What is the inciting incident that sparks a memoir? This question might apply to fiction writers too. It is any turning point in a life. For memoirists, Kaylie Jones says it's the moment 'the rock came through the window’; the day one's life went ‘careening out of control’. The inciting incident is a great place … Continue reading The Inciting Incident
Category: Writing Memoir
The Right to Write
In a writing workshop, teacher Kaylie Jones encouraged us to give ourselves permission to write. Busting myths, she said, is what the writer must do. The right to write might be more pertinent to the memoirist than it is to the fiction writer, as for us there is less distance between ourselves and the story. … Continue reading The Right to Write
The Eye watching the ‘I’
Among other skills, US teacher Kaylie Jones runs memoir-writing workshops. At the first one I attended, she explained that the good memoirist uses the omniscient Eye to watch over the more personal ‘I’ of the narrator. In seconds flat, she was at the whiteboard drawing an eye in the sky that observed and informed the stick … Continue reading The Eye watching the ‘I’
Finding that Mentor
It’s said that writing can’t be taught. But why not? Tobias Wolff taught George Saunders at Syracuse University, and look where that got George. All the way to the Man Booker Prize for Fiction in 2017. Saunders speaks admiringly of Tobias, who once warned him: “Don’t lose the magic.” Early in his career, George’s fiction … Continue reading Finding that Mentor
The Interface between Memoir and Fiction
At the launch of Every Second Tuesday, author Lee Kofman observed that certain of the Elwood Writers stories in the anthology exhibited a ‘fascinating’ interface between memoir and fiction. This reflects, I believe, a growing field of writers who are mixing the two genres. Blending them, however, can be a challenge. Debate rages about where … Continue reading The Interface between Memoir and Fiction
The Car Park
During our Melbourne lockdown, 2020, we were each allocated one hour of exercise per day. I drove to the local car park, which overlooks an oval surrounded by trees, and beyond that, a river. There I would just sit before my walk. This was a most splendid moment for me. It was winter, so I … Continue reading The Car Park
Ethics in Memoir
As part of Elwood Writers online anthology launch, host Lee Kofman had prepared a question for me on the ethics of writing about one's family. ‘Margaret, your memoirs in this collection feature various family members. What are your main ethical challenges when you write about others and how do you deal with them?’ The launch … Continue reading Ethics in Memoir
America
I have always loved America. The United States of America, that is. From the moment Huck Finn sailed down the Mississippi with the runaway slave, Jim, I was sold. I loved the English classics, but for me American novelists like Mark Twain and F. Scott Fitzgerald drove the story forward. Their novels – the one … Continue reading America
An Invitation to the Launch
As promised! Elwood Writers' anthology Every Second Tuesday is about to hit the shelves, and we'd love you to join us online as Lee Kofman launches the book with Readings on Wednesday 9 December at 6:30pm (AEST). This is a free event, though booking is required in order to receive the meeting link on the … Continue reading An Invitation to the Launch
The Online Launch
Troglodyte that I am, I’ve resisted the idea of an online launch for the new anthology Every Second Tuesday from Elwood Writers https://elwoodwriters.com (EW). In fact, I’ve resisted FaceTime ‘anything’ for that matter. When it comes to books and launches, I assumed I'd miss the buzz of a real launch, as when EW member Jennifer Bryce … Continue reading The Online Launch
WRITINGS AND MUSINGS OF MARGARET MCCAFFREY 