Exercise 2: Your Memoir Notebook
Writing memoirs can be overwhelming, since once you begin, the memories, the stories to tell, characters to describe, feelings, and events will burble up into consciousness as if from an endlessly flowing spring. Unfortunately, these memories tend to burble up in randomly as one association leads to another. It's easy to lose one's way. Hence it's important to get organizational tools in place early including a means to hold onto memories that arrive into consciousness while you are in the middle of dealing with some other story.
Remember, you can't write your whole life all at once. You've got to chunk up the story. Write it in small bits. Try to stay focused on one story at a time. If you don't, you run the risk of rambling on and on, producing an unreadable document that never gets to the point. In other words, it is absolutely OK to write in fragments, just as it is absolutely OK not to start writing your story at the beginning. (You can put the story of your birth or your ancestors at the beginning when you assemble your final memoir, but you don't need to write it first. Instead, write what is hottest now in your memory.)
This 3-part exercise is designed to help you . . .
Part I. Define your purpose and audience.
Why are you writing your memoirs and for whom? Take a few minutes and write a few sentences about what got you started. Then write down who you would like to read your memoirs. Don't worry, you can change it later when you rethink, but it's important to verbalize a PURPOSE and AUDIENCE at the beginning because this will become the basis for organization.
Part II. Go shopping
Buy yourself a large three ring binder. Also buy: a hole puncher if you don't have one. A dozen tabbed dividers. A package of dividers with pockets or a package of plastic archival envelopes that are three-hole punched. And a package of three-hole punched lined paper.
These materials will become important tools for keeping your project (and your memories) organized. Even if you plan to write on the computer you need these tools. I have multiple binders, because, frankly, after a while, even the best computerized file structures can get difficult to reorganize when you need to. The binder saves a lot of time and hair-pulling in the end.
TIP: If you plan to write long hand in a spiral notebook, choose one that is three hole punched and make yourself start a new page for every new fragment, so you can tear out your pages and put them into that binder.
TIP: If you plan to write on a computer, always open a new document for each new fragment you write and use the header or footer to note the file location and insert an automated date and time so you won't lose track of which version you are working on. Occasionally print out your fragments and put them into your binder, keeping only the most recent versions. If you don't you will find down the road that you either can't find the story you want on the computer, or you'll get confused when you revise.
Part III. Set up your binder.
Don't forget to file the quick responses for Exercise 1 on the appropriate pages of your new memory bank, then put the longer story into it's section of the binder. If you want to write up some more stories triggered by exercise 1 and file them. You are off and running!
Remember, you can't write your whole life all at once. You've got to chunk up the story. Write it in small bits. Try to stay focused on one story at a time. If you don't, you run the risk of rambling on and on, producing an unreadable document that never gets to the point. In other words, it is absolutely OK to write in fragments, just as it is absolutely OK not to start writing your story at the beginning. (You can put the story of your birth or your ancestors at the beginning when you assemble your final memoir, but you don't need to write it first. Instead, write what is hottest now in your memory.)
This 3-part exercise is designed to help you . . .
- Get and stay organized as you write as well as keep track of those random ideas and fragments that inevitably rise up
- Easily revise stories should you change your mind about some element or remember another detail (you will do this)
- Assemble all your bits and fragments together into longer pieces that synch with your purpose as well as your audience.
Part I. Define your purpose and audience.
Why are you writing your memoirs and for whom? Take a few minutes and write a few sentences about what got you started. Then write down who you would like to read your memoirs. Don't worry, you can change it later when you rethink, but it's important to verbalize a PURPOSE and AUDIENCE at the beginning because this will become the basis for organization.
Part II. Go shopping
Buy yourself a large three ring binder. Also buy: a hole puncher if you don't have one. A dozen tabbed dividers. A package of dividers with pockets or a package of plastic archival envelopes that are three-hole punched. And a package of three-hole punched lined paper.
These materials will become important tools for keeping your project (and your memories) organized. Even if you plan to write on the computer you need these tools. I have multiple binders, because, frankly, after a while, even the best computerized file structures can get difficult to reorganize when you need to. The binder saves a lot of time and hair-pulling in the end.
TIP: If you plan to write long hand in a spiral notebook, choose one that is three hole punched and make yourself start a new page for every new fragment, so you can tear out your pages and put them into that binder.
TIP: If you plan to write on a computer, always open a new document for each new fragment you write and use the header or footer to note the file location and insert an automated date and time so you won't lose track of which version you are working on. Occasionally print out your fragments and put them into your binder, keeping only the most recent versions. If you don't you will find down the road that you either can't find the story you want on the computer, or you'll get confused when you revise.
Part III. Set up your binder.
- Put your written statement of purpose and audience statement first. Look at them often. Feel free to revise as appropriate. This will help keep your memoir focused.
- Next, pop in fifty+ sheets of blank lined paper and complete your memory bank. These memory bank pages are where you will jot down ideas to work on later.
- Finally, develop labels for your tabbed dividers. It doesn't matter what labels you choose as long as it makes sense to you and relates to what you want to write about. You can always relabel later (so do it in pencil). Categories may be derived from your purpose or your audience. As you write stories or parts of stories, get in the habit of putting hard copies into your binder. Click here for ideas of typical notebook categories.
Don't forget to file the quick responses for Exercise 1 on the appropriate pages of your new memory bank, then put the longer story into it's section of the binder. If you want to write up some more stories triggered by exercise 1 and file them. You are off and running!