Most of us write memoirs to document a time or event in our lives. We choose that time or event because it was important to us. But...

When writing memoir we start out intending to write about a time, a place, an incident, a person. As we write, our memories start to...

Most of us like variety in our fiction reading. I can read Cold Comfort Farm one week, then read Proust, then read Lessing. I used to...

Back in grade school I dreaded show and tell. I never had anything interesting to show or tell except my pet turtle, Herman. And they...

When I started writing fiction I was lost. Where/how to start? So many ideas! Snippets of dialogue spinning around in my head. ...

1. "I remember(ed)" – We know you are remembering. That’s what a memoir is. 2. "I don’t remember..." If you don’t, we sure don’t. Tell...

Inevitably in memoir workshops people worry about what their family and friends will think or say about their work. It's not only that we...

Okay, that is admittedly a snide title. Of course you create the plot! But here's what this really means: finding a plot/story that...

In my book groups I have often heard readers complain that they could not “relate” to the protagonist. The first time I heard it I was...

1. Memoir is not autobiography. You do not “start” at the beginning. Memoir is a “slice of life.” 2. Write about any time or...

My tales of woe, or, what I have been told: 1. From Gordon Lish, the once (in)famous editor of "The Quarterly." "YOU COULD BE A WRITER IF...

"The process is the prize when it comes to creative writing. Try to enjoy it." The list below is for all of us who wanted to write but...