What is a Memoir Essay?
The term “memoir essay” is used to describe something akin to a personal essay. It’s a pure narrative reflection from the author’s life.A memoir essay tightly examines an event, relationship, or theme.
Definitions bleed in every direction, but I tend to think of a memoir essay as decidedly NOT like an op-ed, and definitely not a reported personal essay. Now, to be clear: it’s not your whole life—that would be a memoir, or an autobiography (if you happen to be famous).
A memoir essay is different from a personal essay because it’s all about you—not an external topic. You never know—a memoir essay can also launch you into writing a full-length memoir book.
{Note: that’s a photograph of my grandmother as a teenager, above center, in the 1930s).
What is a Memoir Essay?
Memoir essays rely on the author's own memories. These include:
Scenes of specific moments
Anecdotes
Personal reflections (aka “what does it all mean?”)
Descriptions of people, places and experiences
Photos and ephemera
The best memoir essays are often funny or vulnerable, sharing intimate or even embarrassing details of life and experiences.
But memoir essays may be more publishable at the moment if also providing insights into broader social, cultural, or historical issues. The author connects personal experiences to larger themes.
Length ranges from 650 to 2000 words
What’s the Best Structure for a Memoir Essay?
There are a few possible structures. In general, you’ll lead with a “hook” to bring the reader in, then let the reader know what the essay will be about—don’t let the reader get too far in before you introduce the central action. You use whatever you need to from your life to illustrate your point. Oh, and it will have a point. Then, it will wrap up with a pithy ending.
Here are a few options for essay structure.
Chronological Memoir Essay
This is often the type of memoir essay most people attempt first—following a timeline of a particular period in life. This structure can help readers understand how the author's experiences led them to where they are now. You must control time well in your writing to use this approach.
Pros: Provides a clear and easy-to-follow narrative arc.
Cons: Can become predictable and plodding, or too encumbered by irrelevant details…And then I got out of my car, and then I closed the car door, and then I walked into the store, and then….
Thematic Memoir Essay
Instead of following a strict chronological order, a thematic structure organizes the essay around specific themes or topics. For example, an author might write about his mustache. Or scars (or lack of scars!). This abstract and open-ended structure could allow the author to explore ideas and connections in a more free-form way.
Pros: Creative freedom, allows readers a quick “entry” f you choose a theme experienced by many, or an unusual or controversial theme.
Cons: You must control details very well, and have the ability to really reflect on unique insights you can offer, particularly if it’s a well-traveled theme like “My first trip abroad,” or “death.”
Circular Memoir Essay
A circular memoir essay begins and ends in the same place, or creates closure and reflection through repeating themes, events, images, or scenes. For example, you might start with an event in the past—your sixteenth birthday—and then discuss your child’s sixteenth’s birthday at the story’s end. These essays can pack a powerful emotional wallop through repetition and demonstrating an experience’s impact.
Pros: This structure can be effective for essays that deal with themes of growth, transformation, or personal change.
Cons: A circular memoir requires careful planning, attention to detail, and ensuring you don’t get too repetitive.
Hybrid Memoir Essay
This type simply uses a combination of the structures above or switches between the two—for example, blending chronological timelines in a circular essay.
Pros: The most flexible of all varieties
Cons: It may be easier to start out with just one type discussed above, then attempt hybrid.
Tips for a Memoir Essay
Don’t just retell your memories and stories but highlight what it means that you’re sharing those stories
Provide as many relevant details as you can, and as specific as you can, even if you’re not writing scenes…use objects, describe sensory details.
Consider integrating creative literary elements such as characterization, language choice, and other craft elements to heighten the reader’s experience and essay’s impact
What Are Some Good Topics for Memoir Essays?
Consider these topics:
Childhood memories: Consider focusing on specific events or the feeling of a particular time or place.
Family relationships: A particularly difficult relationship, a pivotal moment in your family's history, or the dynamics that shaped your upbringing.
Life-changing events: The birth of a child, marriage or divorce, the death of a loved one, a major career change, or other minutes, hours or days that changed your world as you knew it.
Overcoming challenges: Whether it's an illness, addiction, or other personal struggle, writing about overcoming difficulty can show readers that it's possible to find strength and resilience in the face of adversity.
What are some examples of memoir essays?
"The Fourth State of Matter" by Jo Ann Beard: This New Yorker essay tells the story of a mass shooting at the author's workplace, the University of Iowa. Beard weaves together her personal experiences with the larger social and political context of the event, creating a moving and powerful essay that explores themes of trauma, grief, and resilience.
"Me Talk Pretty One Day" by David Sedaris: This humorous and self-deprecating Esquire essay, recounts Sedaris's experiences trying to learn French while living in Paris. It’s structured around his language struggles and interactions with an eccentric language teacher. The piece captures the joy and frustrations of navigating a new language and culture.
“The Use of Force” by William Carlos Williams: This very short memoir essay describes an incident when Williams, who was also a doctor in addition to being a famous poet, had to subdue a child to see into her throat to find out if she had diphtheria. She did NOT want him to look into her throat, and so they struggle, violently. The essay is just a simple description of the situation, but it is clearly about more than it seems.
Who Publishes Memoir Essays?
There are many publications that publish memoir essays, ranging from literary journals to mainstream magazines. Here are a few examples:
The New York Times Modern Love column: This popular column publishes personal essays about love, relationships, and family, and it has become a popular platform for emerging and established writers alike.
The Sun: This ad-free, reader-supported magazine publishes personal essays, interviews, fiction, and poetry that explore the human experience in all its complexity. The magazine is known for its commitment to honesty, intimacy, and emotional depth.
Missouri Review: a wonderful literary magazine. They also have an annual contest, the winner receives $5000.
Granta: this British literary magazine has a wide readership and is very beloved. Mary Gaitskill’s long Memoir essay “Lost Cat” appeared in Granta. I had a memoir essay in there, too, about a pool hustler I used to know.
These are just a few examples of the many publications that publish memoir essays. As with any type of writing, it's important to do your research and find the publications that are the best fit for your work and your goals as a writer.
What are some common problems with memoir essays?
Writers who bring me early drafts of their memoir essays often seem to have one of several issues. You want to make sure of the following:
This story must engage the attention of a perfect stranger. Because it has conflict or is funny or extremely surprising, or more of these things at once.
The story does not seem to be “about” anything. Go read “The Use of Force,” which I mentioned above, and you’ll see how this is not just about him subduing a girl in order to diagnose her illness. He realizes at some point that he is enjoying attacking her, even if it’s for her own good. The title itself suggests that the essay is about more than what happens.
The pacing is off. Sometimes people slow down their story when not much is happening, and then they speed up when things get interesting—they do this because conflict is unpleasant, and they want to get away from the conflict. But readers NEED that conflict. So you want to do the opposite of that: slow down time when things are painful, and speed past the nice moments.
Information in the right order, preventing reader confusion. This is common, very common. Imagine a perfect stranger reading the essay. Would they be confused at all? What would you have to say to allay that confusion? If the essay opens with Barry told me I was bad at my job, but I said I wasn’t, the reader will be confused. Try being more specific: My ex-husband Barry, who I had recently divorced, told me I was a terrible lawyer, but I knew he was just bitter.
This is an asynchronous class, which starts on Monday, July 8, 2024, is for anyone struggling with a book. Although that first sprint of fifty pages into a book—either novel or nonfiction—can be exhilarating, it’s hard to sustain. Sooner or later, you’re likely to find yourself in a creative ditch, wheels spinning. We’ll take a look at when to revise and when not to, as well as which questions are productive and which are not. We’ll seek out ways to reinvigorate ourselves for much more writing. The final class will be a tutorial on the business of finding an agent and/or publisher for your book.