Typically, when people think of memoirs, they picture the chronicles of the rich and famous: of successful politicians, famous celebrities, wealthy business moguls. But while the memoirs of such elite personalities do line bookshelves across the country, so do the memoirs of lesser-known names, sometimes just everyday people with fascinating stories and valuable insights. You don’t need to be rich or famous to write a memoir, because your story—yes, your story—deserves to be told too.
Your story is worth sharing—no matter whether you’ve been in the news or not.
With our own biased subjectivity, it can be difficult to see the inherent value that our thoughts, experiences, and wisdom can provide to others. But rest assured, it’s there. Your experiences are uniquely yours, and you have certain insights that only you can provide. Your story is worth sharing.
If you’re ready to take the next step with your memoir, check out our services at MemoirGhostwriting.com today! We’ll help you with everything from choosing anecdotes to include to marketing your completed book.
8 Common Questions Aspiring Memoirists Ask Us
In case you’re still not sure whether you have a story to tell, we’ll share some of the questions and doubts we’ve discussed with our previous clients.
1. Is my story interesting enough?
This is probably the most common question new clients ask us, and the answer is usually a resounding yes.
Your life is much more interesting than you may think.
No matter how “normal” or “boring” you may perceive your life as being, you’ve no doubt had a wide range of interesting, unusual, or notable experiences that others would be interested in. It’s easy to overlook aspects of your life that will stand out to other people. We’ll help you identify what makes your life different so that you can home in on those elements and find your angle for a riveting memoir.
Sometimes, “normal” lives make for the best stories.
Sometimes, the very fact that your life is “normal” or “boring” may be exactly what makes it valuable. A so-called “boring” life is often a safe and stable one. If that’s you, a memoir about how you’ve managed to maintain a happy, healthy marriage, reliable financial stability, or consistent inner peace can be immeasurably valuable to others. Sometimes, what may look like a weakness is actually a profound strength.
2. Have I suffered enough heartache to make a good story?
Probably, but heartache isn’t required.
Life is hard—for everyone.
Has your life been harder than that of an orphaned amputee in a war-torn developing country? Perhaps not. But it’s not a contest. Your struggles are valid as well, and a ton of people out there can probably relate to your hardships.
Your challenges are your own and they have value, no matter what others have been through.
Perhaps you’ve never suffered the tragedy of losing a child, but you had a close call that reshaped how you see the world. Perhaps you’ve never been hunted by bloodthirsty loan sharks, but your financial struggles created genuine turmoil in your life until you turned them around. You’ve certainly suffered in your life—it’s about finding the story in that suffering.
Certain struggles are universal—just be real and vulnerable.
If you’re in a class of people that’s typically envied, for example, millionaires or celebrities, you’ll want to be careful to not appear out of touch with the ordinary person. But even if you’re rich and famous, you can connect with everyday readers through the sorts of genuine, human struggles that can affect anyone: tragedy, depression, abuse, addiction, and so on. There are certain hardships we all understand, and your experience with them, in whatever capacity, deserves to be told in a memoir.
3. A lot of my life has been determined by luck. What will people learn from me?
Lots. (And we’d argue that, for most, some introspection reveals that they’ve made a good portion of their “luck.”)
The luck in your life doesn’t matter—it’s what you’ve done with it.
Much of everyone’s life has been determined by luck. Your country of origin, your parents, your physical appearance, your personality—if any of these were different, you wouldn’t even be you. And so much in life is out of our control, from natural disasters and freak accidents to lucky coincidences and serendipitous fortune. Randomness is an inherent part of life and part of what’s made you you. It doesn’t take away from your story: it adds to it.
Your story is in the person behind the circumstances.
How have you met the challenges and blessings life has given you? How have they shaped your thinking or changed your worldview? Reflecting on them now, what insights bubble up to the surface? The value in your story is not necessarily what’s happened to you but how you’ve dealt with it.
4. Have I achieved enough success to be noteworthy?
“Noteworthy” doesn’t matter. Lessons do.
You’re probably more successful than you think.
What does “success” even mean? Is it financial? Does it mean climbing the corporate ladder to become the CEO of a Fortune 500 company? Or does it mean making a reliable modest income pursuing your dream? Does “success” mean you have a healthy, fulfilling marriage and well-adjusted children who love you? Does it mean being able to still hit the gym at 80? Or what about making a real, meaningful positive impact on the lives of those around you? What is success?
Success is what you define it as. And whatever your definition is, there are other people who share it. Write your memoir for them.
Who says you have to be “successful” to write a great memoir, anyway?
You don’t even have to have been successful, however you define it, to write a valuable memoir. You can write about your struggles and challenges and the pitfalls you fell into, helping others chasing the same path to avoid the mistakes you made. After all, helping others is, to most people, certainly a form of success.
5. I’m not a celebrity or an award-winning scientist—what if my story is too common or mundane?
It’s not. (We’ve listened to thousands of stories, and it’s exceedingly rare that we walk away thinking something was “mundane.”)
No one’s life is too “common” or “mundane.”
Everyone has a unique story with valuable insights. You have strengths and weaknesses, have faced ups and downs, have experienced setbacks and successes. Your occupation doesn’t matter. What matters is you and the unique journey you’ve taken through life, which inevitably contains fascinating anecdotes and sage insights that others can benefit from.
Embrace being “ordinary”—it makes you more relatable.
Being “ordinary” isn’t a bad thing when you’re writing a memoir. It makes you much more relatable to the average reader than famous celebrities or politicians. Your struggles, as well as your victories, feel more palpable because the reader can more easily imagine themselves in your shoes. Your memoir highlights your version of the fundamental human experience, because you’re out there, living, just like the rest of us. Everyone has a story to tell. You just need to figure out how to tell it.
6. What if I don't have any unique insights or lessons to share?
You do, just ask your kids or spouse.
You’re the only you to ever exist—and the world wants to hear your insights.
No one, in all of human history or throughout the rest of humanity’s stay on Earth, has ever had or will ever have your unique collection of thoughts, feelings, experiences, and insights. You are the only person who can ever be you. And you have something valuable to add to this world we all share. It’s easy to feel like you don’t, but just ask your loved ones. They understand your unique and inherent value.
You don’t need to invent anything—you’re just sharing your unique story.
You don’t have to come up with groundbreaking new insights that no one has ever thought of before to write a meaningful memoir. True, 100% original innovation is exceedingly rare. Everything is the result of collective humanity slowly progressing one small step at a time, adding onto one another’s ideas and creations. Providing your insights from your unique perspective is part of that—even if the ideas aren’t entirely new, you’re putting your own, unique twist on them. And sometimes, hearing the same insights told in a new way is exactly what someone needs to change their life.
7. Could the money be better spent on something else?
How to best spend your money is up to you, but many people find a memoir to be a meaningful gift for their loved ones.
Write your story for others, not yourself.
Many people feel uncomfortable writing a book all about themselves, but while your memoir is about you, it’s not for you. It’s for your family, friends, and all those who come after you. It’s a precious, one-of-a-kind gift from their beloved spouse, parent, grandparent, friend, or mentor. Or, if you publish your memoir for the general public, it can change the lives of strangers. Writing a memoir is about being vulnerable and sharing parts of yourself with others—it’s an altruistic act that benefits others while also allowing you the peace of mind that your story will live on in your voice.
Your memoir can benefit your loved ones both emotionally and practically.
When you give your memoir to people in your life, it’s a powerful way of signaling how much they mean to you and how much you want to be a part of their lives, even after you’re gone. Your memoir can be an important source of comfort and closeness for your loved ones, a way to live on forever. The insights and wisdom you share in your memoir can also inspire your loved ones to make meaningful changes in their lives, learning vicariously through all the successes and failures you share in your memoir. For many people, there’s little that’s more meaningful in life than making a strong positive impact on others.
8. Will my loved ones care?
Of course—if they care about you, they’ll care about your story.
A memoir is a precious gift that any loved one would be touched to receive.
When you capture your stories and insights in a memoir and give it to your loved ones, you’re sending a powerful message: you’re telling them that they matter to you. You’re saying that even when you’re gone, you want a part of you to remain with them forever. That you want to bare your soul to them. That you want to share the wisdom, insights, and lessons you’ve accrued over your lifetime with them, in the hopes that it can improve their life. Writing a memoir for your loved ones is a powerful gesture of connection.
Understanding one’s predecessors gives insights into oneself.
Writing a memoir also allows you to connect with future generations—descendants who you may never meet in person but whose lives you can touch through your words. While your memoir may not hold the same level of sentimental value for them as it does for the people who know you personally, it offers an unparalleled opportunity for your descendants to better understand their origins and, ultimately, themselves. This is what it means to create a legacy, continuing to make a positive impact long past your time.
Helping You Find Your Story
Stories are everywhere. They’re in your past, your future, your present. They’re in your company, in your family, in your hopes and dreams, in your tragedies and failures. They’re there, whether you’re an elite celebrity, a high-ranking politician, or just a normal person trying to find their way in life. They’re everywhere you look. You just need to know how to find them.
Our ghostwriters are experts at helping people turn their lives into enthralling narratives.
Our ghostwriters can help. They’ll do more than just write the words of your story—they can help you find it in the first place. Our ghostwriters know exactly what questions to ask to help you identify what makes your life unique and how to frame it into a compelling narrative that will keep readers glued to the page. Your story is there, it’s real, and it’s worth telling—and our approachable, friendly ghostwriters are passionate about helping people find their stories and turning them into riveting memoirs.
Ready to work with our ghostwriters to find and tell your story? Take a look at our bespoke memoir ghostwriting packages today!