Denis Ledoux's Blog, page 11

Self-Publishing Means Extroversion!

I am committed to independent publishing—even if self-publishing means extroversion . Ever since I realized two things, this has been my mode of publication.

This is what I understood many years agoI have a much more solid and true sense of my audience than any publisher could have. (My first book, a collection of short stories—What Became of Them and Other Stories from Franco-America—outsold what I had read was the average sale of a collection published by a NYC publisher.)One day, I...

Beginning the End Stage Before Publication

Last week, I realized I needed to acknowledge to myself that I was in the end stage before publication of writing my memoir. For one thing, I finally came up with a name—French Boy / Growing Up Franco-American—that I’m likely to keep. (So many titles in the trash!) This title reveals the content of the memoir—a good title has to position a book for its audience. A good title says: “This book is for you.”

My natural audience

Since I am a self-publisher, I am super aware of audience. While...

How Long Does It Take to Write a Memoir?

Sometimes, years after I’ve heard from someone that he is writing a memoir, I will hear from the writer again. Perhaps it’s three or four or five years later, but the writer is working on the same memoir and is not close to finishing. I don’t get it. How long does it take to write a memoir? So I ask politely, “What has snagged your memoir?” In short…

It seems to have taken that writer too long to write his memoir!

So, how long does it take to write a memoir?

Well, I don’t actually know t...

How to write the last chapter of a memoir

“How do I write the last chapter of a memoir?” coaching and editing clients will sometimes ask me.

It is a good question because the last chapter of a memoir is your final shot at affirming your theme and at creating a satisfying and meaningful ending to the story the reader has been engaged in for perhaps 200 or 300 pages—or even more.

Revising the last chapter is also something I have been working with on my childhood memoir—which, alas, is still nameless.

As I write this...

Best Title for a Memoir: How to Choose

Writers ask me how to choose a best title for a memoir. Because I have worked with them, usually as their coach or editor and know their story, I am in a position to brainstorm with them to come up with a decent —and sometimes even a great—title for their book.

Editor’s Note: This content is also available as a YouTube video. Click here.

There are many possibilities available to a writer, but one thing is certain: a writer must choose a title for a memoir strategically.  It is a m...

A Faulty Process Is—Well—Useless

One memoir writer who had spent two or three years writing her story submitted her formatted manuscript to me for a final edit. She told me she hadn’t gotten help writing a memoir because she hadn’t wanted to be influenced.

As I read her story, I struggled to find its focus. There didn’t seem to be any.

Ouch!

The manuscript was full of vague (meaningless, really) sentences that really didn’t transmit much meaning. Lines such as: “The town I grew up in was in the middle of nowh...

Setting Writing Goals That Work For You

I have a goal for this post. I want to help you to develop and articulate your writing goals for the next three months—that is, 90 days. You can start your three months today, at the beginning of the next week or at the first day of the next month, but don’t put off setting writing goals.

Three months is taken from the business model which uses quarters—three months—to implement plans. It is a useful way to set goals for three months. Three months both give you time to accomplish somet...

Dialog Tags: the good, the bad and the sometimes intrusive.

We all know how important a precise and varied vocabulary is to our memoir writing. Words are our tools to make meaning. Most of the writers I have worked with want to develop the precise and varied vocabulary that can be so helpful in writing narrative. Unfortunately, they also believe that an extensive vocabulary is called for in dialog tags.

I’m offering you may “take” on dialog tags. The point of view I am presenting today is open to discussion. Sometimes I disagree with it myself, but...

16 Memoir-Writing Resources You Can Use Today

Having the right resources available when we need them can transform any task from a problem to a pleasure. The same is true of hunting down memoir-writing resources.

I don’t know bout you but when I am trying something new—let’s say propagating a plant—that I’m not knowledgeable about, I head for either the internet or my book shelves. The internet provides quick information and is sometimes a best resource but I have also found that books often contains more detail information an...

Writing Process Steps—Linger With Your Story

One of the writing process steps is to linger with your story. Many, and perhaps most, people write too fast. I don’t mean that they end up with a text characterized by sloppy grammar, spelling problems and chronology issues—although that may be the case, of course.

No, what I mean is that they push through the process of writing their stories much too quickly. They end up with only a part of the story they could have written had they lingered.

So many times in my workshops, I have found i...