by Laura Hedgecock | How-to, Family History, Storytelling, Writing and Sharing Memories
Context in immigration stories is crucial to understanding the past. Context explains why, what happened, and what was that like. Information missing from the documents. Details that make compelling stories. In addition, context can confirm family traditions,...
by Laura Hedgecock | How-to, Writing Advice
Whether it’s your first draft or the final edits of a memoir, starting Life Stories can be hard. Here’s what four of my favorite experts had to say. (You can read my opinion in Where to Start Telling Your Stories.) Before examining the experts’...
by Laura Hedgecock | Storytelling, How-to, Writing Advice, Writing and Sharing Memories
We all know stories bring history alive in a way that facts alone cannot. Neuroscience explains why. Looking at our brains on stories has lots of implications for family historians. Remember that anti-drug commercial which showed an egg dropping into a frying pan of...
by Laura Hedgecock | Family History, How-to, Storytelling, Writing Advice
(aka when Tangents aren’t really so Tangential, aka Bringing the Subtext out of the Closet) Because they reflect relationships, stories are often complex. Sometimes the family storyteller has to apply a little tact. At my last critique group meeting, one of my fellow...
by Laura Hedgecock | How-to, Journal writing, Writing and Sharing Memories, Writing Prompts
Inspired by Elizabeth O’Neal’s May “Spring Fever” Genealogy Blog Party, I decided that we could all use a few spring story prompts to get our creative juices churning, blogger or not. (If you are a blogger, however, please play along!) Use one (or more!) of the...