Searching For Structure in Memoir
What did I learn from what I went through?
For three long years, I’ve been learning to write a memoir, and what an adventure it has been.
I planned to start at the beginning and just keep going until I reached eighteen. My initial goal was to share my childhood spent homesteading in Alaska and preserve those memories for my family.
But then I read The Memoir Project by author and writing coach Marion Roach Smith and realized my approach would result in a story to put even my family to sleep.
Does a memoir need a plot?
An argument? A Universal Truth? It was a lot to absorb.
Smith teaches aspiring memoirists to develop an algorithm for their projects. It goes like this: What I needed + what I tried = what worked to achieve my need.
This process not only creates the X + Y = Z but also fits into a traditional three-act structure format.
Why would you care about the details of my life?
People read stories, and yes—a memoir is a story. And a memorable tale takes the reader on a journey from one place to another.
