Kindle Notes & Highlights
alone. No one else needs to read it—not yet. Maybe never. Write your life story. Then you can read it, edit it, and decide to share it—or not.
Do not fear success and its possible consequences.
Perfectionists venture into the unknown with great trepidation, if they even start writing at all.
your mistakes only show that you have learned something new.
But the time is now, and it’s all you have. As the Nike slogan tells us, “Just do it!”
picture future family members reading, discussing, and learning from your story. Write it for them.
You are never too old to write for an hour a day. If you were, you would not be reading this book.
two pages at a time.
too revealing
might “read into” our stories.
You cannot please everyone, and if you try, your writing will be insipid and lifeless.
“If you wish to be a writer, write.”
Raymond Chandler wrote, “Everything a writer learns about the art or craft of fiction takes just a little away from his need or desire to write at all. In the end he knows all the tricks and has nothing to say.”
“Pick something you know you can write without bogging down. It can be an anecdote, an image, a scene, a memory, a description, a joke, a declaration—anything
into fifteen-minute segments.
I become afraid when …
Sight, sound, touch, taste, smell: These are the secret ingredients to vibrant writing.
we smell the coffee brewing,
A sunny, cloudless sky can lift a sagging heart,
drifting smell of fresh-cut grass can transport us back in time,
based on incidents—
Life is perpetually in motion, and everything we do is based on action.
witness the movie reel running inside your head.
These taste memories will add flavor to your life story; use them abundantly.
Bring your story to life by describing these five senses. What do you see in your story? What sounds do you remember? Was the touch a memorable one? How so? How would you describe the taste of an expensive wine? What about the smell of a freshly bathed newborn? Is it the shampoo, the baby powder? The five senses add depth
WRITE WHAT YOU KNOW.
Who knows your life story better than you?
Your children and grandchildren? Future generations?
If you are aiming to publish your life story, it will become part of the public record, but you need not ...
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What did that life experience feel like?
Your readers will want to know that.
WRITE WITH F...
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we all have a sense of humor.
“To thine own self be true.”
When you write as your inner self, your words will flow.
WRITE OFTEN.
“practice makes perfect”
Your best work will come from your desire to let your story tell itself. Worrying about how you are perceived by your readers will result in barriers. There should be no agenda in your message.
one piece of a family puzzle and that it is a gift to future generations.
You will understand that all other characters in your life story must remain secondary.
be yourself.
the journey you took to redemption.
CONVICTION: belief in what you are doing.
Against the advice of family and friends, you set out
Writing as the Master Builder of Your Life
“When people tell their life stories, they not only recount the past, but they also project their lives into the future.”
