How to Write a Memoir in Twelve Easy Steps

By Lorilyn Roberts

All of us have lived through dramatic times of ecstasy and pain. For the sensitive and sensate person, memories of these events are etched in the psyche and have molded us into who we are. A memoir is a way to touch at the heart of those feelings and allow them to be shared with others.

A memoir is different from an autobiography because it takes a “snapshot” of certain events in a person's life. A memoir tends to read more like a novel. Usually a memoir is written in more colorful language than an autobiography and only relevant information is included. Not everything about a person's life should be shared. So how do I get started, you may ask? Here are twelve steps I followed in writing my memoir of adoption in Children of Dreams.

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1. A memoir should have a beginning, a middle, and an end. There should be a problem, a conflict, and a resolution. 

2. It might be helpful to pull out old pictures, diaries, and objects to bring to memory the experiences you are writing.  If possible, go to the scene and relive the events in your mind.

3. Allow your feelings to flow freely from your mind and heart—they may be painful, terrifying, hurtful, crazy, or not understood, but to write a good memoir, you must bring the buried nemeses to the surface and write with passion.

4. Listen to music that will transport you from your surroundings to the time and place of the memoir. I like classical music, but anything that stirs your emotions and allows your mind to be absorbed back into that moment will work.

5. Don't do any major editing until you've written all that you can remember. Worry later about clean-up. If you edit too soon, you may change something that is important.

6. Expect to feel like you are going crazy. Your feelings may create powerful emotions that are buried deep, but when you write those hidden passions and distorted thoughts on paper, it can be cathartic. The story may even write itself and come to a resolution you never thought possible.

7. Make sure you validate facts. A memoir is based on truth, so dates, times, names, people, and sequence of events are important. Otherwise, your credibility may come into question if something you have written is shown not to be true. It may be necessary to change names or locations, and this is acceptable provided you put a disclaimer at the beginning.

8. A good memoir is rich in color—metaphors, similes, descriptions, dialogue, and feelings will make your memoir come alive.

9. After you've written around one hundred pages, take some time to reflect on what you have said. Then put it aside for a few days, don't look at it, and come back and re‑read it. It will be easier to spot things that need to be revised or rewritten. Save deletions for later.

10.  Be kind to yourself. Writing a memoir is a very personal, gut-wrenching journey.

11. After you have written the rough draft and edited it as much as you can, including deletions, give your memoir to some trusted friends for feedback. You may see a pattern in their comments, and that's a good indication of what needs further revision. Don't be shy and seek a professional editor if needed.  

12. Never give up. Never, never give up. Need I say it again? Never, never, never give up.

Why write a memoir, you may ask?  First, the memories are important to you. The intimate details will soon be forgotten if they are not written down. The memoir validates your experience and gives meaning to your life. Your memories become a treasured journey for others to learn from and enjoy.

A memoir can be a gift to your children, your parents, your friends, your country, and the world. Only you can tell the story that you've been given, and other people's lives will be enriched. Most of all, if you're like me, you will be set free from the past and empowered to write your next story.

You will be changed and healed in ways that would not have been possible without writing your story. Having gone through the journey twice, you will be wiser. Perhaps you will touch others in a way you couldn’t have imagined because the “gestalt” of your experience is universal. Most importantly, you will have accomplished what you set out to do, and that is to write your memoir.

I say it again, never give up. It will be worth it when you have finished.

To learn more about Lorilyn Roberts, visit http://LorilynRoberts.com

Author Sheldon D. Newton Shares His Thoughts on Writing

Today we are showcasing a member of the John 3:16 Marketing Network, Sheldon D. Newton. A while back I (Lorilyn) asked Sheldon if I could feature him on the John 3:16 Blog. Today, as more and more people write books and try to market them, his advice is timely. 

Recently, I received an email from someone who had written a book, and if you wanted to claim it as your book, all you had to do was buy the rights to the book. Then you could call yourself an author because you had "written" a book. I suppose a more common term for this is "ghostwriting." 

Are people really that desperate to call themselves an author? Considering how difficult it is to make money selling books, I don't know why anyone would go to such lengths to put their name on the front of a book cover. Nevertheless, it's good to be reminded of why we write and if we really have something to say. Writing books is not easy.  I believe the calling should come first.  

Enjoy Sheldon D. Newton's comments and share with your friends. He has great advice in this short memoir.

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To date, I (Sheldon) have written ten books.

When people hear that, they look amazed and wonder how I was able to accomplish such a feat. I am a family man, a pastor, work at times as a Sales Executive for a leading Newspaper Company, travel to teach the Bible and still find time to write. How, one may ask? The answer is simple. When something means something to you, when it is important to you, when you are passionate and feel strongly within about it, you will make time for it.

I love writing. I started writing from I was a teenager. Of course, I wrote in school, doing school work, and at home doing homework. But, when I became a teenager, I started writing using a yellow note pad. (I still do at times, by the way). I wrote based upon what I was doing at the moment, which for me was studying the Holy Bible, God’s Word.

As I read from Matthew through Revelation, I would write down things I came to understand. As a matter of fact, when I began writing, things would just start flowing. I would write page after page from one passage of Scripture. The more I read, the more I wrote. It was exhilarating. It was thrilling. It was exciting.

As time went on, I began to date a wonderful and beautiful young lady who has since become my wife. I wrote her a booklet on my plans for the future, I mean in detail. She still has it after twenty three years of marriage, and at times reminds me of what I promised her I would do for her. (Maybe I shouldn’t have written it down for now I cannot deny that I said it).

Then came the time when I decided to write my first book. Now let me be honest with you when I let you know that writing a book, while to me is exciting, has also proven to be work. Indeed, I have had to develop the habit of thinking things through and stating things in the clearest manner possible so that the reader can comprehend what I mean by what I write in the context that I write it.

So, I wrote a book dealing with the importance of unity. I ensured that I had my reference points and that I knew my subject. And this brings me to my first point about writing: Ensure that you know what you are writing about.

Do not just write a book to write a book. I know that many people are doing that these days. But if you determine to be a writer, I mean, someone who speaks through the pen (or the computer), ensure that you write something of quality, something that can make a difference and have an impact upon the lives of those who may read it.

Do you best. Do your homework regarding your subject matter. Make sure you know what you are speaking about. Words written and sent to the world should make a difference. So write something which matters and for which you have passion and focus.

Hope this encourages you.

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Follow Sheldon D. Newton on Twitter: www.twitter.com/twitter.com/she

You can visit Sheldon's website at: http://www.sheldondnewton.org/

Book Review: How To Train Up a Child and Build Self-Esteem by Krystal Kuehn

c. Jan 2015

Maximum Potential LLC

.99 e-book

Krystal Kuehn, MA, LPC, LLP, NCC

From the Publisher: 

Do you want your child to be confident, optimistic, grateful, successful, positive, hopeful, joyful, resilient, secure? 

Do you want to better connect and strengthen your relationship with him/her?
You can!

Find out how in International, Best-Selling author Krystal Kuehn’s uplifting, character-building, life-changing work:
HOW TO: Train Up & Build Up Your Child - God’s Way! Over 100 Short Messages & Notes to help you Connect, Encourage & Empower Your Child & Those You Love

Lisa's review:

Train Up and Build... is a great hands-on tool for parents who want to make a visual difference in their family life. Kuehn offers well-grounded reasons to encourage your child's self-esteem through reminders in the form of notes that can be read when not in a parent or other caregiver's physical presence. The author proceeds to give many examples in an alphabetical and topical order of notes that can be jotted and placed in lunchboxes or pockets or elsewhere for a child to find and read. The notes themselves are encouraging, I found, and uplifting, for anyone. 

           

“A simple word of encouragement...empowered them and changed the course of their life.”

“Each new day is a gift of you”

“In Christ you can be a God-pleaser and not fall in the trap of caring what people think of you.”

This little book is recommended for anyone who wants to start an encouragement campaign in a general way or a faith-based way and needs a place to start. The author's credentials as a counselor add credence.

buy on Amazon

Wakulla Book Review: Seventh Dimension - The King, Book 2, by Lorilyn Roberts

Seventh Dimension Series, The King, Book 2 – A Young Adult Fantasy

Wakulla Book Review

I wanted to share one of my favorite reviews by a reader who “got it.” My belief is that God opens the eyes of readers who are open to receiving our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ into their hearts and minds. In fact, God gives us the ability to perceive spiritual things that without His Spirit working within us, we would not be able to see. 

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Wakulla Book Review by Ronald

Summary:  Where Book 1, “The Door” was offered from the perspective of a teenage girl with no particular religious upbringing or background, “The King” is derived from that of a teenage boy of modern Jewish origin.

Daniel, the story's protagonist, is neither devout nor hardhearted toward God, taking a more contemporary, “he must be somewhere else doing other things” outlook. Throughout, God is calling and showing Himself to Daniel by sending angels to aid him, messages to tell him, and miracles to convince him, all pointing to Jesus of Nazareth and Passover. Aided by actual Biblical figures, sayings, and events, this is an informative look at the unfortunate, contemporary attitude of Israel and God’s never ending love for them and desire that they return again to Him (reminiscent of the parable of the lost sheep).

Purpose:  With an admittedly Jewish slant, Roberts reaches out to Jews and everybody with a Biblical portrayal of Jesus as the Messiah, in obvious agreement with the apostle Paul in Romans 10:1: Brethren, my heart’s desire and prayer to God for Israel is that they might be saved (King James Edition).

Theme:  That God is ultimately in control of everything; our lives, our futures. and our destinies. That the only satisfaction we can have is when we acknowledge Him and submit ourselves to His will for our lives.

Thesis:  That the world’s Messiah—Jewish and Gentile—has come in the person of Jesus/Yeshua of Nazareth.

Controversial issues:  Worship‑that the world offers gold, fame, respect, and adoration to those foolish enough to fall for its temptations. Romance‑that we are God's temple and are to remain pure and undefiled by casual sexual relations. That God wants us to save ourselves for marriage. Ambition‑that pursuing personal desires and goals that do not consider Him first actually regulate Him to second in our lives, and that to our detriment. Salvation‑that God offers the only way to be saved.

Enjoyed the book: Yes, particularly after Daniel left Shale and took Nathan to his father. From that point on it was an intense tale of the struggle that takes place in our lives as God draws us to Himself. Yes. It caused me to re-examine those pursuits in my own life and whether they are Godly or self-fulfilling.

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To purchase a copy of  “Seventh Dimension – The King, Book 2,” from Amazon, please visit http://bit.ly/The_King_P for the print version and http://bit.ly/AWKING for the Kindle version.

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Florida Department of Corrections, Wakulla, Florida

Our Vision: "Changing Lives to Ensure a Safer Florida"

This is the first blog post in a series of posts featuring reviews by Wakulla Correctional inmates of John 3:16 books. I hope you will visit our blog next week to enjoy more reviews and discover new Christian books by John 3:16 authors.

How Should I Market My Book in 2015? by Lorilyn Roberts

If you are lucky and have some extra bucks to spend as an indy author, use your money sparingly for marketing right now. Instead, invest your money in hiring at least one, preferably two, good book editors and an excellent book cover designer. If you need suggestions, visit our page here: http://john316mn.blogspot.com/p/resources-for-authors.html

Do not compromise on a book editor and book cover designer. 

What should you do for marketing since I am telling you not to spend a lot of dollars on marketing?  Here is what I recommend.

Build up your platform. How? Here is what I recommend:

1. Have an active blog or website, meaning you post a couple of times each week.

2. Open a Twitter account and build up your following. Tweet Adder 4 helps.

3. All your blog posts should be shared on Google Plus. Just post to Google Plus so you get your blog out there on the web.

4. Connect with other authors. How? Offer to review their books. Host them on your blog.

5. Write your next book.

6. Make all your books available in ebook format. Upload to Amazon and Smashwords for extended distribution.

7. Learn how to write press releases using Sandra Beckwith's information, available on her website for about $22.

8. Make your book available in audible book format and upload to Audible.com Recite it yourself. If you have a computer you can do it for free.

9. Make your own videos using http://animoto.com. There is a free version.

10. Start an opt-in list. I use Constant Contact. You want your own list that you can send announcements to when you have a new book release or other author news.

11. Pray for God's direction and do not look for miracles. You might receive one, but probably it will be a process of developing your platform and your following. But at least you aren't spending thousands of dollars for people promising the impossible and delivering little.

Lastly, I have written a book you might find helpful, “How to Launch a Best-Selling Christian Book” on Amazon. It's 99 cents on Kindle. Some of the information I would change if I wrote the same book today, and some of it is specific to the John 3:16 Marketing Network, but there is a lot of good information about marketing you might find helpful.  http://amzn.to/1xXeNza

I am keeping my eyes and ears open to new ideas and ways to market for 2015. If you have found something that has worked for you, please share with us in the comments below.

Thankfulness from Ten Thousand Miles

As we start the new year, my New Year's resolution is to be more thankful. After the trip to Nepal and sharing John 3:16 books with the orphans, I realize more than ever how much for which I have to be thankful. 

When I finally got around to emptying out my suitcase (yes, it took me two months), I found the note below from some of the children we met. We stayed at one of the orphans' houses and they must have put the note in my suitcase when I wasn't looking. I want to share it with you and encourage you as you start off the new year. 

While our outward circumstances may not change our perspective will. God will add a heavenly filter to our limited worldly view, and somehow, someway, we will see the world with a different perspective, with more joy, with more hope, and with more patience. The Lord knows, I need more patience:)

Because it's a little hard to read from the scan, here is what it says:

Romans 12:12

Rejoicing in hope 

patient in tribulation 

continuing steadfastly in prayer

Dear Lorilyn Auntie and Sister Joylin,

We thank you for your hard work by bringing us the book. We usually don't get such books even in the market. This book will strengthen our spiritual and English level. We appreciate your prayer and  hoping to read such book in the future, too. Thank you for reading the book for us. Thank you for your love and everything. We were blessed from your visit. Keep in touch!

Ram Hari, Grivson, Bishal, Aaron, Ajit, Ayusha, Kinv, Akriti, James, Sagar Anusha, Dipesh, Sibani, Ginita

Christian Fantasy Author Lorilyn Roberts: What is Your Most Memorable Christmas?

Christian Fantasy Author Lorilyn Roberts: What is Your Most Memorable Christmas?



Enjoy this Christmas excerpt from my memoir Children of Dreams.

Cheryl Colwell and Adriana's Secrets

Adriana’s Secret, book 2 in the Secrets of the Montebellis series

Cheryl Colwell

c. Nov 2014

Inspired Reading publishers

Historical inspirational fiction

ebook  $.99

print $13.99

ISBN 978-0989237154

Buy on Amazon

From the publisher:

Tragedy strikes the mountain town of Mont Castello, the home of Adriana Montebelli. Orphaned in 1888, Adriana's life is swept along at the whim of forceful men who decide where she will live and who she will marry. Instead of breaking her, their cruel deceptions toughen her resolve to take control. Though she rises to manage the vast Van Buren estate, she wonders if her broken heart will have the strength to love again. Follow Adriana in this historical novel as she navigates the challenges of woman's suffrage, union violence, and the tragic hardships of love and loss, while struggling to cling to her faith.

My review:

My heart is still racing!

I'll sheepishly admit I didn't read book 1, but I plan on remedying that shortly.

This installment does stand alone. Taking us back a hundred years in California, Colwell sets the stage for betrayal, family dysfunction, greed, suffrage, unions, and above all else, second chances and love. And a pesky bear, as the cover alludes.

Two orphaned sisters handle their parents' deaths in very different ways. Older sister Adriana, at seven, is a gentle and innocent soul, while little sister Ladonna, is a hellion. Who knows what she would have been like if their parents had lived. In this small traditional village with many Italian descendants, life if hard, and the family who took in the girls end up having to give Ladonna away, while second born son to Adriana's ward harbors life-long hatred on many levels.

The story takes the reader along the path of the girl's journey of loss and triumph through their personalities and choices, and the events manipulated by others.

Nicely wrapped from the opening through the flashback around Adriana’s life story, to the ending; told from multiple viewpoints, Colwell has devised a well-crafted tale in the vein of Steinbeck and the Grapes of Wrath. Those who enjoy American history and especially Steinbeck, will enjoy Adriana's Secrets.

About the Author:

Cheryl Colwell began writing fiction in 2007. True to her tagline, "Stunning Suspense," her characters visit stunning locations while they pursue adventurous quests peppered with mystery, suspense, and romance. Passionate about all things creative, Cheryl finds inspiration in the countryside of Ashland, Oregon - the perfect venue for her interests in writing, gardening, and art. John, her husband, best friend, and chiropractor, keeps her in shape for gardening and writing long into the night. They are delighted to have four unique and talented children and three grandchildren. A smart and playful English Shepherd makes their empty nest a happy place. Books: Adriana's Secrets, Book Two in The Secrets of the Montebellis Series, published 2014 by Inspired Fiction Books, The Proof, published 2014 by Inspired Fiction Books, The Secrets of the Montebellis, Book One, published 2013 by Inspired Fiction Books. I Believe in Healing by Cecil Murphey, published 2013 by Regal, includes a story she wrote about the healing of a family member.