When you sit down to write a life story, it’s tempting to begin with a date of birth and work forward. But the memory that starts you writing might be somewhere else entirely.
Perhaps it’s your mother’s kitchen, the first job you loved, a long journey or something a friend said that you have never forgotten. Start with the memory you can see most clearly. You can decide where it belongs in the book later.
Choose one small scene
Rather than trying to describe an entire childhood, choose an afternoon. Where were you? Who was there? What were you doing? Write down the details you actually remember. A room, a sound or an ordinary object may give you a useful place to begin.
You don’t need to make the scene dramatic. Ordinary experiences can tell a reader a great deal about the life you lived.
Keep your voice on the page
Try explaining the memory as you would to someone sitting beside you. Use the words you would naturally use. There will be time to organise sentences and tidy the writing; the first task is to get the recollection down.
If a date or detail is uncertain, mark it for checking. If you remember the sense of a conversation but not the exact words, describe its meaning rather than presenting invented dialogue as fact.
Decide who you’re writing for
A book for your grandchildren may need explanations that your brothers and sisters would never need. A book for a wider audience may need a little more context about the places and times. Knowing your readers helps you choose what to explain and what to leave implicit.
Make a simple beginning
Write a list of five memories you often return to. Choose one and spend a short session writing about it. Keep photographs, names and questions in a separate folder so they don’t interrupt the telling.
You’re beginning a collection of stories. The shape of the book can grow from them.