What does a memoir focus on?

A memoir is a non-fictional, first personal written account of events and memories from the author’s real life. Memoirs (French for “memory” or “reminisce”) focus on personal experience, intimacy, and emotional truth—memoir writers often play with their memories and with real life in order to tell a good story.

Can a memoir be over a period of time?

Both types of books are written a person about themselves (almost always in first person), but an autobiography usually covers one’s whole life, while a memoir usually covers a specific period of time or a specific element of one’s life.

Does a memoir focus on one event?

A memoir focuses on a time, or an event, or series of events, or a choice, that is tied together with a theme. It is not your entire life story. If you remember this, you will be able to focus on what is important to the book you are writing.

What makes an effective memoir?

A good memoir has universality while being truthfully original. A good memoir is novelistic, with an unfolding story line, or plot, and scenes intermixed with narrative. Different from fiction, memoir is a true story, it is your story, not the story of someone you know or characters you have created for the page.

What point of view is a memoir written in?

first person
A memoir is written in first person, but a novel is not beholden to that. You can retell the fictionalized events from your entire life in the second or third person as well, creating a more layered, great story by allowing for different perspectives from different characters.

How long should a memoir essay be?

between 2,000 and 10,000 words
A memoir essay is a short, essay-length version of a memoir—typically between 2,000 and 10,000 words. A memoir essay is a first-person narrative drawn from the author’s own life. A memoir essay is, by definition, a true story.

What makes a bad memoir?

You cannot mention every person you know or every place you have ever been. A memoir is not a chronological setting down of your entire life. It is not an autobiography. It is a representation of memory, not history.

What is the average word count for a memoir?

Memoir word count tends to be right there in the same range as novel word count, or 60,000 to 80,000 words.

Can a memoir be fiction?

A memoir uses fictional techniques to draw readers into an honest account of a true story. It is written in the first person, from the author’s point of view. And it differs from an autobiography or biography in that while the latter tell the story of a life, a memoir has a narrower focus.

What are the important guidelines to consider in selecting a topic for memoir writing?

Memoir Topics

• Your favorite place.
• Your best or worst day(s)
• Your most memorable teacher(s)
• Your most prized possession.
• Someone you will always remember.
• Something about your life or yourself you wish you could change.
• Your proudest moment.
• Winter/summer/fall.

How long should it take to write a memoir?

A memoir—and interesting and meaningful one—can be written in 12 to 24 months.

Which is the most important part of a memoir?

Memoir tells a compelling story using truth, theme, 1st person POV narration, voice, and a fifth element—the M&Ms of writing, Memory and Musing. It really happened. We know the trouble writers can get into by not remembering this.