Reading Life Writing
Over the last decade, there has been a dramatic
increase in the number of women's memoirs available in bookstores. Here
at Story Circle, we like to think that this so-called "memoir explosion"
means that the world is waking up to the importance of women's stories,
and that this publishing trend will continue. But whatever its significance,
the fact is that there are a great many women's stories available to us--not
just stories about the rich and famous (or infamous), but the stories of
ordinary women whose life-experiences are much like ours. If you want to
write your story, the published experiences of other women can be a great
help and inspiration. Here are some ways you can use this wonderful resource
that is increasingly available to us.
Build a Life Writer's Library
People who want to write are usually dedicated
readers and have libraries of their own. Make a list of the writers you
like and explore their works in your local library. Discover the
section in your favorite bookstore where women's stories are shelved.
(Biography, autobiography, memoir, women's studies are the usual places.)
As your budget allows, purchase books (many are available in paperback)
and read and reread them. And be sure to check out the on-line bookstores,
such as Amazon.com, which offers an extensive list of autobiographies and
memoirs and will email you book reviews and purchasing suggestions.
Discover Different Kinds of Life Writers
Women's life stories mirror the wide diversity
of women's life experiences, and you're sure to find a writer or a subject
matter that you can enjoy and learn from. Here are just a few of
the available topics and writers (you'll be able to think of many more):
Write about What You Read
As you read, take notes about what you like about
each book, what you liked least, how the writer's story connects with your
own, what other books it reminds you of, and so on. I also like to include
notes about my favorite lines and questions I would like to ask the author.
(There's an on-line form at http://www.storycircle.org/Reading_Circle/ReadersJournal.html).
I always write in the margins of my books (but of course, not in
library books), because for me, a good book opens a dialogue in my mind
between myself and the writer, and my marginal notes often trace my part
of the dialogue. If you're writing your life story, you might also
want to take notes about things that the writer did that you think are
effective, so that you can try them out for yourself.
Talk about What You Read
One of the best ways to interact with a book
is through other readers, whose understanding of the book is bound to be
different from your own. Perhaps you and a friend or two could choose a
book, read it (you can trade off if you don't want to buy it), and make
a time to talk about it together. Or you could join our Story Circle on-line
Reading Circle (available to Internet Chapter members only: http://www.storycircle.org/InetChapter/ecircles/r-ecircle1.html),
or create a Reading Circle in your own area. In Austin, we have two
Reading Circles (soon to be three), in which the facilitators make up a
few study questions to help us add to our understanding of the book. You
can see a list of the books we're reading and look over our discussion
questions at http://www.storycircle.org/Reading_Circle/
(click on the "Book List/Schedule" links).
For too many centuries, women's lives have been
private lives, shared only by members of the family and immediate friends.
But we live in an age when it's possible for women to share their experiences,
to learn and grow and enlarge our individual experience through the experiences
of other women. We owe it to ourselves to take advantage of the wonderful
resources that are open to us. So read, learn, and grow!
--Susan Wittig Albert