Thread: writing a book?
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Old Oct 21, 2009, 11:16 PM
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writingwithink writingwithink is offline
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I'm a nonfiction writer and intend to do the same; however, I'm very careful regarding the whole accuracy of memory stuff. There's already a huge issue in the memoir industry as it pertains to lawsuits by family members, friends, etc. In fact, I just recently read an article in Writers Chronicle about steps an author and publisher can take to protect themselves. This would be an even greater issue with DID; however, I'm putting a lot of thought behind how to develop a technique that can still tell my story (including the abuse) without the threat of a lawsuit.

I would not recommend that you look at other DID memoirs since they may "pollute" your own style. Rather, look at memoirs in general (and if you can handle it, ones that deal with abusive childhoods, like White Castle) and start reading a lot of creative nonfiction. Here's some journals to help you on your way to learning the craft: Writers Chronicle, Fourth Genre, and Creative Nonfiction.

To start, maybe you should try writing smaller personal essays and then gradually work up into the larger piece. In fact, you'll notice that many memoirs and larger creative nonfiction pieces are a compilation of smaller essays. White Castle is like that: It's a lot of very small stories strung together to form a whole. Much like DID, I guess.

All that being said, I'm back in my hometown right now doing research for a small piece. I've come to realize that due to the dissociation, I'll need to write stories that I can substantiate with facts: court records, newspapers, etc.

Feel free to pm me if you'd like more info.

Last edited by writingwithink; Oct 21, 2009 at 11:37 PM.