Monthly Archives: August 2011

Two tips on “dealing with the dark”

Posted on August 29, 2011 by first person productions

My APH colleague Sharon Waldman wrote me recently to say, I just read your essay about the “Reminiscence Bump,” which is a phenomenon that I had never heard of. Thanks for discussing it! I don’t find that my memoir writing … Continue reading →

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Jeremiah Karpowicz on Digital Storytelling

Posted on August 27, 2011 by first person productions

Jeremiah Karpowicz stumbled onto “True Stories Well Told” earlier this summer and shared his interest in telling stories via electronic features (eFeats) with me. I have always loved the idea of combining images and words to tell stories–I like the … Continue reading →

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William Zinsser on writing family history

Posted on August 23, 2011 by first person productions

William Zinsser is is well-known for his writing, editing, teaching, and literary criticism. I keep his book On Writing Well within arm’s reach. An article by Zinsser on how to write memoir came across my virtual transom recently. I found myself … Continue reading →

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These Hands

Posted on August 19, 2011 by first person productions

By Jillian Hussey I have always liked my hands, even now as the hands of a 73-year-old woman. As I look at the wrinkled, thin skin, and the bulging veins, my mind carries me back over the years in contemplation … Continue reading →

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Life Lesson from a Troll Doll

Posted on August 16, 2011 by first person productions

From the moment they arrived from Denmark in 1963, I loved my troll dolls. Dam dolls they were called sometimes, with a nervous giggle. Ugly as sin, made of tumeric-colored molded rubber, with great cottony ebullient flights of hair. McCall’s … Continue reading →

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Grand MaMa Dovie McMullin’s Good Old Fashioned Southern Communion Butter Bread

Posted on August 12, 2011 by first person productions

By Sherri Bester. This recipe and essay appear in the Meals and Memories Cookbook, sales of which benefit the Odyssey Project.  I found myself thinking of Sherri’s writing when I posted about “the Right Word” earlier this week. Sherri’s writing, like April’s, … Continue reading →

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The Right Word

Posted on August 10, 2011 by first person productions

I’m thinking about “the right word” this morning because I’ve been working with fearless, peerless April of “Aye Chihuahua” on polishing her story for submission to Glamour’s “My Real Life Story” contest. April’s voice as a writer is wild and … Continue reading →

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WRWA Fall Conference Sept 23-25 2011

Posted on August 7, 2011 by first person productions

Among the many pies I keep a finger in, there is the Wisconsin Regional Writers Association. This august organization, now in its 62nd year, serves writers amateur-to-pro who make Wisconsin their topic or base of operations. I serve as its Contests … Continue reading →

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Book Review: The Memoir Project

Posted on August 5, 2011 by first person productions

I’m happy! After a small drought, I’ve finally found a book I’m excited to recommend!  Marion Roach Smith’s The Memoir Project: A Thoroughly Non-Standardized Text for Writing & Life tickled me pink. Yes, it’s yet another book on how to … Continue reading →

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Letting Go

Posted on August 2, 2011 by first person productions

By Mary Ann Parker When my sons were in elementary school, they all went to Davis Elementary In Plano, Texas,several blocks from our house. Adjoining the school grounds was a small greenbelt area that had a creek running through it. … Continue reading →

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