As a ghostwriter I am asked this question a lot: When should I write my memoir? It's typically followed by a series of additional question/statements such as;  Do I need to be 50 years old as a minimum? And would I need to write another one if I live till I'm 80? I'm not sure how to start, and of course...... I don't really have much of a story to tell anyway So let me tell you very clearly: There is never a the perfect time to create your memoir. There is just now.  I work with people of all ages and help them share their story. It might cover a part of their life, ie the thr ..read more

When you start any writing project, writers need to consider their audience and purpose. If you do not know who you are writing to and why, the project is probably already doomed. To create writing that is effective, it is important to consider what constitutes good writing. To this end, I find it helpful to think about the four simple steps of effective writing. 1. Stay on track. There is a balance in writing between providing context and focusing on the main point or the action. It is quite difficult in your first draft to find the balance, and this is normally achieved during ..read more

When you start any writing project, writers need to consider their audience and purpose. If you do not know who you are writing to and why, the project is probably already doomed. To create writing that is effective, it is important to consider what constitutes good writing. To this end, I find it helpful to think about the four simple steps of effective writing. 1. Stay on track. There is a balance in writing between providing context and focusing on the main point or the action. It is quite difficult in your first draft to find the balance, and this is normally achieved during ..read more

As parents, we are all concerned for our children. It starts out when they are babies where we focus on them simply being fed, clean, warm and safe. To these needs we add the emotional and psychological concerns, food intolerances, educational resources, appropriate social activities and the list goes on.  And underneath all of the activity, every parent is grappling with the same question: How do we prepare our children for the world in which they live? According to research, the answer might be simpler than you thought. It involves combining two elements. Meals and Stories.  L ..read more

Many a parent or grandparent has sat down with their family and started to share a story. While some people seem to be able to engage the kids for hours, others find their audience loosing interest in minutes.  So what's the difference? It's all about the storytelling skills.  If they don't come naturally, that's OK. The skills can easily be learned and make significant immediate impacts to successfully engage with your audience.   Here are some tips on how to share your family's stories: Have fun and never act your age.  Kids love to laugh, and humor helps people conn ..read more

I am writing this piece so that those sharing their stories can do so in a throughout, safe and legal way. I am not a lawyer, nor have I had legal training, but after writing memoirs for many years, I know how important this step is prior to publishing.     When it comes to writing memoirs and autobiographies, potential writers are often worried about being sued. They aren't worried for nothing! Because while you are writing about the events of your life, whether it is your entire life or just one specific aspect of it, it inevitably requires writing about th ..read more

After all of your hard work, you have finally finished your manuscript. Congratulations! Now all you want to do is share it with others. Perhaps get it published? Or have your story made into a movie? You might just make a fortune! But is it really ready? To give your story the best chance of being picked up by publishers or studios, it is vital to engage a good editor. A great editor. But there are different types of editors offering different types of skills. So you need them all…….perhaps? Do you need some of them – ABSOLUTELY. So here is a quick guide to ensure you engage the right team to ..read more

If you have been a writer for any length of time, you will have heard of writing prompts. SO what are they? And how do you make them work? Simply put, writing prompts are a sentence or statement designed to prompt a written response. Hardly surprising. As a writer, it is important to use these to both improve writing skills, as well as providing a way to work through any writing blocks.  But are all writing prompts equal? Quite frankly no. Well, let me qualify that. Writing prompts are not equal when it comes to improving your writing. This is typically because they are too directive and ..read more

If you are going to take the time to write your story, you want to make all the sweat, tears and editing worth is. It needs to be impacting. So how do you do it?? -------------------------------------------------------------------------- Powerful writers show, not tell. --------------------------------------------------------------------------   For a memoir writer, this is critical to the success and therefore the impact of your story. Your writing must draw readers into your world. To see things, and feel things from your point of view. To be powerful, you must be ab ..read more

An old friend called. We had a laugh. Chatted about old times. We made a date to catch up via Zoom in a couple of weeks. Said goodbye.  Then I got a text. Admitted to hospital, it said.  And another. On a ventilator, it said. Gone.  This is the story I never wanted to write.    Like so many of us in the last eighteen months, I had lost a friend to COVID 19, and I was unprepared. Grief came like a slap in the face, and I didn't quite know what to do.  Then I found myself doing the things. Like looking at photographs. Re-listening to old voicemails. I played music ..read more