'Just sit down and write' is a phrase we may hear as writers, like, we can sit down, turn on the creative tap, and words pour forth. I'll admit that sometimes happens, words tumble out in such a rush to be seen, acknowledged, there's no time to waste.
However, the usual scenario is somewhat different.
It's not easy, this writing gig, and 'making a start' is one of the main reasons we stop, right there, go no further. It's just too hard. It is definitely one of the reasons I hear most often in my work with those who want to write their memoir: 'I don't know where to start.'
So how do we navigate through this? When I probe deeper, the person may say, 'I am overwhelmed'. They are floundering within their own life history: there is too much, so many things have happened, even in lives that don't feature climbing mountains or going to the moon. They don't know where to begin, and, I can tell you, the process of making a start is rarely helped by beginning at the beginning, thinking, 'I will start here and I will finish here, in this order', because our recollections and memories are seldom that ordered and logical.
The word 'memoir' originates from the French mémoire meaning 'memory' or 'reminiscence', and that should tell us something. Memory can be here and there, fragments, and reminiscence is even more vague, suggesting a rocking chair and telling one's story in the way of dreams, flowing from one memory to another, the unspooling of life as we recall the years.
The craft of memoir writing brings coherence and meaning to these memories with the aim of giving a reader a compelling narrative of transformation, personal change, achievement, or simply a story of a life. And never forget that every life is interesting, because that's what life is.
I recently read A Still Life, a memoir by Josie George. Confined indoors by chronic illness since early childhood, her solitary life is nonetheless rich and layered in observations of the natural world she sees from her window and on her short walks, and she challenges the highs and desperate lows of her illness head-on with hope and courage. She writes of a year, day to day, in the present, using flashback techniques to give us the 'back story' of her life leading up to that time.
This structure provided her with the framework to link her memories together, bringing that coherence I mentioned to create a compelling narrative.
So, here's a couple of tips for getting started:
Thinking about structure can help us find that 'starting point'.
Allowing memories to free-flow rather than confine them strictly to a year by year, blow by blow, narrative.
Sometimes a mentoring session or two with me can get those wheels turning - find out more about my mentoring gigs here, or send me a contact, let's talk and get started.