Writing Your Family Legacy

Posted on June 7, 2007 by moonbridgebooks

Last week I had the pleasure of sitting in on a short workshop by Linda Weaver Clarke, who has written a series of books based on her family history. Melinda and the Wild West is the first to be released. Her idea of taking a true family story and embellishing it into a work of historical fiction is a fun idea for those who are infected with a creative writing bug. If you can catch one of Linda’s free workshops, she not only offers a flash-course in creative writing but has the short booklet Writing Your Family Legacy free with purchase of a Melinda book. I have just used my notes and the booklet to rake over the final editing of the Cherry Blossoms in Twilight second edition.

Being that I have a true autobiography written in my mother’s voice, I cannot embellish my story too much, however I was able to use Linda’s tips to create more interest by the careful choice of my words, particularly in the case of descriptions. I was also able to ask my mother some more pointed questions about how she felt in certain situations, which in turn provoked other interesting tidbits to come out.

For those interested in writing more in depth about their family stories, be sure to study up on writing techniques and read other memoirs to get a feel for how to go about writing yours. I will look forward to reading the exciting and romantic Melinda and the Wild West while paying attention to how Ms. Clarke crafted her story, especially since I am toying with the idea of writing an “autobiographical novel” of my own, weaving true characters and events with embellishments in the hopes of entertaining my own children and others.

See http://www.lindaweaverclarke.com/ for more about Linda and to see sample short stories.


Linda Austin
“Cherry Blossoms in Twilight”
http://www.moonbridgebooks.com
Posted in storytelling, writing skills | Comments Off on Writing Your Family Legacy

To Publish or Not To Publish

Posted on June 2, 2007 by moonbridgebooks

Most family stories are meant for the family. A nice 8 ½ x11” booklet can be printed out and taken to a local copy shop to have covers put on and be spiral or cloth bound. Some family stories, however, might be of rather unique historical value and one might want to consider actually publishing the stories for a wider audience. It is quite a jump to go from casual writing to producing a book, but if you are a pretty good writer and have plenty of interesting family stories, you might want to look into becoming an author. Warning, warning, it is a LOT of work and there is a business end to deal with.

If you think you have it in you to write a book, you must decide WHO you would write the book for (no, not EVERYONE) and determine if there really would be interest in it. I decided to publish Cherry Blossoms in Twilight because my mother’s story of growing up in Japan during WWII was rather unique and I thought that school teachers would have a particular interest in it. The book was written with that specific audience in mind, although it is a learning experience for adults also. The second edition coming out late this summer focuses even more on historic detail and has been slightly altered to be suitable for an even younger elementary audience.

Is your story unique? There are plenty of Holocaust stories, stories of WWII in China, and of U.S. internment camps for those of Japanese heritage. Maybe your relatives were put in one of the few U.S. internment camps for German-heritage people or have a difficult immigration story. Perhaps your stories would be of interest locally, for example, to illuminate life and the history of the early days of your town. You might be extra creative and want to weave a novel around your family history. Perhaps your stories would be inspirational to others.

If your story can stand out from the crowd, and you are tempted to publish in order to share it with those outside your family, read all you can about the business end of writing, publishing and marketing. There are decisions to be made before you even write the first word.

For some very important information about publishing choices, Bob Baker (who makes his living as an author) has a new e-book available in print or audio. Self-Publishing Success Secrets 101 spells it all out succinctly for new authors. Read up on it at http://www.bob-baker.com/self-publish-book/ebook-audio.html.

Linda Austin
“Cherry Blossoms in Twilight”
http://www.moonbridgebooks.com
Posted in memoir writing | Comments Off on To Publish or Not To Publish

Memorial Day Thoughts-Pearl Harbor to Iraq

Posted on May 25, 2007 by moonbridgebooks

A few days ago I gave a presentation to a large group of seniors, telling about the creation of my Japanese mother’s Cherry Blossoms in Twilight book and hoping to encourage them to share their own stories with their families. All was going well until one woman, with disgust in her voice, loudly said, “What about Pearl Harbor, did you forget about that?” My first ever “heckler,” so to speak. I was not upset or angry, but instead took that opportunity to expound at length about the horrors of war that are wreaked upon all involved.

War is not something that the people of a country vote on. It is decided by government and military leaders who in many countries will brutally smash any opposition or resistance to their views. They may control the media, mislead their people, and otherwise convince or threaten their citizens to believe as they do. I feel so lucky to live in a country where people are free to disagree with their leaders without the fear of being imprisoned, tortured, killed. The United States is filled with immigrants with terrible stories of fleeing an unwanted war to come to a place where they not only can be safe but have the freedom to be.

I believe it is almost a duty for those with war experiences to share some of those stories so that people will always be horrified at what war does to real people. It is easy for many of us to sit back in our recliners and shut off the TV when unpleasant pictures of faraway places are shown. This Memorial Day, please take a moment to remember that war is not some kind of video game, and that families are destroyed in heartwrenching ways. Honor the memories of the war dead and know that everyone suffers in a war.

Linda Austin
“Cherry Blossoms in Twilight”
http://www.moonbridgebooks.com
Posted in honoring veterans, war stories | Comments Off on Memorial Day Thoughts-Pearl Harbor to Iraq