It’s springtime in Texas, when the bluebonnets are in bloom and women from around the country come together for a conference in Austin to learn more about lifewriting. It’s the “Stories from the Heart” conference of the national organization Story Circle Network, “for women with stories to tell,” April 15
Read MoreMemoir is about people and experiences. It’s about relationships, connection. And characters — the people in our life stories — are at the heart of it all. I see some of my students and clients writing memoir that can suffer from describing incidents one after another, neglecting the important fact
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“Girlhood in America: Personal Stories 1910 – 2010,” a book about girlhood through a century, is almost ready for release! I’ve been climbing that steep self-publisher’s learning curve and I’m finally cruising. When you sign a contract with a publishing house, you’re usually looking at two years before your pub
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It all starts with the first draft. A first draft gives you something to work with so you can get to where you want to go. It’s a necessary step, and hardly the last one.
Read MoreToday I heard author Jack Canfield (Chicken Soup for the Soul and many others) speak. This biggest-ever bestselling author — Canfield has had 47 separate titles on the New York Times bestseller’s list since 1976 — talked about growing up a coal-miner’s son in West Virginia and charting a path
Read More“Reality” – From Chapter 10 “100 Years in the Life of an American Girl: True Stories 1910 – 2010” (publishing summer 2013) “Reality” – Chapter 10 — The 2000s, Dylanne White At 10 Dylanne’s three greatest wishes were to be allowed to wear make-up, get a new pair of skinny jeans,
Read More“Boom, Dynamite!” — From Chapter 9, “100 Years in the Life of an American Girl: True Stories 1910 – 2010″ (publishing summer 2013) “Boom, Dynamite!” Brianna — Grandville, Michigan Brianna lived in a large house in a woodsy suburb with her older sister, her stay-at-home mom, and her dad, a
Read More“The Gen X Poster Child” — from Chapter 8, “100 Years in the Life of an American Girl: True Stories 1910 – 2010” (publishing summer 2013) “The Gen X Poster Child” Jenny Isenman, Maryland Born in 1973, Jenny grew up an only child in an affluent suburb with a bedroom
Read More“Texas Goes Technicolor” from Chapter 7, “100 Years in the Life of an American Girl: True Stories 1910 – 2010” (publishing summer 2013) Texas Goes Technicolor Kim — Dallas, Texas Kim was born in 1963 into a family she describes as “arch conservatives and budding hippies.” Her parents were older
Read More“Survival Rules” — from Chapter 6 in my upcoming book, “100 Years in the Life of an American Girl: True Stories 1910 – 2010” (publishing summer 2013) “Survival Rules” Johnny, Arkansas Johnny lived in town with her family on four acres. They grew or raised everything they ate: collard
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