Forever Young Autobiographies

Diary of a Young Naturalist: British Book Awards winning memoir by Irish teen Dara McAnulty

Book review: An amazing dive into the natural world and walking an autistic path

Diary of a Young Naturalist is an intense and evocative memoir by a remarkable Irish teen.

It was written by environmentalist Dara McAnulty and details the heady ups and low lows of a year in his world.

The life story was released by Little Toller Books and has picked up a swag of accolades.

Most notably this includes the British Book Awards 2021 Non-Fiction Narrative Book of the Year.

So keep reading to find out more about McAnulty, his book, living with Asperger’s/autism, and tips for life-story creating …

Accidental Sisters: Katherine Linn Caire’s surprising adoption memoir

Case study: Siblings’ soul-stirring story 52 years in the making

Katherine Linn Caire’s new memoir is a wild and heartwarming story.

Accidental Sisters: The story of my 52 year wait to meet my biological sibling, by Books Fluent, starts with Caire’s desire to know her medical history.

However, this unexpected journey leads her to family she never knew were missing.

Forever Young Autobiographies caught up with Caire to discover more about her first life-story book, how she created it plus tips for first-time creators …

All That She Carried: A National Book Awards winning family story by Tiya Miles

Book review: What you need to know about a South Carolina slavery keepsake that ended up in the Smithsonian

All That She Carried: The journey of Ashley’s sack, a black family keepsake is a story of resistence against all odds.

It was penned by Harvard Professor Tiya Miles and tells how in the 1850s an enslaved South Carolina girl Ashley, 9, was sold away from her mother Rose.

The life story was published by Penguin Random House last year and named the National Book Awards 2021 Nonfiction winner.

So read on to find out more about the book, what makes it so interesting and what we can glean to inspire our own life-story projects …

Revising and editing: How to take the headache out of editing a life story

Ask Nicola Q&A: The easy way to decide what’s included in an autobiography, memoir, biography or life-story project

Welcome to Forever Young Autobiographies – Ask Nicola.

I get lots of questions about creating life stories for family and friends.

Today’s Ask Nicola answers the following query:

What things shouldn’t I include in a story about my life? What needs revising and editing?

Firstly great question! So let’s explore how we can quickly boil an entire life down to its essence …

They Don’t Pay Me To Say No: Dean Goodine’s Hollywood star-studded memoir on a life in props

Case study: Canadian Property Master’s entertaining life story goes behind the scenes of film and TV hits

Canadian Prop Master Dean Goodine’s new life-story book details the highs and lows of 36 years working with stars such as Clint Eastwood, Brad Pitt, Jason Momoa and more.

They Don’t Pay Me To Say No: My Life in Film and Television Props, by FriesenPress, goes behind the scenes to show how props are integral to the success of any movie or TV show.

Goodine has worked on everything from Oscar-nominated feature films like Unforgiven, network TV shows like Stargate SGI, streaming hits like A Series of Unfortunate Events plus small independent films.

Forever Young Autobiographies caught up with him to find out more about his book, how he wrote it plus suggestions for first-time writers …

Dad’s memories: A Father’s Day story about interviewing my dad

Case study: How I started recording my father’s memories in 3 steps

It’s Father’s Day here in Australia this Sunday.

And unlike past years with COVID lockdowns and restrictions it will be possible to meet up with family and friends!

So I’ll be going on a long overdue camping trip with my father who is visiting from interstate.

But it is also the perfect time to let you in on the life-story project I’ve started to record dad’s memories …

Genetic memory: Does your life story include genetic memory examples?

How to understand genetic memory theory

I recently read comedian Magda Szubanski’s Reckoning: A Memoir in which she brings up genetic memory.

In short, she had an inkling she carried some of her Irish ancestors’ memories.

And felt like she had ‘come home’ when visiting Ireland for the first time.

But is genetic memory just a theory or is there more to it?

The Winter Road: Walkley winning true crime by Kate Holden

Book review: Behind the headlines of murder, land use and green laws

The Winter Road: A Story of Legacy, Land and a Killing at Croppa Creek is a gripping Australian read.

It was written by acclaimed memoirist Kate Holden and tells how in 2014 an elderly New South Wales farmer shoots an environmental officer.

The life story was published by Black Inc last year and won the 2021 Walkley Awards Book Award.

So keep reading to find out more about the book and what it can teach us as we sit down to create our own life-story projects …

How to start a book: 4 simple ways to start a book today

What a writing coach wants you to know about how to start a memoir or life story

Kids where I grew up would often visit an old water-filled quarry to swim.

Here we would scale the rock walls and jump, flip and dive for hours.

Certainly the first jump was scary but sooner or later we all faced our fears and took the plunge.

Indeed writing can also feel scary in the beginning but keep reading for my top four ways on how to start a book.

So let’s dive in!

Writing and editing: 3 insider coaching call tips

Quick and easy life-story fixes from a writing coach

Often on morning beach walks I see primary students surfing for school sport.

First their coaches begin with a quick lesson on the sand and then everyone hits the water.

Similarly, a writing and editing life-story coach gets ‘in the water’ to help improve your confidence and skills.

And they are usually keeping an eye on three things …