I ask the questions that help you tell your story.
We all know how good it feels to talk with a caring, supportive friend.
That’s what happens when you work with In Your Own Words. Whether the story you want to tell is 4 or 40 pages, about an event that happened last week or a story from your childhood, I listen with curiosity and compassion. The questions I ask will help guide you from beginning to end.
You may want to focus on an event or specific period of time.
You choose the subject.
You may want to talk about your wedding, a trip, your retirement, or college years. Or an illness, a relationship, or a challenge you undertook.
You may want to tell about your work—your career trajectory, raising your family, or your switch from one job to another. Or you may want to remember your childhood or capture the entire arc of your life, from beginning up until the present.
We can work in either person or speak over the phone.
It’s great to work in person if possible.
But the process is the same if we speak over the phone or Skype—while you speak, I write. I don't typically record our conversations, but we can arrange to do that if you want.
When you speak, I write. Then you review.
Each session lasts between 60-90 minutes and results in 4-6 pages of written text. I then use the notes I’ve taken to write a first draft of our conversation in the voice you choose—first person (I went to school…) or third person (She decided to quit her job…).
After I send you the first draft of your story, you review it and then we go over it together, discussing the changes/corrections you want to make to ensure accuracy. I then make those changes to the text and return a second, final draft to you.
Finally, you have your story. The final draft is yours to keep, copy, share, illustrate with photos, and publish, if you like.
It is yours to treasure.