Just wanted to let everyone  know David and I are  both  looking forward to his first art show on the Central Coast. We’d  love to see you at the launch if  you can make it .

7.00pm Thursday November 7, 2013

11 Alison Road, Wyong

I have a decision to make about whether to change the venue of my one-day memoir writing workshops.  The workshops  I ran earlier in the year were well attended and I received some great feedback from  the participants. However I had to cancel  the last  couple of  workshops due to low bookings. While,  some writers  who usually attend had clashes with other arrangements,  I began to wonder whether  the travel hike to Ourimbah and back to Sydney is maybe a bit much on a monthly basis.

One the possibilities is to run the workshops in Sydney instead. I am getting  some feedback about a couple of venue options.  What I really need to know  is would you be more likely to attend a one-day workshop  if it was held in Sydney as opposed to  Ourimbah?   The more feedback you  give me,  the easier it would be for me to make a decision.

Thanks for your help

Eileen

Skeletons & Dirty Linen
Just Sit Down & Write
Memoir Writing Workshop

TAKING BOOKINGS NOW

Ask any writer you know if they have a fear of actually sitting down and putting words on the page. Most will confess to have a long list of often ‘valid’ ways to avoid the challenge of their writing practice.

There are some exceptions. Popular writer James Patterson signed a book deal in 2009 to write 17 books by the end of 2012.  That’s a book every three months.  In the last 12 months he earned US$91 million.  If he’s scared he doesn’t let it stop him from writing.

The rest of us are mostly cowards who avoid the hard stuff  with similar excuses we use to avoid physical exercise.  It’s too cold, I’m tired, and I’m too old to start, what’s the point?;  any reason to postpone taking action. Whatever way you look at it, it’s not the actual practice that causes procrastination but the fear of failure. Do I have the tenacity, the imagination, the skills I need to write?;  why would anyone want to read my story?;  I’ve got too many pressures;  I need to do the laundry.

Memoir writing has its special scary devil called – The Truth.  Avoiding the truth, whether it’s being afraid of what others will think or upsetting our own family, or, worst of all, having to dig into those dark places where our own truth lies buried is especially tough for memoir writers.

This workshop we will talk about these fears.  I’ll show you some of the psychological skills that I use to push past the scary stuff, as well a couple of practical devices that really work for me and other writers I know.

Address:  18 Kauri Court, Ourimbah
Time:        10:00am to 4:00pm
Contact:  Eileen Naseby
0416 181 645 or en@eileennaseby.com
Cost:         $120 per workshop, includes lunch

Thanks to everyone who jumped in and fired off your favourite memoirs to recommend to my workshop students. If anyone else has any others that spring to mind let me know.

Here are the first 50…

 The First Rule of Memoir Writing
Your memoir is not about you!

I’m not usually bossy. In fact I tell my workshop participants that rules are an anathema because they can be very inhibiting.  A rule is quite different to a discipline. For instance  I know that I get some of my best writing done if I get up at 5.00am because my brain is always more alert at that time. So my  personal rule is to try and discipline myself to always get up early.  This ‘rule’ works for me but it won’t necessarily work for you because you might write your best stuff at the midnight.. The most important rule is to focus on what really works for you.

Having said I hate rules I’m now about to break my own rule by setting this list for you.

My Six Most Important Rules for Writing Memoir

 Rule 1.
Your memoir is not about you

Never play for sympathy. Readers don’t care about you personally. They’re only interested in story, and universal themes such as abandonment or betrayal. What they really want to find out is how you dealt with whatever it was that was dished up to you.

Rule 2.
Tell the truth

Don’t make stuff up after the event to make yourself look good. The Germans call it Treppenwitz – ‘staircase wit’. Come clean about your failures and weaknesses. It will be much more interesting than trying to show your readers how clever you might have been at the time.

Joan Didion said in Slouching Toward Bethlehem, “The willingness to accept responsibility for one’s own life is the source from which self-respect springs.”

Rule 3.
It’s not your job to judge

Relationships are very complex. There are very few all bad or all good characters, even in your family. Saints have their flaws, and devils their soft spots.  Let your reader decide whether to love or hate the people you are writing about. Your job is to describe them as honestly as you can with all their complexities.

Rule 4.
Your memoir is not your psychotherapist

If you’re really serious about being published don’t treat your writing as a treatment for your emotional wounds. Some people won’t agree, but believe me, if this is your ultimate goal you’ll lose your perspective. Make sure you write from a distance, which is probably the best therapy anyway.

Annie Dillard said in her book A Writing Life  “This is not a meditation… but a despatch from the desk.”

Rule 5.
You don’t have to start at the beginning

Even experienced writers get bogged down when they try to write chronologically. Start with a scene that really excites you. Then you can work forward and backwards from this point.

Rule 6.
Do mountains of research 

Unless you’re a writing genius you should leave no stone unturned. The more you know before you start putting your story down, the better your writing will be.

American writer, David McCullough says, “Marinate your head.”

 Want To Write Your Life Story?

 Skeletons & Dirty Linen

Beginners’ Workshop – Ourimbah

This workshop will introduce you to the art of letting go of your writing inhibitions, research techniques, and structure. At the end of the workshop you will have an idea of where to begin your memoir, and how to plan your structure. You will also take away a short piece of writing inspired by your own creativity.

“The timing was perfect. The stories that have been
incubating in my head for so long are finally hatching”
- Jack, workshop participant

date: Wednesday June 12
time: 10.00am to 12.30pm
place: 18 Kauri Court, Ourimbah
cost: $35.00
bookings & info: Contact Eileen – 0416 181 645 or en@eileennaseby.com