manuscript. There is no spare-time attention with them! They ask you for your timeline and do everything in their power to meet it. In addition, they have all written and/or edited books. It’s work they’re good at. So… you can confidently expect them to edit fast and with insight. […]

Three Tips For Creating an Effective Writing Schedule

By Denis Ledoux

You’ve already taken several steps in lifewriting. You have begun to write your stories and memories. perhaps the summer got in the way of your perseverance or perhaps it was something else–an illness, a temporary job, travel. Now you need to recommit to memoir writing by creating an effective writing schedule for yourself. (more…)