Family Stories: Part 2
Before you begin writing your family stories, decide how you will keep them. There is no right or wrong way. Do what works best for you.
The image on the left shows a spiral-bound book filled with blank pages. You can write longhand inside, story after story.
The middle image shows looseleaf binders. With this type, you can punch holes in the papers you want to put inside and insert or remove at will. Dividers can be purchased so that you can keep the stories categorized. Nice but not a must.
The third option is a loose file folder. You can put the typed or written in longhand papers inside without punching holes. The only problem with this is that these folders hold a smaller amount of papers so you might end up with several folders.
Another option would be a large photo album that has plastic over each page. You could put the typed or handwritten story on the page, fold the plastic over it. Nice way to preserve the pages.
I prefer the looseleaf 3-ring binder as it holds more and there is the ease of inserting or removing papers.
You can make a fancy cover or something simple or leave it blank. Again, your choice. Call it something as simple as Family Stories or create a catchy name that might be something your family will recognize.
Next, you might want to make a list of the people in your family and your relationship to them. It would be a nice addition in the front of your Family Stories Book.
Make another list for yourself. This one should have a phrase or two about something you plan to write later. You can add to this as the stories come to mind. It might also include words like our home, schooldays, kind of place we lived, parents--occupation, grandparents, cousins and more. These are meant to be prompts to help bring memories to mind.
And now, it's time to write that first story. Let's say you are going to tell the story about the time your Uncle Oscar hid in the hayloft to escape a girl who chased him unmercifully....and whatever happened as he tried to avoid her. Start by telling who your Uncle Oscar is--your mother's brother or your dad's. Write a little about the kind of person he was--physical characteristics and others. Set the scene where the story happens. Give some background if it helps make the story more interesting.
The story itself is important but the way you tell it can make it one of two things--a lot of facts piled up or something of interest and enjoyment. To bring a story to life, use a writer's tools like these:
- dialogue in some places makes it more interesting
- adjectives to give the reader a better picture
- sensory details like smell, sound, taste, touch and sight
- active verbs, not too many passive ones like is, are, were
- write the story as though you were telling it to someone across a table
- write sentences that are not overly-long
The list above is only a suggestion to help make your story interesting. When you write family stories, you are in charge, It's your choice as to how you tell it but stay with the truth. Don't add made-up parts, even if you think it might make the story better. Remember that you do not have to be a professional writer to write your family stories. Anyone can do it. Why not you?
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