This Is Your Life

Everyone likes to think they have a good book in them, and most of us reach a stage in our lives when we feel like summing up and reflecting on what has gone before. As Emma Pomfret reports, writing your life story need not be a vanity exercise, but a worthwhile way to share your memories with future generations...

"Someone said that God gave us memories so that we might have roses in December," Peter Pan author, J M Barrie, once said - and he was right! Indeed, saving your memories by penning your life story is an undertaking that will provide family, friends and generations of grandchildren to come with a wonderfully personal legacy of exactly how you would like to be remembered.

"Writing the story of your life is rather like having your photograph taken," explains Anna Foster, author of Your Life; An Introductory Guide To Writing Life Stories. "Future generations can also enjoy the private biography of a family member who they never knew, and will get a picture - or snapshot - of the times in which you lived."

She goes on to say that it is important to understand your motives when beginning your memoirs because they will determine the style in which you write them.

"Leaving a record for children and grandchildren is probably the most popular reason for writing a life story," she says. The desire to leave a legacy and pass on memories of family events is strong - the fact that your life may be 'ordinary' makes it no less interesting for future generations.

"Writing can also be cathartic - and a comfort and release if the subject about which you wish to write has had an emotional impact on your life. This may be coupled with the hope that by writing about your experience you will help others to cope in a similar situation - it's also a way of thanking people who gave you help at a difficult time of your life," Anna smiles. She adds that you should remember that you are not aiming to write a best-selling novel when writing a memoir of your life - simply a piece of writing for those close to you. "It just means that you have chosen to write a life story in the same way that others might have a portrait painted."

It's fairly simple to get your finished book printed, although it will cost you. Alternatively you may like to print something yourself at home and bind it together in a large folder. Visit www.youbyyou.co.uk for more information on how to get your finished book prepared and printed professionally.

Getting Started
The Memory Bank
Before you start to write, or even structure your book, Anna recommends collecting the material from which you will take your inspiration. "It's time to dig out boxes of old photographs and search through cupboards for your diaries and notebooks," she advises. "However, it is unlikely that all these documents will have been kept in an ordered pile, so take your time to locate and look through them - don't rush this process because as you sift through everything, ideas for the book will just come to you."

The different types of source material that you may find useful include, letters and postcards, diaries and notebooks, household accounts, photographs, school reports, birth and death announcements, scrapbooks, a family tree.

Map out your Structure
Once you have got all of your source material together, Anna recommends thinking about the way in which you will set out the book - chronologically, thematically, in diary format, or by setting your story against the backdrop of external events such as the World Wars or when Elvis died, for example. "One advantage of structure is that it will provide you with a discipline once you start writing - if you find that you are getting bogged down in one particular chapter, you can stand back, remind yourself of the original structure and find the inspiration to switch to a different section," says Anna.

The Write Stuff
"Writing is a very individual process - to some it comes easily, to others it can feel laboured and unnatural," Anna explains. "If you enjoy writing, and do so on a regular basis, then you will probably start a life story with ease - however you may need extra help to get going."

Anna's top Writing Tips
DO Type your manuscript doublespaced between the lines and leave wide margins for easy editing.
DO Keep your sentences reasonably short. Long, rambling sentences can be confusing for the reader.
DO Keep the punctuation simple. Use commas and full stops, but don't introduce too many colons or semi-colons unless you are familiar with using them. A good book on punctuation is East Shoots And Leaves, by Lynne Truss (Profile Books, £9.99), which will guide you through the hoops.
DO Keep paragraphs short - each break gives the reader a breather.
DO Think about your vocabulary. Try not to repeat words but find an alternative using a thesaurus.
DO A life story often falls between 25,000 and 60,000 words and it can be useful to keep a tally of your words as you write, either to tell the printer at some stage or to work out an approximate, final length.

DON'T Use too many exclamation marks - a story which is exciting doesn't need them.
DON'T Assume too much knowledge on the part of the reader - remember to introduce new people in the book.
DON'T Use jargon when you are describing something technical as it may date quickly and may not be common knowledge in the future - just use everyday language

Your Life; An Introductory Guide To Writing Life Stories, by Anna Foster, is published by YouByYou Books, priced £7.99.

Available to order from good bookshops or at www.youbyyou.co.uk (with an additional £1.50 packaging and postage costs)