Several years ago, I trained for my first marathon. I wasn’t a runner when I signed up for my first race, so I spent months following a training plan to literally get me up to speed.

I hated that plan. I hated the daily runs. I would curse under my breath at the start of every training run. But the...

Last year I was working on a memoir project with a client. Every couple of weeks we’d meet to discuss various aspects of their life related to the story they wanted to tell. I’d record our sessions and have them transcribed so we could assemble all the pieces of their life into one full narrative. E...

The hardest part about writing a memoir is getting your first draft done. I know this because I spent about five years tinkering with my first draft. You start with energy and good intentions. You commit to writing every day. But as time goes on, you start to lose focus. What was I trying to write a...

Writing a memoir is hard work, especially if you're struggling to remember some of the most pivotal moments in your life. If you’re having a hard time accessing key memories and sensory details of past events, writing prompts can help unlock the past and deepen your memoir writing.

What Are Writing...

I took a beginning drawing class at a local art store at the start of the year. I love the idea of being able to sketch simple scenes, and I’m a sucker for a fresh set of pencils. Our instructor taught us to create a value scale (a set of squares filled in with each of our pencils to show the variou...

I was sitting at a picnic table, eating food cart pierogies, minding my own business. I wasn’t even thinking about my memoir. Suddenly, a thought intruded out of nowhere: What if people don’t think the trauma I write about in my memoir is that big of a deal?

I put my fork down. That’s it—the thing ...

Embarking on the journey of writing your memoir is a courageous and deeply personal endeavor. As we step into the new year, it's the perfect time to reflect on your experiences and commit to putting pen to paper. Setting specific and achievable writing goals will not only keep you on track but also ...

I never planned to write a memoir. Even though I had spent a good part of my career ghostwriting and editing other people’s stories, it never occurred to me that I might one day want to tell my own. I convinced myself that others' experiences were much more harrowing than anything that had ever happ...

Every November I host a 30-day Memoir Writing Challenge (National Memoir Writing Month—NaMeWriMo) modeled after the longstanding National Novel Writing Month (NaNoWriMo). My challenge doesn’t mandate writing 50,000 words as the crowning achievement of the challenge. Instead, I encourage each partici...

One mistake I consistently see memoir writers make is being guarded in their first draft. Likely, they're following the commonly accepted advice to "write from your scars, not your wounds." Instead of telling their story unfiltered, they get in their heads and clean up their thoughts. 

What would A...

The first time I wrote a memoir, my editor suggested I add more elements of fiction to it. While I had done a good job capturing the facts, it lacked vivid descriptions to draw readers into each scene, and it needed high-stakes conflict to propel the story forward.

Incorporating literary techniques...

Writing a memoir is a deeply personal and often cathartic experience. It's an opportunity to share your unique story with the world, to explore your past, and to connect with readers on a profound level. However, before you embark on this meaningful journey, there are several key choices you must ma...