Three Memoirists, One Big Book Giveaway
TRY SOME HOSPITALITY, I always say, and when I do, the students in my memoir class frequently look a little stunned. They’re not in the room to learn etiquette, after all, so why would I mention the h-word? Simple: You cannot write memoir without it. Or didn’t you know that? It’s one of the many tactics I describe in my new book, The Memoir Project: A Thoroughly Non-Standardized Text for Writing & Life. A little more on hospitality, and a chance to win one of six copies in a giveaway this week with two memoirist “sisters:”
I’m talking about being hospitable to your work, and that begins with taking notes. To do so, you need to get in the habit of carrying an index card in each pocket. That way, you can capture what you see, hear and remember. This does not require an expensive digital recorder, leather notebook or Cartier pen. That’s showing off. Being hospitable begins with the tools you need for writing what you know—index cards, notebooks, pens—and then paying attention to the goods, the scenes from your life you will choose among to illustrate your argument.
Argument, you say? Hold the phone. Can we be hospitable and still argue?
We can, and we must.
Consider the work of the women with whom I am running this book giveaway, Katrina Kenison and Margaret Roach. Both accomplished memoirists, they each have an argument, both of which are revealed from the moment you read their books’ titles. Katrina’s great memoir, The Gift of An Ordinary Day, and Margaret’s gorgeous And I Shall Have Some Peace There, both argue for the ability to find happiness, peace, and even some great provocation, right in your own back yard. Just like Dorothy’s red shoes, these writers both argue in their books, you already possess what you need to thrive. The gift is to see it that way. Would you like to see their arguments in a beautiful format? Katrina’s video is a fine, joyful persuasion to embrace her train of thought; Margaret’s book trailer conveys her argument beautifully.
And what a fine argument it is.
How to learn to find an argument worth making amid the enormous story that is your life?
Well, I said be hospitable, but I’m not going to give it all away away here. For more, I hope you’ll read my new book.
How to Win 1 of 6 Copies of
The Memoir Project
MARGARET, KATRINA AND I are each giving away two copies of my new book The Memoir Project: A Thoroughly Non-Standardized Text for Writing & Life, and all you have to do to win is comment, answering the question:
What memoir that you have read mattered to you, and why?
Copy and paste your comment onto all three of our blogs to triple your chances of winning—again, each of us has two copies to share, and we’ll all draw winners at random (using the tool at random dot org) after entries close at midnight Saturday, June 18.
- Here.
- On Margaret’s book blog.
- And on Katrina Kenison’s, author of “The Gift of an Ordinary Day,” whose message has been heard not just in print but by nearly 1.6 million YouTube viewers so far.
Now we are pretty flexible, we three, so even if you don’t want to name a book, or have a title but not a reason why, that’s OK. Simply say, “I want to win,” or “Count me in” or some such, and your entry will be official. But remember: copy and paste it on all three blogs at the links bulleted above. Good luck! (And we can’t wait to see the booklist you help generate with your replies.)
The Mercy Papers: A Memoir of Three Weeks by Robin Romm. It was as though finally someone had witnessed me and all I had felt in losing my Mom to cancer as a young girl. That I wasn’t alone in my inner child’s (and my adult) thoughts that it wasn’t OK for her to leave. Robin’s book speaks to the child in all of us that is never too old to lose their mother. It was the turning point for me to be able to begin to celebrate my mother in life, not grieve her in death. This book began as Robin’s personal journal and I am profoundly grateful for the gift she gave in choosing to share it.
What I Talk About When I Talk About Running by Haruki Murakami
Great book about a wonderful writer and marathon runner. The story of how he started doing both. I read this when I decided to run my first marathon.
I really liked “The gift of an ordinary day”. The author echoed my sentiments in so many aspects throughout the book. Her remarkable insight and elegant writing style made it perfect.
I know we were asked to comment on one memoir, but being a rule breaker by nature, there have been two books in my life that weight equally as life changing.
“When the heart waits” by Sue Monk Kidd, afforded me the lesson in just being still and present to your life and was the inspiration for my first foot forward in my personal journey.
“The Gift of an Ordinary Day” by Katrina Kenison came into my life just when I was wanting to flee. The book reassured me that feeling, good and bad, is the key to the life you really want to live.
My favorite memoir has been ‘A Year by the Sea’ by Joan Anderson. So much wisdom on how to create the life you want.
I am a mother of 2 young boys and my husband and I are planning to take the boys on the road, traveling, for a year. I would love to capture our journey – both the physical and mental journeys. Your quote of Marion, on ‘just because it’s hard, doesn’t mean we shouldn’t bother.’ rings true as I’m sure we’ll encounter many difficulties (who doesn’t with a 2.5 and 5 yr olds) but that does not mean it will not be worth it in the end and for all the memories and bonds which will be created. THANK YOU!!
Count me in
ENTRIES FOR THE GIVEAWAY ARE NOW CLOSED, but your comments about memoirs you have loved are always welcome (even if they don’t count in the drawing). Winners are being chosen at random and will be emailed!
Thank you all for such a great response — Marion and Katrina and I want to make a booklist from these suggestions as a future post. So more to come…
I cannot think of any ‘specific’ memoir…….I do know that I am told all the time, by others, that I should write a book. I suffer from depression, am a single mom with a disabled child and have been alone for a very long time. I try to exude a sense of happiness toward all and smile without thought of my own despair. It has brought me far, but I know writing down all of my life’s experience would bring me a sense of calm. I have always had the mind that God gives no more than you can handle. My plate overflows as I approach foreclosure; laid off in March of 2009. In my youth I wrote all the time. Somewhere along the way I lost the desire…..actually I lost myself. I envision being able to write my memoir, I may be able to find myself , once again. Maybe, just maybe. Do you think so?
Hi, Rosemary. Welcome to my new blog about memoir writing. It sounds like you have a lot to write about, sister, which is perhaps why your friends tell you what they do. I agree. But my advice it to take it one story at a time. Let’s do that, shall we? For help on how to do so, I’m providing lots of support here on the site, as well as in my free newsletter and on a Facebook page called The Memoir Project. All together, these different ways of communicating about memoir are my effort to build a community around writing what we know. So welcome. You are a valued member. Let’s get you writing. Please come back soon.
I loved “An Educaton” and “Girl Interrupted” – both about young women coming of age in difficult circumstances.