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Three Ways Memoir Writer’s Use Trash Talk Most of us use a certain amount of trash talk when we think about our memoir writing projects or talk about them. We are very clever about our evasive tactics however and disguise the trash as thoughtfulness. Here are a few examples of trash talk. 1. I need to do more research and interviewing before I can write my story. Research and interviewing are essential to a memoir project but these tasks can occur during the writing of an autobiography. For now, compile your Memory List (Chapter 2 of Turning Memories Into Memoirs) (more…)
We All Need a Motivation Technique At Some Point All writers eventually need a motivation technique to spur them on to the finish line. They face the atrophy of motivation that seems to come with writing a long memoir over months and months and even over a period of time. Let’s face it: writing can be hard and discouraging. The most interesting of topics (at least they seemed so at one time) may now grow stale and uninteresting as you write and rewrite (and ask yourself who would possibly want to read it). Writers rightfully want to k now what they (more…)

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. (more…)

Tips to Keep Writing Recently, someone asked me what are the biggest barriers memoir writers face to being prolific. The following three came to mind right away. Below, I write about them and offer suggestions for eliminating these impediments to staying in the writing conversation. 1. Don’t hold out for a perfect memoir. Writers often put off writing a good memoir in favor of struggling unsuccessfully forever to create a perfect one. This is insidious because no one says they are putting off writing a good memoir in favor of a perfect one. Instead they say, “I want my story (more…)
“Writing is a way of processing our lives. And it can be a way of healing.”~ Jan Karon Most writers write because not writing creates distress. I speak for myself when I say, if I don’t get my quota of writing in during the day, I am up half the night, unable to sleep for all the ideas ricocheting in my head. But what happens when a writer becomes ill and does not have the stamina or the desire to write during an illness? In 1996, my life came to a sudden halt when I was diagnosed with Stage 4 (more…)
Conveying Theme Effectively Underlying all of your stories is its theme. The theme is really a message, the global way in which you understand your story—either in its entirety or in its parts. The theme conveys the essence of the you (or the them) that you want the reader, and history, to know and understand. The theme provides spirit to your piece, the breath of life that individualizes your life story. 1) The theme is dependent on your insights. Insights are glimpses of understanding. (“Oh, that’s why—or how—she did that!”) When insights accumulate, as you view your stories over time, (more…)

What Makes It Memoir or Autobiographical Fiction?

I read a memoir that did well here in Maine (it’s by an excellent Maine writer)—I can’t vouch for its reach in the rest of the country. I’m left wondering whether the author was writing memoir or autobiographical fiction.

It’s an interesting book, very well-written in terms of style and organization, but my nagging doubt is that it is autobiographical fiction and not memoir. I will choose to leave the book nameless as my intent is not to be negative about it but only to use it to elucidate a point about memoir writing which I think is important to keep in mind as we write.

I have frequently spoken about using fiction techniques to make a memoir more interesting. Dialog, for instance, can be marvelous. The trick, as I have offered frequently, is to use only a few words in direct dialog (“I won’t,” she said) and then put the rest in indirect dialog (She said that was because blah, blah, blah…)

Fiction Techniques in a Memoir

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Don’t Talk Your Stories Away

When a writer talks too much and too revealingly about a work-in-progress—especially at the early stage before the writing has taken shape—the energy to get the story written is often scattered. Sometimes what passes for a writer’s block is only a failure to relate to your stories in a way that’s conducive to getting them written. This may seem like a writer’s block but it’s not. It’s really poor writing discipline!

People have an urge to make their stories public—in any format that will satisfy the impulse. Talking over a cup of tea may be just as satisfying a release as shaping a memorable poem or novel or life story.

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Reaching a Larger Book Audience for Your Memoir

It is possible to reach a larger book audience than family and friends with your memoir. Here are four suggestions to enable your story to appeal to a larger public. 

1) Write a story that is truly well-written and whose reading—the prose itself—will bring joy to your reader.

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

Memoir Trash Talk

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Three Ways Memoir Writer’s Use Trash Talk Most of us use a certain amount of trash talk when we think about our memoir writing projects or talk about them. We are very clever about our evasive tactics however and disguise the trash as thoughtfulness. Here are a few examples of trash talk. 1. I need […]

finish line

Motivation Technique for Writing

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All writers eventually need a motivation technique to spur them on to the finish line. They face the atrophy of motivation that seems to come with writing a long memoir over months and months and even over a period of time.  Let’s face it: writing can be hard and discouraging. The most interesting of topics […]

manwriting2x

Telling the Truth About your Life

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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. One of the most transformative statements an individual can make is to tell his/her story with honesty and objectivity. At its […]

writing during an illness

Writing During An Illness

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“Writing is a way of processing our lives. And it can be a way of healing.”~ Jan Karon Most writers write because not writing creates distress. I speak for myself when I say, if I don’t get my quota of writing in during the day, I am up half the night, unable to sleep for […]

Turning-Memories-Into-Memoirs-Denis-Ledoux-Picture

Is It a Memoir or Autobiographical Fiction ?

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What Makes It Memoir or Autobiographical Fiction? I read a memoir that did well here in Maine (it’s by an excellent Maine writer)—I can’t vouch for its reach in the rest of the country. I’m left wondering whether the author was writing memoir or autobiographical fiction. It’s an interesting book, very well-written in terms of […]

A Long Distance Writing Program

Don’t Talk Your Stories Away

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When a writer talks too much and too revealingly about a work-in-progress–especially at the early stage before the writing has taken shape–the energy to get the story written is often scattered. Sometimes what passes for a writer’s block is… (more…)