Telling the Story

 For writing a memoir that spans 25 years and at least 35 automobiles, I have relied heavily on my hand-written journals and old photographs. Writing whimsical stories was the easy part, but all those stories needed organization. A timeline would reveal how life has changed over time.  Rolling out butcher paper on a long counter-top allowed room to draw 30 columns, three inches wide; One for each year of driving. Here I began noting the multiple cars, challenges and adventures of my life.  Because memories and events tend to bleed from one year into the next, a horizontal red line connected one year to the next.  Where are the connections? What am I not seeing? Can I put enough distance to view myself on the dance floor of life from a third story balcony perspective?

  As the bigger picture emerged, creative story-telling continued to evolve. Sticky notes and pictures of cars and events were placed on the time line, so graph could illustrate the peaks and valleys of a compelling story. How long is the introduction? (No more than 1-2%). How much will I allow for the setting? (8%) When should the first significant drama show up to keep the reader’s attention? (No later than the first 15%) Let’s allow 5-10% for the ending.

   With only 65% of the book left for the meat of my story, I needed to make sure there was a rhythm in the narrative that keeps a reader engaged. But when it is time to “cut, cut, cut,” it is distressing to eliminate cherished stories. (Otherwise known as “killing your darlings!”)  Writing is like life. What doesn’t fit, is spit, so what remains can be savored.