The most distressing thing about writing a memoir: The least problematic people in your past get barely mentioned compared to the most problematic people. Those who were utter a55holes get paragraphs, while true treasures get fewer words. #WritingCommunity #amwriting #writing - ThreadSky

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tontonstee.bsky.social • 11 days ago

The most distressing thing about writing a memoir:

The least problematic people in your past get barely mentioned compared to the most problematic people.

Those who were utter a55holes get paragraphs, while true treasures get fewer words.

#WritingCommunity #amwriting #writing

Comments

djdoherty.bsky.social•11 days ago

The squeaky wheel gets the most oil.

alexzoubine.bsky.social•11 days ago

Must it be that way? I think in memoirs about overcoming adversity, the helpers get star billing, no?

tontonstee.bsky.social•11 days ago

Helpers create less tension than adversaries - and drama is more interesting to read about than harmony. This is why villains are often more interesting than "good guys"...and origin stories of anti-heroes are so fascinating.

So writing about goodness really is more challenging. Sad to say...

alexzoubine.bsky.social•11 days ago

Agreed that it's more challenging! However, would you agree that memoirs are one of the few genres where helpers often get a greater spotlight than they do in other genres?

tontonstee.bsky.social•10 days ago

The helpers do get more play in memoirs...but it's still not as much as those who are most problematic. Just as most news covers what's going wrong in the world, rather than what's right...

alexzoubine.bsky.social•9 days ago

Imagine if that's how acknowledgements in books worked, too 🤣

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