Good Week to Start Your Memoir
Lately we’ve been getting a lot of new members at WriteMyMemoirs, and we want to welcome all of you. However, we notice that many of you who have signed up recently have not yet gotten into the nitty-gritty of the writing. This is a great week to start—especially for Americans—for several reasons:
1. Today is a sad anniversary in the U.S. You’ve probably compared notes many times about “Where were you when JFK was shot?” So you already have that scene of receiving tragic news burned into your memory. You were at school or at work or at home, or maybe serving your country. You can start a chapter just describing what life was like for you at the time, and then go back to earlier in your life as well as crafting chapters on what happened next.
2. Thanksgiving is a holiday of traditions. What are yours? Think about all of the Thanksgiving dinners you’ve cooked and attended, and how they’ve changed over the years. Begin with the one you liked to write about most. You even could use this as a theme and start each chapter with the scene of a special holiday or tradition to makes a truly unique memoir.
3. Get your memoirs underway now, and when the year ends you’ll have a six-week head start on what is sure to be one of your New Year’s resolutions!
We at WriteMyMemoirs wish all celebrants a Happy Thanksgiving!
Lately we’ve been getting a lot of new members at WriteMyMemoirs, and we want to welcome all of you. However, we notice that many of you who have signed up recently have not yet gotten into the nitty-gritty of the writing. This is a great week to start—especially for Americans—for several reasons:
- Today is a sad anniversary in the U.S. You’ve probably compared notes many times about “Where were you when JFK was shot?” So you already have that scene of receiving tragic news burned into your memory. You were at school or at work or at home, or maybe serving your country. You can start a chapter just describing what life was like for you at the time, and then go back to earlier in your life as well as crafting chapters on what happened next.
- Thanksgiving is a holiday of traditions. What are yours? Think about all of the Thanksgiving dinners you’ve cooked and attended, and how they’ve changed over the years. Begin with the one you’d like to write about most. You even could use this as a theme and start each chapter with the scene of a special holiday or tradition to make a truly unique memoir.
- Get your memoirs underway now, and when the year ends you’ll have a six-week head start on what is sure to be one of your New Year’s resolutions!
We at WriteMyMemoirs wish all celebrants a Happy Thanksgiving!
I find your blog helpful when I have questions, so here I am again. I’m working on a professional memoir and just wrote a 6 word memoir that goes: third age social activist educator writer which might help position my work…do you have any recommendations and/or suggestions for writing a professional memoir? thanks, Barbara
Barbara,
Glad our blog is helpful! As you’re finding, the hardest part of writing a memoir is getting started. I’m not sure what you mean by “third age” – is that third generation? If through your work you’re carrying on a family tradition, your memoir could proceed in normal chronological order, with a first chapter that discusses your parents’ and grandparents’ activities, your birth and how you were inspired by your family. Or, you could start in present day, perhaps relating an anecdote that captures the nature of your work and the impact you’re having on society. That’s a great chapter to write first, because it’s fresh in your mind and confined to one episode. You then can begin recalling your earlier days, including the family’s influence on you, and follow your life through childhood, education and each professional position that led up to the original present-day anecdote. To further help you, we’ll devote this week’s blog to more ideas for getting started on writing a memoir.