Farmer Branches

A lot of people think that writing the family narrative portion of their genealogical history is little more that regurgitating facts and figures and will end up reading about as dry as a mouth full of vermouth. But it doesn’t have to be that way. If you simply incorporate a few techniques used by successful fiction writers your family narrative can read as compelling as a Grisham novel or as lovely as one of Irving’s tales of family loyalty. There are a lot of helpful resources out there and we suggest you tap into a few of them before the writing begins to assure you stay on course and stay compelling. Here are a few options to consider:

Writing the Family Narrative (Lawrence P. Gouldrup) was written by an instructor of creative writing, so you know some of these skills will be translated to the creativity of your own work. The book outlines a process tailored to the genealogist with examples from both amateur and professional writers. One reviewer of the book commented that “its step by step exercises make the telling of your family story an enjoyable process with results that will be cherished by future generations.”You Can Write Your Family History (Sharon Debartolo Carmack) is written by a Certified Genealogist who helps writers at all levels learn exactly how to record the unique tales of their ancestors. Based on the author’s own extensive experience writing family histories, she shares her proven methods to conduct historical and thematic research, organize materials, and outline and plot a story. One reviewer commented that the book is “a blueprint for getting your family history on paper.”

There are more titles, of course, and we encourage you to do a little research to find one (or more) that will suit your unique goals and needs since everyone starts at a different place and level. But above all, remember the process is meant to be fun!