Magical Memoir Moments
An Interview on Learning To Write by Learning to Read
This week one of my own favorite bloggers, prize-winning Canadian novelist Dora Dueck, interviewed me on her blog about an issue central to my reason for starting this blog: to learn to write by reading better writers than myself. You will want to click the link above and explore her thoughtful blogs, but in the meantime,…
Memoir First Lines–A Contest for Readers of this Blog
Recently I had an inquiry from a writer who asked if I had a list of excellent first lines from memoirs. That sounded like something I should have. First words contain the vital “hook” that overcomes the reader’s resistance and skepticism. Think about how you challenge a book to speak to you when you gaze…
Another Short Memoir Query Letter Critique Video–And a Lovely Shout Out from Marla Miller
Marla Miller has been helping writers “market the muse” for a long time. Now she is sharing her knowledge of the publishing industry via YouTube, Twitter, and Facebook. Here’s a recent video featuring a memoir called Nadia. Imagine my surprise when I heard her mention 100memoirs.com in the introduction! Marla manages to offer some pointed…
Memoir Query Advice from Marla Miller: Subject Matter–Incest and Moms
A number of readers asked to see Marla Miller critique more query letters. So here she is again from her Youtube channel. You can also read her critique of another memoir at The Writer magazine online. If you have never browsed The Writer mag, you may want to do that also. It offers great advice…
Connecting Voice to Touch: What I Learned About Writing from Max DePree
“Find your own voice,” say the writing experts. Easy to say. Hard to do. In another post on voice, I described how helpful it was for me to try to visualize my voice as a farm. Today I am pondering the role of another of the senses–touch. How does one sense inform, enlarge, or restrict,…
Shall I Follow Jane's Friedman's Great Example? Or Just Let Jane Do It?
Jane Friedman has 22,679 Twitter followers, some of whom could more appropriately be called devotees. It’s worth getting a Twitter account just to follow her. You’ll soon see why she has built a rabid tribe. She’s smart, ahead of the rapidly evolving book industry curve, witty–and generous. One of the things I like most about…
How NOT to Write a Memoir: Susan Shapiro's Satirical Advice
Author and teacher Susan Shapiro outlines ten tips for how NOT to get your memoir published. The Writer Magazine is the source for this post.
First Lines: What are Your Favorites?
Beginnings matter. Writers and English professors love to exchange their favorite first lines: “Call me Ishmael,” or “Happy families are all alike; every unhappy family is unhappy in its own way.” A well-crafted first line in an essay or book not only intrigues or “hooks” the reader, it also points to the theme. I had a colleague who…
100Memoirs Celebrates One Year: So Much Change, So Much to Learn!
My first post to this blog took place August 9, 2008. It was a birthday present from my son Anthony, who has his own blog. Since then, there have been 118 other posts and 398 comments. Thank you, dear readers! I especially want to thank several other bloggers, GutsyWriter, Babsland, OKChelsea, for commenting frequently, both…
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