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ONLINE INTERVIEWS WITH NAN
Jenna Glatzer features Nan's approach to writing memoirs in an interview for “Absolute Write.”
“What makes memoirs engaging has little to do with the importance or achievements of the writer. Rather, the shared experiences, vivid memories, expressed feelings, and reflections that affect the mind and heart of the reader are what make memoirs significant. Think of the novels you have loved. The main characters are not usually people of renown or great achievement. It is their humanity that is important to us. In writing about your inner life, you will show your humanity.”
Read all of this interview at:
http://www.absolutewrite.com/novels/nan_phifer.htm
Nan tells readers of WestByNorthwest.org Online Magazine how writing memoirs is like walking a labyrinth as the writer moves from the accessible outer life into the heart of the inner life.
I can't remember much about my childhood and early years, so where would I begin writing?
“Memoirs are different from autobiographies. Autobiographies usually begin with the writer's birth and continue chronologically up to the age of the writer. They are linear, and unless the writer is skilled they can be plodding to write and plodding to read. Autobiographies present a detailed, factual overview, while memoirs focus on only the hours and minutes that are keen in our lives–the times when we are most alive, when experiences penetrate to the quick.
To write your memoirs, begin with….”
Read all of this interview at:
http://westbynorthwest.org/artman/publish/article_464.shtml
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