Memoir: Writing Your Story
Writing my memoir, Crazy: Reclaiming Life from the Shadow of Traumatic Memory, was hard, but it’s the gift that keeps on giving.
By putting my story into print, it validated the life I’ve lived. It took the wisps and snatches of memory and made them permanent on a page, an astounding feat for a mind like mine. I am real and my memories are real — look, see, they’re right here in this book.
By pulling the threads of my history together, I was able to bring some closure to a long life of chaos and confusion. Some of it I’ve been able to let go and much of it I’ve moved beyond.
By sticking my little toe into the big pond of publication, I found a community of people who support one another in our writing. There’s nothing like gathering with like-minded people to write together, share together, and support together.
By reading other peoples’ memoirs, I’ve learned where our stories are similar and where they’re different. I’ve discovered a variety of writing styles from a variety of gifted writers. I’ve been amazed by their back stories, their courage, and their grace. Best of all, I’ve made friends with other dissociative writers as we share promotions and reviews and grow together in the life skills of writing.
In Dissociative Writers, Suritaplus published Quilted: Piecing Together My Dissociated Selves in 2023 and Bonnie published An Apparently Normal Person: From Medical Mystery to Dissociative Superpower in 2024 — both of these books I’ve reviewed in earlier posts. Recently, a therapist who was publishing her memoir reached out to me and we exchanged reading and reviewing our books — The Bipolar Therapist: A Journey from Madness to Love and Meaning by Marcia Naomi Berger. Last week, Jamie Marich, whose book Dissociation Made Simple: A Stigma-Free Guide to Embracing Your Dissociated and Navigating Daily Life I reviewed recently, sent me an advanced reader copy of her forthcoming memoir You Lied to Me About God: A Memoir. Due out in October, her story is unique and engrossing, with tons of insights gleaned from facing her family history.
A memoir is a slice of life, made up of lots of little stories that, when pulled together artfully, become one big story. Lots of you have been working on your memoirs, one step at a time, which is the only way to do it because, otherwise, the task seems overwhelming.
The greatest gift that came from Crazy is the Beginners Memoir 101 class I teach each Fall to a small group of people who are doing the work. Gradually, out of that class, will come more memoirs that I’ll have the privilege of introducing to you.
Writing your memoir is hard, but it will be the gift that keeps on giving!
Memoir 101 for Dissociative Writers
Our popular class meets for six-weeks in October and November for two hours each week. Participants have a chance to learn content through class lectures, discussions, and readings and to work interactively on structure and writing. We accept a minimum of four and a maximum of eight participants and cover topics including:
What is memoir?
How might dissociation affect our writing?
Structuring our memoirs and employing story arcs
Using sensory detail
Protecting from legal and emotional exposure
Sharing our Written Stories, Publication, and Promotion
One of the best parts of our class is that each person has two opportunities to share their writing and receive support and feedback from the rest of the class. The class is virtual, using Zoom. The 20% discounted rate for subscribers to Dissociative Writers is $164 (full price $205). For more information or to enroll, click here and scroll to the middle of the page.
Without a Hitch!
Our move to Heartbeat has been very successful, (almost) without a hitch! If you’re still using Groupeasy and haven’t yet accepted your invitation to Heartbeat, why not do it now? It’s just three more weeks until Groupeasy closes so jump the gun and join us! Invitations are sent to subscribers of Dissociative Writers only. If you are a subscriber and you haven’t received yours, click here to let us know.
DW Calendar
To see our full calendar offerings, subscribe to Dissociative Writers, accept your Heartbeat Invitation, and go to Calendar!
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There’s no greater agony than bearing an untold story inside you.
~ Maya Angelou
Lyn