As we have learned earlier, narrative gerontology is one of the most efficient ways to share your life story, but how do you find inspiration? Where to start when the speech is about your entire life?
To write about your life story, you must choose a central subject, a theme. To define it, you need to know your target audience and what tone you want to use. So think about who and why.
Some tools could also help you, such as making a family tree. Your family relations always seem pretty clear to you, but the story can become complicated when you tell a story with multiple family members. Make a family tree for yourself to explain it most simply to your audience, or add a family tree in your narrative so that people can follow by themselves whom you are speaking about.
To help you brainstorm, chronologically following the order of your life events is a good way not to forget anything: childhood, teenage years, young adulthood and adulthood. You can also think of those important events if they are relevant to your story: your first kiss, your first day at school, your childhood friends, family traditions, travelling and experiencing new adventures, your first home, important historical events, your family, your talents or passions back then and nowadays,…
Some memories can be less pleasant than others, but it is not because it is sad to think of those moments that it means they are not interesting for your story. If it is too painful to think about them or to include them directly in your account, just take some time to write them down separately and let your heart and brain write for you as much as you need and can recall. You can then include it in your story more efficiently and less painfully.
After the brainstorming phase over the different topics you would like to discuss, create a draft of every single of them. Write freely, without thinking and don’t worry; you will have time to edit, add or delete items.
If you need help or inspiration, you can also involve friends or family members to recall some elements or just to bring another perspective. You can have a simple conversation; they can ask questions about your subjects or discuss the events on your list. Recording the conversation can help rework it later.
Photos can also be interesting to remind you of some details of the story you are writing. Adding them to the story itself is also great, as it will give life to the narrative and make it look more personal (and that is what we want for a life story, right?). You can scan them at home or at a professional shop if they are not yet digital.
The last step is the editing part. If you asked for some help at some stages of the process, it is fine, but for this one, you will have to do it by yourself in the first place and ask someone to reread it later. You want it to tell YOUR life story so that you will be the best person for that task. When you read the story, you must imagine that you know nothing about it and are outside it. Ask yourself the right questions: Is everything clear? Do I know who this person/character is? Is it interesting? Do I want to know about that? What is the conveyed message? By answering those questions, you will see if you need to make more adjustments or if you have finished your life story.