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Every ordinary life story is extraordinary!

Rosanne Ullman

Rosanne Ullman owns Write My Memoirs (writemymemoirs.com) to help people write and self-publish their life stories and co-owns Home Memoir (homememoir.com) to help people capture, in a coffee-table book, the love they have for their home. For 20 years, Rosanne taught grammar at a local adult education program, New Trier eXtention, and that well-received course is the basis for the Write My Memoirs Grammar and Writing Course. Rosanne has a long freelance career writing for and about various industries, particularly the professional beauty industry. Her observations about life appear frequently on various blog sites and include regular contributions to Sixty and Me (sixtyandme.com) and Boomer Cafe (boomercafe.com). Rosanne also is the author of the children’s picture book The Case of the Disappearing Kisses. She holds a Master’s degree in Journalism (MSJ) from Northwestern University’s famed Medill School of Journalism.

Why We’re Drawn To Biography, Part III

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Why We’re Drawn To Biography, Part III
In this blog arc, we’re exploring why nonfiction best-seller lists nearly always include, and are sometimes dominated by, biographies and autobiographies, and also why most of them focus on famous people. What’s there left to learn about a very famous person whose life unfolds daily in newspapers and magazines? Take Abraham Lincoln for example. In the past 150 years, hasn’t everything about him, and particularly his assassination, already been written? Yet today we still seem to be quite taken with our 16th president, as evidenced by Bill O’Reilley’s best-seller Killing Lincoln and the two 2012 movies Lincoln and Lincoln: Vampire Hunter (okay, perhaps that one is fiction). Other names on the best-seller list—Winston Churchill, Joseph Kennedy, Bruce Springsteen—what are we still hoping to learn about them we don’t already know?
Secrets! We’d like to know the “real” story behind some action or development, or we’re hoping to hear a confession about how someone felt about someone else, or we want to know a little tidbit never before revealed. Certainly someone writing a memoir will share with us some deep, dark secret; exposing a love affair is a popular choice.
Sometimes it’s just about the point of view. No matter how much has been written about a fascinating person, when a different author tackles the familiar material there’s bound to be a nugget of something new in the biography. And when the book is a memoir, we can be sure we’ve never before heard the story from that point of view.

In this blog arc, we’re exploring why nonfiction best-seller lists nearly always include, and are sometimes dominated by, biographies and autobiographies, and also why most of them focus on famous people. What’s left to learn about a very famous person whose life unfolds daily in newspapers and magazines? Take Abraham Lincoln for example. In the past 150 years, hasn’t everything about him, and particularly his assassination, already been written? Yet today we still seem to be quite taken with our 16th president, as evidenced by Bill O’Reilley’s best-seller Killing Lincoln and the two 2012 movies Lincoln and Lincoln: Vampire Hunter (okay, perhaps that one is fiction). Other names on the best-seller list—Winston Churchill, Joseph Kennedy, Bruce Springsteen—what are we still hoping to learn about them we don’t already know?

Secrets! We’d like to know the “real” story behind some action or development, or we’re hoping to hear a confession about how someone felt about someone else, or we want to know a little tidbit never before revealed. Certainly someone writing a memoir will share with us some deep, dark secret; exposing a love affair is a popular choice.

Sometimes it’s just about the point of view. No matter how much has been written about a fascinating person, when a different author tackles the familiar material there’s bound to be a nugget of something new in the biography. And when the book is a memoir, we can be sure we’ve never before heard the story from that point of view.

Why We’re Drawn To Biography, Part II

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Why We’re Drawn To Biography, Part II
As we discovered last week, every nonfiction best-seller list is peppered by, and sometimes dominated by, well-crafted biographies and autobiographies. The lion’s share of these life stories focus on the famous and infamous. From heads of state and war generals to rock stars and athletes, famous people fascinate us. On the dark side, we also want to know all about political assassins, dictators and Mafiosos.
Ordinary human nature is intriguing enough, but when the person rises to become a household name, we enjoy tracing the entire life. How did the person become famous? Was it a level of genius or talent—or evil—that seemed to be there from birth and would stand out no matter what? Was it the upbringing? Circumstances and luck?
We’re curious for a lot of reasons. Some people read these stories looking for a sort of playbook: what route should I take to become a U.S. president, or how can I raise my child to be the next Major League home run hitter? If the subject hails from royalty or generational wealth, the story lets us peek into a world to which we have no other access; we can live vicariously for the length of the book. We’re interested, too, in what goes on in the mind of a criminal, perhaps to make sure that we or our children are not headed in that direction.
There’s one more reason we love reading about famous people. Check back next time for that one!

As we discovered last week, every nonfiction best-seller list is peppered by, and sometimes dominated by, well-crafted biographies and autobiographies. The lion’s share of this genre focuses on the famous and infamous. From heads of state and war generals to rock stars and athletes, famous people fascinate us. On the dark side, we also want to know all about political assassins, dictators and Mafiosos.

Ordinary human nature is intriguing enough, but when the person rises to become a household name, we enjoy tracing the entire life. How did the person become famous? Was it a level of genius or talent—or evil—that seemed to be there from birth and would stand out no matter what? Was it the upbringing? Circumstances and luck?

We’re curious for a lot of reasons. Some people read these stories looking for a sort of playbook: what route should I take to become a U.S. president, or how can I raise my child to be the next Major League home run hitter? If the subject hails from royalty or generational wealth, a memoir or biography lets us peek into a world to which we have no other access; we can live vicariously for the length of the book. We’re interested, too, in what goes on in the mind of a criminal, perhaps to make sure that we or our children are not headed in that direction.

There’s one more reason we love reading about famous people. Check back next time for that one!

Why People Are Drawn To Biography, Part I

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Why We’re Drawn To Biography, Part I
It’s not difficult to figure out why someone would write a memoir. People have all sorts of reasons for wanting to examine their lives, record the facts and share their memories and point of view. But what compels people to read about others’ lives? Check the New York Times best-seller list of nonfiction any week of the year. You’ll typically find that biographies and autobiographies dominate the list. People are undisputedly interested in reading real-life accounts of real lives.
Look at this week’s NYTimes list, for example, and you’ll find this list of nonfiction with the highest sales:
Killing Kennedy, by Bill O’Reilly and Martin Dugard, recounting the events surrounding the 1963 Kennedy assassination.
Thomas Jefferson, by Jon Meacham, celebrating Jefferson’s skills as a practical politician.
Killing Lincoln, by Bill O’Reilly and Martin Dugard, on the events surrounding the assassination of Abraham Lincoln
No Easy Day, by Mark Owen with Kevin Maurer, an account by a former member of the Navy SEALs of the mission that killed bin Laden.
America Again, by Stephen Colbert, Richard Dahm, Paul Dinello, Barry Julien, Tom Purcell et al., satirical advice on how to bring America back from the brink.
Unbroken, by Laura Hillenbrand, an Olympic runner’s story of survival as a WWII prisoner.
The Signal and the Noise, by Nate Silver, an analysis of predictions.
Bruce, by Peter A. Carlin, a biography of Bruce Springsteen.
Roll Me Up and Smoke Me When I Die, an autobiography by country icon Willie Nelson.
Behind the Beautiful Forevers, by Katherine Boo, a report on families living in a Mumbai slum.
Wild, by Cheryl Strayed, a memoir about the author’s 1,100-mile hike along the Pacific Crest Trail.
A Higher Call, by Adam Makos with Larry Alexander, about an encounter between an American pilot and a German pilot in the skies over 1943 Germany.
Waging Heavy Peace, a memoir by rocker Neil Young.
The Last Lion, by William Manchester and Paul Reid, a partial biography of Winston Churchill.
The Patriarch, by David Nasaw, a biography of Joseph P. Kennedy.
Quiet, by Susan Cain, a close look at the introverted personality.
Total it up, and you’ll see that 10 of the top 16 sellers are biographies or autobiographies. Check back here next week and we’ll talk about why this literary genre is so popular.

It’s not difficult to figure out why someone would write a memoir. People have all sorts of reasons for wanting to examine their lives, record the facts and share their memories and point of view. But what compels people to read about others’ lives? Check the New York Times best-seller list of nonfiction any week of the year. You’ll typically find that biographies and autobiographies dominate the list. People are undisputedly interested in reading real-life accounts of real lives.

Look at this week’s NYTimes list, for example, and you’ll find this list of nonfiction with the highest sales:

  1. Killing Kennedy, by Bill O’Reilly and Martin Dugard, recounting the events surrounding the 1963 Kennedy assassination.
  2. Thomas Jefferson, by Jon Meacham, celebrating Jefferson’s skills as a practical politician.
  3. Killing Lincoln, by Bill O’Reilly and Martin Dugard, on the events surrounding the assassination of Abraham Lincoln.
  4. No Easy Day, by Mark Owen with Kevin Maurer, an account by a former member of the Navy SEALs of the mission that killed bin Laden.
  5. America Again, by Stephen Colbert, Richard Dahm, Paul Dinello, Barry Julien, Tom Purcell et al., satirical advice on how to bring America back from the brink.
  6. Unbroken, by Laura Hillenbrand, an Olympic runner’s story of survival as a WWII prisoner.
  7. The Signal and the Noise, by Nate Silver, an analysis of predictions.
  8. Bruce, by Peter A. Carlin, a biography of Bruce Springsteen.
  9. Roll Me Up and Smoke Me When I Die, an autobiography by country music icon Willie Nelson.
  10. Behind the Beautiful Forevers, by Katherine Boo, a report on families living in a Mumbai slum.
  11. Wild, by Cheryl Strayed, a memoir about the author’s 1,100-mile hike along the Pacific Crest Trail.
  12. A Higher Call, by Adam Makos with Larry Alexander, about an encounter between an American pilot and a German pilot in the skies over 1943 Germany.
  13. Waging Heavy Peace, a memoir by rocker Neil Young.
  14. The Last Lion, by William Manchester and Paul Reid, a partial biography of Winston Churchill.
  15. The Patriarch, by David Nasaw, a biography of Joseph P. Kennedy.
  16. Quiet, by Susan Cain, a close look at the introverted personality.

Total it up, and you’ll see that 10 of the top 16 sellers are biographies or autobiographies. Check back here next week and we’ll talk about why this literary genre is so popular.

How Will You Feel a Year From Now?

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Old Thoughts for a New Year
Let’s start the year off with some platitudes. Here’s one, since today is not only the first day of 2013, but also: Today is the first day of the rest of your life. Hey, it’s true, right? What are you going to do with the rest of your life? Whatever it is, you might as well start today.
Here’s another one, reportedly said by inspirational author Karen Lamb: A year from now you will wish you had started today. As one year turns to another, we tend to tally up what we accomplished during the past year and which goals we never did achieve. We also set new goals for the coming year, or we refocus on goals we haven’t completed.
If you have ever wanted to write your memoir, we here at WriteMyMemoirs are your biggest cheerleaders. It doesn’t matter whether this is a brand new goal for you or one you’ve tried to set in the past. It doesn’t matter whether you have written entire chapters or not yet one word. You can start this very day. Write one paragraph about who you are or what happened on a particular day in your life. Just put down something. Then write a little more tomorrow, or maybe just look over what you wrote today and sharpen it a little. If it’s perfect, even better! Reading it over will motivate you to add another paragraph. Keep that going and you’ll feel pretty great one year from now when you see your memoir all finished. But if you brush it aside, you know what will happen: A year from now you will wish you had started today.

Let’s start the year off with some platitudes. Here’s one, since today is not only the first day of 2013, but also: Today is the first day of the rest of your life. Hey, it’s true, right? What are you going to do with the rest of your life? Whatever it is, you might as well start today.

Here’s another one, reportedly said by inspirational author Karen Lamb: A year from now you will wish you had started today. As one year turns to another, we tend to tally up what we accomplished during the past year and which goals we never did achieve. We also set new goals for the coming year, or we refocus on goals we haven’t completed.

If you have ever wanted to write your memoir, we here at WriteMyMemoirs are your biggest cheerleaders. It doesn’t matter whether this is a brand new goal for you or one you’ve tried to set in the past. It doesn’t matter whether you have written entire chapters or not yet one word. You can start this very day. Write one paragraph about who you are or what happened on a particular day in your life. Just put down something. Then write a little more tomorrow, or maybe just look over what you wrote today and sharpen it a little. If it’s perfect, even better! Reading it over will motivate you to add another paragraph. Keep that going and you’ll feel pretty great one year from now when you see your memoir all finished. But if you brush it aside, you know what will happen: A year from now you will wish you had started today.

Boxing Day? How about “Memoirs Day”?

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Boxing Day? How about “Memoirs Day”?
If you ask us here at WriteMyMemoirs, we’d say that the day after Christmas is a perfect laid-back day to work on your memoir—or to start one if you haven’t yet. But for many of you in the English-speaking world, December 26 is always Boxing Day, so we thought we’d explain what that is for anyone who may not know.
The origin of Boxing Day is debatable. Some sources claim that food was boxed up to give to the poor, others have it as a day to box up bonuses for the working staff and still others trace it to the retail industry as the day inventory was taken and older items boxed away.
According to eHow.com, today the most common Boxing Day traditions are:
Attend a sporting event. In England, many pro sports matches take place today, and this is probably the most popular choice for a Boxing Day activity.
Tip your service people—the postman, newspaper delivery person, etc.—or bring a gift basket to a clerk in a store you frequent.
Be compassionate: donate canned goods, clothing or your time to organizations that help the needy.
Shop! Take advantage of the after-Christmas sales.
Get together with friends. You all must have leftover food you’d like to get rid of anyway, so share it!
It might not be included on any list of Boxing Day traditions, but writing your memoir is a great way to spend the day, too! Write a chapter on the holidays while they’re fresh in your mind.
http://www.ehow.com/how_11775_celebrate-boxing-day.html

If you ask us here at WriteMyMemoirs, we’d say that the day after Christmas is a perfect laid-back day to work on your memoir—or to start one if you haven’t yet. But for many of you in the English-speaking world, December 26 is always Boxing Day, so we thought we’d explain what that is for anyone who may not know.

The origin of Boxing Day is debatable. Some sources claim that food was boxed up to give to the poor, others have it as a day to box up bonuses for the working staff and still others trace it to the retail industry as the day inventory was taken and older items boxed away.

According to eHow.com, the most common modern Boxing Day traditions are:

  1. Attend a sporting event. In England, many pro sports matches take place today, and this is probably the most popular choice for a Boxing Day activity.
  2. Tip your service people—the postman, newspaper delivery person, etc.—or bring a gift basket to a clerk in a store you frequent.
  3. Be compassionate: donate canned goods, clothing or your time to organizations that help the needy.
  4. Shop! Take advantage of the after-Christmas sales.
  5. Get together with friends. You all must have leftover food you’d like to get rid of anyway, so share it!

It may not be included on any list of Boxing Day traditions, but writing your memoir is a great way to spend the day, too! Write a chapter on the holidays while they’re fresh in your mind.

Best Memoirs of 2012

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The votes are in! GoodReads.com asks people to vote for the books they’ve enjoyed most during the current year. In the memoirs/autobiography category, the memoir that landed on top—Wild by Cheryl Strayed—received 8,200+ votes, nearly double the number of votes as the runner-up. The memoir is summarized by GoodReads as “powerful, blazingly honest and inspiring…a 1,100 mile solo hike that broke down a young woman reeling from catastrophe—and built her back up again.”
Also receiving roughly 3,000 votes or more were:
Paris In Love, which author and professor Eloise James wrote to chronicle her relocation to, and subsequent love affair with, the City of Lights.
The End of Your Life Book Club, a recollection of the books and conversations author Will Schwalbe and his dying mother shared in the last two years of his mother’s life.
No Easy Day: The Firsthand Account of the Mission That Killed Osama Bin Laden, probably the most well-known memoir on the list. Written by Mark Owen and Kevin Maurer, it gives readers a view of Bin Laden’s demise through the eyes of a Navy Seal who was there.
Mrs. Kennedy and Me: An Intimate Memoir, written with Lisa McCubbin by Clint Hill, a Secret Service agent assigned to protect Jackie Kennedy throughout the JFK presidency.
Mortality, the memoir bestselling author Christopher Hitchens tackled upon learning that he would have limited time due to esophageal cancer.
Some Assembly Required: A Journal of My Son’s First Son, a sort of sequel to author Anne Lamott’s Operating Instructions, about how Lamott handled becoming a grandmother unexpectedly when her son was 19.

The votes are in! GoodReads.com asks people to vote for the books they’ve enjoyed most during the current year. In the memoirs/autobiography category, the memoir that landed on top—Wild by Cheryl Strayed—received 8,200+ votes, nearly double the number of votes as the runner-up. Wild is summarized by GoodReads as “powerful, blazingly honest and inspiring…a 1,100 mile solo hike that broke down a young woman reeling from catastrophe—and built her back up again.”

Also receiving roughly 3,000 votes or more were:

  • Paris In Love, which author and professor Eloise James wrote to chronicle her relocation to, and subsequent love affair with, the City of Lights.
  • The End of Your Life Book Club, a recollection of the books and conversations author Will Schwalbe and his dying mother shared in the last two years of his mother’s life.
  • No Easy Day: The Firsthand Account of the Mission That Killed Osama Bin Laden, probably the most well-known memoir on the list. Written by Mark Owen and Kevin Maurer, it gives readers a view of Bin Laden’s demise through the eyes of a Navy Seal who was there.
  • Mrs. Kennedy and Me: An Intimate Memoir, written with Lisa McCubbin by Clint Hill, a Secret Service agent assigned to protect Jackie Kennedy throughout the JFK presidency.
  • Mortality, the memoir bestselling author Christopher Hitchens tackled upon learning that he would have limited time due to esophageal cancer.
  • Some Assembly Required: A Journal of My Son’s First Son, a sort of sequel to author Anne Lamott’s Operating Instructions, about how Lamott handled becoming a grandmother unexpectedly when her son was 19.

12/12/12: Mystical Day to Start a Memoir

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While some believe that today’s date signifies the end of the world, many view a repetitive date like December 12, 2012—12/12/12—as good luck. Wednesday is not normally a popular day for weddings, but today you’ll be hearing wedding bells everywhere. As one bride explained, “I figured my husband would never forget our anniversary.”
I’m shamelessly jumping on the bandwagon to propose that 12/12/12 is the perfect day to begin writing a memoir. You’ll easily track how long it’s taking you, and you’ll begin a new year with a long-desired project already underway so there will be no need to put it on your resolutions list for a change. It’s so close to the holidays that—let’s be honest—you’re not getting much work done anyway. You might as well turn your energies toward outlining your memoir chapters or writing up your first anecdote.
One website that addresses this mystical date challenges us to begin something big on this day: “What new seed you plant, and in what soil, is now up to you. What seeds will you plant at the gateway to flourish on your new fertile soil as you walk into the threshold of your new world? Be in a place that you feel is, or will be, a gateway place for you on December 12. The gateway for you may be to face a fear, or it may be a place that encourages you to come into a new power. It may be a place that you feel you can reconcile and bring new truth to the past. Perhaps it is a place that needs transformation and you will go to aid in that for the location, and for your soul.” Sounds like the perfect day to sit down and start your memoir, doesn’t it?

While some believe that today’s date signifies the end of the world, many view a repetitive date like December 12, 2012—12/12/12—as good luck. Wednesday is not normally a popular day for weddings, but today you’ll be hearing wedding bells everywhere. As one bride explained, “I figured my husband would never forget our anniversary.”

I’m shamelessly jumping on the bandwagon to propose that 12/12/12 is the perfect day to begin writing a memoir. You’ll easily track how long it’s taking you, and you’ll begin a new year with a long-desired project already underway so there will be no need to put it on your resolutions list for a change. It’s so close to the holidays that—let’s be honest—you’re not getting much work done anyway. You might as well turn your energies toward outlining your memoir chapters or writing up your first anecdote.

One website that addresses this mystical date challenges us to begin something big on this day: “What new seed you plant, and in what soil, is now up to you. What seeds will you plant at the gateway to flourish on your new fertile soil as you walk into the threshold of your new world? Be in a place that you feel is, or will be, a gateway place for you on December 12. The gateway for you may be to face a fear, or it may be a place that encourages you to come into a new power. It may be a place that you feel you can reconcile and bring new truth to the past. Perhaps it is a place that needs transformation and you will go to aid in that for the location, and for your soul.” Sounds like the perfect day to sit down and start your memoir, doesn’t it?

Some Final Tasks Before You Write Your Memoir

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Some Final Tasks Before You Write Your Memoir
In this last of a series of blog posts suggesting you try some assignments detailed in a syllabus for a university-level memoir writing course, I recommend you follow the syllabus’s direction to read other people’s memoirs along with at least one biography. By reading about people’s lives—accounts both by the people themselves and by their biographers—you can learn a lot about structuring a life story, observe effective ways to write description and dialogue, identify interesting topics to pursue and determine how much detail to include in your own memoir.
After you’ve read other memoirs and you’ve completed the writing assignments outlined here in earlier blog posts, try writing what the syllabus calls “reflection papers.” The idea is to reflect upon one of the memoirs you’ve read or upon your own writing so far in the “class.”
The course’s final assignment is to put together a portfolio of your best writing for the class. This is not necessary, since you’re not actually taking the course. However, the portfolio is to be accompanied by a two- or three-page introduction addressing themes that surfaced in your writing, insights you’ve picked up about yourself, specific ways your writing improved and what you now “believe about a writer’s ability to truthfully convey his or her experiences through words.” I hope you’ve enjoyed taking this virtual college memoir writing course!

In this last of a series of blog posts suggesting you try some assignments detailed in a syllabus for a university-level memoir writing course, I recommend you follow the syllabus’s direction to read other people’s memoirs along with at least one biography. By reading about people’s lives—accounts both by the people themselves and by their biographers—you can learn a lot about structuring a life story, observe effective ways to write description and dialogue, identify interesting topics to pursue and determine how much detail to include in your own memoir.

After you’ve read other memoirs and you’ve completed the writing assignments outlined here in earlier blog posts, try writing what the syllabus calls “reflection papers.” The idea is to reflect upon one of the memoirs you’ve read or upon your own writing so far in the “class.”

The course’s final assignment is to put together a portfolio of your best writing for the class. This is not necessary, since you’re not actually taking the course. However, the portfolio is to be accompanied by a two- or three-page introduction addressing themes that surfaced in your writing, insights you’ve picked up about yourself, specific ways your writing improved and what you now “believe about a writer’s ability to truthfully convey his or her experiences through words.” I hope you’ve enjoyed taking this virtual college memoir writing course!

More Assignments to Prep for Writing Your Memoir

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More Assignments to Prep for Writing Your Memoir
Continuing with the syllabus we introduced in an earlier blog post for a college course in writing memoirs, we come to the next assignment—actually the next two assignments, since they both involve writing a biographical essay. These assignments will accomplish dual goals. First, they will give you practice in writing about someone else’s life before you attempt to write about your own. Second, you could very well end up including parts or all of these essays in your own memoir.
In both essays, you should choose someone you have known personally for a long time. The first essay will zoom in on the relationship you have with that person, who is likely to be a close relative or friend. Explain how your relationship has changed over time. You may find that you’re writing as much about yourself as about the subject of the essay, and that’s okay.
Select a different person for the second essay, which should more directly focus on the subject’s life. A grandparent is a great choice for this essay. Write 5-7 pages about the person as if you’re writing a classic biography. If the person is alive and accessible, you can interview him or her; you also can interview other people who have known the person. Through this exercise, you’ll discover that even a quiet life can make for interesting reading. It will help you to figure out what to write about yourself when you tackle your memoir.

Continuing with the syllabus we introduced in an earlier blog post for a college course in writing memoirs, we come to the next assignment—actually the next two assignments, since they both involve writing a biographical essay. These assignments will accomplish dual goals. First, they will give you practice in writing about someone else’s life before you attempt to write about your own. Second, you could very well end up including parts or all of these essays in your own memoir.

In both essays, you should choose someone you have known personally for a long time. The first essay will zoom in on the relationship you have with that person, who is likely to be a close relative or friend. Explain how your relationship has changed over time. You may find that you’re writing as much about yourself as about the subject of the essay, and that’s okay.

Select a different person for the second essay, which should more directly focus on the subject’s life. A grandparent is a great choice for this essay. Write 5-7 pages about the person as if you’re writing a classic biography. If the person is alive and accessible, you can interview him or her; you also can interview other people who have known the person. Through this exercise, you’ll discover that even a quiet life can make for interesting reading. It will help you to figure out what to write about yourself when you tackle your memoir.

Taking Your Memoir Journal to the Next Step

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Taking Your Memoir Journal to the Next Step
In our last blog post, we introduced an actual syllabus from a university’s memoir-writing course. The first assignment was to write a journal. After you’ve been writing one for a while, you can tackle the course’s next assignment: write three “autobiographical essays” based on memories you’ve documented in your journal.
The syllabus describes these essays as each capturing “a turning point, a memorable event [or] a moment that exemplifies your life in its totality.” The suggested length of each essay is a minimum of four to five pages but no maximum—write as much as you need in order to provide a full description. “Include vivid details that draw the reader into your experience,” the syllabus instructs, adding that you should “provide a sense of what the experience meant to you (although you should not write ‘this is what I learned’ conclusions).”
At Write My Memoirs, we advise doing this very same thing—although instead of limiting yourself to three essays, we recommend writing up as many of your experiences as you need to fill out your life story. You can build an entire memoir upon a series of episodes; in fact, that’s really what a memoir is. It’s an account of moments in your life, how you reacted and what happened as a result. So, instead of considering these as essays, you can regard them each as a chapter of your final memoir. There’s still more to come next time!

In our last Write My Memoirs blog post, we introduced an actual syllabus from a university’s memoir-writing course. The first assignment was to keep a journal. After you’ve been writing one for a while, you can tackle the course’s next assignment: write three “autobiographical essays” based on memories you’ve documented in your journal.

The syllabus describes these essays as each capturing “a turning point, a memorable event [or] a moment that exemplifies your life in its totality.” The suggested length of each essay is a minimum of four to five pages but no maximum—write as much as you need in order to provide a full description. “Include vivid details that draw the reader into your experience,” the syllabus instructs, adding that you should “provide a sense of what the experience meant to you (although you should not write ‘this is what I learned’ conclusions).”

At Write My Memoirs, we advise doing this very same thing—although instead of limiting yourself to three essays, we recommend writing up as many of your experiences as you need to fill out your life story. You can build an entire memoir upon a series of episodes; in fact, that’s really what a memoir is. It’s an account of moments in your life, how you reacted and what happened as a result. So, instead of considering these as essays, you can regard them each as a chapter of your final memoir. There’s still more to come next time!

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Then just set up a chapter and start writing your memoir. Don’t worry about rules. There are no rules to writing your memoir; there are only trends. These trends are based on techniques and features identified in current top-selling memoirs. At best, they’re the flavor of the month. If you’re capturing your life in print for your family, for your own gratification or to inspire readers, rather than aiming to set off Hollywood screenplay bidding wars, these trends don’t even apply to you. You’ll write the memoir that suits you best, and it will be timeless, not trend-driven.There are no rules, but there are four steps:

1. Theme/framework
2. Writing
3. Editing/polishing
4. Self-publishing

You’ve researched this, too, and you’ve been shocked at the price for getting help with any one of those steps, much less all four. That’s because most memoir sites promise to commercialize your work. They’ll follow a formula based on current memoir trends, because they want to convince you that they can turn your memoir into a best-seller. These sites overwhelm you with unnecessary information not to help you, the memoir author, but to address Search Engine Optimization (SEO) algorithms so they can sell more.

That’s not what we do at Write My Memoirs. Our small community of coaches, writers and editors are every bit as skilled as any you’ll find, and we charge appropriately for their expertise and the time they’ll spend helping you craft a compelling, enjoyable read. But you won’t pay an upcharge for other websites’ commercialization, the marketing that follows, and the pages of intimidating “advice.” You can sell your book if you like—we have ISBNs available for you—but our organic process of capturing your story takes a noncommercial path.

If you want help with any or all of the four steps above, choose from our services or save money by selecting one of our packages. If you’d like to talk about what’s right for you, schedule a call. One year from now, you can be holding your published memoir in your hand. And at that point, it will be a big deal!

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