Seminars for Lifelong Learners

During my talk

While at sea, Lifelong Learners (LLLs) have an hourlong seminar every day at 4 p.m. Often a professor or an LLL lectures on a topic dear to his or her heart that would interest the other older travelers. We have had talks about memory retention, DNA advancements, canoeing challenges from Hawaii to Tahiti, volunteer work in orphanages in central Africa and more. I was asked to talk about memoir writing. Below are my notes, which might also inspire readers of my blog.

We all have a story to tell, especially at our age, having lived several decades, met many challenges and survived a tragedy or two. Why not record them? It does not matter whether you publish them or not.  Record them for your own pleasure or to pass down to your children and grandchildren. Writing non-fiction or historical fiction needs a lot of research, and writing fiction needs imagination. Writing your life story comes naturally. Here is my advice for any writer

1. Make writing a habit
Philip Roth had a great saying that amateurs wait for inspiration while great writers just get up and go to work. You have to sit down and write every day.

I got into a habit of writing at an early age.  I remember writing poetry in Turkish, my native tongue when I was in 4th or 5th Grade. I did not show them to anyone but got great satisfaction out of putting words on a piece of paper.

2. Make reading a habit
Make reading an important part of the day, especially reading works similar to what you want to publish.  Biographies, autobiographies and memoirs should be on everyone’s bookshelves.

I used to share a bedroom with my older sister and remember reading with a flashlight under the covers. My grandmother would make me read out loud to her. I used to think I’d rather be out playing with my sister and my cousin. But I could not refuse her when she’d say, “My eyes are tired. Why don’t you read to me?”  After each chapter, we would have a conversation about what I read. Looking back on it, these were such pleasant memories of bonding as well as a great introduction to one of life's biggest pleasures: reading.

3. Keep a journal
Keeping a journal helps focus your thinking and harness the chaos in your brain. This also makes you remember certain events that made a difference in your life.

I have kept a journal on and off all of my life. My earlier ones were in Turkish. Most of my entries were about my emotional state at the time. I seldom go back to read them, but I know that keeping them was great  training for my career in journalism.

4. Join or form a writing group of supportive people
Look around for writers’ workshops.  If you can find one with a good facilitator stick to it. If not get a few of your motivated friends to form one. Give it a structure. Take turns leading the discussion. Read what you wrote and ask for improvements.

I went to a lecture at a neighborhood Barnes and Noble store in Chicago about 10 years ago. Enid Powell had been a screenwriter for a day-time soap opera. She was talking about fiction writing, and I was inspired by what I heard. I had just retired from the travel business and was looking to do something with my time. So I joined her workshop. There were six or eight of us who met every Wednesday night for two hours in her condo two blocks away from my apartment. She would give us a 3 x 5 card and a key word such as “bread” or “mother” or “city” and let us write for two minutes about whatever came to our minds. You’d be surprised how interesting the results were. The remainder of the two hours would be devoted to hearing a chapter written by one or two participants. We would then critique what we heard, always in a positive and constructive way. Enid would use her green-ink pen to make notes on the margins of what we turned in. At 85, she is still going strong. I have recommended her classes to several of my friends. Our website is here. We have published books, collections of short stories on such topics as "Home Away from Home."

Two books helped me:  Bird by Bird by Anne Lamott, who tells you to take one subject at a time; and Your Life As a Story by Tristine Rainer, who gives you detailed guidance.

Your local lending library may have a writers group or a cultural center, such as one I know of in Chicago, may have workshops for senior citizens. Enrolling in a continued education class at a university is another possibility, though it would be costlier. You can also find expert help online.  Such as the one called Backspace, a group of accomplished writers that allows people of all levels to join at a moderate fee. It runs discussion groups and organises a conference in New York City every year. Its homepage provides you with 101 Best Websites for Writers.

After my writing took shape, I attended a week-long memoir class at the Writers Festival, held at the University of Iowa in Des Moines, which helped me put the final touches on my book. I was also lucky to have experienced editor friends look over the manuscript.