I’ve worked with many people who tried to write memoirs, hit a brick wall, and then hired me as their ghostwriter.
Writing about yourself is challenging for a number of reasons.
Lack of objectivity. We’re too close to our stories to see them clearly. We have too much information, too many stories and memories. We may undervalue or overvalue certain events. If we write from this perspective, it can lead to memoirs that go into too much detail about the wrong things or not enough about the right ones (if they get written at all). I bring a much-needed objectivity to writing a memoir about your life. I can help you see the untapped potential in crucial parts of your story, while weeding out those parts that aren’t central to your theme.
I worked with one client who hardly talked initially about her teenage years or her relationship with her mother. I was curious and encouraged her to discuss that part of her life. It turned out she had a difficult relationship with her mom, who could be verbally and sometimes physically abusive. While this didn’t become a prime focus of the memoir, my ghostwriting instincts knew this material would add emotional depth and resonance to the memoir.
Revisiting traumatic or painful memories. It’s not easy to do and yet such memories can lead to a powerful memoir. I had years of experience helping New York City teenagers write about painful experiences—poverty, racism, violence, living in foster care, etc. Not all memoirs are about trauma nor should they be. Yet most of us have some difficult emotional issues in our past. As a professional memoir ghostwriter, I know when to push on certain topics and when not to, and how the memoir writing process itself can help authors come to terms with aspects of their experience.
I’m currently ghostwriting a book with a very successful businessman that focuses on helping aspiring entrepreneurs attain success. And yet his personal life informs the book in important ways. He saw his father struggle with a job he hated, just living paycheck to paycheck. From my ghostwriting experience, I knew this information would create an emotional bond with the reader and provide a greater understanding for the author’s career decisions.
Self-doubt. You may worry that your story is not interesting or important enough to hire a memoir ghostwriter. There’s a quote from Hemingway I love: “Any man’s life, told truly, is a novel.” I’ve changed that a bit to say, “Any person’s life, told truly, is a memoir.” Most lives are not filled with overly dramatic incidents. Some great memoirs do not have overly dramatic moments. Every life—and I know this from over 20 years as a memoir ghostwriter—has important insights and subtle lessons to share, if probed with enough skill and depth.
Difficulty in structuring the story. Without the help of a ghostwriter, it’s hard to know how to organize your memories and experiences into a coherent narrative. A writing teacher at Columbia University explained it this way: if you get lost, you keep writing to find your way out. But that’s a little like rowing on the ocean. You’ve lost sight of land in all directions and more rowing won’t get you home. Instead, an experienced ghostwriter can help you find the right structure for your memoir, providing a map that organizes your experiences around a central theme.
Hiring a professional memoir ghostwriter can help you overcome these difficulties, providing much needed guidance, insight, and support throughout the writing process.
Comentarios