The Legacy of Old-Fashioned Sayings . . . . I remember standing in the kitchen while my mother was cooking. If she wanted us to pitch in and help, she’d nudge: “Make yourself useful as well as beautiful!” That meant, jump in here and start chopping! It just made […]
The LifeStory Workbook
The LifeStory Workbook, by Karen Dustman (Clairitage Press 2014). 28 pages
Tales of Resilience: How Our Ancestors Coped
I’ve been fascinated lately by the concept of ‘resilience.’ Our ancestors had it. Somehow they made it through wars and food shortages; terrible pandemics; losing a spouse or a child to disease or accidents. And medical care? Well . . . some of the very best medical treatments back then would be cringe-worthy today. Sure, they had opium, laudanum, […]
Writing Your Way Through Coronavirus
There are certainly plenty of ways to describe the Great Coronavirus Experience. “Unprecedented” springs to mind. There’s also Stressful. Lonely. Depressing. Ugh. But flip that “half-empty” glass around and the times we’re living through are also pretty darn exciting: Medical advances at super-nova speed. Heart-warming fits, too – neighbors looking out for neighbors, strangers helping strangers. And how about inspiring – legions of doctors, […]
3 Writing Tips To Make Your Writing Sing!
Ever hit a long-winded passage and turn the page, hoping the story would pick up later? I see a few hands out there. This month, I wanted to share three quick writing tips to avoid page-turning-reader syndrome and let your writing sing! (1) Look for “padding” you don’t need. An easy place to start: those extraneous, repetitive, extra, unnecessary, duplicative, […]
Food & Family History: Special Memories Often Start in the Kitchen
Serendipity gives me goosebumps. Just as I was about to write this post about “food memories,” I stumbled on a terrific example of this exact form of family-history writing. “From Billee’s Kitchen” is a great, simple collection of not only recipes but memories. Compiled in pdf form by Melissa Corn Finlay, it honors her grandmother, Billee […]
Writing About an “Ordinary” Life
MEMOIR TIP: Finding the Special in an “Ordinary” Life Ever feel like “my life was nothing special”? It’s a common refrain among memoir writers. You went to work; came home; cooked; did laundry. Then rinse and repeat, day after day. Where’s the special to write about in that so-called “ordinary” life? Here’s my take-away after interviewing dozens of folks who […]
Mental Yoga
Starting to write can feel like this. Awkward. Uncomfortable. Totally unfamiliar. And like everyone else is better at this than you. Just close your eyes and dive in. Remember any words you write can be fixed up, corrected, and changed later. But a blank page can’t be edited. So pull out a pen. Top off […]
Valentine’s Day Memories
Everyone loves a good love story. And love stories make an especially wonderful addition to a life story or memoir! Maybe it’s that magic moment you first saw your future wife or husband; Or the accidental meeting that brought your parents together. Maybe it’s the high school sweetheart you loved and lost – but never quite […]