Memories Matter
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Life Story Links: November 4, 2025
This week’s curated roundup for family historians, memoirists, and memory-keepers is brimming with ideas, wisdom, and the latest recommendations.
“To write memoir is to accumulate the facts and then write past them. It is to search through the briefcase of tattered documents because there is poetry in a passport stamp.”
—Beth Kephart
Vintage postcard depicting an illustration of a fisherman by a winding stream, postmarked 1906, from the personal ephemera collection of Dawn Roode.
Writing our lives
THERAPISTS, WRITING, FICTION…
The assumed therapeutic value of writing has become such a trope in recent decades that “trauma fiction” and “the trauma memoir” have become their own genres. Gabriel Urza on when telling your own story get in the way of processing trauma.
MORE THAN A BIO
Last week I shared a writing prompt I discovered in an unexpected place—it’s simple (not easy…there’s a difference!), provocative, and versatile, and I’ve got tips for how to use it in autobiographical writing, too.
HER AI PARTNER…
“I didn’t feel like my creativity was being replaced—I felt like it was being met.” Heather Gemmen Wilson on “the future of creative partnership with AI. Not replacement. Not shortcut. But invitation.”
…AND, A LESS OPTIMISTIC VIEW OF AI
“When I...began writing my memoir-in-essays, I felt the strength of my own mind, the experiences that made me weak bubbling through my fingertips onto the keys.” Could AI prpvide her with something similar?
INSIDE THE CRAFT
The son of a southern preacher, Michael E. Long says, “I learned how to write, and how words should go together, by listening to the music of my father's voice.” Veteran ghostwriter Daniel Paisner talks shop with Mike in a recent episode of As Told To:
Mining the past for gold
ERODED BY TIME, INDELIBLE JUST THE SAME
Lea Ypi goes on a quest to find the truth behind her grandmother’s smile: “Indignity is a memoir, biography and imagined history prompted by a viral family photograph.”
CLEARING THE FAMILY HOME
“Under the stuff I can’t throw out is the stuff my parents couldn’t throw out.” Would saying goodbye to every last newspaper clipping, button, and book her parents had saved over decades help writer Anne Enright mourn?
THE STORIES WE LIVE, THE STORIES WE TELL
“Nonfiction is, at its core, about how one chooses to live and observe life.” Julian Brave NoiseCat explores the relationship between documentary filmmaking and memoir.
Starry stories
ALMOST FAMOUS
In his new memoir, Uncool, Cameron Crowe gives readers a front-row ticket to the ’70s and, as one review says, delivers “deliciously readable tales.” Watch below as he shares some artifacts from his life, and click here for a delightful interplay between Crowe and Anderson Cooper (including a mutual appreciation of the power of silence during an interview).
A LIFE REFLECTED IN VIDEO
John Candy: I Like Me “documents the actor’s on- and off-camera existence, featuring never-before-seen home videos, intimate access to his family, and candid recollections from collaborators to paint a bigger picture of one of the brightest stars of the ’70s, ’80s and ’90s.”
...and a few more links
A luxurious company history that documents the Pajar family’s story and design legacy.
Floppy disks get a second life at Cambridge University Library.
Browse RootsTech live webinars (or check out those you may have missed).
Words of Veterans receives grant to help preserve military memories in Virginia.
New digital kit supports dementia care through photos and stories.
Short takes
Introduce yourself: a writing prompt, a life prompt
Go beyond labels with this powerful memoir prompt: introduce yourself without name, job, or age. Includes writing tips and a free downloadable worksheet.
Sometimes scrolling Instagram is a massive waste of time (okay… often), but I usually restrict it to in-between moments—like sitting in a doctor’s waiting room or waiting in the car to pick my son up. Every once in a while, though, a little gem sparkles bright.
One such gem came from Jade Bonacolta, a thought leader and marketing exec who doles out bite-sized career and life wisdom in her feed. She posed a deceptively simple question:
“If I asked you to introduce yourself without mentioning your name, job, age, ethnicity, or the city you live in, what would you say?”
Well, if that isn’t a provocative memoir writing prompt, I don’t know what is.
An evergreen memoir writing prompt
“Introduce yourself.” Seems straightforward, right? But most of us are conditioned to start with the basics—our job titles, family roles, geographic location, or where we grew up. These details are comfortable and expected. But they’re also just labels.
Bonacolta explains: “When you strip away these social labels, people tell you who they are. Who they really are. You hear about their values, the things they're obsessed with, the beliefs that guide their decisions.”
For memoir writing—or even just gaining clarity about your identity—this is a powerful exercise. And it’s one you can return to again and again throughout your life or project. Below are a few tangible ways to work with this prompt, whether you’re just starting your memoir or feeling stuck midway through.
3 ways to work with this writing prompt
Freewrite with No Filters
Set a timer for 10 or 15 minutes and respond to the prompt: “Who am I, without my name, age, job, or hometown?” Don’t censor yourself. Let it be messy. Start with phrases like:
• “I am someone who…”
• “I feel most myself when…”
• “What drives me is…”
Let your values, passions, fears, and quirks take center stage. You might surprise yourself with what emerges when you're no longer listing résumé bullet points.
🔍 Bonus Tip: Repeat this exercise at different points in your memoir-writing journey. The way you answer will shift—and that evolution might become part of your story.Create a character sketch—of yourself.
Treat yourself like one of the characters in your memoir. Without using surface-level identifiers, how would you describe yourself in a story? Try writing a paragraph or two about yourself in the third person. For example:
She moves through the world guided by curiosity and a hunger for connection. She tucks grocery receipts into her notebook, convinced they’ll mean something someday. She believes that books can save lives, that being a mom is a sacred undertaking, and that cheese belongs on everything..
This not only deepens your understanding of your own voice but can become rich material in your actual manuscript.Use It to unlock a chapter or theme.
If you’re feeling stuck in the middle of your memoir, revisit this prompt through the lens of your younger self, or the version of you at a pivotal point in the story. Ask yourself:
• Who was I then, beyond the job I had or the place I lived?
• What mattered to me at that moment?
• What did I believe about the world? About myself?
These reflections often lead to unexpected turns or unlock deeper emotional truths—especially useful when your writing feels stalled or superficial.
Get a free companion worksheet…
…with exercises using this “Introduce Yourself” prompt to jump-start your memoir writing!
You are more than a bio.
In a world that constantly asks us what we do, it’s grounding—and sometimes healing—to return to who we are. This simple question from an Instagram scroll can serve as a compass not only for writing, but for living more intentionally.
So, go ahead. Introduce yourself.
But this time, leave the labels behind.
Life Story Links: October 21, 2025
Personal historian Dawn Roode’s curated roundup for the week of Oct. 21, 2025, includes great recent reads about memoir, family history, and memory-keeping.
“Remember, you don’t have to be old to forget. Memories are fragile and easily muddled. Over time the details get fuzzy and even your most poignant memories can be contaminated by what you hear others say.”
—Terry Tempest Williams
Vintage postcard depicting an illustration entitled “A Fallen Monarch,” a forest scene, postmarked 1908 from Long Island City, New York, from the personal ephemera collection of Dawn Roode.
On writing our lives
EXPLORING ALL HIS CONTRADICTIONS
“You don’t have anywhere to hide. You’re trying to be as honest as you can be. Otherwise there’s not much point, I don’t think.” Actor Tim Curry on the memoir he wrote with the help of a collaborator.
NOW IS (ALWAYS) THE RIGHT TIME
Last week I wrote about the three most common excuses I hear for not writing about your life “yet,” and how—and why—to overcome them.
‘AN AMNESIAC MEMOIR’
“Memory is what remains of everything we’ve ever seen or heard or learned or cared about. It is who we think we are. But it’s not what is in your head. It’s what you can find in your head.” Judith Hannah Weiss on writing after a traumatic brain injury.
From our family archives
CENTROPA
“As one [Holocaust] survivor said, ...‘Everyone always asked how we died. No one asks us how we lived.’” Edward Serotta created an archive that includes more than 25,000 photographs, and, he says, “every one of them comes with a story.”
WHAT WAS BEHIND THESE EARLY SELFIES?
“On a recent visit to my mother’s house, in New Jersey, I was going through some old boxes and was stunned to find dozens of selfies taken by her father in the thirties and forties: funny ones, straight ones, flagrantly thirst-trappy ones.”
A ‘VERY ACCESS-DRIVEN’ ARCHIVE
The Texas Archive of the Moving Image combs the state in search of historical footage hidden in Texans' home movies. “The archive's website is a treasure trove of both the important and the mundane.”
PREVENTING A DIGITAL DARK AGE
“‘If you've got a book, it doesn’t matter how old it is—you can still read it,’ (provided you understand the language it is written in, of course). With floppy disks, however, you need specialized equipment just to access the content itself—it is like requiring a key to open a book.”
Where stories reside
THOMAS MALLON’S THEORY OF THE DIARY
“Before they become historical documents, diaries start out as ordinary ledgers, a frame-by-frame accounting of the moments and events of a person’s days. With the help of time, scholarship, and critical interest, they become history in miniature, an up-close look at how a life was formed and shaped by the times the diarist lived in.”
THE POWER OF OBJECTS
“When my parents moved out of my childhood house, I saved only a couple of items, in part because I had no room for all my juvenilia but mostly because I just didn’t care.” But, ah, the dress!
‘A STORY I NEEDED TO TELL’
“Ever since I was a little girl I’ve been obsessed with my grandmother’s stories about her life. When I was in high school, I started recording her telling those stories and found myself years later with this archive of her memories that I felt deeply responsible for.”
HER BOOK WAS PERCOLATING…
“I suggest: a list of people involved in the story you want to tell, a list of places...that have had an impact or left an impression, a list of objects with meaning,...and a list of ‘moments’” to help get started with memoir writing.
FOLLOWING THE CLUES
“This discovery is more than just a name—it’s the beginning of reclaiming her story”: on a 1910 photograph and how archivists and Native communities are working to reconnect families with photos related to their ancestors.
Put your headphones on…
Dr. Cheryl Svensson, Director of the Birren Center for Autobiographical Studies, discusses how a structured approach to life story writing can provide emotional support, reduce caregiver burden, and create the deep connections we all crave—even when loved ones seem disinterested at first. Listen in:
ONE DISH, ONE STORY
“This cookie is a gateway to sharing stories,” Maureen Abood tells Becky Hadeed. “I feel like writing the book, remembering the stories, and making the recipes, I was seeing my mother anew. And not just my mother, but all the women who came before”:
OMISSIONS AND EXAGERRATIONS
“Memoir means truth as we know it. Memory isn’t perfect, but inventing or hiding facts will ultimately backfire.” Florida-based memoir teacher Patricia Charpentier discusses the importance of truth in memoir in this video.
Miscellaneous family history
PIVOTAL MOMENT FOR GENETIC GENEALOGY
Most current commercial DNA tests only read about 700,000 base pairs of nucleotides, looking for shared patterns. Whole genome sequencing will read around three billion base pairs giving unprecendented insight into our genetic code—and it’s available to consumers now through MyHeritage.
...and a few more links
“I’d like photos from the family album my late brother’s wife has—can I ask her for copies?”
“This simple, powerful exercise makes you the author of your own narrative.”
Former NBA star Allen Iverson talks about his new memoir, Misunderstood.
New dementia caregiving book discusses the power of personal history.
Trendhunter says Lifenote “fills a niche between journaling tools and social media archives.”
Twenty-five years of SuperAger research show cognitive decline is not an inevitable part of aging.
Short takes
How can I write about my life when I am still living it?
The three most common excuses I hear for not writing about your life “yet,” and how—and why—to overcome them. It’s not too soon for your memoir, I promise.
Even if you don’t love to journal, keeping a simple ideas notebook—with snippets of memories, headlines that resonated, quotes from loved ones, ticket stubs, whatever may prompt life writing ideas later—is a powerful tool. Use a simple composition notebook, or grab this lay-flat one from our store.
There’s a common misconception that a memoir—or any personal writing—needs to be a finished product, a neatly wrapped narrative with a clear beginning, middle, and end. But life doesn’t work that way, and neither does great storytelling.
The truth is, the best time to start writing about your life is right now—not years from now, when everything has “settled.” Writing as you live allows you to capture moments in real-time, with fresh emotions and raw details that might fade with time. It’s not about having all the answers; it’s about documenting the journey.
So, how do you begin? Let’s break down some of the biggest hesitations and how to move past them.
The 3 most common excuses that it’s ‘too soon’ to write about your life
“I don’t know how my story ends.”
Good news: You don’t need an ending to start writing. Memoir and personal essays don’t require a final chapter before you begin—many of the most compelling life stories are explorations, not conclusions.
💡 Try this: Instead of worrying about how everything ties together, focus on individual moments that feel meaningful right now. Write about a recent experience, a challenge you’re navigating, or a lesson you’re learning in real time.
📖 Example: Eat, Pray, Love by Elizabeth Gilbert
Gilbert didn’t write her memoir after she had “figured everything out.” She wrote it in the middle of transformation, capturing a period of self-discovery. Her story unfolds as she travels through Italy, India, and Indonesia, and it doesn’t wrap up with a perfect ending—just a deeper understanding of herself.
👉 Further Reading: How to use short vignettes to create a mosaic of your life.
“I haven’t achieved anything ‘big’ yet.”
You don’t need a dramatic, bestselling-worthy life event to write about your experiences. Some of the most powerful personal writing comes from small, everyday moments—the way you felt on a quiet morning, a childhood memory that keeps resurfacing, the way certain music transports you to another time.
💡 Try this: Instead of chasing “big” moments, focus on specific details that make a memory or realization come alive. If you keep a journal, flip through an old one to discover how compelling small experiences from your everyday life can be.
📖 Example: An American Childhood by Annie Dillard
One of the first memoirs I ever read, Dillard’s book isn’t about a single, dramatic event—it’s about how she experiences the world as a child growing up in Pittsburgh. She writes about curiosity, wonder, and the process of paying attention to life as it unfolds, proving that even the smallest moments can make for profound storytelling. I highly recommend it as a model to emulate.
👉 Further Reading: How to choose which life story theme to explore first.
“What If My Perspective Changes?”
Your perspective will change—and that’s a good thing. The beauty of writing while living is that your story evolves—and your writing can, too. You can revisit memories with new understanding, update reflections with fresh insight, and track how your views shift over time.
💡 Try this: Start a “living memoir” journal where you capture thoughts and stories as they happen. Revisit entries later to see how your perspective has changed.
📖 Example: Hourglass: Time, Memory, Marriage by Dani Shapiro
One of my favorite books from one of my favorite authors, Shapiro’s Hourglass explores how we evolve and change over time, and how those changes impact her relationship and sense of self. Instead of writing from a place of finality, she embraces the shifting nature of perspective—reflecting on the past while still actively living her present.
👉 Further Reading: 5 steps to drafting your own library of life writing prompts.
Your life doesn’t need to be finished to be worth writing about. Your words matter right now—in the middle of the mess, in the midst of discovery, even before you have all the answers.
So, pick up the pen. Start where you are. Your story is unfolding, and that’s exactly why you should write it.
Life Story Links: October 7, 2025
An incredibly rich roundup of stories for the week of October 7, 2025—with lots about AI, memoir, and memory; the craft of life story preservation; and more.
“I believe that at some level most families want to have a record left of their effort to be a family, however flawed that effort was, and they will give you their blessing and will thank you for taking on the job—if you do it honestly and not for the wrong reasons.”
—William Zinsser
Vintage postcard depicting an illustration entitled “Bringing Home the Harvest,” postmarked 1906, from the personal ephemera collection of Dawn Roode.
Listening for stories
HER NEXT CHAPTER
“I was in a moment emotionally—both as a storyteller and as a mother, and as a woman—where I was really in a season of deep listening in my own life, and to my own heart, and to what was going on.” Tembi Locke returns with “an audio-forward memoir”; listen to an excerpt here.
THE GREAT THANKSGIVING LISTEN
“For years, educators have been the heart and soul of [StoryCorps’] Great Listen tradition, helping students capture meaningful stories that connect generations.” Find out how to participate at home or in the classroom.
The craft of writing our lives
CLARITY FIRST, THEN VOICE
“Discover how (and why) bending certain grammar rules in memoir and life story writing can enhance voice, rhythm, and authenticity in your storytelling.”
SAME SUBJECT, DIFFERENT PERSPECTIVES
With his memoir of De La Soul, biographer Marcus J. Moore “wanted to show that you can have a middle-class existence and still be spectacular.” While this piece dives deep into the rap group’s catalogue and life, buried within are insights from two biographers on how they approached the same subject differently.
Lost and found in letters
EPISTOLARY HISTORY
“My mother was separated from her three-year-old brother at the age of nine. They lost contact for 40 years and finally reconnected through letters in 1988.” Letters exchanged across the Taiwan Strait shed light on family ties and memories, and capture history in a new book.
HER MOTHER’S SECRET PAST
After memoirist Halina St. James’s mother died, she found her letters—55 in all, written in Russian and Polish. She says they “provided enough of a frame work to allow me to construct a detailed timeline of her life, and some first-hand testimony about her experiences.”
Life story books, memoir & more
A NEW GOLDEN AGE OF BIOGRAPHY?
“Readers of a good literary biography are twice blessed. We profit from the subject’s wisdom and art as well as the biographer’s humane, shaping vision.”
“THE TELL”
“Amy Griffin wrote a book based on recovered memories of childhood sexual abuse. Oprah Winfrey and a slew of celebrities promoted it. Then questions arose.”
MEANINGFULLY CONFRONTING THE PAST
“Few American poets of the boomer generation have explored the interstices of public and personal history as deeply and urgently as has [Peter] Balakian.”
Remembrance, legacy
AS TIME GOES BY
“In this, my third stage of grief, the past, miraculously and mercifully, does not feel painful. The photograph of her that brought me to tears a few years ago now gives me a smile.”
HER GRANDMOTHER’S DEATH FOLDER
“Remembering can be a burden, just as final preparations for a loved one are a weight.... Laying someone to rest is the final act of care that leaves a lingering impression, not only on the dead, but on you.”
ON FORGETTING
“I collect these moments, these shining fragments of her.” Tamar Shapiro reflects on her mother’s memory loss and connecting through her mother’s native tongue.
AI, mortality, and memory
METABOLISM OF MEMORY
As the last Holocaust survivors approach the end of their lives, an AI scholar grapples with technology that promises to freeze them in time.
HIS OWN PRIVATE FRANKENSTEIN
When Jon Michael Varese interacts with a version of his deceased father generated by an AI chatbot, he tells ‘his father’ that it “felt like he was right here.” His ‘father’ replies: “That’s because I am. And maybe that’s all there is, Jonny—me waiting quietly, in the spaces you don’t notice, in the silence between your words.”
‘OUT OF THIN AIR’
“This AI slop is just harvesting the remnants of legacy journalism, insulting the legacies of the dead and intellectually impoverishing the rest of us.” When AI-generated biographies capitalize on death and grief.
...and a few more links
Podcast: How 2.1 trillion photos are affecting the planet—and us
Study explains why some emotional experiences last in the mind
Newsphotographer reunited with personal piece of 9/11 history
Capturing daily life in a sketchbook—thoughts from Nishant Jain and Samantha Dion Baker
Ancient life-size rock art in Saudi Arabia reveals earliest human presence
I find roundups like this so inspiring when it comes to coffee table book design!
Jamel Shabazz: “My eyes are open, my camera locked and loaded and I’m ready to observe.”
Short takes
Learn basic writing rules, then break some of them
Discover how (and why) bending certain grammar rules in memoir and life story writing can enhance voice, rhythm, and authenticity in your storytelling.
“By all means go ahead and read the rules, if you wish. Give them a try. And if one of them works for you, use it until it stops working, then dump it in the trash heap with all the other useless rules that have been crammed down your throat since your first hour in daycare. Writing is creative, so don’t look to prescriptions or those who preach them.”
—Randall Silvis
Writers of memoir and life stories often come across the classic guide The Elements of Style by Strunk and White. It’s a goldmine of fundamental writing rules—rules designed to create clarity, precision, and grace in prose.
But what happens when sticking to these rules too rigidly flattens the rhythm of a story, strips a voice of its natural cadence, or removes the warmth of real-life speech? In memoir and personal storytelling, bending (or even breaking) certain rules can actually enhance a piece—making it sound more authentic, more engaging, and more like you.
Let’s explore a few of these fundamental writing rules, why they exist, and when it’s absolutely okay to break them.
RULE NO. 1: Omit needless words.
One of the most famous rules in The Elements of Style is: “Omit needless words.” It’s great advice—cutting excess verbiage makes writing cleaner and more direct.
Why break the rule:
Memoir isn’t just about clarity; it’s about voice. Sometimes, extra words are exactly what we need to hear a person speak on the page.
Regional dialects, idioms, and filler words help capture a person's authentic tone.
Thoughtful repetition can build rhythm and emotion.
A longer, more winding sentence may better reflect how a memory unfolds in real life.
💡 Consider this:
Tightly edited: My grandmother always told me to be strong.
Voice-driven: “Now, honey, you listen to me. You be strong, you hear me? Strong like your mama. Strong like your grandmama.”
That second version? It sounds like a real person speaking. And in memoir, voice matters just as much as conciseness.
RULE NO. 2: Every Sentence Must Have a Subject and a Verb.
Yes, every grammatically correct sentence needs a subject and a verb. But real people don’t always speak or think in perfect, complete sentences.
Why break the rule:
Sentence fragments can be intentional choices that add rhythm, pacing, or emphasis to a passage.
A clipped response in dialogue can feel more natural than a full sentence.
A fragment after a long sentence can create a moment of pause.
Breaking this rule can add emotion—urgency, suspense, or even humor.
💡 Consider this:
Perfectly grammatical: I didn’t know what to do. I just stood there. I was frozen in place, unable to move.
More natural, more immediate: I didn’t know what to do. Just stood there. Frozen.
That second version feels like someone recalling a memory in real time. Sometimes, fragments work better than full sentences.
RULE NO. 3: Don’t Begin a Sentence with "And" or "But."
Traditional grammar purists argue that sentences shouldn’t start with conjunctions. But (see what I did there?) this rule has loosened over time.
Why break the rule:
Using “and” or “but” at the beginning of a sentence mimics natural speech.
It can create emphasis and flow—helping one idea build on another.
It can make the narrator’s voice feel more conversational and intimate.
💡 Consider this:
Strict adherence to the rule: The house was silent. However, I could feel something watching me.
More fluid, more dramatic: The house was silent. But I could feel something watching me.
That small tweak changes the tone of the sentence—making it sharper, more immediate. In memoir, rhythm and voice matter just as much as grammar.
THE KEY TAKEAWAY: Clarity first, then voice.
Writing rules exist for a reason—they make writing stronger, clearer, and more readable. But memoir isn’t a grammar test. It’s about storytelling.
So, learn the rules. Understand why they work. Then break (some of) them with intention.
📖 Want to explore more ways to shape your life story into an engaging narrative? Check out How to Use Short Vignettes to Create a Mosaic of Your Life for more inspiration.
Life Story Links: September 23, 2025
A curated roundup from biographer Dawn Roode with recent stories about memoir (writing and reading), memory-keeping, family history & life story preservation.
“The knowledge we keep in our minds is gone when we pass. There are no second chances, no help desk we can call to recover that data. Why wouldn’t we want to invest in memorializing these important assets to avoid such a catastrophic loss?”
—Clémence Scouten
Vintage postcard depicting a moody illustration of a sailboat on the ocean, postmarked 1906, from the personal ephemera collection of Dawn Roode.
Students & story preservation
LEARN FROM THEM
For photo manager Rachel Arbuckle, helping a school organize and save its physical archive “reminded us of something simple: Preserving history isn’t just about the past; it’s about giving the future a chance to see it.”
PROMISE: KEEPERS OF THEIR STORIES
A program creates direct connections between students in Arkansas and living Holocaust survivors: “When the opportunity arose, they embraced it, understanding they were making a life-long commitment” to share their stories.
CARRYING HIS GRANDFATHER’S STORY FORWARD
“My mission for this trip [to Poland]? To take a family pilgrimage for the first time without Poppi, traveling in his footsteps in full chronological order (versus the fragmented pieces we heard growing up).... I was living and breathing the weight I’ve carried since my childhood.”
On personal history & narrative nonfiction
WORTH IT?
I’m biased—I believe that working with a professional biographer can be one of the most meaningful investments you’ll ever make. Last week, I shared four compelling reasons why.
CHASING GHOSTS
“As historians have long recognized, what ‘actually happened’ in the past is no more significant than what different people at different times believe to have happened.”
GETTING THE STORY, EVEN WITHOUT THE KEY INTERVIEW
“Gay Talese and Edward Sorel, the writer and illustrator of ‘Frank Sinatra Has a Cold,’ on the origins, aftermath, and eventual sanctification of the greatest profile in magazine history.” Read the original piece here.
BEST BEGINNINGS
“How is a writer to craft the perfect beginning? Where and when does a beginning begin?” Beth Kephart with a handful of inspiring beginnings, with accompanying writing prompts to get you going.
A LIVING ARCHIVE
“Because story is not static. Families evolve. New voices emerge. Personal media piles up across phones, drives, and storage. What begins as a treasured project can too easily become a closed chapter—finished, archived, and rarely revisited.” Do you need a legacy media partner?
WE ARE NARRATIVE BEINGS
“Without a story scaffold, facts stay inert.” Documentarian Simon Sticker shares four approaches to help the modern storyteller “satisfy our appetite for meaning without sacrificing truth.”
New & noteworthy memoir
INDIAN NAMES
“Like the meaning of my name, my ancestral tongues are fast slipping from the Land of the Living to that of the dead.” Read a thoughtful (long) piece adapted from the hybrid memoir We Survived the Night by Julian Brave NoiseCa.
NEW MEMOIR FROM CAT STEVENS
“After nearly 35 years of contemplating an autobiography, even abandoning several chapters of a draft written in the early ’90s, [Yusuf] Islam has finished the voluminous, funny and candid Cat on the Road to Findout.”
‘LOOK HOW HUMAN I AM’
“When we think about the moments that change our lives, our minds often go to the big ones: surviving an accident, landing a dream job, or winning the lottery. But what if that’s wrong? What if the smallest, almost forgotten moments were the ones that shape us most?”
Where memories reside
‘EMOTIONAL ANTHROPOLOGY’
“If you’ve ever felt insane levels of attachment to a Bhursa’s take-away cup because it was from that day, or kept a literal pebble from a random road trip because it ‘felt like the moment,’ welcome. You too might be a core memory collector, and trust me, it’s more than just clutter.”
A PERMANENT TRIBUTE
“There is a badassery and resilience to tattoos. A permanence that defies but also commemorates my grief...and the push pull and ache of all of that is now part of my motherless daughter DNA.”
A MIXTAPE OF MEMORIES
“I’d discovered in recent years that songs, albums, and most certainly mixed tapes...were like Proustian madeleines (a sensory memory), transporting my mind like a time machine to a particular moment in my life.” I look forward to this new Substack from Kera Bolonik.
THE STORIED RECIPE
“For Judith, simple Sally Lunn bread—rich, soft, and baked in a Bundt pan—holds her mother’s legacy of hospitality, of showing up, and providing comfort.” Here's Judith, reflecting on her mother and the bread that tells her story (listen below, and find the recipe and photos here) :
Short takes
Should I hire a professional biographer?
My biased opinion: Working with a professional biographer can be one of the most meaningful investments you’ll ever make. Here are a few reasons why.
Professional biographer, personal historian, memoir coach—Dawn Roode, pictured with a client, is all those things.
Depending on the day, and my mood, and whom I am speaking with, I may call myself a personal historian, a professional biographer, or a memoir coach; because the legacy preservation work that I do is 100-percent customized to each specific client—and, maybe even more so, because most people have never heard of ‘my job’—I opt for clarity over consistency. Other people who do similar work may call themselves ghostwriters, or family historians, or life story facilitators, even practitioners of guided autobiography.
At the end of the day, though, we are professionals who help everyday people capture their life stories—in my case, in books.
Should you consider hiring…well, for simplicity’s sake, let’s just say a ‘professional biographer’?
I’m biased, of course—I believe that working with a professional biographer can be one of the most meaningful investments you’ll ever make. So, my answer is “yes.” Here are a few reasons why:
1. We know how to bring out the best in your story.
Many people assume they need a dramatic, bestselling-worthy life to justify documenting their story. The truth is, every life is extraordinary in its own way—it just takes the right approach to uncover the details that make it shine.
A professional biographer is skilled in:
✔ Asking the right questions to help you recall meaningful moments.
✔ Finding themes and connections you might not see in your own experiences.
✔ Bringing your voice to life in a way that feels authentic and natural.
Example: Have you ever tried to tell a story but felt like you were rambling? A biographer helps organize your thoughts, ensuring your memories are preserved with clarity and depth.
2. The process is easier (and more enjoyable) than you think.
Many people put off documenting their life because they think it will be too time-consuming or difficult. But hiring a biographer makes the process simple and even enjoyable—it’s just like having a relaxed conversation, with someone else doing the heavy lifting of recording, organizing, and shaping the story.
✔ No writing required—just share your memories in a comfortable, guided interview.
✔ You set the pace—whether you want to do a few short sessions or take your time reviewing your life experiences over the course of a year.
✔ It’s a conversation, not an interrogation—biographers create a safe space for you to open up and share.
Think of it this way: If you’ve ever enjoyed telling stories to friends or family, you’re already doing it! A biographer simply captures those stories and turns them into something lasting.
3. Your story deserves more than just a few scattered notes.
If you’ve ever tried to jot down memories on your own in a journal, scrapbook, or other memory-keeping tool, you might have found yourself starting and stopping, unsure where to go next. A professional biographer helps weave everything together into a clear, beautiful narrative.
✔ We create structure—so your story has a natural flow and impact.
✔ We capture your unique voice—so it truly sounds like you.
✔ We ensure accuracy—so the details of your legacy are preserved with care.
Consider: Leaving behind a device overflowing with digital clutter and haphazard notes, letters, and journals for your offspring forces them to sift through the clues of your life; a professional biographer helps you curate the stuff of your life so your loved ones don’t have to do it later.
4. Your legacy matters—now and for future generations.
One of the greatest gifts you can give your family is a well-preserved, well-told story of your life. Whether it’s a bound book, an audio recording, or a digital archive, working with a biographer ensures that your memories don’t fade over time.
✔ Your children, grandchildren, and beyond will know your voice, your experiences, your wisdom.
✔ Your history won’t be lost—your struggles, triumphs, and lessons will live on.
✔ It’s not just about the past—it’s about shaping how you want to be remembered, and offering up your hard-won lessons to your descendants.
Imagine this: Decades from now, a great-grandchild you’ve never met picks up your story and feels connected to you in a way they never could have otherwise. (Wouldn’t you have cherished such a gift from your own parents or grandparents?) Even better—what if they are able to learn from one of your stories? This is such a biggie, but I’ll leave you with one word: IMPACT ❤️
Hiring a skilled personal historian or biographer isn’t about handing over your story to someone else; it’s about having an experienced guide who knows how to ask the right questions, shape a compelling narrative, and preserve your legacy in a way that resonates for generations to come.
