Make Your Memoir Worthwhile

If you are writing a memoir or autobiography for yourself or your family, you may have asked yourself if it will be worth your time. Here are a few tips on how to make your memoir worthwhile.

• Make sure you identify your objectives and your intended audience before you start. Click here to download our FREE Define Your Life Stories Project Worksheets.
• If you’re writing it for your family, consider asking those most important to you if there are any parts of your life or your family history about which they would like to know more or would like to have recorded.
• Think about the questions you’ve been asked and the types of stories people love to hear you tell. It’s important to record these stories even if you think everyone has already heard them.
• Fully explore your topic, rather than staying on the surface. Sometimes it takes courage to do this, but whether writing for yourself or others, it’s where the gold is found.
• Keep each story or chapter focused. It’s easy to follow tangents here, there, and everywhere, but you want to make sure your story stays interesting and on track.
• Unless your audience is prone to want to know every detail about everything, try to consider what is really important and/or really interesting. Focus on those stories rather than recording all the little details of your life.
• When you’re telling a funny story, try to make your reader laugh. If a story has drama, build the intensity.
• If you don’t feel that you are a good storyteller, get help from a friend who is or hire a professional.
• Join a writing group in your area to get honest feedback before you get too far along in the project.
• Take a memoir writing class*.

Chances are that if you’re thinking about writing your memoir or autobiography, there’s a good reason to do it. In the beginning, outline your objectives and get started in whatever way is comfortable. You might just write a story that comes to mind or you may want to create an outline. Perhaps using our memory prompts workbook or the Write Your Life Stories in 30 Days workbook will get you moving. Once you get into it just a bit, you will start to have a better feel for what can help make your memoir worthwhile!

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