Story writing ideas and resources – memoir or family history

Are you hungry for story writing ideas and resources for your memoir, personal history, or other true-life story? Think, family history or biography. This is our favorite topic! Truly, this is our life’s work and mission. We hope you enjoy these story writing ideas and resources to help you write a family history or your own memoir. This page is an index page of all the resources we have compiled on our website, with many practical tools to help you in writing your book or short story to engage readers and share values. What you have to say is important, and you deserve to say it as beautifully as possible so loved ones and future generations feel inspired.

(Disclaimer: This page contains affiliate links to our own books on Amazon which means if you purchase, we make a small commission. We really appreciate it! This is a tiny part of our income, but every bit helps.)

Classes and story writing ideas to finish your personal history,  biography, or family history

We regularly teach both in person and also have a lineup of online writing courses.

• Click here for a complete listing of all current classes to tell your story
• Click here for our online storyboarding and story structure class, especially geared toward writers or family history, memoir and biography.  This class will immediately help you be a better writer.
• Click here for our flagship online course:  “How to write a memoir, life story of family history.” You will love this self-paced course with many videos lessons. It is fun and easy to get through in a few days, patterned after about ten hours of live instruction with exercises to complete on your own. It will walk you through the whole process of writing your book so you feel confident and inspired. You can do this!
• Check out this fun offering: Memoir writing class – a free jumpstart course.
• Parts of a book – how to structure a story that captivates readers.

How to Storyboard – book and templates

Whether you write fiction or narrative nonfiction, these practical story writing ideas will spark your creativity. Check out our storyboard method including  template posters and how-to book. These are available on Amazon. You can get the book, ebook, a package of posters, or a combo pack. Here are the links:

• • How to Storyboard, a full-color, quick booklet booklet in print, by Rhonda Lauritzen. Click here to order the print book on Amazon.
  • How to storyboard ebook, the electronic format by Rhonda Lauritzen. Click here to order the ebook on Amazon.
  • How to Storyboard Combo Pack: Full-color print booklet + 2 storyboard posters. Click here to order the combo pack on Amazon.
  • Storyboards – A package of 3 storyboard poster templates. Click here to order the storyboard template multi-pack.
  • Take a class to tell your story – click here

Our favorite story writing ideas and articles at your fingertips:

• How to storyboard 
• Story structure – strengthen any story with the tips and examples
• What is the theme of your story?
• What is your purpose and how does it tie to the theme of your story?
• Is your story stuck? Why writing a memoir is possible
• Hard to write about the hard stuff? How to overcome and then write about it.
• The one writing tip we never miss (Why you should read your story aloud)
• Don’t practice in front of the mirror – 8 tips to prepare for a story slam
• Write a personal history – journal ideas and why it’s important
• Is yours a redemption story? (Why it should be) 
• Top 11 favorite books on writing, storytelling and memoir 
• Procrastination busters for writers (and everyone)
• Oral history interviewing questions, tools and resources

My Life Story: Thoughtful questions to tell your story

This full-color booklet is a wonderful guide for life story interviews, to use as journal prompts, or to spark ideas as you write your memoir.

• Single booklets: If you’d like to order one, here is a link to purchase My Life Story: Thoughtful questions to tell your story or interview someone you love.

Free Printables and Downloads

Each of these links will take you to a page where you can download free printables:

• My Life Story Questions – Free Printable book
• Our all-time favorite questions everyone should ask (single page printable)
• Interviewing Mini Course: This free tutorial covers the ins-and-outs of interviewing, recording equipment, transcribing audio, and even shares some of our favorite questions. It is a printable PDF.

Articles on Storytelling using video and audio

• Storytelling resources – using video to tell your story 
• Audio inspiration – a detailed article about how to record, save and edit audio files
• Transcription resources – a detailed article with various methods to transcribe life story interviews or your voice memo notes

Would you like help writing a memoir?

We love helping clients one-on-one. In these sessions we can storyboard your memoir, map out a custom plan to tell a life story, or help you get organized.

• Click here to contact us for a free consultation or to schedule an appointment
• Click here for an overview of the life story services we offer, and our rates
• We collaborate with you to map a custom plan for writing your own life story, to storyboard your tale, or to coach you along the way. Click here for coaching services to help you write your memoir or other story.
• Click here for services to write your story for you.

Life story interviews

We conduct professional life story interviews, which are often given as gifts to parents or grandparents. This can be a real breakthrough for anyone writing a memoir, biography or family history story because this is often the easiest way to get it done.  Each interview takes several hours of our time, and includes the initial consultation, printed booklet of life story question, approximately 75 minutes of audio recording, audio files on a flash drive, and the interviewer notes.

Life story interview pricing:

• One interview: $137
• Price (each) for 3 interviews: $127
• Price (each) for 6 interviews: $117
• Gift certificates:

Interview gift certificates:

Available in any amount, life story interview gift certificates are a meaningful alternative to buying “stuff.” We have many families give their parents, grandparents or partner a life story interview for special occasions.

Click here to order or print a gift certificate.

(Disclaimer: This page contains affiliate links to our own books on Amazon which means if you purchase, we make a small commission. We really appreciate it! This is a tiny part of our income, but every bit helps.)