Are we all destined for oblivion without name recognition? Check out the August 31, 2013 article in the New York Times titled “Long Odds for Authors Newly Published.”
Filed under Writing …
Enlisting Help for World War II Family Research
Are the facts right? I’m almost done with my family history and have been determined throughout to make sure that I’m writing a story that accurately aligns with history and other sources of data. One of the last items that I needed to confirm was whether my uncle’s name really appeared on the various World … Continue reading
The Value of First-Hand Book Research – Norman Rockwell & Mark Twain
I plan to write a post about the places I’ve visited as background research for my memoir. However, I decided to write about my trip to Hannibal, Missouri first. I visited the Mark Twain Boyhood Home & Museum last week. Like every Twain lover, I just had to make the pilgrimage to the home of … Continue reading
A Family Story in a Letter to an Audiologist
I’ve been cleaning out my mother’s papers since she passed away in February 2012. She had four file cabinets plus several bookcases that were dedicated to her interests and correspondence. She wrote letters for political causes at the national, state, and local level, collected news articles of interest, and compiled vast research in a number … Continue reading
Memoir Research: Timeline Uncertainty Clarified by a Childhood Drawing
I posted a story in April about my father witnessing Igor Sikorsky’s first helicopter flight. https://kelleytjansson.com/2013/04/18/non-fiction-writing-getting-the-details-right/ My father was only a kid when he witnessed the historic flight. The problem was that he did not remember the date correctly. Fortunately, history recorded the event and I was able to confirm the date via normal research. … Continue reading
Southerners vs. Russians: Who can suffer more and write about it?
Engineering majors don’t get a lot of choice in college electives. We take what we’re told and are lucky to graduate in 5-years. On the one occasion that I remember actually having an elective without restrictions, I chose to take a class in World Literature. “We’ve never had an engineering major take an elective in … Continue reading
To Artists – Take Risks and Have Passion – Gnaw a Bone!
I was listening to a podcast about memoirs the other day. Somewhere in the dialogue the guest speaker said “…if you’re not taking a risk, then you’re not writing.” It made me think…do readers know when the writer is holding back? Do we always expect an exceptional story-line and exceptional prose to go with it, … Continue reading
Memoir Research: More Than Just Books, A Visit to a Real B-17 Bomber
A friend suggested (thanks Teri!) that my memoir needed more detail regarding the B-17 plane that my Dad served on in the service during World War II. Since the current revision of my manuscript pretty much already contains everything that I learned in discussions with my Dad to date, I’ve spent more time in the … Continue reading
B-17 Bomber Crew Diary: A World War II Memoir
I recently came across the book B-17 Bomber Crew Diary by Edward J. Giering, Major, U.S. Army Retired, as part of my research on B-17 planes for my own memoir. Sure, I had looked up the B-17 fact sheet, and read the details of the various B-17 plane models in reference books. However, it was … Continue reading
Non Fiction Writing: Getting the Details Right
I’ve spent at least an hour a night with my 87-year father over the last ~6-years collecting his memories for my storybook. Dad grew up in Stratford, CT, and has shared his memory of his hometown during the Great Depression and World War II. Dad’s father, my grandfather, was friends with Igor Sikorsky, the entrepreneur … Continue reading
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