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What is memoir, specifically? Lots of people have heard of Memoir but aren’t sure exactly what it means. Is it interchangable with autobiography, biography, life stories, family histories or what? What are some memoir examples?

Writing is not an easy task and having to classify a genre for your writing can prove harder. There are a lot of mixed genre publications out there but you need to know the basic genre you write in to get anywhere in the publishing world.

• Memoir is a story, slice of life. It is one small event, place or personal relationship you write about in the vast stories that make up your life.
• Autobiography is usually a full life account — birth to present — of the author (hence the prefix “auto”, Greek meaning “self”).
• Biography is a birth to death (or to present) account of someone (usually famous) other than the author.
• Life Story Writing can be any of the above genres as long as the author is writing about life – someone elses of their own.
• Family Histories are written as a geneology of your relatives. It might include your family tree, complete with birth, marriage and death dates from your anscestors. With this research you learn where you come from and the people you are related to. It might include photos and family stories but is basically a textbook style history of your family.

Memoir is different because it is more focused. Using the anology of a timeline and picture frame, you frame and tell one story about a specific event, adventure, time period or relationship — beginning to end. It might only cover a week in your life or maybe your childhood or an event during your college days. The amount of time is not cut and dried with a memoir — beginning to end of the focused story is important.

When memoirs first started gaining popularity it was victim memoirs that seemed to be the only type non-famous people could write and get publish. Overcoming abuse, illness, addiction and divorce were some of the hottest topics (and still can be).

Today’s reader likes all sorts of memoirs — good and bad — as long as they are well written, use fiction devices in there telling and leave the reader with a message or reason for writing (not preaching). You, the protagonist of your story, have to change in some way — grow, learn, win or lose — throughout the story in order to keep a readers attention. Otherwise, it is too “fairytale” and unbelievable.

Readers want to relate to you. They draw parallels from their own lives to yours. We all have stories to tell, memoir gives us the outlet and opportunity. Even if you don’t look to be a published author, writing memoir is something that can be handed down generation after generation to family members you will never meet. They will have the opportunity to learn about you and your life through your own voice and words.

The first step is to start writing — anything. Get used to putting your thoughts on paper and find your voice. The next step is to do the research for your memoir — sit back in your easy chair, close your eyes and remember. Then open your eyes and start writing.

How to Write Memoir is another article for more ideas, examples and suggestions for getting started as an aspiring memoirist.