by Memoir Mentor on January 25, 2011
The thought of sitting down at my computer and writing my entire life story from birth-to-now makes me want to take a nap. It’s not that I don’t think writing a personal history is important: You know I do. It’s my current raison d’être, after all. Nevertheless, I would NEVER counsel anyone to approach personal [...]
Tagged as:
Family History,
Henry David Thoreau,
life story,
life-story-writing,
memoir,
personal-history,
Phyllis Theroux,
The Journal Keeper,
writing tips
by Memoir Mentor on December 16, 2010
She walked into my class about eight years ago, Gene and her daughter, Mia. Gene was in her mid-eighties then, and she wanted to enroll in one of my memoir writing classes. “I think she belongs in your advanced class,” Mia said. “She’s pretty good.” Little did I know just how good. When she read [...]
Tagged as:
A Dream Before Dying,
As a Man Thinketh,
autobiography,
Beliefnet,
Family History,
feelings,
Gene Hensley,
Insights of the Day,
MaryLo Yetkee,
personal-history,
writing tips
by Memoir Mentor on November 18, 2010
I love having students from different cultures attend my classses. They tell such interesting stories about places and experiences I’ve only read about in general terms in school textbooks. My students’ stories are far more powerful and engaging, however, because they capture the individual experience in personal terms. The narrative that follows is one such example. Lillian Lejeune, a Belgian who [...]
Tagged as:
Belgiummand,
Family History,
Farciennes,
life-story-writing,
Lillian Lejeune,
memoir,
personal-history,
writing tips
