Memoirs are historical accounts, or memories, that can be written from personal knowledge or other special sources. Many times, people think they are a bunch of random memories written down, but good memoirs are well-paced and have a story arc. The key thing to keep in mind while reading a memoir is that the story is just as important as the accuracy.

The Power of the Memoir

Memoirs help explore personal experiences. Usually, they bring some kind of lesson or truth by the end. Memoirs are based on true stories. They tell about a specific time in someone’s life and is told from memories and personally intimate moments. They tend to be about relationships or a time of personal growth.

Memoirs have become very popular in the past years. Eat Pray Love, by Elizabeth Gilbert, took the world by storm and was even made into a motion picture. The story of a woman who takes control of her life and finds herself while traveling the world and eating. Who wouldn’t be completely spellbound by a story like that?

Memoirs range in variety in their themes. They can be about being a parent, or the harrowing journey of becoming an Olympic athlete. It could even be about the trials and tribulations of starting a garden. This type of writing is supposed to help create understanding, a sense of gaining perspective about an important time in one’s life. No matter what the topic may be, memoirs can be just as entertaining as any novel.

Honesty is the Best Policy

There are times that memoirs are compared to fiction, for understandable reasons. Memoirs are usually based on memories, but not all memories are reliable. They can be biased or even hazy. Who isn’t guilty of telling a story about themselves and making it seem just a little bit better than how it actually happened? There are strategies to help against a memoir becoming fiction, such as fact-checking. The nice aspect of a memoir is that it isn’t an autobiography where a chronological life story is on the line. A memoir is usually going to have a narrower focus. Writing on one experience or portion of life makes it easier to stick to the facts. Another thing to remember is to stay true to not only the facts but your emotions. The more open you are, the easier it will be to stay true to your story and the reader.

Memoirs are Just as Good as Fiction

Memoirs use all the same devices as a fiction novel: dialogue, “character” development, and at the end of the day, it is storytelling at its finest. Most of the time, an author writing a memoir is using fiction techniques to engage with the reader. One of the most important differences between memoirs and fiction is the point of view. Memoirs tell a first-person perspective story, while fictional stories are open to all points of view. Now, a lot of times people believe this can be a misrepresentation of someone’s story. The narrator, who is usually the author, is also the “main character” or protagonist of the book and because of this, the story is told from one perspective. So, it can be seen as a little distorted. Especially since someone else who was also in the situation may remember and experience it differently.

Memoirs: For Us, and the Author

Memoirs help explore personal experiences, so you shouldn’t doubt the story because of the perspective it is being told from. They usually bring some kind of lesson or truth by the end that helps the author gain perspective, and hopefully, do the same for the reader.

Memoirs give us a look into the lives of those brave enough to share their experiences, from Michelle Obama’s Becoming to Ashley C Ford’s Somebody’s Daughter. These stories entertain us, make us cry and laugh, and inspire us to venture out on our own and take control of our own lives. Memoirs are a powerful source of storytelling, they give us the reality of the world and the ways to overcome, heal, and aspire to gain our greatest selves.