Celebrating and Savoring the Moments With Brevity & Creativity
Plus: "The Heart of the Memoir Contest," Craft of Writing Tip #13, Six-Word Reviews, and more (from the people who love "less")
Share the Celebration, Savor the Words
Readers of this newsletter — and anyone following the journey of Six Words — know that the just-released “Say It in Six!” app is a tool I’ve wanted to build for years to, in essence, give anyone the proverbial keys to the Six Word car. It’s simple: you invite people to share six words on the topic of your choosing and then we turn those stories into a cool, custom book. Among the most popular ways people have been using the app is to give friends and family a creative way to honor someone before and during a birthday celebration (check out the sign in the photo above, one that recently greeted guests at my friend’s 50th). Couples have been taking their wedding guestbooks to a new level by inviting guests to six words of wishes and advice rather than just signing their name in book they’ll never look at again (and guests reading what others have shared on the app builds pre-wedding excitement). And how about this unique present for the graduate in your life? A book of six word wishes and advice from the most important people in their life.
And here’s my gift to you: the first three people who contact me with a six-word reason why they want to make a Six Word Wishes book within the next three months gets to use the app and receive a book for free. Everyone else who references this newsletter by April 30, 2023 will receive their own custom celebration book for just $99.
Hearts in Contest and Illustrations!
In the past month, Sixers shared hundreds of stories about heartbreak, obsessions, and value in our “The Heart of the Memoir Contest”. To celebrate our passionate Sixers, we’re featuring a combination of contest memoirs and illustrated memoirs. Writers and artists alike share their stories while utilizing the word “heart” in just six words.
Shortest distance between two hearts, laughter. —TwoBillionSecondsOld
My heart beats with my brain. —Deniz Aya, Kansas City Art Institute
Found another heart rock. Hello Mom. —LisaK.
Warm heart yet heartbreaking past within. —Dawn Park, Kansas City Art Institute
Heartfelt doesn’t feel the other heart. —CanadaGoose
Family motto: “Breakin’ hearts, bustin’ farts.” —Allie Davenport, Kansas City Art Institute
“The Heart of the Memoir Contest” challenge continues through April, so make sure to submit your own entry on the Six-Word Memoir site or in the comments below.
Craft of Writing Tip #13: Interiority
How do I make my readers feel grounded in my writing? It’s a question that any good writer has found themselves pondering at one time or another. Without immersive and engaging worldbuilding, any piece of writing has the potential to fall flat. So how do you create that foundation? How do you ground readers in your writing?
The answer: Let them inside your head. It’s often not enough for readers to only know what is physically happening in a written moment; they want to know what you — as the narrator of that written moment — think about it. Readers want to consume your innermost thoughts, feelings, and memories. They want to see through your eyes, but more importantly, to witness the world inside your mind. They want to know your specific point of view and how it impacts your perception of the surrounding world.
For example, in RedStickWriter’s Six-Word Memoir “Recalling memories for both of us,” readers are offered a glimpse of the writer’s beautiful interiority. You’ll notice that the main focus of the memoir is not on physical circumstances, but simply the writer’s feelings and memories. This kind of interiority allows readers to feel empathy with the writer and feel grounded in the writing. Here are more ways Six-Word Memoirists have helped their readers dive deeper into their world.
Grandma’s memory, like credit card, declined. —Contemplative
My inner rebel’s also an introvert. —enginethatcould
I will forgive, forget, then regret. —adadivill
Was it desired, or just accepted? —SF51girl
My soul and heart are antiscians. —Odetteloves
Classroom of the Month: Creative Writing at UC Berkeley
Our newest Classroom of the Month is an uniquely personal one. Dale Tanner, a recent team member of Six-Word Memoirs, narrates her personal experiences when Larry Smith organized a writing workshop for her creative writing course at UC Berkeley.
Students first practiced writing memoirs about their daily lives. They shared playful memoirs (“Dear diary, today I pissed myself”) and somber memoirs (“Always climbing, never reaching, standing still”). As they recognized the strength and impact of only six words, their professor, Melanie Abrams, then asked her class to continue exploring the format. Their new task? Create Six-Word Memoirs to characterize their short story protagonists. “The Six-Word Memoir form is such a great tool for writers because it forces you to boil a thought down to its simplest, most direct essence,” writes Tanner. “It can be used to capture the soul of a character, the core of a story, the crux of a conflict.”
Check out the latest Classroom of the Month post to read more about how university students exercised their creative imaginations with the inspiring limits of six words.
Short Cuts: Six-Word Reviews
From Substack: If you’re looking for quirky yet historically factual stories about spiritual cultists, heretical popes, and insane Roman emperors, Dirtbags Through the Ages delivers all that and more. Author Allison Epstein describes herself as an “extremely amateur historian” and tackles her passions by combining creative storytelling and bizarre history. Epstein regales the eccentric lives of historical figures from Scotland royalty to the French Revolution with absurd tales which seem closer to fiction than fact. Even as her newsletter highlights the horrors of history, Epstein lets her playful and spirited personality shine through as if the reader and Epstein are old friends sharing drinks and stories.
Danielle Shum's Six-Word Memoir Review: “Honest, hilarious anecdotes about bygone dirtbags.”
From the World: Do we really need another zombie show? The Last of Us proves that yes, yes we really do. In this (fortunately) fictional universe, it’s not a deadly virus that causes the apocalypse, but mushrooms. Have you ever seen those videos of ants being controlled by the Cordyceps fungus? Yeah, think that, but in humans. The first season of The Last of Us follows along with the begrudgingly protective Joel and immune fourteen-year-old Ellie as they journey through the US countryside searching for a cure for the outbreak. Every episode grips you with its incredible world-building, but also through the slow-developing relationship between Ellie and Joel. Viewers get to watch the pair transform from strangers to family and then continue to watch as the world tries to rip this reluctant father-daughter duo apart. There are no inconsequential scenes in The Last Of Us; every single moment of the show serves to propel the plot forward.
Dale Tanner’s Six-Word Review: “Love: how far is too far?”
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Author Learning Center: Need help reaching your publishing goals?
We love Author Learning Center (ALC), a one-of-kind online author education community designed to help educate, motivate, and support you on your author journey. Experts share their experience and wisdom through live and recorded webinars, video interviews and articles. ALC’s author-inspired Book Launch Tool and an Author Circle tool, which helps you create a plan and create a private online writing group. Upcoming webinars include:
• Book Marketing for Indie Authors and Publishers
• Mastering Story Structure
• Why Hollywood Wants Your Book And What You Can Do to Seize The Opportunity