Is it time to write your memoir, life story or history?
I'm Kiwi writer, publisher and newspaper owner Charlotte Squire and I'd love to help
Kia ora, I was talking with a memoir client today who sighed and said, โthe photos seem to take longer than writing the book!โ I thought this might be a good reason to prepare you! Not all of you will be using photos in your stories, but if you are, here are five things you …
Kia ora lovely, Howโs that memoir of yours coming along today? Yesterday I met with my Golden Bay memoir group, and someone was saying they were unsure whether to dive deeply into one aspect of their story, or write more generally. They saw they could very quickly end up with waaaay too much info for …
Kia ora from mid-summer in Tฤkaka ๐๐ผ I write to you from a busy home, overflowing with teenage boys, a clingy dog, a husband who keeps escaping to his man-shed to paint water colours, and social butterfly of grandmother. Have you wondered how to write a story that people canโt put down? Every now and …
Continue reading "How to write a memoir they can’t put down"
Kia ora, Wishing you a peaceful, happy beginning to your 2026.ย That's me above, after a sweaty uphill stroll through the forest. Is finishing your book one of your New Yearโs resolutions? If it is, nowโs a good time to think about planning it into your routine. 30 minutes a day, a few times a …
Continue reading "The power of 30 minutes for memoir writers"
Kia Ora How are you on this fine summer's day? Are you finding time to work on your story? This will be the last email from me this year, and I want to talk to you about your memories of your parents and grandparents. Sometimes people ask me if I think they should include them …
Kia ora, I thought Iโd show you a short video about Mike Brownโs new book today. Heโs currently in Christchurch excitedly delivering it to his grandkids. How cool is that? Mike had been working on his book for 20 years off and on until he stumbled upon a free memoir course I was giving at …
Kia ora, Howโs that memoir of yours coming along this week? I get so inspired by the people Iโm guiding to write their stories. Yesterday I took a monthly community memoir class and one person shared a funny, surprising, moving story that was built around her love of the humble banana box. Through a series …
Continue reading "Crafting the extraordinary around the ordinary"
Kia ora lovely human, I think the time has come ๐ Yes, letโs dust off those Christmas memories of yours and share them with readers of our memoir writing community. Would you like to email me half a page (about 200 words) about a favourite Christmas memory of yours? Donโt hold back. Be it strange, …
Kia ora ๐๐ผ Itโs good to drop into your world today. Howโs that memoir of yours coming along? Have you started it yet? Or are you at the โthinking about it stageโ? Some of you are in the depths of writing, and still more of you are polishing up the first drafts of your stories. …
Kia ora dear writer, How are you on this fine Thursday? Did you manage to work on your memoir this week? I hope so. Iโm neck deep in editing Mikeโs book, researching the history (or should I say โher-storyโ) of a hydro power station, and helping Jodie produce the second edition of her dadโs book …
Kia Ora, well hello there ๐ I write to you from stormy Tฤkaka. Howโs that book of yours coming along this week? Iโll tell you whatโs on my mind as I write and edit this week: loose ends. Theyโre everywhere in life, and memoirs and histories are no exception. When you reach the later stages …
Kia ora lovely human, Howโs your story coming along? Did you do any work on it today? Do me a favour and arrange to do one small thing on it before the end of the day, OR tomorrow. And then keep doing more โone small thingsโ daily, and watch what happens. So let's talk about …
Kia ora lovely, howโs that story of yours coming along this week? Remember, the first draft needs to be messy, because creativity isnโt tidy. Itโs gloriously expressive. So let it out, and go easy on yourself โค๏ธ there will be plenty of time to tidy it up later, during your second, third and fourth drafts! …
Continue reading "Josephine’s hair experiment (+ last few days to join new memoir programme)"
Kia ora, Iโve got a photo in the garage somewhere of me, aged two, sitting in my favourite bowl, wearing my favourite (and only) beaded necklace. I am beaming in the way children do when theyโre in the place they most want to be. Itโs a hot day but I have my bowl of cool …
Kia ora dear one, Iโve got good news for you. You canโt go wrong with your book, really. Because at a very basic level, people will read it to learn your story and get a sense of you. And whoโs the expert on that particular subject? 100% you! This bodes well for those of you …
Kia Ora dear memoir writer ๐ How are you and how is your story coming along? This week Iโm enamoured with memoir writer Mike Brownโs first ever book cover and I wanted to show you! You may or may not know that as well as teaching people to write their memoirs (including Mike) my team …
