Sydney School of Arts & Humanities
You’ve learned valuable lessons through hardships and joys, and others could learn about how to deal with the ups and downs of life by reading about your life.
Learn how to write your own life story
These days it seems as if publishing your life story is easier than ever. Until you look into it, and then it can get quite confusing, with false hopes that self-publishing is the way to go. It's not. Meanwhile, other people wait on for months – and in some cases even years – to hear back from a publisher. The difficulty of completing a story can seem like a mountain to climb! Even a story intended just for your loved ones, without any plans to publish. As an experienced writing teacher and life writing specialist, I can guide you through the process so you can complete your very own life story for family or friends.
We'll guide you through YOUR LIFE STORY on a week-by-week basis ...
You may have tried writing before ... You can often start off full of enthusiasm but soon find that making sense of your past and writing it in an easy-to-understand order is harder than you think. (PS That’s why editors were invented!)
Most people start out thinking it’s easy to write a story and turn it into a book. And I agree that it should be a lot easier than it is. But if you’re looking at a quality story, there’s a lot that goes into producing that story for others to read – whether just for family and friends or for wider publication.
FIRST: there’s telling the full story
SECOND: there’s making sure the quality of three basic elements – grammar, punctuation and narrative – is up to scratch or publication standard. So that it’s accessible, it’s easy to read.
And the fact is, most people are keen to begin writing – but they get tired. It’s understandable. But it’s also such a pity to begin and then give up – considering that completion of your life story is such a valuable gift for others. Especially for your children and grandchildren – and even further down the line, your descendants to follow.
Life is changing so fast, most children don’t even understand the idea that you would write a letter and send it by airmail across the world. To them, emails always existed. Instant gratification instead of waiting weeks to hear back from a loved one.
And it’s so hard to tell people about ‘how it used to be’. Life is so fast. ‘Boring!’ they think, and rush out the door.
But your story is NOT BORING! You may have been an immigrant and had to learn new ways and ‘fit in’ to a whole new society. You may have been born here but have seen so many changes in your lifetime you’ve had to adjust to, that young people just don’t realise.
You’ve learned valuable lessons through hardships and joys, and others could learn about how to deal with the ups and downs of life by reading about your life – in their own time, that is when they have time. Perhaps even after you’ve passed away and they regret that they didn’t spend more time with you while you were alive and full of vigour.
All the more reason to ACT NOW to set down your life in story – while you can.
My Life Story Project makes it easier for you to achieve it through your own writing using our techniques and tools, such as:
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1-on-1 ONLINE ADVICE as well as group assistance
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Templates to guide you through the complexity of your life
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ONLINE WEBINARS you can tap into whenever it suits you
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A week by week timetable with questionnaires to guide you along the way
Your whole life written and recorded for posterity in as little as 8 weeks. And if that timetable seems too pressing, you can opt for a more leisurely stroll down memory lane! Write your own story in your own words just for family and friends. Then once you've completed your life story you can decide whether to go on to publish more widely or you are happy to just share with loved ones.
TESTIMONIALS
'Thank you, Christine – I really appreciate how this has been edited, retaining the essence but providing the relevant clarification.'
Nicky Gluch
'My gratitude to Dr. Christine Williams who has been a wonderful teacher and mentor. She believed in the concept of my book and her editing is greatly appreciated.'
Sara Roney
'To write is not for the fainthearted or those lacking the courage to test themselves in the name of truth. I can say that you have a bountiful supply of courage and truth-telling and many future readers will benefit as a result.'
Wil Roach
'Thanks so much for the editing comments. They will give me plenty to think about on my drive today through some high mountain passes. I am hoping the drive will trigger more memories for the next phase of writing'
Ihlara Bassland
You Won't Be Alone
I'll be here to assist you
As Lead Mentor for My Life Story Project, I spend the major part of my working week mentoring and advising participants who are seriously focused on writing their own life stories.
It's an enjoyable two-way process which builds confidence for participants in the approach they take to telling stories in their own voice.
BIO
Dr Christine Williams' work interests have been in the field of writing for over thirty years.
She has written major biographies published by mainstream publishers in Australia, Great Britain and India – alongside careers as a university lecturer and teacher of community writing groups, as well as a journalist. Her latest project comes out of her understanding that everyone has a story to tell that is worth reading.
Through her mentoring, Dr Williams came to a realisation that the best way to encourage others to write their ‘living knowledge’ was through a planned program of stimulus and response. Using a reliable framework to approach the daunting task of writing one’s own life story – whether memoir or autobiography – has delivered remarkable results.
Writers work so much more confidently, in finding their own unique writing voice, through the process of being mentored by an experienced writer and teacher. The same principles apply to everyone starting out to write their own story. My Life Story Project has harnessed those principles, making them available through online programs, templates, IT tools and mentoring techniques.
The author of four biographical works and a short story collection, Dr Williams wrote the first biography of novelist Christina Stead. She has had a special interest in memoir, relationships and identity in life-writing, having researched the life of the Indian philosopher, Jiddu Krishnamurti, to gain a Doctorate of Creative Arts from the University of Technology, Sydney. She also holds a Master of Arts from the University of Sydney. Writing across a range of genres, Dr Williams won a State History Fellowship and continues to have short stories published in academic journals and the mainstream media. She writes under the names Christine Williams and C V Williams. Christine will help you realise your dream to write your very own unique life story.