You don't have to be a professional writer to write a memoir. "It's amazing what people will produce," says Cornwall. Here are some tips to help.
1. Make time. Considering the biggest challenge for many is finding the time, you may need to shoehorn regular writing time into your schedule. Elaine, a speech-language pathologist, has stepped up her writing for the summer months, while she's off work. She also writes when her daughter is in bed, or is sleeping over with grandparents.
2. Size doesn't matter. Roberta Buchanan, who facilitates a memoir group for the Memorial University of Newfoundland Pensioners Association in St. John's, says success can be found in writing shorter pieces that hone in on specific experiences. "Three or four pages are much easier to do," she points out. "To labour on a book it takes a lot of concentration and years of work."
3. Look for resources. There are a number of current how-to books and blogs (see "Helpful Resources," below) to get you started. Taking workshops or joining groups that meet weekly or monthly can also be a terrific motivator, says Buchanan. "It gives you a deadline to work for. It gives you that impetus to write something."
4. Start your own club and get feedback. If you can't find a memoir-writing group in your city, with a little outreach, you can start your own. There may be others in your area who are interested, and even if your group has no teacher or leader, there will be a ready audience for your stories. Readers, especially if they're not family, can give you valuable feedback, such as identifying confusing or unclear passages.
It's also gratifying to witness the emotional effect your pieces can have on others. "That's actually quite encouraging to a writer," says Buchanan. When members of her group circulate their stories, they often end up inspiring one another to write more.
5. Think about privacy. Some family secrets and scandals may not be meant for public consumption. "Even if you're writing for the family, sometimes there are things that one member of the family doesn't want somebody else to know," says Cornwall. You should ask permission before including personal letters, diaries or even photos. Whether you're hoping to top a bestseller list or just planning to leave a few notebooks for your kids, memoir writing can be exceedingly rewarding. As for Erin MacNair, she'd eventually like to publish her memoirs. "To know that you may touch someone deeply, make them feel connected to the world, is powerful and fulfilling."
Helpful resources:
Stephen King's book On Writing (Simon and Schuster, 2000) guides you through his personal memoir and acts as a textbook on penning your own.
The online writers' support group www.writers.meetup.com will point you to a group in your area, operating anywhere in Canada. Writers meet once a month with people in the industry as well as other local writers. There is no fee and sessions are ongoing.
Download a copy of Canadian author Cori Howard's e-book The Momoir Workbook at her website, www.themomoirproject.com. Howard also runs online classes.
How to find a workshop near you
The best way to get involved in a memoir-writing course is to contact community colleges, universities or writers' groups in your area. You can find out more about local groups by browsing through newspapers, and visiting your local library and bookstores. Courses and workshops range from a couple of days to 15 weeks, and are priced anywhere from $75 to $500. Here are a few examples.
• Humber College's Lakeshore campus in Toronto offers an introduction to memoir writing that runs once a week for 15 weeks. www.humber.ca
• The Quebec Writers' Foundation holds eight-week-long courses and one-day Saturday workshops. www.qwf.org/workshops
• Brian Brett, a Canadian journalist and former chair of the Writers' Union of Canada, holds five-day Write for Your Life workshops at the Metchosin International Summer School of the Arts in Victoria. www.missa.ca/writing.htm
| This story was originally titled "The Story of Your Life" in the August 2009 issue. Subscribe to Canadian Living today and never miss an issue! |
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