MEMOIRS ARE HOT

By Sharon May

Memoirs are hot as evidenced in the number being published. How to write one is an even hotter topic in writing communities as evidenced by the number of seminars, classes, and conference sessions offered to help us all cash in. I’m sure all of the presenters have excellent advice to offer, and for some of us, interaction with other writers motivates us to continue writing as well as improve what we have written.

But too often presenters or instructors, and their audiences, want to talk in “rules” or “steps” as if writing a memoir can be a simple task if we just do what is suggested. Now, a would-be memoir writer can buy a template online. The promises of fill-in-the-blank memoirs reminds me of textbooks designed for developmental or remedial composition students in which students would find lines labeled with each part of the essay designating the exact order of the ideas. The students loved them, but they don’t lead to creativity or individuality.

The rules are selected arbitrarily depending on what worked for the presenter. Yes, another writer might find something useful in the rules, but I’d bet an Alaskan goldmine that those rules will not work for every aspect of your writing task.

One rule I heard recently was in a memoir authors should not start with or discuss their birth as one would in an autobiography. This may be useful in many memoirs, but if the circumstances of one’s birth is crucial to understanding the author’s life or struggles, then important aspects of birth should be included.

Reflection on one’s life is essential in a memoir so it’s simply not autobiography. Some “how to” guides suggest that a certain percentage of the text should focus on reflections as if the book is like a pie to be divided up amongst the parts. I agree that reflection is crucial to give meaning to the events, but I don’t think the measurement of how much is included is nearly as important as the quality of the ideas and helping readers connect the experiences to their own lives.

Placement of reflection is often discussed in that many suggest that readers expect a thesis-like statement early in a section or chapter to reveal the point. It seems that the reflection could work well at the end of the section since many of us don’t discover the point until we have explored and written about the events. Yes, in revision, we can create a thesis statement to be included early, but I don’t think it’s always necessary to do that. Readers can follow the path of discovery along with the author as it builds to the end.

I do think guidance from others who have written memoirs is a vital way to learn, but sometimes the best memoirs break the rules and are formed organically in the author’s writing task.