Anne, I am so happy you are taking the leap into memoir. I have been thinking hard about doing that, too, along the themes of the Substack newsletter I started last fall: a woman who leaves her 33 year marriage only to fall nearly immediately into full-time caregiving for a mother with dementia, yet holding onto her destiny--this is not where the story ends. And yet, as you write, that question comes popping up: "What makes your story so special?" I have to remind myself each one of us is unique and the telling of our stories is unique. And if I were to write it, it would be (as it is for you) as much for me as for anyone else. To make sense of this sudden huge shift in my life, in my 60s, a storm of my making but one in which I underestimated just where the winds would blow me, and how much agency I had over the direction I would choose. Thanks for sharing your process. I am thinking of moving my current novel to Skrievener, as it a multi-protagonist novel and keeping track all of those individual characters and their backstories are going to challenge me the further I get in the process.
I am reading Deborah Levy's Cost of Living and already highlighting so many passages. I look forward to reading the rest of the books in the trilogy. I love that you have those three threads in your book: memoir, travelogue, famous women artists. I can't wait to read it when it is published.
I don't think most of us write memoir because we think we are special. (Maybe a bit more now in the era of social media, but I don't care anything about that! it's more likely a publisher thinks they are special!) It is a singular way we commune with others. We have an idea that others have similar experiences and we can breach the walls that keep human being separate. When someone says to me, as they did last week, It's almost like you wrote from my own Point of View! This makes me want to cry, it so fills me up with humanity! A dancer doesn't dance because they think they are special, a painter doesn't paint because they think they are special. We don't write because we think we are special. We write because we must. Words are our tools, our gifts. We must use our gifts. The subjects can shift, but our own life is certainly not off limits! I might say, "Who do you think you are to NOT use your gifts?"
Alecia, if you read my comment above, it is almost as if you wrote this comment for me, too. Thank you for this timely reminder that our memoirs "can breach the walls that keep human beings separate." What an eloquent way to express it. We write because we must--oh yes!
Hey Anne, Can I suggest you write a series and self publish? I am on book 6 of my living memoir (as I call it) which I started writing in 2020. Like you, I am doing something that a lot of people dream of doing - moving to Italy and renovating a derelict villa without a plan - I tell it warts and all. By book 3 I was earning more than my day job and so I became a full-time writer and the books are also paying for the renovation. If someone likes your first in series they will buy the rest and you could divide you books by country perhaps. My first in series has been bought by Sourcebooks and a new edition will be trad published in October. So I am becoming a hybrid author. Just thought I would suggest it as sometimes writers don't realise how much indie authors can make (I don't mean vanity publishing).
Thank you for this, Rosie! (Sorry I missed it before.) I may want to discuss with you someday. We'll see where my submission process takes me, but I really appreciate your pointing out the viability of this alternative. I haven't really considered it before, but I might if things don't go well.
Rosie, it is so inspiring to hear that you did well with self-publishing and are now a hybrid author with your trad publishing deal. I will keep that in mind.
I have heard through reliable sources that the big publishers are now looking at indie publishers to take on, which happened to me. So it’s an alternative path to consider. :)
Enjoyed this post, Anne, as I do all your writings about travel and life. I've been working on re-igniting my creative life, which went very nearly fallow following 10 years in a demanding job, plus going back to school for a Master in Liberal Arts degree. Since I left my job a year ago, I have been in an interim state, a time of transition, during which I've been trying (unrealistically) to balance reading, creative writing, a return to watercolors, and some gardening, all the while looking for paid consulting work. It's a real plate-spinner. Too much, untenable. I'm finally beginning to realize that creativity ebbs and flows (sometimes it even crashes with a grand wave and recedes just as quickly!)--and that this not only okay, but far more natural than trying to be some kind of multi-headed creative hydra. I do need and always want to be creating something in one way or another, because it makes me feel alive; but I don't need to be creating on all five cylinders all the time. So I've been learning be content with 1-2 pursuits at a time: sometimes it's a bold, quantifiable endeavor with a deadline, like writing an essay or a book review; other times it's merely trying a new recipe, or dabbling with a watercolor technique. It took me into my mid-fifties to become comfortable with the fact that I am a Renaissance soul, that my creative interests are wide and always will be, and probably most important, they never truly leave me, or I them. Rather, they're always there, faithful friends, waiting quietly and ready to re-engage whenever it feels right. Cheers! ~Cheryl
No apologies necessary! I loved reading it, as I love reading all of your responses. I have been wanting to expand my creative endeavors and even bought an online class on watercolors and bought a bunch of materials. But I have yet to start any of it. I've been too focused on writing and just the stresses of travel. So this was nice to read and think about creativity ebbing and flowing and taking different forms at different times. I love that you are embracing a creative life in so many ways. Truly inspiring!
Anne, I am so happy you are taking the leap into memoir. I have been thinking hard about doing that, too, along the themes of the Substack newsletter I started last fall: a woman who leaves her 33 year marriage only to fall nearly immediately into full-time caregiving for a mother with dementia, yet holding onto her destiny--this is not where the story ends. And yet, as you write, that question comes popping up: "What makes your story so special?" I have to remind myself each one of us is unique and the telling of our stories is unique. And if I were to write it, it would be (as it is for you) as much for me as for anyone else. To make sense of this sudden huge shift in my life, in my 60s, a storm of my making but one in which I underestimated just where the winds would blow me, and how much agency I had over the direction I would choose. Thanks for sharing your process. I am thinking of moving my current novel to Skrievener, as it a multi-protagonist novel and keeping track all of those individual characters and their backstories are going to challenge me the further I get in the process.
I am reading Deborah Levy's Cost of Living and already highlighting so many passages. I look forward to reading the rest of the books in the trilogy. I love that you have those three threads in your book: memoir, travelogue, famous women artists. I can't wait to read it when it is published.
I don't think most of us write memoir because we think we are special. (Maybe a bit more now in the era of social media, but I don't care anything about that! it's more likely a publisher thinks they are special!) It is a singular way we commune with others. We have an idea that others have similar experiences and we can breach the walls that keep human being separate. When someone says to me, as they did last week, It's almost like you wrote from my own Point of View! This makes me want to cry, it so fills me up with humanity! A dancer doesn't dance because they think they are special, a painter doesn't paint because they think they are special. We don't write because we think we are special. We write because we must. Words are our tools, our gifts. We must use our gifts. The subjects can shift, but our own life is certainly not off limits! I might say, "Who do you think you are to NOT use your gifts?"
Alecia, if you read my comment above, it is almost as if you wrote this comment for me, too. Thank you for this timely reminder that our memoirs "can breach the walls that keep human beings separate." What an eloquent way to express it. We write because we must--oh yes!
Thank you for that! Comments breach walks too!
Lovely, Alecia! I definitely want to write without worrying about any of this. That has been easier since I wrote this last year.
Hey Anne, Can I suggest you write a series and self publish? I am on book 6 of my living memoir (as I call it) which I started writing in 2020. Like you, I am doing something that a lot of people dream of doing - moving to Italy and renovating a derelict villa without a plan - I tell it warts and all. By book 3 I was earning more than my day job and so I became a full-time writer and the books are also paying for the renovation. If someone likes your first in series they will buy the rest and you could divide you books by country perhaps. My first in series has been bought by Sourcebooks and a new edition will be trad published in October. So I am becoming a hybrid author. Just thought I would suggest it as sometimes writers don't realise how much indie authors can make (I don't mean vanity publishing).
Thank you for this, Rosie! (Sorry I missed it before.) I may want to discuss with you someday. We'll see where my submission process takes me, but I really appreciate your pointing out the viability of this alternative. I haven't really considered it before, but I might if things don't go well.
Rosie, it is so inspiring to hear that you did well with self-publishing and are now a hybrid author with your trad publishing deal. I will keep that in mind.
I have heard through reliable sources that the big publishers are now looking at indie publishers to take on, which happened to me. So it’s an alternative path to consider. :)
Enjoyed this post, Anne, as I do all your writings about travel and life. I've been working on re-igniting my creative life, which went very nearly fallow following 10 years in a demanding job, plus going back to school for a Master in Liberal Arts degree. Since I left my job a year ago, I have been in an interim state, a time of transition, during which I've been trying (unrealistically) to balance reading, creative writing, a return to watercolors, and some gardening, all the while looking for paid consulting work. It's a real plate-spinner. Too much, untenable. I'm finally beginning to realize that creativity ebbs and flows (sometimes it even crashes with a grand wave and recedes just as quickly!)--and that this not only okay, but far more natural than trying to be some kind of multi-headed creative hydra. I do need and always want to be creating something in one way or another, because it makes me feel alive; but I don't need to be creating on all five cylinders all the time. So I've been learning be content with 1-2 pursuits at a time: sometimes it's a bold, quantifiable endeavor with a deadline, like writing an essay or a book review; other times it's merely trying a new recipe, or dabbling with a watercolor technique. It took me into my mid-fifties to become comfortable with the fact that I am a Renaissance soul, that my creative interests are wide and always will be, and probably most important, they never truly leave me, or I them. Rather, they're always there, faithful friends, waiting quietly and ready to re-engage whenever it feels right. Cheers! ~Cheryl
Sorry for the long post. Started replying and that’s where it went.
No apologies necessary! I loved reading it, as I love reading all of your responses. I have been wanting to expand my creative endeavors and even bought an online class on watercolors and bought a bunch of materials. But I have yet to start any of it. I've been too focused on writing and just the stresses of travel. So this was nice to read and think about creativity ebbing and flowing and taking different forms at different times. I love that you are embracing a creative life in so many ways. Truly inspiring!
That Katie Roiphe quote... 🤯🤯🤯
I’m with you! That’s how I felt reading it. And there are many more examples throughout the book.
I was told years ago by male professors that no one would want to read my memoir because I’m not famous. So thank you for this.
That’s terrible Louann! There will always be readers for good stories. It’s the story that matters. The celebrity memoir is boring anyway!
Sharing personal stories inspires and shows others that they too can change their life. It's impactful by example.
Thanks, Monica. Yes, we learn from other people’s experiences. That’s what reading is all about.
Thanks for this, Anne.