Contemplating beginnings and endings can help provoke memories and create fascinating stories when writing about our own lives or the lives of those who came before us. Here’s a few prompts to get you started … 1. Leaving Write about a time you or an ancestor left one place and moved to another, whether that […]
I recently realised that ten years has passed since I published my first (very brief) blog post, here on Treefall Writing. Turns out that so much can change in 10 years, and so much can stay the same. This has prompted me to think about time in the context of memoir and family history. So, […]
Have you thought about compiling a family history but don’t know where to start? Writers are often advised to write what they know or are curious about. Not everyone agrees with this, but perhaps there’s some wisdom in it, or in the case of family history, start with yourself (the person in your family tree […]
In his book The Novel Project, Graeme Simsion mentions the questionnaires we can find and fill out to get to know our characters – but he doesn’t use them. He says, “There are real people I’ve known for years whose star sign and preferred drink I wouldn’t be able to tell you. If a character […]
The seasons can refer to the weather and the physical changes of our natural world, but we often use the word metaphorically to describe and explore various stages, moments and turning points of our lives. Katherine May, author of Wintering: The Power of Rest and Retreat in Difficult Times says: Below are a number of […]
Fellow author Josh Langley recently published a blog post on why he isn’t setting any goals in 2024. Instead, he creating a list of what he wants to ‘show up’ for. In showing up, Josh says, ‘you’re willing to push through your fears, anxieties and doubts, to really be present in the experience – the […]