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How to Write Your Own Life Story: The Classic Guide for the Nonprofessional Writer
 
 
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How to Write Your Own Life Story: The Classic Guide for the Nonprofessional Writer (Paperback)

~ (Author) "You will need two loose-leaf notebooks for writing your story..." (more)
Key Phrases: salable article, civil rights story, winter picnics, Uncle Tom, World War, San Francisco (more...)
4.4 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (9 customer reviews)

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Frequently Bought Together

How to Write Your Own Life Story: The Classic Guide for the Nonprofessional Writer + Writing Your Life: An Easy-to-Follow Guide to Writing an Autobiography + Legacy : A Step-By-Step Guide to Writing Personal History
Price For All Three: $35.27

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  • This item: How to Write Your Own Life Story: The Classic Guide for the Nonprofessional Writer by Lois Daniel

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  • Writing Your Life: An Easy-to-Follow Guide to Writing an Autobiography by Mary Borg

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  • Legacy : A Step-By-Step Guide to Writing Personal History by Linda Spence

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Editorial Reviews

Product Description

Writing the story of one’s life sounds like a daunting task, but it doesn’t have to be. This warmhearted, encouraging guide helps readers record the events of their lives for family and friends. Excerpts from other writers’ work are included to exemplify and inspire. Provided are tips on intriguing topics to write about, foolproof tricks to jog your memory, ways to capture stories on paper without getting bogged down, ways to gather the facts at a local library or historical society, inspired excerpts from other writers, and published biographies that will delight and motivate.

Product Details

  • Paperback: 248 pages
  • Publisher: Chicago Review Press; 4 Sub edition (August 1, 1997)
  • Language: English
  • ISBN-10: 1556523181
  • ISBN-13: 978-1556523182
  • Product Dimensions: 9.1 x 6.1 x 0.6 inches
  • Shipping Weight: 13.3 ounces (View shipping rates and policies)
  • Average Customer Review: 4.4 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (9 customer reviews)
  • Amazon.com Sales Rank: #75,778 in Books (See Bestsellers in Books)

    Popular in this category: (What's this?)

    #28 in  Books > Reference > Writing > Nonfiction

More About the Author

Lois Daniel
Discover books, learn about writers, read author blogs, and more.

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What Do Customers Ultimately Buy After Viewing This Item?

How to Write Your Own Life Story: The Classic Guide for the Nonprofessional Writer
67% buy the item featured on this page:
How to Write Your Own Life Story: The Classic Guide for the Nonprofessional Writer 4.4 out of 5 stars (9)
$11.53
Writing Your Life: An Easy-to-Follow Guide to Writing an Autobiography
10% buy
Writing Your Life: An Easy-to-Follow Guide to Writing an Autobiography 4.7 out of 5 stars (11)
$13.57
Legacy : A Step-By-Step Guide to Writing Personal History
8% buy
Legacy : A Step-By-Step Guide to Writing Personal History 4.3 out of 5 stars (12)
$10.17
You Don't Have To Be Famous: How to Write Your Life Story
8% buy
You Don't Have To Be Famous: How to Write Your Life Story 4.9 out of 5 stars (7)
$11.55

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9 Reviews
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Average Customer Review
4.4 out of 5 stars (9 customer reviews)
 
 
 
 
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Most Helpful Customer Reviews

 
115 of 116 people found the following review helpful:
5.0 out of 5 stars Best book I've found for life story writing, September 26, 1999
By A Customer
More than seven years ago I decided to get some folks together to write our life stories. I haunted bookstores looking for the ideal book, and when I came across Lois Daniel's book, I knew it was the right one. That was her Third Edition. The updated Fourth Edition presents the same material, plus a couple of extra chapters.

The book has been ideal for our purpose. Lois Daniel's approach to writing about your life is to suggest that you write in bits and pieces, rather than starting with your birth and what I call "plowing through your life" from birth to the present day. That can be a chore for many; whereas writing about interesting incidents becomes an enjoyable challenge.

Grandma Moses, in her autobiography, wrote, "I have written my life in small sketches, a little today, a little yesterday, all the things from childhood on through the years, good ones and unpleasant ones, that is how they come out and that is how we have to take them."

That is the approach suggested by Lois Daniel. And the author makes it easy for persons who shy away because, they say, "I'm no writer." She suggests that you need not be a "writer", but merely to "write as you talk."

Our weekly class is now entering its eighth year, with 43 participants, both women and men. Since the class started, the members have purchased between 250 and 300 of her books, and, without exception, they are pleased. They find the book to be interesting, while at the same time it provides many suggestions and examples to motivate the writer.

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55 of 55 people found the following review helpful:
5.0 out of 5 stars The classic memoir writing book: a grandmother of them all., October 18, 1998
By A Customer
Amazon Verified Purchase(What's this?)
I have taught memoir courses from this book, so examined most others in the field of writing one's own life story. This was the first, and I think, the best. Author makes the task manageable with "get started" topics that trigger memories, inspiring samples from her real-life writing classes, and helpful tips. Perfect if you have an elderly parent or grand- who should record his/her life for family archives...or if you want to do it yourself.
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18 of 18 people found the following review helpful:
4.0 out of 5 stars Makes the task of writing about your life not so overwhelming, September 4, 2005
By A. M. Zoeller-Walker (California, USA) - See all my reviews
(REAL NAME)   
I am teaching a life history class for the first time and am using Lois Daniel's book as part of my curriculum. I like the fact that she breaks down the book into categories and reminds you that you do not have to write in chronological order or even whole categories at once. She is informal and supportive, gives many writing examples and even has a section about do's and don'ts. She also does not restrict her teachings to only older individuals, but encourages younger people to begin their stories as well. Her categories are rather broad and so I am using this book in conjunction with "Legacy" by Linda Spence, which has individuals put down their story in the form of answers to questions. Between both books I feel I now have a good handle on not only teaching my class, but also starting my own life story for my child.
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Most Recent Customer Reviews

5.0 out of 5 stars THE STORY !
This extremely informative book gave me a pattern to use, when writing my story. I never realized how many places that I had seen and how many exiting things I had done until the... Read more
Published 8 months ago by Danny Hunter

5.0 out of 5 stars excellent book
this book surprised me, was not expecting such a precise and enjoyable book. It has helped me a lot and is a must for anyone writing a autobiography.
Published 20 months ago by S. Tonkin

5.0 out of 5 stars Great gift
Great gift for that person in your life who loves to read but hasn't taken that leap to write yet.
Published on May 7, 2007 by Jennifer Sturgis

4.0 out of 5 stars Very helpful for all ages.
Lois Daniel taught classes specifically dealing with writing memoirs, and life stories, not only to older generations, but to younger ones as well. Read more
Published on November 29, 2006 by J. L. Butler

4.0 out of 5 stars A New Way to Tell your Story
Using the method of writing bits and pieces as you remember them rather than chronologically, the author gently encourages you to write your story whether you believe you are a... Read more
Published on July 4, 2000 by Eldonna Bouton

3.0 out of 5 stars This is a great resource for those writing autobiographies.
My only "issue" with this book is that it wasn't what I was looking for. BUT, it may be just what you need! Read more
Published on July 23, 1998

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