I live my life in a constant state of celebration.
That's not to say that my life is one endless party.
Far from it.
But I glory in the marvelous human struggle...
mine in particular.
My ups and downs are a constant source of fascination, learning, humor, anger and sadness to me.
As author Patrick Dennis' Auntie Mame said, "Life is a banquet and most poor suckers are starving to death.
" Breathing is not living.
Life is about opportunity.
You'll probably stumble more than once, but that makes living interesting.
Your successes, your highs (even just beating the odds)...
ah these make living worthwhile.
You can make your life...
your unfamous life...
interesting to other people if you just learn how to celebrate it in word.
Memories well explained are the stuff of memoirs.
I regard other people's celebrations of life to be instructive, engaging, uplifting, and even agents for my own change.
If you still question the value of putting an ordinary life on paper or challenge the likelihood that such a life could become a commercial publishing success, consider three of your favorite films.
I'll wager they're not all about famous people.
Here are three of mine: Gone With the Wind...
everyday people caught up in the struggle of war and its aftermath.
The Full Monty...
British working blokes out of jobs and trying to put a little scratch in their pockets.
To Kill a Mockingbird...
a small-town Southern lawyer who lives by his principles.
It's not the notoriety of the players or even the enormity of the event that's important, but the lessons we learn and the universal truths we gain.
And this is a matter of how the story is told.
No simple task, I grant, but a challenge worthy of the celebration of any life...
your life.
Does this mean that the average reader is going to find my memories (or yours) equally fascinating? The answer, in large part, is up to me (and you).
It's up to us as writers.
Before we can celebrate our lives (or events in our lives) on paper, we must divine the reason for writing.
With a reason at hand, we need to create a device...
a universal truth...
a voice that effectively expresses our reason for telling the story.
The reader, too, is a variable in the equation of readability, for no story has unanimous appeal.
One reader may be drawn to memoirs about adversity.
Others may prefer the story of a single mother as told through the eyes of her youngest daughter.
Still others want to be inspired by the adventurer who pushes beyond seemingly normal human limits to achieve the impossible.
The well-crafted memoir will reach some segment of readers.
Maybe those readers will only be friends and family, and that's okay too.
But if you're still wondering if your ordinary life is worth writing, let alone publishing, I think I can dispel your doubts with one example.
This is a true story, although not mine.
I believe my friend's experience and what she has overcome to go forward and lead a full life could--if properly told--inspire and guide others.
My friend Diane decided to going hiking one day.
Eager to enjoy a day of fresh air, exercise and nature, she didn't consider the folly in going alone.
Nor did she tell anyone her plans.
Halfway through the day and tired from the exercise, she found herself on a trail badly washed out from the spring rains.
Although the ground was scrabbly, she thought she could scale the hill.
But one false step and she fell.
She slid down the hill, and momentum carried her even further and right over a cliff.
Diane fell about 30 feet, and came to only to be in excruciating pain.
She'd broken one leg and the ankle of the other.
This was her live or die moment: Unable to walk, lying on a ledge off of a trail that no one knew she was hiking, she had to decide whether to stay there and probably die or try pulling herself to safety with only the strength of her arms.
The pain was terrible; she knew she might fail, but after two days and a half days she reached a roadside, and she was rescued.
Her compound fractures were infected.
Even after several operations, she would never walk without crutches.
But she is alive.
She has a career and a family.
Diane celebrates every day by living fully, but she's never written her story, and I consider that a lost opportunity Interesting lives come in all sizes and shapes.
Perhaps you've traveled to fascinating destinations.
Lived on a farm or ranch.
Raised younger siblings after your mother died.
Maybe your career has caused you to make decisions that influenced the lives of others.
If so, one primary reason to write may be to share your experiences and rejoice in a life well lived.
You might even write to join your story with others of a similar nature.
For example, there are a number of "country life" memoirs already published.
You might want to write your story to enrich the set.
Make writing your memoir a priority.
It may be tempting for you to think that while your life has been interesting, it is not dramatic enough.
You may think, "I just did what anyone in my position would have done.
" Your life is worth celebrating.
Your life story is worth writing.
And now for a Bonus Writing Prompt: Write a letter from your current self to your ten-year-old self.
What would you like to tell yourself about how your life is turning out? What has happened that you could not have imagined at that young age?