The Family Heirloom's Memories
Write a memoir from the perspective of an object that has been in your family for generations. Describe the historical and emotional events it has witnessed, and how it has impacted the family.
Suggested length: A personal essay: 1,000 to 3,000 words
Start the clock
Pick a sprint, press start and keep going until it stops. Momentum beats polish on a first draft.
Make it yours
Three ways to take this prompt somewhere nobody else will.
- Write the part you'd rather skip.
- Include a detail only you would remember: a smell, a song, a phrase.
- End with what you know now that you didn't know then.
Writing biography and memoir books
A real life, told with the shape of a story.
A biography tells someone else's life; an autobiography tells your own, start to finish. A memoir is narrower: one stretch or theme of the author's life, told with a novelist's tools. Memoir is where most new writers start.
What readers expect
- A true story with a narrative arc
- An honest, distinctive voice
- Scenes, not just summary
- Meaning drawn from experience
A tip before you start
A memoir isn't your whole life. Pick one thread, such as a year, a relationship or a question, and cut everything else.
More Biographies and Memoirs prompts
- The Mentor Who Changed My LifeCreate a narrative about the most influential person in your life who is not a family member. Explore how they have influenced your decisions, values…
- Stories Passed Through GenerationsExplore a generational story within your family. Start from your grandparents or even earlier, and recount the traditions, beliefs, or pivotal moments…
- The Mentor Who Changed MeWrite about a mentor or figure in your life who has had a profound influence on your development. Describe your first encounter, how your relationship…
- Growing Up in the CommuneWrite a memoir from the perspective of someone who grew up in a unique or radical commune or alternative society. Detail the daily life, ideology, and…
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