You? Write a memoir? What makes you think you’re so special?

 

Maybe you hear niggling, little whispers:

 

You? Write a memoir?

What makes you think you’re so special?

 

If that sounds like you, you’ll identify here with Chip MacGregor.

 

Chip sensed God wanted him to write about what He had done for him—but he felt unqualified.

 

“All I saw was a very tattered, frayed thread, broken and retied in a number of places.”

 

You know the feeling. You might be asking yourself,

 

“Who am I that I should write my stories?

I’ve made more than a few mistakes,

and besides, I’m a nobody.

I’m not a Billy Graham

or an Elizabeth Elliot.

I’m not a famous Bible teacher or author.

What could I be thinking?”

 

But Chip—bless his heart—although he was all too aware of his shortcomings, he also recognized the “tattered, frayed thread, broken and retied in a number of places” actually “wrapped around the entire story. It was the thread of redemption.”

 

Yesss! You know what I say so often here at SM 101:

 

Write your God-and-you stories

not because you are so great,

but because God is so great.

 

Chip continues, “. . . [W]hat qualifies you to tell your story is your experience of redemption.”

 

Chip and you and I can, and must, write our stories of redemption.

 

Redemption refers to the forgiveness of our sins because of God’s grace. Romans 3:23-24 acknowledges that all of us are flawed, we all have sinned and have fallen short of the glory of God, and yet we are justified by His grace as a gift, a free gift of God. It’s because of His never-ending love for each of us.

Our appropriate response is: “I will remember the deeds of the Lord; yes, I will remember Your wonders of old. I will ponder your work, and meditate on your mighty deeds” (Psalm 77: 11-12).

 

Your job, then, is to remember, and then write about, everyday events and relationships, about babies and teenagers and grandparents, Boy Scouts and Home Ec and your most embarrassing date, best friends and bullies and bigots.

 

Write about learning to drive, or swim, or cook, or kiss. Write about funerals and weddings and heartbreak, about honesty and lies, about money and taxes, about mowing lawns and making beds and cleaning toilets.

 

Within them all, dig deep and find the threads of redemption.

 

Peel off layers one by one until you find glorious, sobbing, humbling, joy-filled, life-saving redemption.

 

Listen: The stories of famous Christians and prominent modern-day heroes of the faith are important—but not because those people are so great. Each of them admits to being deeply flawed. Their stories matter because God is so great.

 

It’s not what they did—it’s what God did.

 

Don’t miss this:

 

Chip points out that your story of redemption

is “the journey your readers want to take.

And if we can whittle down our lives

to reveal how God has brought redemption to us,

readers will be inspired to believe it may happen to them.”

 

“Show the purpose behind the pain,” he says, “and you may bring hope to many lives.”

 

That’s it! Our hearts long to inspire others to hang in there, to be assured that God is for them, He loves them, and He has His own stories of redemption for them.

 

Don’t underestimate the power of your story.

Just one memoir can change lives

—one life, or a hundred thousand lives—

maybe for eternity.

 

“. . .  God is telling the story of redemption,” writes Diana Trautwein. “And God is using us to help tell that story. He invites us right up on stage and says, ‘Partner with me. Tell my story in your vernacular, in your specific situation.”

 

Write your God-and-you stories, your stories of redemption—not because of who you are, but because of who God is.

 

Back to Basics: How to make your memoir’s suspense reader-friendly

 

Donald Maass asks:

 

“Do you hope your [story] can change people

or even history?”

 

Maybe it has never occurred to you that your memoir could change people, and maybe even change history. Some people might think that a story is merely a form of entertainment. That reading is just for fun. Or maybe even an escape—a pleasant distraction from real-life situations.

 

What a mistake that is! Stories can be utterly powerful. Life-changing. Even life-giving. Even life-saving.

 

If you believe—or at least hope—that your memoir can impact people, and generations of your family, as Donald Maass suggests, he continues:

 

“Your hope is not in vain.

It actually can. That power, however,

cannot exist unless and until

a story has a strong emotional impact.”

(Donald Maass)

 

To give your memoir that strong emotional impact, you must include suspense. When readers experience the suspense you did, they’ll keep reading to learn the outcome.

 

And when people keep reading, they will benefit—their lives will change because they read your story. Believe it: Your memoir has the potential to change your readers’ lives.  (See last week’s post, “Make ‘em wait”.)

 

While it’s important to include suspense,

make those passages reader-friendly.

Readers don’t want to waste time with long,

drawn-out moaning and groaning.

 

“Readers don’t buy books that ponder problems,” writes Chip MacGregor. “They buy books that offer great solutions to their problems. So offer good solutions.” (Memorable Words)

 

In MacGregor’s opinion, we should reveal the cause of the suspense—the dispute, the unwelcome surprise, the emotional tug-of-war, the threat, the challenge—in a condensed way. And then we should get on with the rest of the story.

 

But wait! We don’t want

to downplay the suspense

too much, either!

 

K.S. Davis teaches her students (both fiction and memoir-writers) to avoid a “failure to sustain key moments.” That is, moments of tension and suspense and emotion.

 

In some of her students’ rough drafts, Davis discovered key moments “were just going by too quickly.” To remedy that, she advises, “. . . Writers, don’t be afraid to slow down and ‘linger.’

 

“Make sure you are devoting sufficient space to the ‘key moments’ in your manuscript so that they register with your readers. Your writing will resonate much more clearly and vividly if you do.”

 

Davis says we can achieve that by using dialogue, summarizing unspoken thoughts, and using nuance.

 

So, the combined message

from Chip MacGregor and K.S. Davis is this:

Find a healthy balance

in writing passages of suspense

and drama and emotion.

 

K.M. Weiland says it this way:

 

“Stories are about balance. A tale in which there is no conflict is going to be just about as boring as watching condensation dissipate.

 

“But a tale that never pauses to let its characters (or its readers) catch their breath is boring in its own way. We have to find ways to adjust the level of conflict.”

 

You’re probably muttering, “Easier said than done.” I agree. Here’s what I’ve found helpful:

 

I draft a couple of versions of a vignette or chapter and play around with the conflict and suspense. I condense. Reorganize. (I’m so glad we live in the days of computers instead of typewriters! Back in my younger years, if I wanted to change just one word—or even one comma—I had to retype the entire page!)

 

Then I set aside the manuscript for a week or so. Later I’ll take a fresh look at it. By then I will have a better perspective on what works and what doesn’t.

 

Also, if you’re not part of a writers’ critique group, I highly recommend you join one. Just be sure it’s a quality critique group. Not all of them are helpful, professional, and supportive.

 

Write your stories!

And have fun!

 

Your memoir’s suspense: Make it reader-friendly

 

We’ve been studying the importance of suspense, tension, and conflict in your memoir. They are must-haves: They draw readers into your story, make them care about you, and keep them reading. (Click on Make ‘em wait and Suspense—yes, but melodrama—no.)

 

While it’s important to include suspense in your memoir, make those passages reader-friendly. Readers don’t want to waste time with long, drawn-out moaning and groaning.

 

“Readers don’t buy books that ponder problems,” writes Chip MacGregor. “They buy books that offer great solutions to their problems. So offer solutions.” (Chip MacGregor, Memorable Words)

 

MacGregor says we should go ahead and “set the stage by revealing what the conflict or problem is” in a condensed way, and then we should get on with it.

 

But wait! We don’t want to downplay our suspense too much, according to K. S. Davis.

 

She teaches her students (both fiction and memoir writers) to beware of a “failure to sustain key moments.” Key moments: moments of tension and suspense and emotion.

 

In some of her students’ rough drafts, Davis discovered key moments “were just going by too quickly.” To remedy that, she advises, “. . . Writers, don’t be afraid to slow down and ‘linger.’

 

“Make sure you are devoting sufficient space to the ‘key moments’ in your manuscript so that they register with your readers. Your writing will resonate much more clearly and vividly if you do.”

 

Davis says we can achieve that by using dialogue, summarizing unspoken thoughts, and using nuance. (from K.S. Davis’s post, Lessons in Lingering.)

 

So, the combined message

from Chip MacGregor and K.S. Davis is this:

Find a healthy balance in writing passages

of suspense and drama and emotion.

 

You might be muttering, “Easier said than done.” I agree. Here’s what I’ve found helpful:

 

I draft a couple of versions of a vignette or chapter and play around with the suspense. I condense. Reorganize. (I’m so glad we live in the days of computers instead of typewriters! Back in the olden days, if we wanted to change just one word—or even one comma—we’d have to retype the entire page!)

 

After tweaking, I set aside the manuscript for a week or so. Later I’ll take a fresh look at it and by then I will have a better perspective on what works and what doesn’t.

 

Also, if you’re not part of a writers’ critique group, I highly recommend you join one—just be sure it’s a quality critique group. Not all of them are helpful, professional, and supportive.

 

A smorgasbord for you: Suspense

Do you enjoy smorgasbords? I grew up around Scandinavians so I know smorgasbords, but maybe you don’t.

A smorgasbord is a delightful spread of food—lots of food—an array of hors-d’oeuvres (hot and cold), salads, meats (hot and cold), fish (smoked and pickled), cheese, and relishes.

You get to sample them all!

Today’s post is a smorgasbord of writing tips for you!—tips, quotes, and links about including suspense in your memoir.

Your memoir needs suspense. It hooks your reader and makes him keen to know the outcome—but makes him wait for it.

Suspense implies an uncomfortable waiting mixed with impatience, with an eagerness for a good solution.  

Suspense arouses curiosity and keeps readers turning pages.

So let’s look at this important ingredient for your memoir: Suspense. Conflict. Tension. Friction. Anxiety.

Tension is “an essential element of any narrative worth telling. A plot without tension is a flat line, a life with no rises, no dips, no anima. Life, by definition, involves tension. . . . Tension is the medium in which we breathe every day.” Dan Allender

“Conflict is good: Stories boil down to conflict. We crave that tension and a barrier between the hero and what he/she is seeking. That’s what separates a good story from just an anecdote that may be told at the water cooler.” Slash Coleman

“Conflict has to occur not just on the larger scale . . . but also on the smaller theater of the character’s inner life. . . . Include the outer battle (the physical reaction to the conflict) and the inner battle (the psychological and emotional reaction to events).” K.M. Weiland

“The cliffhanger is a striking event that happens at the end of an episode, chapter, scene, or season of a story. It leaves doubt in the reader’s mind—usually regarding the fate of the protagonist—and all but forces them to come back to see what comes next. . . . You want each ‘scene’ to lead your readers deeper and deeper.” Robert Bruce

At FaithWriters blog, Lillian Duncan offers ways to work tension into your stories. Here are a few to enhance a memoir:

• introducing unpredictability
• ending chapters with a cliffhanger
• racing a time limit
• foreshadowing (hints at what is coming, or might come, in the future)
• throwing out a red herring (diversion)
• keeping stakes high

Read more at Lillian’s “Writing Suspense.” Many if not all of her fiction techniques also apply to memoir.

Find the drama in your story and highlight it—but keep a proper balance. Like Chip MacGregor says, “Unlike a novelist, you can’t dwell on conflict. . . . I’m looking for a book that will offer me a solution.”

K.M. Weiland says it this way. “Stories are about balance. A tale in which there is no conflict is going to be just about as boring as watching condensation dissipate. But a tale that never pauses to let its characters (or its readers) catch their breath is boring in its own way. We have to find ways to adjust the level of the conflict. We have to give our characters a chance to slow down and get their thoughts gathered. . . .”

So there you have it: A smorgasbord of writing tips!

Find nourishment, enjoyment, and inspiration in sampling them.

I’ve critiqued many rough drafts and can report that

a lack of suspense—

a downplaying of tension—

is often a problem.

Look over your rough draft.

How can you heighten suspense?

Remember: Your story is important.

It can bless individuals, families,

communities, towns, nations, even the world.

Your story can change lives for eternity.

Write your story!

You? Write a memoir?

Chip MacGregor made my day. If you read on to find out why, you’ll know what a memoir-geek I am.

Chip sensed God wanted him to write about what He had done for him—but he felt unqualified:

“All I saw was a very tattered, frayed thread,

broken and retied in a number of places.”

You know the feeling?

Maybe you hear those hissing little whispers: You? Write a memoir? Wait a minute! What makes you think you’re so special?

You might be asking, “Who am I that I should write my stories? I’ve made more than a few mistakes, and besides, I’m a nobody: I’m not a Billy Graham or a Chuck Swindoll or an Elisabeth Elliot or a minister or a best-selling author. What could I be thinking?”

But Chip, bless his heart—even though he was all too aware of the shortcomings in his life, he also recognized that the “tattered, frayed thread, broken and retied in a number of places” actually “wrapped around the entire story. It was the thread of redemption.”

Yessss! That’s what I’ve been saying, in my own words, of course: Write your God-and-you stories not because you are so great, but because God is so great.

Chip continues, “…[W]hat qualifies you to tell your story is your experience of redemption.”

Chip and you and I can, and must, write our stories of redemption!

Write about everyday events and relationships,

about babies and teenagers and grandparents,

Boy Scouts and Home Ec and your most embarrassing date,

best friends and bullies and bigots.

Write about learning to drive, or swim, or cook, or kiss.

Write about funerals and weddings and heartbreak,

about honesty and lies, about money and taxes,

about mowing the lawn and making beds and cleaning toilets.

Within them all, dig deep and find the threads of redemption!

Peel off layers, one by one, until you find glorious, sobbing, humbling, joy-filled, life-saving redemption.

Listen: The stories of people like Billy Graham, Chuck Swindoll, Elisabeth Elliot, and other modern-day heroes of the faith are important—but not because those people are so great. Each of them admit to being deeply flawed. Their stories matter because God is so great.

Hear this: It’s not what they did—it’s what God did.

God called us with a holy calling,

not according to our works

but according to his own purposes and grace.

2 Timothy 1:9

Don’t miss this:

Chip points out that

your story of redemption is

“the journey your readers want to take.

And if we can whittle down our lives

to reveal how God has brought redemption to us,

readers will be inspired to believe it may happen to them.”

That’s it! Our hearts long to inspire others to hang in there, to be assured that God is for them, He loves them, and He has His own stories of redemption for them!

Don’t underestimate the power of your story. 

Just one story can change lives—

one life, or a hundred thousand lives—

maybe for eternity. 

Write your God-and-you stories, your stories of redemption—not because of who you are—but because of who God is.

Your memoir: make suspense reader-friendly

Suspense, tension, conflict. They are must-haves for your memoir. They draw readers into your story, make them care about you, and keep them reading.

Last week I shared a Chip MacGregor quote that I’ve been putting into practice in one of my rough drafts: I’m trying to make suspenseful passages more reader-friendly. Chip’s message: Readers don’t want to waste time in your long, drawn out moanings and groanings. They bought your book because they want to know how you solved your problem.

“Readers don’t buy books that ponder problems. They buy books that offer great solutions to problems. So offer solutions. Tell me what the answer is to my problem.”  He says we should go ahead and “set the stage by revealing what the conflict or problem is,” but (my paraphrase): Get on with it. Don’t wallow in your drama. Condense your drama. (Chip MacGregor, Memorable Words; emphasis mine.)

On the other hand, we can play downplay our suspense too much, according to K.S. Davis.

She teaches her students (both fiction and memoir writers) to beware of a “failure to sustain key moments.” Key moments: moments of tension and suspense and emotion.

In some of her students’ rough drafts, Davis discovered key moments “were just going by too quickly.” To remedy that, she advises, “…Writers, don’t be afraid to slow down and ‘linger.’ Make sure you are devoting sufficient space to the ‘key moments’ in your manuscript so that they register with your readers. Your writing will resonate much more clearly and vividly if you do.”

She says we “give the moment sufficient emphasis” by using dialogue, summarizing unspoken thoughts, and using nuance. (Read K.S. Davis’s full blog post, Lessons in Lingering.)

So, the combined message from Chip and K.S. is this:  Find a healthy balance in writing passages of suspense and drama and emotion.

You might be saying, “Easier said than done!”  I agree. Here’s what I’m doing and perhaps you’ll find it helpful, too:

I’m crafting a couple of versions of my vignette and playing around with the drama—condensing, reorganizing. (I’m so glad we live in the days of computers instead of typewriters! Back in the olden days, if we wanted to change just one word or comma on a page, we’d have to retype the entire page!)

After tweaking, I’ll set the manuscript aside for a week or so. Later I’ll take a fresh look at it and by then I should be able to see what works and what doesn’t.

What about you? What advice can you share about finding balance between too much drama and not enough? Leave a comment below.

Sneeze post: Suspense

Sneeze post?! What’s a sneeze post?

Think of a sneeze. It distributes “stuff” in various directions.

A sneeze post “simply directs readers in multiple directions at once,” says Darren Rowse at ProBlogger.

Think of a sneeze post as a roundup, a collection. If you don’t like the thought of me sneezing on you, think of me handing you a bouquet.

Today’s sneeze post is a collection of quotes and links about suspense.

Your memoir needs suspense: It hooks your reader and makes him eager to know the outcome—but makes him wait for it. Suspense implies an uncomfortable waiting mixed with impatience for a good resolution. It arouses curiosity. It keeps him reading.

Let’s look at this important ingredient for your memoir: Suspense. Conflict. Tension. Friction. Anxiety.

Here we go! Ah…ah….CHOOOOO!

Tension is “an essential element of any narrative worth telling. A plot without tension is a flat line, a life with no rises, no dips, no anima. Life, by definition, involves tension.… Tension is the medium in which we breathe every day.” Dan Allender

“A nonfiction writer needs to establish conflict right away.… [But] unlike a novelist, you can’t dwell on conflict. Nobody wants a book that defines their problem for them.… I’m looking for a book that will offer me a solution.…” Chip MacGregor  

“Conflict is good: Stories boil down to conflict. We crave that tension and a barrier between the hero and what he/she is seeking. That’s what separates a good story from just an anecdote that may be told at the water cooler.” Slash Coleman

“… Conflict has to occur not just on the larger scale … but also on the smaller theater of the character’s inner life.… Include the outer battle (the physical reaction to the conflict) and the inner battle (the psychological and emotional reaction to events).” K.M. Weiland

“… The cliffhanger is a striking event that happens at the end of an episode, chapter, scene, or season of a story. It leaves doubt in the reader’s mind—usually regarding the fate of the protagonist—and all but forces them to come back to see what comes next.… You want each ‘scene’ to lead your readers deeper and deeper.” Robert Bruce

At FaithWriters blog, Lillian Duncan offers ways to work tension into your stories. Here are a few to enhance memoir:

Introducing unpredictability

Ending chapters with a cliffhanger

Facing a time limit

Foreshadowing (hints of what is coming, or might come, in the future)

Throwing out a red herring (diversion)

Keeping stakes high

(Read more at Lillian’s “Writing Suspense.” Many if not all of her fiction techniques also apply to nonfiction.)

Find the drama in your story and highlight it, but keep a proper balance.

“Stories are about balance. A tale in which there is no conflict is going to be just about as boring as watching condensation dissipate. But a tale that never pauses to let its characters (or its readers) catch their breath is boring in its own way. We have to find ways to adjust the level of the conflict. We have to give our characters a chance to slow down and get their thoughts gathered.…”  K.M.Weiland

Next time we’ll look at more tips. For now, look over your rough drafts and find ways to heighten suspense. Have fun doing it.

Remember: Your stories are important. 

Your stories can bless individuals, families, 

communities, town, nations, even the world. 

They can change lives for eternity. Write your stories!