How To Write A Memoir, Part 1 lists a variety of methods for writing personal stories. Part 2 continues with revision and the business of writing. Take care of yourself Writing one’s life story can be difficult. While writing, take good care of yourself. Anytime you are feeling overwhelmed by this writing process, set your work aside. Take a break, get some fresh air, visit with a friend. Read helpful, supportive material such as Toxic Mom’s Toolkit. Organize When editing, save your “cuts” in separate files (either paper file folders or on computer files). You might be able to use these darlings in another personal essay. Use manila file folders to store print material: newspaper articles, photos, handwritten notes, letters, brochures, etc. Revising In the revising stage, delete what might cause embarrassment. Fine tune for accuracy. Shape like a gardener pruning a hydrangea. Take a few snips here, cut a…
How To Write A Memoir — Part One
Your Life. You lived it. Surely you can write about it. Right? In How To Write A Memoir, Part 1, we’ll discuss methods and ideas about writing personal stories, with links to published memoirs. How To Write A Memoir, Part 2, we’ll cover organizing, revising and more. You can write in chronological order, or build your story around pivotal events. In the beginning, it doesn’t matter what structure you use. Write in a style that is comfortable for you. Try one way and if isn’t working for you, try something else. Memoirs written in chronological order (with back story woven in): To Have Not by Frances Lefkowitz and Grief Denied by Pauline Laurent. Rachael Herron, A Life in Stitches, assembles her stories around her knitting experiences. For the first draft, it’s fine to jump around in time. Don’t worry too much about making sense in the early stage of writing….
Deep Doo Doo by Sheri Graves
Reviewed by Robin Moore Don’t be fooled by squawking geese. This is not a farm tale! Author Sheri Graves snagged this reader with her witty mystery Deep Doo Doo. It is one of those novels that is truly hard to put down. It moves along quickly and made me wonder what could possibly happen next to reporter Carrie McClelland. I highly recommend this novel! In fact, it has proven to be my favorite read this summer. Robin Moore has always enjoyed writing. After several years of working in elementary and middle schools, helping kids read and write, she is now able to devote her time to writing books for kids. She is editing novels she has written as part of the National Novel Writers Month organization. Reviewed by Christian Lane Bam. Fantastic. It’s pretty hard to read Deep Doo Doo in a month. It’s so catchy you’ll gobble it up…
Writer’s Digest Magazine Short-Short Story Contest
Have you been noodling around with a short short story idea? Maybe you have written a short short and would like to see it published. Your opportunity is here and now. Writer’s Digest 16th Annual Writer’s Digest Short Short Story Competition is waiting for your entry. Deadline: December 14, 2015 Word Count: 1,500 words or less You can do this! Strike while the iron is hot —but don’t use clichés in your writing, unless of course, your character talks in clichés. Hmmmm. . . there’s a story idea!
Alarm . . . Prompt #204
Today’s writing prompt: Alarm
What Is a Writer?
Guest Blogger Sheri Graves writes about the obsession with writing. The moment of clarity occurred when I was in a doctor’s office seeking help for carpal tunnel syndrome. The condition wasn’t getting better and my ability to use my hands was diminishing with each passing day on the job as a newspaper reporter. The physician examined my hands and arms for perhaps the 30th time, looked at me and asked, “Have you considered doing something else for a living?” “No,” I said. “Have you?” He went on to explain that his profession was a “calling” and he had to spend many years in higher education and training to get where he was. His assumption he was important and I was not hit me as narcissistic. I wanted to punch him in the throat but couldn’t make a fist. “Being a writer isn’t just what I do,” I scolded. “It’s what…
What challenged you as a . . . Prompt #203
Today’s writing prompt: What challenged you as a fifteen-year-old? When the prompt is a number or an age, you can adjust to whatever calls to you. For example, with this prompt you can write about what was challenging when you were thirteen, or fourteen, or sixteen. The exact age doesn’t matter. I chose fifteen because that is a pivotal year for some people. Marlene, Tonga Room, Fairmont Hotel, San Francisco, Junior Prom, 1965.
Writing is an exploration.
Quote by E. L. Doctorow “Writing is an exploration. You start from nothing and learn as you go.”
How to be a better writer
Many of us want to learn how to be better writers. The answer is very simple: WRITE. Write some more. Keep writing. It’s true! The more you write, the better writer you will become. Here are some things you can do to improve your writing. READ. Read whatever you like to read. Read the genre you are writing in. Read other genres. BE SPECIFIC. ’57 Bel Air Chevy, not car. Sycamore, not tree. Foxtrot, not dance. USE STRONG VERBS. Keep a list of strong verbs in your writer’s toolbox for easy reference. Resources for strong verbs Thesaurus in any format: Paper, on your computer, internet. Books: Vex, Hex, Smash, Smooch: Let Verbs Power Your Writing by Constance Hale. Strong Verbs Strong Voice by Ann Everett Websites: Tip Sheet Using Strong Verbs and Writing Tips: Use Active, Precise Verbs WRITING MAGAZINES often have article to improve writing: Writer’s Digest, The Writer,…
#Much Better #Thanks for Asking by Christian Lane
Reviewed by Sheri Graves. Christian Lane is a fine writer, a talented poet and an entertaining performance artist kind of like the morning-after remnants of yesteryear’s Beat Poetry folks. His latest book, #Much Better #Thanks for Asking, was published earlier this year and draws on a previous unofficial, handmade chapbook he wrote in 2000 called, I Stand Corrected. Reading Christian Lane’s work is a journey down the rabbit hole of his colorful mind. But his true, raw, naked musings are much better appreciated when his shadow-self crawls into a microphone while he delivers his poetry as performance. This he does frequently in various venues. #Much Better #Thanks for Asking is a book of poetry best read aloud, even when alone. The verse lends itself to the sounds of words as well as to their meanings. Don’t expect correct punctuation, proper sentences or standard structure. There are those who might call…