Writer Granny's World by Nancy Julien Kopp
My Writing World withTips and Encouragement for Writers
Friday, January 27, 2023
Keeping and Sharing Your Family Stories
Thursday, January 26, 2023
Tools for Writing Family Stories
Wednesday, January 25, 2023
How To Format Your Family Stories
Tuesday, January 24, 2023
Family History Before Family Stories
This week's posts are all on the topic of Family Stories, your own life story, as well. Yesterday, I focused on why we should write these stories. Today let's look at where to begin.
That's always a good question at the start of a new project. Where to begin? Someone once said, 'Where to begin? Start at the beginning.' A bit confusing to someone wanting to launch a new project. Perhaps the beginning would be to write about your family's make-up first. A short family history.
Include the members of your immediate family, parents, siblings, any other family member who lived with you--possibly a grandparent. Add dates of your birth and your siblings, even your parents. Many years down the road, those dates will have some importance.
Add the place where you lived growing up. Or places, if that is the case. Children of military personnel live in many places over the rather short space of the years in which they were children and teens. As well as the actual place, you could include a descrption of your home or homes.
You could add something about your ethnic background. That is usually something of interest to future generations as they will share part of that history with you plus others as marriages took place. We become real mixtures of heritages as time goes on. I am one of the rare people who have a half and half ethnic heritage. My father's family was all French, while my mother's was Irish. Perhaps there would be a few other things added in if I had my DNA checked, but the half and half is fairly accurate.
Make reference to what your father's job was. And your mother--was she a homemaker or did she work outside the home, as well?
Finally, add something about your extended family--grandparents, aunts, uncles, and cousins. Did they live close to you or far away? Were they loved by your family or distant by choice?
As you write this short family history, you will most likely trigger some memories. As they flit through your mind, take some time to jot a note to yourself. You'll have a list to choose from for your first family story.
This is not a difficult task. Once you start, it's easier to continue. Tomorrow, we'll discuss how you can format your stories.
Monday, January 23, 2023
No Right or Wrong When Writing Family Stories
If you don’t recount your family history, it will be lost. Honor your own stories and tell them too. The tales may not seem very important, but they are what binds families and makes each of us who we are. Madeleine L’Engle
“It turns out that sharing family stories with adult children and grandchildren is more than a pleasant pastime. Research has found that a strong narrative helps build strong family bonds. .Passing down lessons and values through stories enhances a sense of well-being.” (Mary W. Quigley
“The best-loved stories are not from books or films, but those from our own families” Jane McGarvey“
Family stories casually chatted about at the dinner table, or regaled again and again at family gatherings can parallel great epics or notable short stories. The memorable stories of our lives and of others in our family take on special importance because they are true, even if everyone tells different versions of the same event. These tales are family heirlooms held in the heart not the hand. They are a gift to each generation that preserves them by remembering them and passing them on.” (Heather Forest)
When you write those Family Stories, both happy, funny, and sad, be sure to see that they will be handed down to someone in the family after you are gone. Be kind enough to let them know long before they're needed. I'm not addressing only people in their senior years regarding this, younger people need to give some thought to it, as well.
My husband had an aunt who was the Family Storyteller and keeper of Family History. She had never married so had no children to pass these things on to. She made a large family photo album with information under the photos of Ken's mother's side of his family. Eight children all born in the USA to German immigrant parents. She didn't give it to Ken or one of his brothers, or any of her other nephews and nieces. Instead, she gave it to our, then five-year-old, granddaughter. The message that she was to carry on the family tradition was there for all of us. Our granddaughter was thrilled to be given this family gift, even though at that young age, she didn't realize all the implications. Today, I'm sure she does.
I keep hard copies of my Family Stories in a large 3 ring binder type of notebook, so that I can easily add new ones as they are written.
Read the quotes above again, and give them serious consideration. Remember this, as well: You do not have to be a professional writer to write Family Stories. Anyone can do it. They can be short or long, detailed or just the facts. There is no right or wrong when writing your memories for generations to come to savor.
Wednesday, January 18, 2023
Tuesday, January 17, 2023
Making Time to Write
Many writers don't write full-time as their means of support. A good number write part-time, some to supplement income, some for the sheer pleasure, some to fulfill a desire to write. These writers are often battling time problems. "I want to write, but I can't find the time."
As our photo poster for today tells us, 'It's not about having time. It's about making time.' How do you do that? It takes some discipline and dedication. How important is writing in your life? That's one of the first things to determine.
If you truly do want to have time to write, you might have to give up some other things in your life. Maybe those coffee dates with friends might have to be reduced to once a month instread of twice a week. Or you might need to say no when a friend asks you go to a movie. Instead of an all-day shopping trip, you could cut it to a couple of hours. You'll have to decide how important your social life is in comparison to your writing life. I don't advise cutting all social ties. Those times are important, but reducing the number and time spent is doable.
What about those who are busy rasing children? Anyone who has done so knows how much time is involved. You don't want to shoo them away so you can write, nor do you want to scold them for disturbing your writing time. A lot depends on their ages. If little ones take naps, make that hour writing time. If they're in school all day, carve out a certain part of the day to write.
Stay up an hour later than usual or rise an hour earlier. Either time is usually when your house is quiet, and you won't have interruptions. My choice would be the early morning before others in the family get up. You're probably fresher and your brain clicking better than after a long day and you're ready for sleep.
If you're a dad who works full-time and also has kids to spend time with, you'll have to be pretty creative. Some moms work full-time, as well, so writing time might not happen every day. In fact, making time to write could be a real chore. If you commute on public transportation, bring a small notebook with you, and make use of that time to write. Waiting in a dr's office is down time, too.
You can find small amounts of time through your day, whether you're at home or working. The time to write may not be in great amounts, but if you truly have the desire to write, you'll make time here and there.
Retired people are fortunate as their time is not taken up by all the duties of younger people. Even if retirees lead a busy social life, they can still find blocks of time to write. Some retired people are happy to spend their days at home, so they have no problem blocking out a period of writing time.
It doesn't matter what your situation is. It's up to you to make the time to write, if that is truly what you want to do. Stop and think how many minutes a day we waste on silly things. Wouldn't you rather be writing?
Keeping and Sharing Your Family Stories
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