Encouragement for beginners: “Every first draft is perfect, because all a first draft has to do is exist.”

 

“First drafts are a writer’s agony and ecstasy,” writes K.M. Weiland.

 

“This is where your glistening ideas spill onto the page. This is where you get to play around with your ideas, see your characters grow and your themes mature.

 

“First drafts are fun. They’re your creative playground,” she continues.

 

“But,” she says, “when you start overthinking your first draft, that’s when everything starts feeling much more difficult.

 

“Our words on paper rarely measure up to the sparkling perfection of the ideas in our heads. . . . We want so badly to get our first drafts right. . . . And this is where we can run into problems.

 

“We can become obsessed about creating a perfect rough draft and end up totally psyching ourselves out.

 

“. . . You sit there and think about How to Be an Awesome Writer . . . [but] this is not a good plan,” she says.

 

If her words describe you,

I encourage you to relax.

Take a deep breath.

 

Later, you’ll revise and rewrite and edit,

but that’s not on your to-do list in the beginning.

And when you do revise and rewrite and edit,

don’t think it’s punishment!

Instead, think of it as polishing and beautifying your work.

 

Prepare to write several renderings

before you publish your memoir.

 

Your original version is merely your preliminary sketch.

 

That’s true for every writer.

 

“The first draft is just you telling yourself the story.”

Terry Pratchett

 

It’s your starting point.

 

For now, take in these words from Jane Smiley—comforting, encourage words:

 

“Every first draft is perfect,

because all a first draft has to do is exist.”

 

Shannon Hale looks at it this way:

 

“I’m writing a rough draft

and reminding myself

that I’m simply shoveling sand into a box

so that later I can build castles.”

 

Let’s think about that—about building castles.

 

“The turrets and spires . . . do not have to be built [in your rough draft]. All the little details can come later in your writing process. . . . Perfection is never expected,” says Makenna Myers.

 

“ . . . Don’t worry about your grammar or punctuation; let the words flow freely. . . .

 

“Sandcastles are wonderful because they are malleable. . . . If [later] you determine one of your main points isn’t working, that is no problem. Take it out and smash it like a tower of sand!

 

“Next time you feel overwhelmed by your first draft, tell yourself . . . you’re building a sandcastle. Don’t stress over the lack of perfection the first time around.” (Makenna Myers)

 

Even award-winning authors

write rough drafts.

 

For now, just get something in writing.

 

And keep in mind that your initial version

is for your eyes only.

 

Think of it as a foundation for what will one day be your completed memoir. 

 

Remember the old Chinese proverb: “A journey of a thousand miles begins with a single step.”

 

Taking that single step might be the most difficult, the most challenging, the most intimidating. After all, you’re facing the unknown, standing on unfamiliar ground.

 

But you need a starting point.

That point is the day you write your first draft.

 

And when you do,

celebrate your victory! Pat yourself on the back!

 

You’ll enjoy Janice Hardy’s words:

 

“There’s something exciting and rewarding about a first draft.  The story that’s been in our heads is finally down on paper. . . .”

 

Some of your initial work will sparkle.

Other parts might be awkward—maybe even a bit scruffy.

Perhaps you’ve written incomplete sentences.

A few memories are a bit fuzzy.

Grammar and spelling need help.

But that’s okay.

 

Your main goal is to get something in writing.

 

Later you can stand back and make fixes—

sometime in the future.

 

And be encouraged: Once you’ve penned one vignette, you’ll find that writing others will be easier.

 

Beginning your memoir takes courage. It requires commitment.

 

Once you take that first step

you will have embarked on a remarkable,

rewarding journey.

 

You will learn so much personally in the process of writing

 and, one day, when your memoir is complete,

your readers will find blessings, encouragement,

and inspiration for living their own lives.

 

Let your journey begin!

 

For beginners: How do you start? Where do you start?

 

If you’re a beginning memoirist, and if you’re puzzled about how to start and where to start, this post is for you.

 

When Lisa Tener interviewed Richard Hoffman, an award-winning author, she asked his advice for beginning memoir writers—specifically, how and where to begin.

“Wherever you can!” he answered.

 

"Think of a spiderweb. You can hook that first thread anywhere and it will hold.

 

“The important thing is to not think in linear terms at all when you’re writing.”

 

Instead, he says, “Write scenes. Write pages of reflection. Write what’s available to you to write today.

 

“Memory’s mercurial; 

if something offers itself to be explored, 

explore it while it’s ‘live.’ If you shoo it away 

because you’re convinced that today 

you’re going to work on, say, Chapter 7, 

it might not come back!

 

“Write modularly in the order that presents itself to you. . . .

 

“A book is read from the upper left-hand corner to the last page—but that’s not how it is written! At least not in my experience.

 

“Composition happens only later, when you’ve turned over every rock and shaken every tree.

 

“The next stage, fashioning a story, a narrative, from the parts comes pretty late in the process.” (Richard Hoffman)

 

Please be underwhelmed by the task of writing a book.

 

I recommend you even avoid thinking “book.” Instead, concentrate on individual short stories (vignettes).

 

For the next several months, take easy little steps.

 

Review the definition of memoir and then compose a few accounts—maybe three to five pages each. These rough drafts will eventually become chapters in your finished memoir.

 

Start with stress-free topics. You’ll learn the craft of writing more easily that way.

 

I’ve seen too many beginners 

start with a traumatic story, 

only to have their still-raw emotions sidetrack them. 

Their writing causes too much pain. 

And the discouragement leads them to abandon 

not only that story—

they give up on writing any of their stories at all. 

Don’t let that happen to you.

 

Consider comfortable, uplifting events:

• spending time with loving, gentle, affirming people
• the chapter in your life when God brought you a best friend
• the time God showed you a beautiful sunset or a snowcapped mountain
• a stranger’s generosity
• something hilarious
• a prayer answered and a dream come true.

 

If a vignette is refusing to come to life, set it aside and work on a different story—something fun for you. That thorny story might blossom another day.

 

Embrace what Richard said:

Write what you can today.

 

Happy writing!

 

Award-winning Richard Hoffman authored the celebrated memoir, Half the House, as well as short story and poetry collections.

 

 

Tell yourself rewriting is not punishment

Writing your memoir’s first draft is an experiment. Even your second and third and fourth drafts are experiments.

It’s like trying on for size—like taking five yellow dresses off the rack and heading toward the dressing room. When you slip into them and look in the mirror, you discover only one yellow is the right shade; you look washed out in the other four.

So, you keep only the one yellow dress that’s the right shade—

and in writing,

you keep only the sentences

and words

and paragraphs

and openings

and endings

that fit—those that work best.

You can also compare writing and rewriting and polishing to arranging flowers in a vase. You do your best to create beauty but when you stand back, you see the bouquet is lopsided, or you didn’t distribute the colors well, or you’ve left a gap, so you rearrange it, tweaking it here and there until it’s just right.

With dresses and with flowers and with writing, we need to stand back, take another look, and adjust accordingly.

We can view rewriting and editing and polishing as a pain in the neck, or maybe even punishment—OR we can consider it an enjoyable process of enhancement.

Amber Lea Starfire writes, “As a teacher, it always surprises me when beginning writers resist the revision process, because that’s often when the best writing takes place.

“I think of the first draft as a kind of rough sketch—the bones of the piece,” she continues. “It’s during the revision process that the skeleton acquires muscles and flesh and features. And I often have to do major surgery, restructuring the skeleton, before I can write what needs to be said.” (You’ll enjoy Amber’s post, Writing is Revision is Re-Writing is Craft.)

Good writers revise and rewrite, often many times.

Dinty Moore says, “The difference. . . between writers who are successful in finding an audience and those who struggle, is when and where in the revision process a writer throws in the towel and settles for 'good enough.’” (Read his How to Revise a Draft Without Going Crazy.)

Don't settle for  just “good enough.”

Tell yourself rewriting is not punishment—

instead, rewriting is beautification.

So, beautify! And have fun!

Your “necessary stories” might be falling into place behind the scenes

You probably have “necessary stories,” stories you need to write—someday—for kids and grandkids and generations yet to be born.

But you’ve been putting off writing your memoir because it’s hard to find time, or motivation, or courage, or just the right words.

If so, I have news for you: Your stories might be taking shape nevertheless.

Kim Edwards, author of The Memory Keeper’s Daughter, spoke of how she came to write the story. The idea for it “stayed with me…as the necessary stories do.”

Life went on and many things occupied her time.

Then one day, a chance encounter reawakened within her the book idea, “with a greater sense of urgency and interest. Still it was another year before I started to write it.

“Then the first chapter came swiftly, almost fully formed, that initial seed having grown tall while I wasn’t really paying attention.”

Maybe for you, too, the seed of your story has been swelling and sprouting and growing tall while you weren’t taking notice.

Stories can be like that.

Stories live in hidden corners of your brain and heart where, subconsciously (if not consciously), you’ve already started assembling stories for your memoir:

• You’ve been collecting—in your mind or in writing or on your computer—ideas or relevant quotes or Bible verses. 
• You’ve run across old photos or newspaper clippings.
• You heard an old song.
• You’ve run into an old friend.
• You’ve remembered key events that might have seemed unimportant at the time but which now hold significance.

And all that is marinating in the back of your mind and it’s starting to come together.

Think about it.

Perhaps you’re more ready

to start writing your stories

than you thought.

The time to write might be any day now.

Remember: an unfinished manuscript tucked in a drawer

or saved on a computer will not inspire anyone!

It won’t bless anyone,

it won’t shape any lives.

Also remember,

everyone starts with a rough draft.

Your initial attempts at writing

don’t need to be perfect.

“The worst thing you write

is better than the best thing you didn’t write.”

(author unknown)

Is today the day to start your rough draft?

Your memoir: one little step at a time

Welcome to newcomers here and on Facebook:

Karin, Betsy, Wayne, and Bella.

.

I hope you’re currently writing rough drafts of short God-stories your kids and grandkids need to know.

Later we’ll tackle writing techniques, revising, editing, and polishing, but for now, give yourself freedom to accumulate story ideas and write and write and write your rough drafts—and enjoy yourself! 

Please be underwhelmed at the task of writing a book. In fact, avoid thinking “book.” Instead, concentrate on individual short stories.


For the next several months, take easy little steps: I suggest you review the definition of memoir (see below) and write a few accounts, three to six pages each. That’s do-able, right?! These rough drafts will eventually be chapters in your finished memoir.


Start with easy topics. Remember: You’ll learn the craft of memoir more easily if you begin with straightforward events.


I’ve seen too many beginners tackle a traumatic story, only to have their still-raw emotions sidetrack them. Inevitably, discouragement leads them to abandon that story and give up on writing their other stories, too. Don’t let that happen to you!


Instead, start with less painful events—how God helped you find a job, for example, or brought your best friend into your life, or helped you make an important decision.


Have fun and get creative. Here’s a story idea: Using a hymn or song, write one or more vignettes by connecting key phrases and stanzas to your personal story. For example, you could frame several vignettes around the dear old hymn, How Great Thou Art (lyrics by Carl Boberg).


Let’s look at the first few lines: “O Lord my God, when I in awesome wonder consider all The works Thy Hand hath made, I see the stars….” Write a vignette about a time you sensed God’s presence while gazing into the night sky. Maybe you were camping in the Rockies, or fighting on a dusty battlefield in Afghanistan, or flying in a jet toward a strange city for a job interview.


Here’s an excerpt from Lori Loomis’s memories of camping in Africa:

There's NOTHING like lying in the warm sleeping bag

in a safe tent under a canopy of a zillion stars--

and listening to the animal sounds.

At first, the different animal noises made me jittery

because I was unsure of just what they were.

But like old friends, you learn to recognize their voices.  

http://loomisfamilynews.blogspot.com/2011/05/we-slept-with-windows-open.html  

  

That could lead to a God-and-Lori-and-the-stars vignette. Perhaps you, too, can write a God-and-you-and-the-stars story.

Take the next lines:  “I hear the mighty thunder, Thy pow'r throughout the universe displayed....” What God-and-you-and-thunder experiences come to your mind?

One of these days I’m going to write a vignette about this beloved old hymn, and I’ll explain why I can’t sing it without choking up.


I’ll write what I picture will happen after I die and come face to face with my Creator. I envision that scene every time I sing: “Then I shall bow in humble adoration and there proclaim, ‘My God, how great Thou art!’” What about you?


Yesterday my friend Esther blogged about this hymn and the special role it played in her life.  She even included old family photos. It's a fun read. Click on this link for Esther's How Great Thou Art. (Since links don't work on my new blog, you'll have to copy and paste this URL: http://faithinwalkingshoes.blogspot.com/2011/05/how-great-thou-art.html)


In Know any good songs? Linda Austin suggests:

Think way back to when you were little—

what children’s songs do you remember?

I have a 45 rpm record, made in a little booth

similar to those photo booths in the malls,

that carries me and my sister’s scratchy voices singing

"I’m a Little Acorn Brown"

and a Japanese children’s song, "Ame Ame," about rain.

Our mother taught us just a few Japanese songs

which my sister and I now treasure....

If you’re writing stories of your childhood,

think about including a few songs, ditties,

 jump rope sing-songs—a little bit of music history. http://moonbridgeblog.blogspot.com/2011/04/know-any-good-songs-write-them-into.html

What song comes to mind when you think about falling in love? Falling out of love?


What songs helped shape your roles as spouse, parent, and friend?


What songs helped solidify your faith? Dared you to take a wild-eyed, screaming, sobbing leap of faith?


Have these suggestions given you ideas for stories you need to tell? I hope so! Jot down a line or two now, as a reminder, and some day soon—next week, next month—craft another chapter for your memoir.


Several of you tell me you’re finding surprises of joy in writing your stories, and I pray that will be true for all of you!



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Related post: What is a memoir?
http://spiritualmemoirs101.blogspot.com/2011/04/what-is-memoir.html



What is a memoir?

Welcome to new followers:

Laura, Vicky, Aporosa, Esther, Marg, Melissa, Rachel, Foma Hope,
Katinga, Karen, and Daneille,

and on Facebook: Jen, Rosemarie, Denny, Sue, Melissa, and Matt!

Be sure to invite your friends!

When people sign up for my memoir classes, I often hear, “A memoir class! Terrific! I love journaling!”

Yes, sometimes people confuse writing a memoir with journaling, or with writing autobiography, so let’s distinguish between them.

Your journal is private, but you write a memoir for others to read.

An autobiography documents your entire life, starting with your birth, but memoir focuses on a segment of your life—a specific theme or time period—which you explore in depth.

In other words, a person can write a memoir based on a theme: coaching high school tennis, for example, or working as a bush pilot in Alaska. My memoir, Grandma's Letters from Africa, covers a time period, my first four years in Africa.

Spiritual Memoirs 101’s theme is Deuteronomy 4:9, Always remember the things you’ve seen God do for you, and be sure to tell your children and grandchildren!

Pondering, examining, unraveling, musing, and reflecting are necessary ingredients in memoirs. In the writing process, you will examine what God was doing as you see it now, in retrospect. You’ll look for deeper lessons God had for you in the events of your life.

Looking back, what did you learn about yourself?

What patterns in your faith did you discover that you hadn’t noticed before?

What did you learn about God?

Do you now have a better understanding of God’s purpose for your life?

How did the experience change your life? What new person did you become?

How did the experience strengthen your faith for future challenges?

In summary, your stories will capture how you remember God’s activities in your life and what you discovered about both God and yourself.

A memoir can be a few pages or book-length. I suggest you start by writing a collection of vignettes or short chapters.

In coming weeks, we’ll examine memoir from a number of perspectives, but for now, here’s …

This week’s assignment:

• Start small: choose two or three occasions in which God acted on behalf of you or your family. For example, think back to turning points, answered prayer, decisions, or the happiest day of your life. For now, avoid traumatic or complicated stories; you’ll learn the craft of memoir more easily if you start with straightforward events.

• Do you need a story idea? Look through your Bible or a devotional for words you underlined and notes you jotted in the margin. Such notations can help you remember a significant situation in your life.

• While you write, ask yourself the above questions. Answers might not surface quickly but when they do, include them in your stories.

• Write rough drafts, three to five pages for each story. Include pertinent Bible verses. (You’ll revise your rough drafts a lot—everyone does—so don’t worry about perfecting them yet.) These will be chapters in your finished memoir. You can write stand-alone pieces or a series of related stories.

• Enjoy your writing!

Be sure to come back next week. I’m eager to tell you more about this grand undertaking—your memoir!

Your stories will help shape the spiritual lives of your children, grandchildren, great-grandchildren, and anyone else who reads them (your “spiritual children”).

Your memoir could be the finest gift you’ll ever give, so pray for God’s help!