Customer Reviews

The Complete Idiot's Guide to Writing Your Family History

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Ms. Stephenson writes well in quite an array of fields (including fiction -- check out "Brave New Wanda"). "The Complete Idiot's Guide to Writing Your Family History" is by far the best of the "The Complete Idiot's Guide..." series so far. She writes with genuine humor and insight. Whether you're planning on saving your genealogy for your grandchildren, or just hoping to learn out to talk to your parents better, this is the book for you. Very nicely done in every respect!

Although the book is dated and of little help to a serious genealogist, it does have some helpful writing tips like:

1. We are our stories.

2. A memory is a story with a beginning, middle, and end.

3. It is helpful to provide some historical background when describing a family event.

4. Always remember the audience. Think of your book as a gift to the family.

5. Every writer has a style. Make sure it is appropriate for the audience.

6. The most important part of a book is the opening/beginning. Make sure you have a 'hook' in the beginning to keep the reader interested in reading more.

7.Go for a word 'picture', a vivid image.

8. Highlight the most interesting ancestral moment.

9. 'Media Res' - it is OK to begin in the middle, if that is where the best 'hook' is.

10. Model the ancestor - like being an immigrant.

11. End the beginning with a transition.

12. Tossing out stuff is important.

13. Rewriting is the secret of great writing.

14. Two reasons for a new paragraph: 1) new idea 2) give the reader a break.

15. Stay away from quotation marks, except when quoting a person. Also, avoid 'deflators' which reduce the impact of a sentence.

16. If a subject is important: 1) long, several sentences are OK. 2) position at the beginning of a paragraph and remember the end of the first sentence has the most impact and 3) repetition is OK, here.

17. Proofread a lot.