Write your memoir: the power of storytelling

Either I start writing again, or I die. A dramatic statement, for sure. But when you are at a crossroads, you must come to a decision, even if it seems dramatic, messy or senseless to others. The decision was simple: if I cannot write books anymore, I can share everything that I know of words with aspiring writers.

WHAT DOES IT MEAN TO FEEL ALIVE?

Many things happened the past couple of years. Life happened and it was so painful that I avoided thinking about or speaking about it. Our mother and father passed away eight months from each other, during the covid pandemic. The world as I knew it, no longer existed. I breathed and functioned, but I was no longer alive.

Aliveness is when that fire burns inside of you. Almost like the heat of more than 5000 degrees Celsius at the core of the earth. I remembered how aliveness felt – and I wanted to be a fiery and watery piece of stardust again. I wanted to be able to keep it together most of the time, like the earth does for us.

THE WEEKLY BLOG IN KOORSBOOMSTORIES

In August 2023 I committed to writing a weekly blog for a year about the one thing I could understand: how to write and put your experiences on paper. A friend designed a website for me.

The first few posts took forever to write. It was rough going. I had an anxiety attack, probably due to stage fright. Even though it was a minute stage in a vast theatre of social media posts. I was petrified.

Over time, something quite remarkable happened.

Then something in my chest expanded. Then my arms could loosen up and swing comfortably when I walked. Then my nose got attuned to smells again, my eyes to the details in small things.

TIME AND DISTANCE GIVE PERSPECTIVE

I became aware of the world outside. The linking of random experiences, the lightbulb moments, the extraordinary in an everyday day. The incubation centre at the back of our heads, the place where we process information to transform it into meaningful words, yawned and stretched.

I found my worn copy of Jack Kerouac’s On the Road. “The only people for me are the mad ones, the ones who are mad to live, mad to talk, mad to be saved, desirous of everything at the same time, the ones who never yawn or say a commonplace thing, but burn, burn, burn, like fabulous yellow roman candles exploding like spiders across the stars…”

A FRIEND CALLED AND ASKED ME…

A friend called and asked me if she could transform my poetry into art songs. This small gesture reminded me that poetry had always been my first love. And still is my favourite medium in which to express myself.

The first versions came in and I was mesmerised by her compositions. Hearing her voice interpreting my words in music, brought them to life. Words, images and emotions came flooding back. Three years after my mom has passed away, I have still not dealt with her death. But now the time was right.

And I finally understood what it all meant.

Healing is possible, and it is even more possible to share it with others in a multi-faceted way. Collaboration with musical genius Marlien Barnard, and visual artist Annie Kruyer, paved the way for expressing myself in poetry again. I am feeling so proud of our process and product.

WRITE YOUR MEMOIR: THE POWER OF STORYTELLING

The message is this: if there is no hope, if you do not know in which direction to turn to – there are always words, and your ability to make your story. Build it, craft it, shape it, and eventually see it in print. As an author coach, I can help you with your writing journey.