I have just finished reading Dame Fiona Kidman's book 'So Far, For Now'. It has given me the guidelines for writing memoir pieces of varying lengths. I have already begun writing a longer piece using her ideas and I am buzzing with more enthusiasm than I have had in months. Beginning with her description of the sudden death of her husband she ranges from her time in Menton in France, to travel in Britain, having a massage, family connections and much more. I have three pages of ideas to work on, I am beginning to think I might need to work on several ideas all at once to keep my enthusiasm going.
Several other writers have suggested I should write short memoir pieces rather than trying to put together a memoir which was giving me PTSD. I hate having to give up on writing I have spent months and months on but sometimes the stress and tension of reliving difficult times makes it too hard to continue. I think people who manage to complete a long and difficult account of their life are amazing for their strength and fortitude.
I have always been an avid reader of Fiona Kidman's books. We have much in common, she was a librarian, avid reader, lived on a farm and milked cows, and so on. I just wish I had been able to write with such vigour all my life. I guess my many years of academic writing meant that time was spent getting academic qualifications of which I am proud. I am so looking forward to meeting her tomorrow and having 3 hours of intense instruction in memoir writing skills.
