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The Memoir Starter Kit
Build the memoir only you could write.
Created by Reedsy
New you...
Write a description here...
Step
Ex. 1
Setting(s)
Ex. @Location
Character(s)
Ex. @Narrator
🧭
The canvas
The circle has yet to turn. YOU is the status quo: your ordinary, familiar life, and the person you were inside it. Sketch this step here, or walk through the workshop below for a guided path.
E.g., Tara Westover opens Educated on an isolated Idaho mountain, in a survivalist family that keeps her from school and doctors — aka the only life she's ever known.
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The workshop
What was your everyday life like?
Write a page from the diary you might have kept on an unremarkable day back then.
Who were you, back then?
Describe yourself as a stranger would have seen you, then as you saw yourself.
What was quietly wrong with your ordinary life?
Think obstacles, stakes, and desires — particularly what you wanted (or thought you wanted).
What was quietly right with your ordinary life?
What did you stand to lose by leaving it behind?
🔍
The footnote
How true is your memory?
Write the scene twice: once the way you remember it, once the way a security camera would have recorded it.
How complete is it?
What have you left out?
⏩
The road ahead
You had a life that looked perfectly normal.
What might have disturbed the balance?
New narrator...
Write a description here...
Nickname
Ex. Harry
Age
Ex. 28
Timespan
Ex. 1998–2001
Central figure
Ex. @Dad
🫵
You
Who were you when this began?
Write a paragraph introducing your past self the way you'd introduce a stranger.
What did you want?
What drove you back then?
What were you most afraid of?
And what might you tell your past self now?
What wounds did you carry?
How did they reveal themselves back then?
What were you pretending about?
Think about the self you showed to the world and the self you were. Where did the gap come from?
What did you believe then that you don't now?
Try to phrase it as a conviction your past self might defend out loud: "I was certain that ______."
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Remember
What do you remember?
Brain-dump the whole period before you judge any of it.
What can't you remember?
Where are the blanks?
What keeps coming back?
Jot down the images your mind keeps returning to unbidden. Why?
What do you remember that others don't?
Write the same moment twice: your account, then theirs.
What is this period of time to you?
If it could be described through a kind of weather, a color, a smell, what might it be?
⚖️
Reckon
Where were you wrong?
Make the case you made in the past, then the case you'd make now.
Where were you right?
What choices would you still defend? What would you do again, even knowing the cost?
What did you lose?
Think a certainty, a friendship, a version of you, etc.
What can you still not answer?
Don't forget that memoir is often the search, not the answer.
What does this turn out to be a story about?
Fill in the blanks: "I thought it was about ___, but it's really about ___."
✒️
Tell
Who are you on the page?
Describe your narrator as a character: the version of you the reader meets.
What is your narrator's voice?
Write your opening paragraph in two different tones.
What are your blind spots?
Where does your narrator stop trusting themselves?
Whose story are you also telling?
List the real people who'd recognize themselves.
How do you want the reader to feel about you?
Does it differ between the beginning of your book and the end?
🔁
Transform
Who are you now?
Write the introduction a stranger might give you now, and notice what's changed since the one in "You."
How are you different?
If someone who knew only the old you met the new you, what would they fail to recognize?
What did you gain?
And what did it cost?
What drives you now?
And where do you want it to take you after the story ends?
What do you believe now that you didn't before?
And what about your unique experiences made it possible for you to realize it?
Why does the world need this story?
Picture the reader it's for, and write a note for them.
🎬
In practice
Put it all together now.
Write your whole arc in a paragraph: the change this book exists to record. Who walked in, and who walked out?
New location...
Write a description here...
Location
Ex. @City
Type
Ex. Building, bridge, ruins, etc.
Size
Ex. 500 km²
🪜
Identity
What is the location’s primary function or role?
Think residence, business, sanctuary, crime hub, military stronghold, etc.? In what ways might this purpose shift if the world around it changes?
What makes this location distinct from all others?
Think scale, symbolic meaning, etc.?
What do locals say about the place?
How might their opinion differ from outsiders’ impressions?
What unspoken rules govern behavior here?
Consider customs, taboos, laws, etc. How do those rules shift depending on who is present?
What role does it play in the larger world?
How might losing this place change the balance of power?
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Layout
What does the location look like?
What is the first thing visitors notice when entering the location?
What is the general layout?
Is it linear, circular, sprawling, vertical, etc.?
What are the key areas or zones within the location?
In terms of districts, rooms, sectors, etc.?
What sensory details define it?
What do people hear, smell, touch, or taste here?
How do travelers typically navigate the area?
Think maps, guides, landmarks, etc.?
📍
Geography
Where is the landmark located?
How do people reach it, and how difficult is the journey?
How does the location interact with or rely on its natural surroundings?
What are its boundaries?
What is the climate of the location?
Consider temperature, rainfall, seasonal changes, etc.
What secrets are hidden within it?
E.g., underground caverns, rare or valuable resources, etc.?
👥
People
Who inhabits this place, either temporarily or permanently?
How do their lives reflect the location’s function?
Who holds official power here?
How stable or contested is their authority?
Who holds unofficial power here?
How might their influence rival or undermine official rule?
Who benefits most from this place’s existence?
And who suffers because of it?
What unifies people here?
Conversely, what divides them?
🌱
Lore
When and why did this location come into being?
How might its origin affect how it is used now?
What famous historical figures are associated with it?
Why? And what happened to them?
What major historical events are tied to it?
How do different groups or eras tell the story differently?
How has its reputation changed over time?
And how might different eras use it for different purposes?
How is its story preserved?
Consider legends, rumors, mysteries, folklore, etc. How might conflicting versions of its past shape its identity?
New theme...
Write a description here...
Theme
Ex. Identity
Subtheme(s)
Ex. Gender identity, belonging, etc.
Related symbols
Ex. @Symbol
People of interest
Ex. @Character
Statement of purpose
A brief, concise statement that captures the theme's essence. Ex. The consequences of revenge on the soul.
🪶
Theme...
What does this theme mean?
Talk about the theme in your own words.
Where might this theme appear in the story?
List potential key moments critical to a reader's understanding of the theme.
If your theme were a question rather than a statement, what would it be?
Write it out here.
🧨
... and plot
How is the plot structured around the central theme?
Write an outline for the key plot points where the theme is most directly explored.
What key scenes best illustrate your theme in action?
For each, note how the theme might be shaped by the plot or characters' decisions.
How does your climax resolve the thematic question?
What is the statement or realization about the theme at this point?
How does the resolution reflect your final stance on the theme?
Does the conclusion offer a resolution to the thematic questions posed, or is it open-ended?
🗡️
... and conflict
How do the internal conflicts relate to the theme?
How do these internal struggles shape their choices and growth?
How do the external conflicts relate to the theme?
How do these external forces push or pull against the central theme?
How do conflicts reveal differing perspectives on the theme?
Write a dialogue between two characters who disagree on the central theme.
How do characters’ actions during conflict express the theme?
Do characters make sacrifices, take risks, or challenge norms in line with the theme? How do these actions drive the plot forward while revealing the theme?
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... and character
How does the protagonist's arc reflect the theme?
What turning points in the protagonist’s journey highlight the theme?
How does the antagonist relate to the theme?
Write a scene between the protagonist and antagonist where the theme is explicitly discussed.
How do secondary characters embody aspects of the theme?
Do they represent alternative views, subthemes, or obstacles?
How do character relationships explore the theme?
How do interactions between characters reinforce or complicate the central theme?
👁️🗨️
... and symbols & motifs
What symbols will you use to reiterate the theme?
In which key scenes will they reappear?
What motifs will you use to reiterate the theme?
In which key scenes will they reappear?
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