This blog will help you turn memories into meaningful stories for your family. We will sample three techniques to show how to take life experiences and create a memoir to record these events. By the end of this session, we will have drafted an introduction and outline to help them produce personal stories cherished by your family for generations to come.
Helen and Teacher
Sunday, March 23, 2014
Dreams are Writing Journals
Friday night I went to bed and slept badly, constantly dreaming about all the things we had discussed at dinner at our favorite Japanese restaurant. The settings were a little different, but the topics and themes, the conflicts were the same. The literature on dream interpretation beginning with the esteemed "Freud - Jung" letter could fill several libraries and databases, yet I'm not about interpretation. I'm about using them as outlines. I think I've come up with whole sagas, and they are worth writing down. Many writers are ahead of me, Coleridge with "Xanadu" and other works, Shakespeare, Lope de Vega, Lorca, they all knew this. The directors of "Twin Peaks" and "The Wizard of Oz" also knew it. Then again, maybe I just dream in short stories. It was in a dream that I sat across from Anne Boleyn in the Tower. She was wearing her head, and she told me to go back to graduate school. So, blame it on her.
An Apologia for Countess Erzebet Bathory: Lizbeth Salander, Women Warriors, and Erzebet
An Apologia for Countess Erzebet Bathory: Lizbeth Salander, Women Warriors, and Erzebet: 3 or 4 years ago, I read "The Girl with the Dragon Tattoo," and saw the original Swedish film. I was blown away by the intricate ...
Friday, March 21, 2014
Dr. E's Doll Museum Blog: Doll Collecting at About.com
Dr. E's Doll Museum Blog: Doll Collecting at About.com: Look for me on the doll collecting site, above. There is a free newsletter you can sign up for, and my weekly blog. I also have a blog on ...
Thursday, March 13, 2014
If you Love Books, Real Paper and Ink Books!
Book Collecting 101
By Richard Davies |
Jan 25, 2013
Please see below, found on Publishers Weekly
A champion of the physical book, Richard Davies from AbeBooks.com offers advice to anyone thinking about collecting rare books.
It might just be me, but I believe far fewer ‘Physical Books are Dead’ articles are being published these days. Just as well because book collecting is alive and well, and co-existing happily alongside digital media. Avid readers are still becoming book collectors. Beautiful, rare and interesting editions are still being bought and sold.
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The first question for any potential book collector to answer is ‘What should I collect?’ The answer is simple – collect the books you love. I always advise collecting for love rather than financial gain. It could be an author or a literary group, every possible edition of a single title, a genre or a sub-genre, an era or a publisher, first editions, signed copies or books illustrated by a particular artist.
Can you make money from collecting rare books? Yes, but like the stock market, the value of books can decrease as well as increase. Can you build a collection of valuable books? Again yes, but, again like the stock market, it takes knowledge and research to strike gold. Are books a good long-term investment? It depends – can you identify books that will gain value over a couple of decades?
Collecting books for financial gain is not easy. That’s why it’s good to start with the books you love and know well. Many collectors read every book published by an author and then begin collecting first editions of each title. Many collectors return to the books they loved as children. The loss of Maurice Sendak sparked interest in his work from collectors and a signed first edition of Where the Wild Things Are sold for $25,000 on AbeBooks just weeks after his death. Children’s books can be challenging to collect because young readers often treat them roughly.
Spend time in rare bookshops. Bauman’s Rare Books in New York and Las Vegas, the Brattle Book Shop in Boston, Royal Books in Baltimore, Ken Sanders Rare Books in Salt Lake City and Wessel & Lieberman in Seattle are just a few famous names. Get to know your local rare booksellers.
Considering many people now consume books via digital files, book collectors are often drawn to books as objects of art. The look (and feel) of particular books can define a collection. Bindings, dust jackets in certain styles and illustrations can be attractive drivers behind a collection. In December, AbeBooks sold a 1944 first edition of PasiphaƩ illustrated by Henri Matisse for $30,000. Books by Picasso and Dali regularly fetch high prices.
First editions and signed copies are two cornerstones of book collecting, but, once you have delved into the world of used books, the golden rule is condition, condition, condition. The difference in financial value between a first edition that’s been gently read once and a heavily worn first edition with a torn, price-clipped dust jacket can be significant.
For modern first editions, the presence of a dust jacket is vital in itself – DJs were commonly thrown away by owners in the early years of the 20th century. The most significant example of how a dust jacket can affect value is the first edition of The Great Gatsby – with a dust wrapper, the book is worth more than $100,000 (one sold for $182,000 at auction in 2009). A first edition lacking its jacket is worth less than $10,000.
A book’s value increases when there is demand from buyers but copies are scarce. Simple economics. There can be many influencing factors, such as the literary or social significance of the book, interest in the author, awards or controversy. Das Kapital by Karl Marx shaped world politics, so first editions are worth $50,000. At the lower end of the scale, signed copies of the 2012 Booker-winning Bring up the Bodies start at $90.
Moby-Dick was a flop when it was first published. Then a warehouse fire in 1853 destroyed the vast majority of the American first editions. Slowly, critics and readers came to understand Herman Melville had delivered a masterpiece and the few remaining first editions soared in value. Today, a first US edition will be priced over $60,000.
Some authors are generous signers and that makes their signed books affordable. Ray Bradbury signed thousands of books, and today prices start at less than $20 – very low for a writer of such magnitude. Salman Rushdie and Ken Follett are two more prolific signers and prices for their signed books begin at around $15 and $8 respectively.
If an author has reclusive status (think Harper Lee and J.D. Salinger) then you will pay a premium for a signed book. AbeBooks sold a rare signed first edition of To Kill a Mockingbird for $25,000 in 2011 – an unsigned first edition went for $18,000 last year.
As a reader of Publishers Weekly, you probably already have many books on your shelves. But a good book collection is not defined by quantity but quality. New books from successful authors often have a large first edition print run but you need to find the first edition of that writer’s debut title where only 1,500 copies were printed. A famous example is J.K. Rowling’s first edition of Harry Potter and the Philosopher’s Stone. She was an unknown writer and only 500 first edition copies were printed. One of those books sold for $37,000 on AbeBooks in 2005 at the height of Pottermania.
If you already have first editions from up-and-coming authors on your shelves, you need patience. The big bucks are generated by books from legends of literature such as Kipling, Hemingway, Kafka and Tolkien – writers who have inspired millions of readers. It can take a long time to become legendary.
Another key question is how much should be spent on a book collection? Thanks to the Internet, it’s easy to spend $40,000 on a signed first edition of Casino Royale by Ian Fleming. Set a budget and stick to it. If you are collecting books that have prices out of your reach, be smart – spread your net into charity book sales, library sales, and thrift shops. Spot undervalued copies and snap them up. I met one collector who loved first editions from Fleming but could not afford them – instead he bought later editions and added facsimiles of first edition dust jackets. Facsimile jackets can be bought for $20.
There are hundreds of ways to build an eye-catching collection without breaking the bank. A bookshelf filled with vintage Penguin paperbacks will impress anyone. Penguins published in 1936, the company’s first year, can be bought for under $5. Pulp paperbacks are also plentiful, fun to collect, and just as cheap.
For more on book collecting, visit AbeBooks's online guide to book collecting.
RICHARD DAVIES has worked for AbeBooks.com since 2005, and manages merchandising and PR. He writes about used, out-of-print and rare books on a daily basis for AbeBooks.
Thursday, March 6, 2014
Google Search on Writing Memoir Tips
Here are some search tips and terms from a Google search:
A Mother's Legacy: Your Life Story in Your Own W...
$9.99
Christianbook.com
Courage & Craft: Writing Your Life into Story ‑ Soft...
$14.95
writersstore.com
Courage and Craft: Writing Your Life Into Story
$11.30
Walmart
Search Results
Writing & Selling Your Memoir: How to Craft Your Life Story So That ...
www.amazon.com/Writing...Your-Memoir.../1599631350
Amazon.com
... Actually Want to Read It [Paula Balzer] on Amazon.com. *FREE* shipping on qualifying offers. There's more to writing a memoir than just writing your life story.
Writing Life Stories: How To Make Memories Into Memoirs, Ideas ...
www.amazon.com › ... › Writing › Fiction
Amazon.com
Start reading Writing Life Stories on your Kindle in under a minute. ... The Memoir Project: A Thoroughly Non-Standardized Text for Writing & Life by Marion ...
Your Life as Story: Tristine Rainer: 9780874779226: Amazon.com ...
www.amazon.com › ... › Writing › Academic & Commercial
Amazon.com
Your Life as Story, +, Writing the Memoir: From Truth to Art, Second Edit, +, Writing Life Stories: How To Make Memories Into Memoirs, Ideas Into Essays And Life ...
Tell Us Your Life Story! Memoir Contest Kicks Off - Huffington Post
www.huffingtonpost.com/.../memoir-contest_n_432...
The Huffington Post
Nov 25, 2013 - Therefore, we invite you to share the stories of your lives with us as part of ... We're looking for amateur, budding writers to tell us their stories.
Write Your Life Story - By : Jo Parfit
www.writelifestory.com/
To Write Your Life Story In A Compelling, Interesting And Entertaining Way That Will ... Discover the hidden secrets behind writing your memoir in a way that'll ...
Great Tips on How to Write Your Memoir | Reader's Digest
www.rd.com/.../great-tips-on-how-to-write-your-memoir/
Reader's Digest
Clipart.comStart writing your memoir now. Everyone has fascinating moments and stories to share. “I was terrified,” says Walls. “I had this great life, a husband ...
Writing your life story. Turning memories into memoir by Jacqui ...
https://www.udemy.com/writing-your-life-story-turning-memorie...
Udemy
Write and publish your memoir in 90 days. A guide to getting your memoir written, edited and published.
How to Write Your Memoir by Abigail Thomas - Oprah.com
www.oprah.com/.../How-to-Write-Your-Memoir-by-Abi...
Oprah Winfrey
Memoirist Abigail Thomas talks about how to write your own memoir. ... Take any ten years of your life, reduce them to two pages, and every sentence has to be three words long—not two, not four, but ... True stories from seven memoir writers.
Write Your Life Story - By : Jo Parfit - Jo Parfitt
www.joparfitt.com/freereport/
'How To Write Your Life Story - The Inside Secrets'. "Don't start writing your memoir, travel diary or stories from your life abroad until you have read this!
Write Your Memoir to Win a Book Contract - AARP
blog.aarp.org › AARP Blog
AARP
Dec 23, 2013 - ”We want to find a gifted writer who can tell a remarkable story of his or her life. We believe this memoir contest could really be the chance of a ...
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Tuesday, March 4, 2014
Dr. E's Doll Museum Blog: About.com Doll Collecting and Long Gone Dolls by T...
Dr. E's Doll Museum Blog: About.com Doll Collecting and Long Gone Dolls by T...: A brief post to remind all my followers and readers that I love you and welcome comments. You can also read me on About.com Doll Collecting...
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