You’ve put in the tedious, time-consuming work and collected your memories. Now let’s consider the magic of writing your life story or memoir. What is important and what should you be on the lookout for?
APPROACH EACH CHAPTER AS A SHORT STORY
One approach is to write each chapter as a short story, that has intrinsic value as a complete piece of work.
The best short stories give a slice of life out of the main character’s (your) life. An incident perhaps, which carries more weight because it is part of the bigger picture, the whole. Do not involve too many characters in your storytelling and refrain from long and drawn-out descriptions.
Give just enough information to set the stage, and to trigger theatre in your reader’s mind.
CREATE TROUBLE IN PARADISE
Your main character (in the case of a life story or memoir, you), should be taken out of a comfort zone and plunged into conflict, as soon as possible. The conflict can be physical or emotional: an accident, a life-threatening emergency, an agonising decision, heartbreak, or loss. The point here is that your reader understands something is going to happen. You are now creating suspense and a sense of anticipation. Of course, your main character is not going to succeed or conquer immediately. Everything he or she does, is looking quite hopeless.
But ultimately you want your character to learn out of his or her failings.
ACTION AND CONFLICT
Action and conflict are your go-to partners when you write. Create a confrontation that looks small on the surface, or at a first glance, but has much deeper meaning and effect. This will be something that pushes your main character even further out of his or her comfort zone.
ENGAGE YOUR READER
Keep your reader interested and alert. You want your reader to be fascinated, curious and unable to put down your book. This won’t happen if your main character/you are a top achiever who easily overcomes each and every obstacle in his or her way. To maintain tension levels, your character must fail repeatedly. Or, if he/she succeeds immediately, there should be consequences lurking in the background that could potentially have a significant effect.
It is important to consider the conflict your character is going to experience. What does your character want to do/achieve and what/who is standing in his/her way? It is imperative that this challenge should be of great importance to your character. Your reader will empathise and be involved in the trials and tribulations.
“Writing does not only illuminate; it can also heal writer and reader by connecting them,” writes Margie Orford in Love and Fury: A Memoir.
STRIP AWAY AS MUCH FLUFF AS POSSIBLE
Strip away any words that do not directly contribute to what you want to say. Anything unnecessary is superfluous and should be discarded. Familiarise yourself with cliches in everyday speech and clean your manuscript of those.
Words are endlessly interesting. Experiment with metaphor and simile, with interesting and unusual adjectives, with nouns being used as verbs. In short, develop a love for words and the endless possibilities they conceal.
Make your writing as tight and efficient as possible.
AND WHEN YOU HAVE A FIRST DRAFT
When you have a first draft, or primordial text, the next stage of your writing happens.
Start by going through your manuscript with a fine tooth. Be on the lookout of ways in which your reader will stay engaged – whether it be sensory or emotional.
All writing is rewriting. Do not despair and do not skip this part – the attention to detail during this stage will ensure an excellent product.
CONSIDER YOUR ENDING
A good book will have a satisfying ending. It will show the character/you have encountered various obstacles and seemingly impossible events, but there is a conclusion. The character doesn’t necessarily have to emerge heroically – but there should be a progression and conclusion of sorts.
THE MAGIC OF WRITING YOUR LIFE STORY
As an author coach, I am always available to assist you with the various stages of your writing.