This week on Zoom, I get to host a great writer, Laura Davis. She will be reading a scene from her upcoming memoir and then demonstrating some fascinating writing techniques –
- Writing in layers
- How to write when you can’t remember.
And you’re invited, free. Monday July 26th, 4-5pm PT
—The Burning Light of Two Stars: A Mother-Daughter Story—
Laura’s techniques will be enormously insightful for all our writers – and it’s free. (Monday July 26th – 4pm PT) Hope to see you there.
Zoom Link:https://us02web.zoom.us/j/83546005376?pwd=UlhNaHVwN3BEeFdlVkdZNlhiTUtXUT09
Meeting ID: 835 4600 5376
Passcode: 906070
As you probably know, I’m hosting a writing program this summer, 100 Writing Days of Summer and that has given me access to some excellent professional writers, as part of the Guest Author Panel, and now you have access too. Come take advantage.
She will demonstrate how to write in layers – revisiting a scene many times, each time with a different focus, and different goals. It takes many layers to create a powerful scene, which Laura will help us see and understand.
She will also show us how to write a memoir, even when you can’t remember.
Laura gets asked, frequently “Is vivid recall absolutely essential to good writing?”
Many of us believe that writing memoir—recording the stories of our lives—requires us to accurately remember our past and then transcribe our memories. This belief stops us before we begin because we are appalled at how much we don’t remember. Sometimes it feels as if whole years of our lives have been wiped out. And so, we believe our writing is doomed because there is so much that we don’t remember.
In addition to personal stories you long to write, you may also carry family stories that haunt you—stories you can never know the truth about because the people involved are dead, unreachable or unwilling to tell the truth: your mother’s breakdown when she was a teenager, your grandfather’s desertion of the family, the dead child nobody talks about. These family secrets and untold stories can be transformed into gripping stories, essential scenes in your personal narrative.
But how? You may be wondering, “How can I possibly write about what I can’t remember?”
Laura is experienced in recall and writing of personal stories, and you will walk away with versatile strategies for writing vividly and evocatively about parts of your history is it impossible to know for sure.
Laura is an accomplished writer and teacher of memoir, and I hope you can join us.
Biography:
Laura Davis is the author of seven books, including The Courage to Heal and I Thought We‘d Never Speak Again. Her groundbreaking books have been translated into 11 languages and sold two million copies. In addition to writing books that inspire and change people’s lives, the work of Laura’s heart is to teach. For more than twenty years, she’s helped people find their voices, tell their stories, and hone their craft. Laura loves creating supportive, intimate writing communities online, in person, and internationally. Her new memoir, The Burning Light of Two Stars: A Mother-Daughter Story, will be released in October 2021.