Memoir is a journey story.
It's creative nonfiction.
Memoir is not autobiography.
Understanding Memoir: It's Not What You Did, It's What You Did With It
I wrote this article for publication on The Brevity Blog website.
Memoir is not what most people think it is. It's reflection, reflection, reflection.
A memoir without a thought-provoking takeaway for the reader (a resolution, in writing terminology) is like a movie that ends with a cliff-hanger or a mystery novel that remains unsolved in the final chapter. What is the point? To think that a memoir doesn’t need a point is to miss the unique characteristic of memoir entirely.
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When There is No There There in Memoir
​This expression could be used to describe a challenge faced by many novice memoir writers: their memoir manuscript does not have a clear and obvious there. As a memoir writing coach, sussing out the central, core point of a memoir is the most crucial and yet the most difficult aspect of memoir writing.
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Memoir Theme vs. Memoir Plot
Theme is what a memoir is about. It is your argument. Your thesis.
Plot is what happens. Plot is how the theme is conveyed.​​​​
Memoir is not about you. It’s about something and you are its illustration.
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