Are you thinking about writing a memoir? If you are, you might be feeling confused and overwhelmed about where to start. While your concerns are valid, every problem has a solution with the right guidance.
Here are some of the best tips you must follow to write a memoir.
1. Read Other Memoirs
One of the biggest mistakes you can make as an aspiring fiction writer is to let your desire to start writing immediately take over. While you may feel more ready than ever to write your memoir, take some time to prepare yourself.
In order to prepare yourself for writing in any genre, it’s essential to read brilliant pieces beforehand. Writing and reading are more interconnected than you might realize. You can’t become a good writer if you’re not a good reader.
Reading other best-selling memoirs is the best way for you to find out what works and what does not. Hence, reading will help you meet the audience’s expect
2. Know the Differences
If you are writing a memoir for the first time, you might confuse it with an autobiography. Many people think that both are ways for you to tell your story. However, there is a major difference between the two. Before you start writing a memoir, it is important to understand the difference between a memoir and an autobiography.Â
An autobiography is a comprehensive account of a person’s entire life, from birth to death, and is generally only of interest if the person is famous. On the other hand, a memoir focuses on a specific aspect or period of the author’s life.
In addition, you must also keep in mind that your memoir is not a psychotherapy session either. Yes, writing a memoir can be extremely cathartic, but you should not use this opportunity to unleash misery on your readers, even if your memoir is about traumatic personal events.
3. Write a Brilliant Story
Just because you have a very interesting chapter of life does not always mean it will be perceived well by your audience. The scalability of your memoir also relies heavily on the way your story is presented to the readers. If the story is not enough to make the readers keep turning pages, it may not be enough.
Although memoirs are based on real-life events, you can follow the fiction narrative to increase the readability of your work. However, your memoir cannot have multiple subplots like fiction books. It will just have one tightly knitted story.Â
Memoirs with a clear focus and uninterrupted attention are more likely to succeed. If you have a great idea but are unsure about executing it properly, you can always look for biography writers for hire to get the job done. These professionals know exactly how to turn great ideas into brilliant memoirs.
4. Focus on Unique Events
According to Goodreads, there were at least 432 memoirs published in English in 2023, and more than 214 are expected this year. While the memoir market may not be considered that saturated, it is still fairly competitive.Â
When it comes to winning over the hearts of your readers, you must focus on significant and unique personal experiences. Unique experiences, especially when well-written, can help you create an unforgettable connection with your readers.
5. Omit Some Details
Another great misconception among novice memoir writers is that they have to include every detail of the event in the memoir. Unfortunately, good storytelling is not all about honesty and following a chronological timeline. You must feel free to omit some details if needed.Â
True things are not always interesting, and to win the hearts of your readers, you must make them interesting. You can leave out the redundant details to get to the point where things are more engaging for the reader.
While writing, do not forget at any step that a memoir, just like a novel, is a novel, and is also read for entertainment. You must always be fair and truthful about the events you disclose but never compromise the quality of your writing.
6. Look into Social Media
Connecting with the right audience is not as big a challenge for writers anymore, even if they are beginning their writing journey. You can find communities of all sizes on different topics. They lie just a simple search away.
After choosing a topic to write about, you can begin searching for relevant communities and interacting with them regularly. This will not only provide you with insight into the audience’s expectations but also help you build a reader base.
7. Tap into Local Publishers
Memoir writers often feel disappointed when reaching out to national or international publishers. They may not pay the same attention to your work that you thought it deserved. However, that is no reason for you to feel disheartened.Â
If reaching out to famous and sought-after publishers does not work out, you can always seek help from small and regional publishers. The best part about working with local publishers is that you do not need an agent to reach out to them. It can be a very smooth publishing journey.
8. Try not to be Too Specific
The more specific your topic gets, the fewer people you will be able to engage with your memoir. While you must always be honest when writing a memoir, being too specific, especially about unique circumstances, might make it hard for you to reach your target audience.
For example, if you or a loved one deals with specific illnesses, your memoir will be a great read for someone with the same problem. However, it may not be that valuable to someone who has never been in the same situation.
Of course, that does not mean that you must choose a different topic to write a memoir about. However, you must work hard to reach out to and engage your target audience. Whether through online forums, blogs, or print journals, you must use every possible medium to reach out to your ideal audience.
