Post #163 – Women’s Memoirs, Writing Prompt – Kendra Bonnett and Matilda Butler
Friends from Far Away
Kendra and I consider ourselves to be incredibly lucky because we get to know such wonderful women — women around the world who want to write about their lives. Some of these women we know quite well — they are in our classes or take workshops with us. Others we know when they send us emails or leave comments on our blogs. And of course we get to know the stories of all the women who enter our contests.
But there is nothing more special than getting to know someone face to face. And that is exactly what happened for me last month.
Matilda and Mairi
Well, as you can tell from the photos, we did get together. Mairi and her daughter shared one of their days in Portland with me and it was a delight to get to know both of them — to have new friends from afar and meet them at close.
I thank them both for that special time.
Memoir Writing Prompt
So what does this have to do with a writing prompt? Friends and friendships are an important part of our lives. They influence our stories. Their stories are woven into the threads of our own stories. Try the writing prompts below and begin to record some of these friend stories.
1. Make a list of three friends — people who have been important in your life. These might be current friends or friends from an earlier time in your life.
2. Take one of those three friends and think about how he or she has influenced your life AND how you have influenced his or her life. Think about specifics. For example, instead of writing “She makes me happy.” write “When my son became ill, she came over and took over all the meals for a week.” Be specific. Give details. Write for five to ten minutes about this friendship.
3. Writing the first friend story may change your perspective on that friendship. Now write about the other two friends. And when you have finished, you just may be inclined to write or call that friend and thank her or him for the friendship.
