“Get your intention clear before you start and tell your story with integrity.”

“Why are you telling me this?” is the question that is front and center in my mind when reading memoirs, or, for that matter, English 1 essays written by my students. Zinsser says writers should aim high. When you look for your own humanity and the humanity of others, readers … Read More

“The problem is that an interesting life doesn’t make an interesting memoir.”

Zinsser2William Zinsser, author of Writing About Your Life, continues, “Only small pieces of a life make an interesting memoir.” Rather than attempting to write about important periods of history, “be content to tell your small portion of a larger story.” (16) Choose to write about “small, self contained … Read More