WRITING A MEMOIR
4-12-17
Learning Target:
I will be able to brainstorm three significant past events
in my life, and connect personal meaning to these
events.
AGENDA
 No
independent reading today 
 Discussion over Zinsser article from
Monday
 Review the elements of a memoir
 Brainstorming possible topics
 Connecting meaning to these possible
topics
 Share out brainstorming (if time)
REVIEWING ELEMENTS OF A MEMOIR
A memory; a description of an event from the
past
 Written in the first person; told from one person’s
point of view
 Based on the truth
 Reveals the feelings of the writer
 Has meaning; shows what the author learned
from the experience
 Focused on one event; about one point in the
author’s life
 About the author’s experience more than about
the event itself

THE FOCUS OF YOUR MEMOIR


In writing this memoir, you will describe a time
when you either learned more about who you
are as a person, or about the society in
which we live.
When deciding on the focus of your memoir, be
sure to consider only those experiences that were
particularly meaningful. What you learned
during the experience should be significant and
important to you, personally.
ORGANIZING YOUR MEMOIR



Your memoir should have a clear beginning,
middle, and end.
The story should be written chronologically, from
the time the experience begins to the end.
Outside details from another time should not be
included. (Avoid digression)
CONSIDER THE FOLLOWING




Is this experience one that you have STRONG
FEELINGS about?
Is this experience one that you can DESCRIBE
IN GREAT DETAIL? (2-3 typed pages)
Is this experience one that your AUDIENCE will
be INTERESTED in?
After reading your memoir, could your
AUDIENCE articulate the point/purpose/focus of
this experience?
BRAINSTORMING IDEAS



Try to ponder three experiences you have had (either
positive or negative) when you learned more about
who you are as a person, or about the society in
which we live.
Each of the three separate experiences should be a
single episode, not an extended experience.
Examples:
a conversation that you had with a loved one or friend
 a field trip or event (school, youth group, volunteer work,
etc.)
 a retreat that you experienced with a mentor/coach/team

BRAINSTORMING IDEAS
1.
In your notebook, write down these three experiences
in bullet form.
For example:
The last conversation I had with my grandmother before
she died in the study of my parents’ home.
1.
Then, after you have identified three significant
events, consider and identify a major lesson that you
learned about yourself or society.
For example:
In this conversation, I learned that in death, it is not
wealth, or power, or status that one finds important. It is
love, and family, and relationships that are on the
forefront of one’s mind.
MEMOIR WRITING
I will understand the requirements for writing a
memoir, including point of view and bold
beginnings.
EVALUATING BRAINSTORMING
Looking at the three “snapshots” that you
brainstormed, evaluate the following:
 Which experience is the most vivid in your mind?



Which experience feels the most personally
significant to you?
Which experience seems the most
exciting/interesting/engaging to others?
Which experience taught you the most about
yourself or society or both?
POINT OF VIEW
 Voice
is first-person singular: I (not one or
you)
 You are the main character.
 Your thoughts, reactions, reflections, and
feelings are included.
 Background information is included, so
the reader understands what is
happening.
 You are writing from the perspective of
your current, ninth grade self
BOLD BEGINNINGS


Your memoir needs to begin in an interesting
way so that your audience wants to continue
reading the story- the beginning should be
engaging and enticing!
Possible beginnings:
Flashback
 In medias res

EXAMPLE OF A BOLD BEGINNING

Pop culture misconstrues the idea of high school.
Watch any movie or television show about high
school and you will see people being pushed into
lockers, wedgied, and pranked in many other
terrible ways. There always seems to be a guy
who is 7 feet tall and 300 pounds, ready to
completely destroy any freshman that crosses his
path. Also, there are always people smoking in
the bathroom. I can tell you right now that these
ideas of high school are untrue. I just wish
someone had told me that on my first day.​
Is this flashback or in medias res?
LET’S PRACTICE…


You are writing a memoir about your first day of
high school.
Write the first three sentences of the memoir
using one of the two options we discussed:


Flashback
In medias res
TURN AND TALK
 Turn
to the person next to you and decide
who is Person A and who is Person B.
 Person
A- read your bold beginning to your
partner; Person B- after he/she reads the
beginning, try to guess if it is a flashback or
in medias res.
 Give
feedback- what could the person do to
make it better? Use CONSTRUCTIVE
CRITICISM!!!
 Switch
roles and repeat.