Showing a clip of your life What is a Memoir??? Showing a clip of your life

Memoir does not simply tell about something that happened in the past; it reveals something about the person it happened to

Things to Remember What happens in the memoir is the truth (or close to it) Names may be changed to protect certain identities Some details may be imagined because of the writers vague and inaccurate memory (No one is perfect) “Dialogue” may be invented and events exaggerated a bit in order to add drama to the scene and reveal personalities

A Memoir: Follows a sequence of events over a period of time (in the order it happened) Proceeds throughout the specific time period (possibly with flashback and foreshadowing) Ends at a later point in time

Elaborate: Dig for Details Imagine yourself reliving the incident, and take notes on these essentials. For example Context (setting): Where and when did the incident happen? How old were you? Who was there besides you? Events: List your main events in chronological order. Do you need a flashback to explain something that happened in the past? Sensory Details: Help your readers see the characters and places in your story. Record details of sights, smells, sounds, tastes, touch, and movement. “Dialogue”/Monologue What did people say to you or other characters? What did you say to yourself?

Tell what the incident/memory means to you What did you learn from the incident/memory What do you think and feel about it now? What do you think and feel when it happened?

Your first memoir Tell a single story. Try to choose something that happened in a few hours or in a single day. A time limiter incident has more intensity than one that extends over a long period.

Work Cited Bomer, Katherine. Writing a Life: Teaching Memoir. Heinemann. Portsmouth, New Hampshire, 2005. Elements of literature. Holt Rinehart, Winston. Austin, Texas, 2000.