Memoir is Inventing the truth
~ William Zinsser (Editor) Inventing the Truth:
The Art and Craft of Memoir

Did you have a swing as a kid?

I did. A great big tall one my dad and brothers built using telephone poles. There was thick rope, not chains, and a wooden seat held in place by a husky knot on each side.

Do you wonder why it’s such a rich experience to look back at an old photo and remember the past? It’s because we have perspective now. From a distance, we understand the significance of our experience.

The past is beautiful because one never realizes an emotion at the time, It expands later, and so we don’t have complete emotions about the present, only about the past, ~ Virginia Woolf

I love that quote because I see that awakening happen in clients as they write the pieces of their lives. Really recognizing what they’ve lived through, seeing connections, gaining respect, compassion, and confidence through sharing their story.

It’s now I appreciate how lucky I was to know freedom as a young girl. I had acres of playground, woods, and rivers to explore. I was shy, but I galloped across the plains with the wind in my hair astride the Black Stallion, though I’m absolutely terrified of real horses.

As an author, writer, teacher, coach, and ghostwriter I’ve become very clear on how I help writers to invent their truth—their memoir.

A client said recently: “Jo, I love being guided by your intuition as it allows me to tap into my own. I feel as though I have now given myself permission to explore my story at even a deeper level than I was originally brave enough to commit to.” (JC Feb. 2, 2022)