Your Life Story Is Worth Telling - And There's No Better Time Than Now

By Clémence R. Scouten  |  PHNN Blog  |  Memoir Writing

There is nothing quite like sitting down with a book written by someone you loved. You hear their voice. You learn not just what they did, but how they thought, what made them laugh, what kept them up at night. A well-crafted memoir is one of the most intimate objects a family can own.

I've been helping people write and preserve their life stories for years, and the most common thing I hear is some version of: 'I keep meaning to do it.' The second most common thing I hear — from the children and grandchildren of people who never got around to it — is: 'I wish we had.'

Writing your memoir is not an act of vanity. It is an act of love — for the people who will come after you.

Why Memoirs Matter Beyond the Famous.

Somewhere along the way, we got the idea that memoirs are for presidents, celebrities, and people who survived extraordinary ordeals. They're not. Or rather, they don't have to be.

Would you want to read fifty pages written by one of your grandparents — about what their childhood was like, what they ate and read and worried about, what the world looked like through their eyes? Of course you would. Your descendants will feel exactly the same way about you.

History isn't only what happens in capitals and on battlefields. It's also the everyday fabric of how ordinary people lived. Your first job. Your wedding day. The neighborhood you grew up in. The values you tried to pass on. These things disappear without a trace unless someone captures them.

Why Writing a Memoir Is Harder Than Reading One

Most memoirs are easy to read. That ease is deceptive. Writing one is a different matter entirely.
You have to decide which stories matter most, where to begin, how to link events in a way that holds a reader's interest — and unlike telling a story out loud, you can't wander. You need time, discipline, and a certain skill for putting memory into words that work on the page, which is why many people don't do it alone.

You Don't Have to Do It Yourself.

Working with a professional memoir writer or life story specialist — sometimes called a personal historian — is far more common than most people realize. Celebrities use them. Executives use them. And increasingly, families use them, because the people they love most won't be around forever.

A memoir specialist guides you through a series of conversations, interviews you about the experiences and people who shaped your life, and then does the writing for you — in your voice, with your stories, about what you choose to share. You stay in control of everything. They do the heavy lifting.

This is one of the things PHNN members do exceptionally well. Browse our member directory to find a life story specialist who might be the right fit for you or someone you love.

Your Story, Your Legacy

Whether you write it yourself, work with a professional, or do something in between, the most important thing is that the story gets told. Your family will be grateful. And if I've learned anything from years of this work, it's that the people who do it are always glad they did.

The only regret I've ever heard from a client is starting too late. Start now.
 

— Clémence R. Scouten is President of the Personal Historians Northeast Network (PHNN) and founder of Memoirs & More, a Philadelphia-based life story and family history service.
​