Author Archives: first person productions

About first person productions

My blog "True Stories Well Told" is a place for people who read and write about real life. I’ve been leading life writing groups since 2004. I teach, coach memoir writers 1:1, and help people publish and share their life stories.

The Proposal and the Purse

Posted on December 5, 2018

A few weeks ago I posted this writing prompt: when did YOU start carrying a purse, why, and how did your self-identity change? This is one response to that prompt. By Deborah Wilbrink It had been a long day, fun and … Continue reading →

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Aboard Ship, continued

Posted on November 28, 2018

By Suzy Beal This is the fourth episode of a memoir that is unfolding, one chapter each month, here on True Stories Well Told. Stay tuned for more of the adventure as teenage Suzy’s family moves to Europe, builds a … Continue reading →

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It’s Thanksgiving: Listen Up!

Posted on November 21, 2018

Tomorrow is StoryCorps’ #TheGreatListen. Here’s what they have to say about it: The Great Thanksgiving Listen is a national movement that empowers young people—and people of all ages—to create an oral history of the contemporary United States by recording an interview … Continue reading →

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Flash Memoir: my definition

Posted on November 14, 2018

In my work as a personal historian, I often coach people on how to write, via workshops  and 1:1 coaching. This keeps me interested in new techniques and ways to approach writing. In the past few years I’ve become aware of … Continue reading →

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Genetic Engineering is Child’s Play

Posted on November 7, 2018

By Faith Ellestad   To my beloved sons, I was thinking back to my childhood, and thinking forward to my children, when it came to me.  Guys, its not my fault.  It’s the fault of summer in the ’50s. Let … Continue reading →

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Aboard Ship, Part 1

Posted on October 31, 2018

By Suzy Beal This is the third episode of a memoir that is unfolding, one chapter each month, here on True Stories Well Told. Stay tuned for more of the adventure as teenage Suzy’s family moves to Europe, builds a … Continue reading →

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The End

Posted on October 25, 2018

This short essay is an experiment in “The Rolling Now,” a structural technique I’m learning to use, taught by my mentor Ken McGoogan at the U-Kings MFA residency in August 2018. We were asked to shape an in-class free-write with … Continue reading →

Posted in Sarah's memoir | 1 Comment