I’ve been asked many times how to start writing a memoir. It’s important to know what point you are trying to make. For example, do you have a success story with trials and tribulations? Or had someone been lost and then found? You get the idea. There are many ways to spin your story, you just have to decide what story you want to tell.
Here are some steps to help you get started:
Choose Your Theme: Decide on the central theme or focus of your memoir. What aspect of your life do you want to explore? Is it a specific period, a personal transformation, or a significant event?
List Associated Memories: Make a list of memories related to your chosen theme. These could be pivotal moments, emotions, or experiences that resonate with your overall story.
Add Others’ Related Memories: Consider how other people’s memories intersect with yours. Family members, friends, or colleagues might have insights or shared experiences that enrich your memoir.
Write Truthfully: Honesty is crucial in memoir writing. Share your authentic feelings, thoughts, and experiences. Remember, it’s your perspective, not an objective account.
Show, Don’t Tell: Instead of merely stating facts, show vivid scenes and emotions. Use sensory details to immerse readers in your world.
Vulnerability: Be willing to reveal your vulnerabilities. Readers connect with authenticity and relatable struggles.
Make Connections: Weave connections between different stories or memories. Show how they relate to your central theme.
Reflect on Impact: Consider how these memories have shaped your life today. What lessons have you learned? How have you grown?
Remember, writing a memoir is a journey of self-discovery. Take your time, reflect, and enjoy the process!
Are you ready to tell family and friends your life story? It can be a little overwhelming if you don’t know where to begin. Don’t worry, I’ve included a few tips to help you get started.
An autobiography is the story of your life, written by you. It covers the full span of your life, hitting on the most significant moments, people, and events. Here’s how to write one:
Create a Timeline: Make a timeline of your most important life events that you want to include in your autobiography.
Identify Key Characters: Consider family members, friends, mentors, and other significant people in your life.
Gather Materials: Collect photos, videos, letters, and notes related to these experiences.
Use an Outline: Organize your autobiography using an outline or template.
Focus on Emotional Moments: Highlight high-emotional moments, big events, and life lessons.
Remember, an autobiography is an intimate account of your life, so choose what matters most to you!
For some beginner writers understanding the difference between writing a memoir or an autobiography can be a bit confusing. Below are a few tips to help you decide what you want to do and how to get started.
Memoir:
Subject: Focuses on a specific period, theme, or set of related occurrences in the author’s life.
Emphasis: Prioritizes emotional truth and personal experience over factual accuracy.
Structure: Flexible; can use flashbacks, thematic organization, or chronological order.
Examples: A Heartbreaking Work of Staggering Genius by Dave Eggers, The Liars’ Club by Mary Karr.
Autobiography:
Subject: Covers the author’s entire life, from beginning to end.
Emphasis: Emphasizes facts, chronology, and objective accuracy.
Structure: Typically chronological and formal.
Examples: The Autobiography of Benjamin Franklin, The Story of My Life by Helen Keller.
In summary, memoirs delve into specific moments, emotions, and themes, while autobiographies provide a comprehensive account of an entire life. Choose based on whether you prioritize emotions or facts in your storytelling!
When I first thought about writing a book, I wanted to be sure to hold on to the idea of writing my story. I wanted to tell a story that did not mimic a favorite author. Everyone wants to be the next J.K. Rowling. I never wanted to create another Harry Potter series. I wanted to create my series with my ideal characters and I did. My first book in the HOWL series is Beast and it is available now! I am thrilled and nervous at the same time. I’ve already started working on the second book of the series.
Just be mindful that writing a book can be a rewarding and fulfilling experience, but it can also be daunting and overwhelming. This simple checklist of five tips will help you get started on your book project and are just the basics for thinking about what you want to write:
Find your inspiration. What kind of book do you want to write? What is the main idea or message you want to convey? Who is your target audience? What books inspire you or are similar to what you want to write? These questions can help you generate a concept that works for you and your readers.
Create an outline. An outline is a roadmap that guides you through the writing process. It helps you organize your thoughts, structure your plot, develop your characters, and plan your scenes. You can make your outline as detailed or as loose as you want, depending on your preference and confidence level. Visit some posts I’ve created to help with an outline.
Set a schedule and a deadline. Writing a book requires discipline and commitment. You need to set a realistic and achievable goal for yourself, such as writing a certain number of words or pages per day or week. You also need to set a deadline for when you want to finish your first draft and stick to it. Having a schedule and a deadline can help you stay motivated and focused and avoid procrastination.
Write your first draft. The first draft is where you put your ideas into words. Don’t worry about perfection, grammar, spelling, or style. Just write what comes to your mind and let your creativity flow. You can always edit and revise later. The most important thing is to get your story out of your head and onto the page. I’ve created a few posts that will help with your first draft.
Get feedback and revise. Once you have your first draft, you need to get feedback from others, such as beta readers, critique partners, editors, or mentors. Feedback can help you identify the strengths and weaknesses of your book and give you suggestions on how to improve it. Be open to constructive criticism and use it to revise and polish your book until you are satisfied with it.
These are just a few tips on how to start to write your book, but there are many more resources and advice available online. Be careful that the sites you visit are trustworthy. You can check out some of the posts I’ve shared on finding the right podcasts to help with writing. I hope this helps you get started on your book project. Good luck and happy writing!
Introducing first-time author and illustrator Shayna Leib, who is sharing her writing journey about Finding Figgins. This whimsical story is imaginative, and the illustrations are colorful and full of hidden gems. Shayna is also a multi-media artist who has worked in glass, metal, and ceramics for 30 years. Be sure to watch her video and visit her website. The links are below after the interview.
The Neophyte Writer – Author Exposed Interview:
TNW: How long have you been writing?
SL: I’ve been writing creatively since high school, and my degree in Philosophy and minor in Literature had me immersed in it as well.
TNW: Have you always written for children?
SL: No, this is my first endeavor for children!
TNW: How long have you been illustrating?
SL: I started out drawing at a very young age and continued with more serious studies in high school and undergrad before branching off into glass and ceramics for my MFA graduate work. I’ve had a professional career as a sculptor for over 20 years, and I recently came back to drawing and painting. Finding Figgins is an extension of some colored drawing exercises I did in my 20’s, laying the foundation for the book, which I picked up around 25 years later and finished.
TNW: How difficult was it for you to write and illustrate your book?
SL: The illustrations posed more challenges than the writing ironically, despite having a lengthy career as an artist. I would not consider myself an illustrator, because my strengths in drawing are more photo-realistic in nature rather than illustrative or cartoon-like. Having to pull images from my imagination and work out how light and shadow would fall on a scene was really challenging. My book emphasizes the softness of an environment, and light plays such a huge role in the book’s illustrations.
I have one illustration in the book where Julian is looking under the bed for Figgins. I staged the scene with car models, photographed it, and then rendered it in colored pencil. It has a feel to it which is a bit different, owing to the natural lean I have towards photo-realism. That was the easiest illustration because I had something to go on, while all the others took more planning and trial and error.
TNW: What drives and motivates your writing?
I wanted to talk about a topic that many of us experience in our lives and that is fading friendship and having one’s love taken for granted. It was a story that was very personal to me after the loss of a dear friend. It’s a universal human experience and it can start when we’re young. I wanted to show how Figgins coped with that loss through his hobbies, meeting new friends, and sharing his love of poetry, flying, and storytelling with others. On the surface, it reads as a very simple, adventurous, and cute story, but the deeper message is one of transforming difficult feelings into something richer. As adults, we don’t often get the happy ending that Julian and Figgins did.
TNW: Who are some of your favorite authors and why?
Most of my favorite authors harken back to my studies of Literature and philosophy in some way. I enjoy the somewhat heavier authors, Dostoyevsky, Sartre, Orwell, and the writing of Milan Kundera, and T. S. Eliot. I’m also a fan of sci-fi and fantasy. In terms of children’s books, I gravitate towards beautifully illustrated books such as those illustrated by Chris Van Allsburg, Aaron Becker, and I most recently discovered the work of Akiko Miyakoshi. I also absolutely adore the book “No, David!” since the word “no” seemed to be all I heard growing up.
TNW: What is your next project?
SL: I introduced a dynamic duo at the end of Finding Figgins called Beeks and Poody and I’m eager to tell their story!
Thank you so much Shayna for sharing your story. You can learn more about Shayna and her new picture book Finding Figgins at Kristi’s Book Nook.
Shayna Leib is a multi-media artist who has worked in glass, metal, and ceramic for 30 years. Her work has traveled the globe from the Middle East to Europe and America and is found in numerous museums, public venues, and worldwide private collections. Having taught glassblowing, sculpture, and drawing at the University of Wisconsin-Madison and Cal Poly University, she is returning to her 2-dimensional roots with her first book, Finding Figgins which celebrates her affection for the magical, colorful, and feline.
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The Neophyte Writer 