The Writing Workshop Process

I have always found my best ideas for books come from the freewriting I do in my daily journal.  I now write weekly about what I am learning concerning the memoir genre and the publishing process for new authors.  Eventually, once I decided to turn a year long journal into a book, I retyped and edited each journal entry which evolved into about a six month process.  Since I know the importance of good leads, I always endeavor to ensure that my first sentence and paragraph grip the reader because if not then what would be the point of them continuing to read the rest of my work?  And I have noticed that most literary agents are looking for that "gotcha" lead in the first few pages because most generally ask for the first five to ten pages when you submit a manuscript.  If you do not grab your reader from the get-go then it becomes difficult to maintain interest and subsequently sell the book.  I like to think that a really incredible memoir has to keep me as a reader engaged all the way through the book without me putting it down and forgetting where I was in the story when I return to the book.  Gifted writers can achieve this formidable feat, but so can authors with tremendously unique and moving experiences.  It does take practice so the more I write and the more I read other works, I gain the ability to tweak my craft and also determine where other works fall short as well as where my own writing needs improvement.

Occasionally I have come across a really great book, but I can't get past the author's use of foul language or levels of violence.  Sorry, I'm not a Stephen King fan.  You will not find me waiting for the next vampire book or movie either.  I think real life is dramatic enough without having to invent chaos, crisis, and calamity.  Additionally, I like to learn from others' experiences and the best methodology to achieve this that I've seen in the writing world is the memoir genre.  People have some tremendously interesting relatives; some have survived when the odds were overwhelmingly stacked against them; and many memoir writers have made some tremendously bad decisions with horrific consequences or worse, been the victims of others' bad choices.  It just never fails to surprise me as a reader.

Finally, this week I finished the memoir Her Last Death by Susanna Sonnenberg.  Wow, talk about growing up with a seriously bipolar parent and how that kind of parenting shapes you as both child and adult.  There were moments in the book where I cringed for the author as I was reading about her mother's behavior.   Never let it be said that experience does not shape reality because this book would definitely prove that wrong.  This weekend I will be looking for my next memoir selection as I visit my local Barnes & Noble in an effort to make sure they do not file Chapter 11 as Borders has been forced to do.  In the meantime, enjoy a good book or carve out a period of time for yourself to enjoy a good memoir over the weekend.  I will be.