Blog
Six steps for producing your self-published memoir
If you want to write and publish a book about your life, or part of your life, you will need to follow some simple steps: 1. Writing the story - or telling the story verbally. 2. Manuscript assessm...
Poetry writers: refining your poem using the read-aloud method
When you write a poem from scratch, it can come out pretty good, or it can come out a bit of a mess. Either way, what you end up with is a draft - not a finished poem. To get the message of your...
Self-publishing a printed book – what’s best for you: traditional printing, or POD printing?
Once your book is designed (typeset) - both cover and inside pages - and is ready to be printed, you need to send it to the printer. There are two main types of printers of hardcopy books: ...
Portfolio: all our self-published memoirs, life stories and family histories
We have produced the below life stories for our clients, as self-published books. They include autobiographies, memoirs, family histories, and books of memoir-based poetry. They include books that ...
FAQs about: beta reading, manuscript assessment, and structural or developmental editing
1. What is the most helpful - (A) a beta read, or (B) a manuscript assessment, or developmental or structural edit? (a) A beta read... Beta reading can be helpful in assisting you to know the fl...
Why it’s good to share your story, if you have PTSD
When someone with PTSD shares their story with someone who can help them to document and compile it into a document or self-published book, their family and friends can read that story and understa...
Writing family histories: what genre to use?
The genre you choose when embarking on writing about a personal or family history will depend on your writing skill, style or preference, and possibly also on the amount of factual information yo...
Sally-Anne’s experience editing books
Sally-Anne Watson Kane has 30 years' professional writing and editing experience. She is a professional member of Institute of Professional Editors (IPEd) and Secretary of Life Stories Australia. ...
Life story writing – as biography, autobiography or memoir
This article will be of interest to writers (including members of Life Stories Australia) who specialise in writing life stories. What genre to use when writing someone else's life story - memoi...
Editing fiction and non-fiction: a comparison
The purpose of editing any publication, whether standard non-fiction or fiction/creative non-fiction, is to make the corrections needed to ensure the writer's intended meaning, story and voice, are...