Confronting the Blank Page: Ten Writing Prompts for Curating Memories
WORKSHOPWRITING AT WORDHOUSE
Facing a blank page
How do we nail our life story? Let's not beat ourselves up and stall our writing. Let the ten prompts below help us tell our story. Begin by brainstorming one or more of these suggestions:
Our Childhood Turning Point: Write about a significant moment in our childhood that changed our early years. How did it affect the way we see the world?
Our Transformative Relationships: Write about a significant relationship that changed us. Think of someone who really affected our lives. How did this relationship grow? What did it teach us?
Our Obstacle Overcome: Write about a time we overcame a huge obstacle. What strategies did we use to overcome it, and what lessons did we learn?
Our Meaningful Places: Write about a place that holds special meaning for us. Is it our childhood home, a travel destination, or a secret hideaway? Why is this place significant, and how do we remember it? What distinctive characteristics make it memorable?
Our Personal Triumphs: Write about a moment of personal triumph. What happened before that victorious time? How did we reach that prized goal? How did it change us?
Our Regretted Decisions: Explore a choice we made that we wish we could change. What were the consequences, and how has it influenced our future decisions?
Our Challenged Worldviews: Write about an experience that challenged our beliefs or values. How did we reconcile this experience with our existing perspective?
Our Inspiring Mentors: Write about a mentor or role model who has guided or inspired us. What qualities do we admire in them, and how have they influenced our path?
Our Significant Family Traditions: Write about a family tradition that holds significance for us. Describe one such tradition and the emotions and memories it evokes.
Our Serendipitous Moments: Write about an unexpected event that seemed to happen by chance. How did it affect our lives?
When we start writing with these prompts let us not worry about doing it perfectly, but let the memories flow, and record them as they come.
Page View : Getting Inspiration from Memoirs that Answer Our Prompts
1. Our Childhood Turning Point & Challenged Worldviews:
"The Glass Castle" by Jeannette Walls: This memoir is a powerful exploration of a highly unconventional and often chaotic childhood. Walls recounts her experiences growing up in a dysfunctional family, constantly moving and facing extreme poverty. It deeply challenges conventional notions of family and stability, and the childhood moments definitely shaped her worldview.
"Educated" by Tara Westover: Westover's memoir details her journey from growing up in a survivalist Mormon family to earning a PhD from Cambridge. It is an exploration of how a childhood can radically shape one's worldview and how education can be a powerful tool for transformation.
2. Our Transformative Relationships & Our Inspiring Mentors:
"Wild: From Lost to Found on the Pacific Crest Trail" by Cheryl Strayed: While primarily about overcoming an obstacle, Strayed's relationship with her mother, and the grief following her death, is a central transformative force. She also learns from the people she meets on the trail, which act as mentors.
"Just Kids" by Patti Smith: This memoir beautifully captures the transformative relationship between Patti Smith and Robert Mapplethorpe. It's a story of artistic growth, love, and the profound influence of a deep connection.
3. Our Obstacle Overcome & Our Personal Triumphs:
"Unbroken" by Laura Hillenbrand: This is the incredible true story of Louis Zamperini, an Olympic athlete who survived a plane crash, imprisonment in a Japanese POW camp, and unimaginable hardship. It's a testament to resilience and the triumph of the human spirit.
"Born a Crime" by Trevor Noah: Noah's memoir is a powerful and often humorous account of growing up in apartheid South Africa. It's a story of overcoming obstacles, finding his identity, and personal triumph.
4. Our Meaningful Places & Our Significant Family Traditions:
"I Know Why the Caged Bird Sings" by Maya Angelou: Angelou's memoir vividly portrays her childhood experiences in the American South, particularly in Stamps, Arkansas. The setting is deeply intertwined with her personal journey and the themes of racism and resilience.
"Crying in H Mart" by Michelle Zauner: This memoir beautifully weaves together themes of grief, identity, and the power of food and family traditions. The H Mart, a Korean grocery store, becomes a central meaningful place, representing her connection to her Korean heritage and her late mother.
It will be exciting to read memoirs touching on "Our Regretted Decisions" and "Our Serendipitous Moments" as the central focus of their narrative. Other prompts such as "Our Significant Family Traditions" seems a common main theme, while "Our Inspiring Mentors" appear as a supporting theme in some memoir.
As we read more memoir and learn from the masters, we can take note of how the prompts above might be their general theme or thread or inspiration.
