Formats for Writing Life Narratives

Q and A.

Best choice when subject is very verbal or there are two or more people being interviewed or taped at the same time. All repetitive statements, umms, ahhs and blatant incorrect grammar are edited out. Natural patterns of speech, coloquolisms and favorite sayings are left in.

JHW. When you started your business in 1934, how did you finance it?

BT. Well, remember my uncle Horace? He was my Mother's brother.

HT. Half brother.

BT.. OK, so half brother, her father remarried after Sybil, my grandmother, died and my mother was a little girl about nine or ten. His second wife, what was her name?

HT.Alice May Jones, her family had moved west to build the dam.

BT.. So anyway, Horace was killed in a train wreck when he was visiting in California and as he had never married, the insurance settlement went to his next of kin, which turned out to be my mother. She wanted to invest the money and came to us and asked our advice. I told her that I had been thinking of opening this repair shop and I thought I could make a go of it. She thought about it long and hard and came back the next day and said she would rather invest in us than any old bank.

HT. But we paid her back with interest. We were able to put the business in the black in only three years.

BT. Of course, we worked our butts off, didn't we?

First person: Best choice when the tapes will need significant editing to make a flowing narrative. It is written as if the speaker were doing the writing. The interviewer simply ghost writes the life story.

I loved being a mother. It seemed as if that was the role God had created just for me. Other women would complain about their children being messy or noisy, and I honestly didn't even care. I just loved to be there when they came home from school. About two o'clock I would start to get antsy, just couldn't wait for them to come in the door, throw down their jackets and books and sit at the kitchen table and talk. I even loved cleaning up after them when they were sick. I know that is hard to believe for some people, but I used to say to myself "well, I would rather have it out here smelling bad than inside of them making them feel bad."

Third Person: Best choice if the subject is having difficulty remembering or if the interviewer has to gain the majority of the facts from records, other family members or others who can add insight and information. Jennie was a fun loving little girl and definitely the apple of Tom B. Bradshaw, her loving father's eye as well as the object of his generosity. But one time, when she was about six years old that generous and loving spirit was put to a test. Active in the first Methodist church, their entire family enjoyed the Sunday school picnics held every summer in the park east of town. On this particular day, the family had no sooner arrived and began eating when a group of little girls came to the table demanding to see the elephant Mr. Bradshaw brought.

Methods of telling the story:

It is best to think of a life as a long strand of pearls with each year or significant event as one pearl.

? An autobiography tells the jest of the whole necklace, usually in a chronological order. Chapters, special events, decades, houses or any other natural division can separate the sections.

? A memoir takes an important section of the pearls and makes a short necklace. You can refer to the other beads, but you don't go into detail describing them but concentrate on the significant period of time you are describing.

? An anthology is a collection of short unrelated stories, essays, anecdotes, incidences etc. that are gathered together in one book The stories may build upon one another or they may be able to stand on their own.

? A photoscribe is a more in depth scrapbook. The stories revolve around a photo or two.

Each page has a beginning, middle and end.

Including photos, graphics and memorabilia

These additions to the narrative greatly enhance the readability and value of the project. However, they also greatly enhance the time needed to do layout, scanning, sizing etc. that will be reflected in the cost of the finished project. One method of saving money is to group all photos in the center of the book.

If you are interested in taking a tele-class on memoir writing please send us an e-mail at Judywright@artichokepress.com and we will set one up. It is a fun way to learn and share from the comfort of your own home.

Keep Writing!!! You are doing an important work.

?Judy H. Wright, Personal and Oral Historian - www.artichokepress.com

house refresh service Lincolnshire ..
In The News:

Cybersecurity firm Infoblox reveals that over 90 percent of parked domains now redirect visitors to scams and malware, making simple typos extremely dangerous.
The Fox News AI Newsletter covers the latest artificial intelligence technology advancements, including the challenges and opportunities AI presents now and for the future.
GPT-5.2 is now live for all ChatGPT users with improved coding, writing and image interpretation, with Kurt Knutsson offering his review.
New iPhone replacement scam uses pressure tactics and fake carrier calls to steal devices from buyers. Criminals claim shipping errors and demand urgent returns.
Amazon Ring's new facial recognition feature sparks privacy controversy as Electronic Frontier Foundation critics argue the AI upgrade expands surveillance risks.
New Android banking trojan Sturnus steals credentials, reads encrypted messages and controls devices.
Denmark's 3D-printed student village proves automation builds 36 apartments faster than traditional methods. Skovsporet project shows housing future.
Discover Android's new Sound Notifications feature that alerts you to smoke alarms, doorbells, and baby cries even when wearing headphones.
New SantaStealer malware reportedly threatens holiday shoppers with password theft. This Christmas-themed info-stealer targets browsers and crypto wallets.
The Christmas season brings a surge in Netflix phishing scams targeting shoppers with fake emails. Stacey P received convincing scam but verified account first.
San Francisco Giants invite Jamie Grohsong to throw ceremonial first pitch at Oracle Park after he learned to play baseball with a bionic hand following an injury.
FBI warns cybercriminals are stealing family photos from social media to create fake proof of life images in virtual kidnapping scams targeting victims.
Instagram's new 'Your Algorithm' tool lets you control your Reels feed in real time. The app now gives you power to customize what videos you see.
Major Marquis fintech breach exposes 400,000-plus Americans' data through unpatched SonicWall vulnerability, with Texas hardest hit at 354,000 affected.
Free up iPhone storage fast by clearing large photos and videos from Messages app. Simple steps for iOS users to delete attachments without losing chats.
Scammers are flooding inboxes with fake tracking alerts that mimic real carriers, exploiting the holiday rush to steal logins and personal data.
The Fox News AI Newsletter brings you the latest news on AI technology advancements and the challenges and opportunities AI presents now and for the future.
Texas family reunites with missing 11-year-old cat Grayson after 103 days using Petco Love Lost's AI photo matching technology and community help.
Tired of AI customer service loops? These insider tricks help you escape "frustration AI" and get real human help when you need it most for urgent issues.
Unlock richer audio from your streaming apps with simple tweaks to volume normalization, equalizer settings, and quality preferences for cleaner sound.
Scammers are sending fake Facebook settlement payout emails that mimic legitimate notices from the privacy settlement administrator to deceive users.
Holiday shopping scams surge as fake refund emails target distracted consumers during Black Friday and holiday seasons, costing Americans billions annually.
The AI-powered IRMO M1 exoskeleton features four modes, including turbo, eco, training and rest for hiking, running, cycling and sports with eight-hour battery life.
OpenAI announced upgrades for its ChatGPT Images platform on Tuesday, saying the program can now make more precise edits and produce images more quickly.
Chrome for Android now turns web articles into AI-powered podcast conversations. Get hands-free browsing with Google Gemini's natural audio summaries.

Get Creative In The Great Outdoors

Summer's here and the time is write for dancing in... Read More

The Dreaded Daily Word Count

Open any book on 'how to write,' and somewhere you... Read More

Write That Down! Compulsively Collecting Content for Your Writing

Have you ever read someone else's writing and thought one... Read More

Getting Published Is Different For Everyone: Two Paths Among Many

One obvious question that can get overlooked in the process... Read More

Learning to Question Your Elephant Child: Who, What, Where, When and Why

Having problems writing? I don't know why. San Francisco Chronicle... Read More

Write a Letter, Make a Difference

Today I took the dog for a walk and realized... Read More

10 Tips To Help You Pack More Power Into Your Business Writing

1. Before you write anything down define not what you... Read More

Celebrating Writing and Life

Every morning I excitedly get out of bed. Just a... Read More

Is The Theme Reinforced In The Ending?

Creative Writing Tips ?By now you should have an idea... Read More

Business Writing Tip: Question & Answer Format

Traditionally, business writing uses the "one thing after another" format,... Read More

The Unwritten World Of The Reality Of Letterwriting

You may wonder why I have chosen this title of... Read More

Uncommon Advice for Beginning Novelists

1) Convince yourself you want to do something else. If... Read More

How To Write More Powerful Reports

There is one key difference between reports and most other... Read More

The Writer and the Web

If your dream is to get published, the chance is... Read More

A Writers Personal Cheer Squad

We all need a cheer squad.We all need people to... Read More

The ENTP Inventor Writes A Novel

People familiar with the Myers-Briggs Personality test know that the... Read More

Dialogue Tags - A Study in Common Errors

Verb and SubjectIncorrect:"I bet you two had a fine time,"... Read More

Become the Writer You Always Dreamed of Being

So you want to be a writer, except you don't... Read More

Character Motivation - Always Ask WHY

For many years, I've been a tutor for students undertaking... Read More

The Power of Punctuation

Punctuation, when used creatively, is powerful. Note, however, that when... Read More

8 Tell-Tale Signs That Forecast Writing Success!

'Talent is cheaper than table salt. What separates the talented... Read More

Sick of the Traditional Publishing Path?

A book coaching client recently emailed me that she was... Read More

The Iniquitous Slip

All the famous writers I heard of could paper the... Read More

Tips For Better Writing

It is certainly true that we don't get a second... Read More

Got an Idea? Turn it into a Novel in Thirty Days or Less!

People can't believe I did it, but I did. I... Read More

licensed cleaning services Lake Forest ..