About To Write a Memoir? Here Are 11 Tips To Help You Out!

If you've always wanted to write a book but haven't been able to get started or figure out what to write, consider writing a memoir. Why? Because a memoir needs a personal touch while you can hire someone to write an ebook. A good memoir helps us understand and connect with other people and offers us new perspectives on our own lives. And it can be fun! Here's how to write a good one:

1.     Decide If You Want to Write Your Memoir

Whether you’re a professional writer or just someone who enjoys writing as a hobby, writing your memoir is an excellent way to improve your skills while getting the most out of an experience that was important to you. If you have any doubts about the value of writing a memoir, here are five reasons why it's worth doing:

●       Writing your story will help you put things in perspective.

●       It will give significance to even seemingly insignificant moments in your life.

●       It will give you greater insight into other people's lives as well as yours—and how they may be connected or different from one another (or both).

●       You can share what has been meaningful to other people with similar interests and backgrounds, which can create connections across geographical boundaries and cultural differences; this kind of sharing makes us all more aware of each other's lives and experiences without having met face-to-face before.

 

2.     Identify What Kind Of Memoir You Want To Write

A memoir can be many different things. You might want to write about your own life and experiences, or you may want to write about someone else's life and experiences. You might want to write about your thoughts, or you might prefer writing about feelings. Perhaps you are interested in sharing stories about your family or friends, or maybe something else entirely is on your mind—maybe work? Maybe hobbies? The possibilities are endless!

3.     Consider An Angle Or A Theme

The angle and theme of your memoir are what will make it unique. The angle is the way you will say what you want to say to the reader, while the theme is what you have to say in the first place.

Think about why you are writing this memoir and what makes it special for you. Do some research on how other people have approached similar projects and see if any interesting ideas could be applied to your work.

To help get started with finding an angle or theme for your story, ask yourself these questions:

Why would anyone want to read this? What do I want my readers to learn from reading my stories? What sets them apart from other memoirs out there? How can I make sure that people know that this story is not just another boring tale of someone’s life but something truly special and memorable—full of twists, turns, drama, laughter, tears…or all of those things put together!

Who am I writing this book for? Who do I hope will read it someday (other than myself)? Why should they care about my life experiences as much as they care about their own lives right now—right here where they sit reading these words right now! What am I going tell them that might help them understand themselves better or change their perspective on something important in their life right now like relationships between family members--may be even within families where we live together day after day after day without ever really knowing anything at all about each other until one day…something happens...or doesn't happen…

4.     Choose The Right Format For Your Memoir

The first step in writing a memoir is choosing the right format for your story. There are three common formats:

●       Memoir: A memoir tells a story about a specific time in your life, as opposed to an autobiography or biography, which tells stories of your entire life.

●       Autobiography: An autobiography is like a memoir but longer, and it begins at birth and ends with death (or another event).

●       Biography: A biography describes events from someone's life who has died or become too old to recount their own experiences.

A good way to decide on a format is by looking at what you want to accomplish with the book. Do you want to tell people about what was happening when you were in high school? If so, then maybe consider using timelines! Or maybe you'd prefer just writing about one particular moment that happened between two friends during those four years—that could fit into either category depending on how much space you have available for each chapter or section of text where this might happen (you could have several different sections if each friend had something important going on at any given time).

5.     Find A Way To Structure Your Story

●       Consider the chronology of your story. This is your primary narrative thread, a chronological telling of events as they occurred to you. Your memoir may also include other types of frames, but the chronology will always be there as well.

●       Consider the order of events. If you're writing a single-narrative memoir (meaning there's only one character), then it might make sense to have this person narrate the story in strict chronological order. But maybe it doesn't! Maybe some moments need more description than others; maybe some parts seem irrelevant and should be skipped over altogether. Whatever feels right for your voice, consider experimenting with other ways to tell your tale beyond strict chronology if it will enrich readers' understanding and enjoyment of what happened and why it mattered so much at the time—or why it mattered less than we thought back then but more now when looking back through mature eyes on those experiences we once found painful or confusing or hard to understand at all!

 

6.     Write-In Scenes, Not Summaries

You should also write your story in scenes, not just a series of summaries. That way, you'll be writing the scenes that make up your memoir as if you were acting them out on stage. It's more engaging for readers and it sticks better in their minds.

7.     Be Honest, Vulnerable, and Authentic

Writing a memoir is about being honest, vulnerable, and authentic.

In other words, it's not easy to do this well. You have to be willing to make yourself uncomfortable to get there.

Because what makes you uncomfortable? That's where you start digging for the truth of your story...and that's where the magic happens!

8.     Use Concrete Details To Bring Your Story To Life

Concrete details are what bring your story to life. They can be specific, sensory, or visual—anything that helps readers see the story in their mind's eye. Concrete details help readers feel connected to the story and remember it because they're able to picture it vividly (whether it's a memory you're writing about or not).

9.     Learn How To Write Dialogue That Sounds Real (But Isn't)

You’re writing dialogue and you want it to sound real, but not too natural—after all, dialogue is supposed to be written. How do you get the right balance?

Here are some tips that will help:

Write what you hear, not what you think. When writing dialogue, don’t think in terms of “he said” or “she said.” What we hear when people talk is often much more interesting than what we think we would say ourselves! So instead of writing something generic like this:

"I've been waiting for hours," he shouted angrily. She crossed her arms over her chest and glared at him angrily.  Write: "Well maybe if you hadn't been so late..." she muttered under her breath as she stormed out of the room and slammed the door behind her.

10. Build Momentum By Writing Every Day

Write every day. The more you write, the better you'll get at writing. Not only that, but it's easier to stay motivated when you're writing regularly. So find a time of day where you can dedicate an hour or two to writing each day and plan your schedule around it.

Find a place where no one will bother you and make sure to avoid distractions (like email). Keep in mind that some things will distract us no matter who we are. Phone calls, texts from friends and family members, and even our thoughts. But if we have an idea or thought that keeps nagging at us while we're trying to work on our project—and this will happen—try not to get distracted by it right away; instead jot down what came into your head so that later on when the time comes for editing or revision, those ideas can be used productively rather than ignored altogether!

11. Writing a Good Memoir Takes Time and Dedication. But It's Worth It!

Writing a good memoir takes time and dedication. But it's worth it! It can take up to five years to write a memoir if you're doing it right. For example, writing your story by hand is not recommended. Because you need to be able to organize your thoughts as they come to you. And then go back over them later when they've settled into your memory. If all this sounds like too much work for you, keep in mind that publishing companies are looking for authors. Ones who have the writing skills needed to produce quality content that people want to read.

You may also have difficulty finding an agent or publisher willing or able (due to financial constraints)to represent/publish your book due to its niche appeal (i.e., only cat lovers would buy such a book).

Even if someone does agree with our pitch and decides to publish us. However, there's still no guarantee that anyone will buy our book. That's why most authors rely on Amazon reviews from friends & family members during the early stages of marketing their work online. Before reaching out directly through social media channels like Facebook groups.

Conclusion:

Memoirs can be fun to write, touch readers' lives and help you process your past. However, they require a lot of work and should only be written by those who are willing to put in the time. If you're not sure what kind of memoir is right for you or how to write one, this blog post will provide some helpful information about the genre.