5/21/2023 0 Comments Memoires marketingIn a way, you’re feeding that poison and helping it to grow.īefore you sit down to write your story-no matter how factually awful it may be-you must kiss grudges goodbye. And trust me, a book won’t make the past go away or make you feel better about what these people did to you. Maybe these things are true, but it doesn’t mean you should write your memoir solely to get vengeance on these people. Your mom was the real version of Mommie Dearest. Writing a memoir is therapeutic it should not be therapy. Cleanse yourself of grudges and animosity. ![]() Long Walk to Freedom by Nelson Mandela would be an autobiography, while The Glass Castle by Jeanette Walls would be a memoir. “A memoir is how one remembers one’s own life, while an autobiography is history, requiring research, dates, facts double-checked.” -Gore Vidal, Palimpsest Ask yourself:ĭoes my story reflect on my entire life (autobiography), or a key aspect, theme, or event (memoir)?ĭoes my story start at the beginning of my life and progress to the end (autobiography), or does it start anywhere and move around in time and place (memoir)?ĭoes my story require hours of fact-checking (autobiography), or is it more personal, requiring less fact-checking (memoir)? ![]() But you must understand the big and subtle differences between the two before you write, publish, and market your story. It doesn’t mean you can’t have flashbacks or backstory you can. An autobiography is a chronological telling of your life, but a memoir hones in on a specific timeline or event. Learn the differences between a memoir and an autobiography.Ī common mistake is to pour your heart and soul into a book and market it as the wrong genre. I’ve had the privilege of editing and marketing dozens of memoirs, and the ones that always stayed with me were those that followed these principles.īefore you write your memoir, you must: 1. While I could’ve given you twenty or thirty ways to write an unforgettable memoir, I chose to focus on the ten most important elements. So if you’re going to write your legacy, don’t you want it to be unforgettable? Can you imagine spending all your time on your memoir only for it to fall short? Completing a Certificate in Public and Professional Writing, Valenti also serves as the PR Writing intern in the Office of Marketing and Communications.A memoir is more than the true story of your life. This article was written by Grace Valenti ’24, an English major at St. West might not believe that his book completes this job, but he believes for his readers’ sake, that even if it fails, it is still vital to try. “I blush for my need to make art, even when my art is not needed,” he said. West believes that there needs to be more attempts by white, hetero cisgender males that write to address their privilege and the relationship they have to America’s “current state of brokenness.” In his work, there is an emphasis on creating art even if it is not needed or necessary, especially art about white, hetero, cisgender men. In her review of the book, Lillibridge noted that he is not here to “mansplain to anyone,” but rather “humble” and “on a journey” bringing readers along as he discovers what it means to be a father, husband, writer, and white man. West describes Streets as a “total man’s man.” Not believing that he himself is interesting enough to write a memoir about, West weaves the private investigator into the book to dive deeper into the tropes and archetypes of masculinity in comparison to his own.Īgainst the hook of a detective thriller, West attempts to tackle heterosexuality, whiteness, masculinity, and the anxiety that may come with trying to write while addressing those characteristics. West contacted Detective Streets and over the span of 10 years, shadowed him on cases, interviews, and more. Reminded of one of his favorite conceptual artists, Sophie Calle, who had a detective follow her around to document her routine, West was inspired to do the same, but with a twist. Why make this a detective story? While finishing his MFA in creative nonfiction, West traveled to Morgantown, West Virginia where he saw a store advertising for a business, Bob Clay Investigations. Soft-Boiled is a story about addressing an individual’s own privilege in creating art, roles and responsibility, and gender. ![]() Lara Lillibridge, a writer with Hippocampus Magazine, described West’s work as a “reflexive portrait of an artist that asks the questions so many men are afraid to ask.” Combining detective thrillers with experiences of the responsibilities as husband and father, the book allows for a reflection of art, storytelling, and masculinity in America. ![]() Soft-Boiled follows West as he shadowed private investigator Frank Streets.
0 Comments
Leave a Reply. |