Not Another Autobiography, Please.

Ooh, I feel your pain, Lucky.

I have just bought a series of 3 reminiscences from someone who is a regular at a Dementia cafe I help with. Now someone else has written a history of local pubs and there is talk of one about someone's favourite walks.

My younger son had his PhD thesis published as a book. I had to have a copy because he dedicated it to me! Psycho-social studies anyone?

I have written books. Code books and technical manuals related to systems I had worked on, definitely of no interest to anyone outside a very small group

I should get round to writing books about our family histories but they will be strictly for family only, not inflicted on others.

Are they self-publishing on Kindle? It costs quite a lot otherwise.

A neighbour said that members of her writing group are near to publishing their books .........

kittylester

Ooh, I feel your pain, Lucky.

I have just bought a series of 3 reminiscences from someone who is a regular at a Dementia cafe I help with. Now someone else has written a history of local pubs and there is talk of one about someone's favourite walks.

Sorry, musicgirl, I appear to have misnamed you.

I can see no harm in it.
I wrote about the first 20 years of my life from 1930 up to my wedding day in 1949.
It takes the reader through true tales of me being ill treated by so called Sisters-of-Mercy and then once united with my family it goes through the war years of being machine gunned in the hop-fields and being bombed out twice during the London Blitz. It goes through the 1940s and tells of how my mother managed when struggling trying to make a home for us after being evacuated to the Midlands. I takes the reader through the postwar years up to my farcical Cockney wedding day.
It was originally just for my family or ancestors but the chap who printed it was quite impressed with what I had been through he asked me about getting a few copies printed. I agreed and said any proceeds after printing costs were taken out I wanted passing on to my local Children's Hospice.

That was 17 years ago and it is still selling and made a 4 figure sum for the hospice. From that I have had invitations from schools to talk to the children about WW2 and invited to many WW2 re-enacting venues.

Your book sounds fascinating Maywalk.

Maywalk some people have had very interesting lives, like you.

Mine would probably make a good sedative
A book for bedtime ?

I would enjoy reading your book, Maywalk, because you have had so many amazing experiences and obviously have the gift of telling them in an entertaining manner. Unfortunately, my friends' autobiographies, like my life story are only of interest to the author.

My MiL wrote a book about living with her DH during the war. He was on Watson Watts team when they discovered Radar.

I think a lot of people do it as a expensive cathartic experience
My youngest daughters friend has written one about her abusive relationship with her family I did read it but it wasn’t very well written but obviously did a lot for her I was given a copy I m sure it must cost a lot to self publish
I don’t know anyone else who has done it though

Everyone has a story. I just assume no one would be interested in mine. One of the best books I read was Angela's Ashes by Frank McCourt. His upbringing was not dissimilar to mine. Maywalk Our nuns were called The Sisters of Charity. What a joke.

Callistemon

“Mine would probably make a good sedative
A book for bedtime ?”

Mine too, mine would have a soporific effect. Born, married, bought a house a street away from my parents and pil, had children, will die where I was born.

Maybe we could sell our self publish offerings to those with insomnia?

Musicgirl only 9.99 with a autograph from yours truly.

Everyone should write their life story for their children and grandchildren. Or maybe nieces or nephews. I have done my father's, am working on my mother's and have my own to do. They have a lot of pictures.
As for having them printed, what tosh. No-one else would want to read your life story unless you had a very interesting life and it was very well-written.

How lovely to have done that Chestnut . I could never leave my whole life story for my daughter. It would be upsetting for her.

After reading all these comments, I'm seriously thinking of writing my own life story.
It would be for family only.
It's a very good idea.

Given my diagnosis I’ve been trying to make myself write my and my family’s story with photos for my GC but not started yet, so hard to motivate oneself sometimes!

l appreciate that writing things down can be cathartic but, like me, they are ordinary, obscure people leading the lives that ordinary, obscure people live with no real interest for others whatsoever

I've read a few pages of books written by those in the public eye - known by most people - and have been bored to great yawning sobs.

Have also read autobiographies written by people I've never heard of leading fairly humdrum lives, that have been riveting - because they've had a keen eye and intellect.

It really is not about how well-known you are, but about the way you express yourself. Some folk just can write, and others can't.

I've also got a book inside me... but will never write it because I know for a fact that I simply cannot write in a way that will rivet attention. It's an art, you either have it or you don't... and fortunately, I know I don't.

I have found that I can read a book about someone who's led a fascinating life, full of adventure and events, and remain virtually indifferent. And then, read about someone who's done very little but has such an insight into 'life' and human psychology, that I've become engrossed and gripped, by it. An example - "Nella Last's War" - 'The Second World War Diaries of 'Housewife, 49'. An obscure, ordinary housewife... I couldn't put the book down and devoured every last detail. Written without pretention by a thoughtful woman in an interesting period (post-war) in our history.

For the last twelve years, I've kept a journal. But the main reason for that is my bad memory. I do delve back into it occasionally and wonder at what I've done and forgotten about until reminded. BUT - it's definitely just for me and not to be inflicted on anyone else.

I have kept a daily journal for decades. My younger son knows where they all are and I’ve asked him to give them to either the Women’s Library in London or to a diary project, when I die.

This is difficult. I have a great interest in 'untold stories' (aka "ordinary hum-drum lives"). Not only do they give us an insight into everyday life that is missing from "official history", they also sometimes go against the prevailing narrative.
"History is written by the victors" but even the "loser's" history is written by the more literate, and those with enough money and time to do so.
So those stories may well add to our understanding of social history - something we see on this forum from time to time.

Having said that, I am very sympathetic to Musicgirl! However, I regard the poorly written and boring as being the price to pay for the gems that sometimes come my way!

Our eldest son wrote a book about having a stroke aged 35. He was only 35 and newly married. A few people on gn read it (among lots of others) and were very complimentary.

I skim read it once but couldn't read it again - it was too upsetting.

Kate1949

How lovely to have done that Chestnut . I could never leave my whole life story for my daughter. It would be upsetting for her.

You can choose what to include in your life story. Details of your school life could replace an unhappy home life. Anything bad just skim over it. Replace with details that you can include. There have been fascinating threads on here about visits to the dentist, coming home from school as a child, lighting the fire and preparing dinner. I was taking quite a long bus ride in London on my own at 8 years old. The world we grew up in is so different from today. These are the things you can write about without having a lot of personal (possibly upsetting) family details.

Dickens An example - "Nella Last's War" - 'The Second World War Diaries of 'Housewife, 49'. An obscure, ordinary housewife... I couldn't put the book down and devoured every last detail.
This was made into a TV drama with Victoria Wood as Nella Last called Housewife 49. I felt it was such an important snapshot of life during the war that I bought it on DVD for my collection. It's the only time I've seen her acting a serious part and she was excellent.