Writing Memoirs
The rough draft of the chapter A Tornado of Chickens is now finished. Actual news coverage of the event would flesh this story out, so I’ll put the story into the unfinished folder. It requires more research. This is the pattern I follow while writing memoirs, but it wasn’t always this way.
Memoirs Help Perfectionists
My nature is that of a perfectionist. I began writing my life story by telling all the details from the beginning. Like many other gigantic projects, I stopped writing after a few pages. Then I discovered the art of writing memoirs. They are a popular way to capture autobiographical material, and they don’t require a closed circuit of complete information.
Angles of Memoirs
Memoirs take an abundance of angles. One angle of writing memoirs is to write about one chunk of life, for example, childhood. Another option is to use a theme such as funny things my kids say or how I manage raising twelve kids. I could be diabolical and write the thoughts that come to mind when people ask what it is like to raise twelve kids. Another angle is sharing my experience in homeschooling to teach others how to homeschool. My head still spins with all the possibilities.
Balancing Focus
One of those memoir choices became my first book. This memoir is the chunk of my life, of raising my kids. I narrowed this further to stories of faith while raising my kids. This was necessary because my life is multifaceted. Limiting my book to one facet gave the book focus.
Interest Breathes Life
Focus is one thing, and interest is another. I read biographical material and historical fiction regularly. Some of these books tell the facts but are dead. Their lack of life makes me feel uninvolved or not edified. It is sad when the facts make a great story, but the author kills it. I am determined to do better when writing my books. Every story/ chapter needs life. Therefore, I start each chapter a different way, but all the chapters involve a serious hook to pull the reader into a constantly engaging story. I enjoy reading a good book but am in a state of ecstasy when writing the climaxes of a story. Writing is more fun than reading!