Here’s a MEMOIR WRITING CHALLENGE for you today:

Even though I have two memoirs, an autobiography, and five novels published, I’m still dedicated to improving my writing skills.

And I’ve found these recent months of being “stuck at home” have provided the perfect time for focus on this.

Towards that end, I’ve begun journaling again. I’ve also recently finished reading Rayne Hall’s Writing Vivid Settings.

Rayne Hall is an author I’ve followed for years, and she’s written quite a few helpful books on writing.

Granted, her subtitles usually include the keywords “for Fiction Authors.”

But as I’ve said before, writing a memoir is similar to writing a novel.

Whether you’re quoting dialogue, writing a scene that happened in your life, or describing strong emotions, the same “writing rules” apply.

So, here’s a memoir writing challenge for you today:

DESCRIBE A PHOTOGRAPH IN ONE PARAGRAPH. It can be any photo with or without people in it, but this will work best for you if it’s a photo from some time you want to write about in your memoir.

Here’s a one-paragraph example from Robert Fulghum’s book, UH-OH: Some Observations From Both Sides of the Refrigerator Door.

“The second picture by the light switch was a grainy black-and-white news photo from the morning paper earlier in the month. Showing a middle-aged man, in a short-sleeved, sweat-stained khaki shirt. The man is smiling a great smile. And the other people in the picture are also smiling. The occasion is the conclusion of an election — an-honest election — held in powder-keg conditions in a Central America country.”

I’d love to read your one paragraph description.

You can email it to me at carolynvhamilton@gmail.com. Just be sure to put “One paragraph photo description” in your subject line.

Write on and stay safe,

Carolyn