Writing the Hawai'i Memoir

"Your life is so interesting—you should write a book!"

How many times have you heard that? Do you respond by saying, “I will, some day…” or “I’m still thinking about it...” or “I’m just not sure how to begin?” Perhaps you’ve even said, “I’m not much of a writer...maybe I should hire someone to do it for me.”

There’s a story inside you. It’s just waiting to be told—and the best person to tell that story is you! But don’t worry if you haven’t even written Word One of your memoir. That will change today. Writing the Hawai'i Memoir: Advice and Exercises to Help You Tell Your Story was written by international bestselling author and writing instructor Darien Gee to guide you from start to finish, so you know exactly what to do—and how to do it.

Writing the Hawai'i Memoir uses Hawai'i's rich cultural diversity and history of oral storytelling to propel writers into action. The “soup to nuts” structure of the book leads writers of any experience level through a natural, intuitive writing process that can be followed at any pace, quick or slow. This guide is for anyone who has a life story and wants to share it with others.

For most people, “writing a memoir” never goes beyond the mere idea of writing. It’s time for you to take the long-awaited next leap. Step-by-step, this book will help you put pen to paper or fingers to the keyboard. Your story, your memories, and your experiences will be gathered together in one place in a structured narrative form. This book goes beyond “how to” and gets you to completion through exercises and encouragement. The emphasis here is not on publication—though if that is your end goal, you’ll find pointers here for that, too—but on finishing your memoir so it can be shared with others.

This invaluable guide and how-to book includes writing tips and inspiration from more than 20 of Hawai'i’s best known writers, teachers, and storytellers. Try all of the 29 writing exercises and writing prompts or choose the ones that interest you the most.

You'll learn how to:

• Recall your life events with purpose
• Take your life experiences and easily organize them into a story
• Discover themes that already exist in your life
• Overcome writer's block and other challenges
• Consider the “warts and all” aspects of storytelling
• Keep motivated and encouraged throughout an enriching and enjoyable experience
• Choose the best way for you to publish or share your memoir

Contributing writers include: Billy Bergin, Pamela Varma Brown, Bob Buss, Lee Cataluna, Ben Cayetano, Stuart Homes Coleman, Craig Howes, Patricia Jennings, Frances Kakugawa, Victoria Nalani Kneubuhl, Beth-Ann Kozlovich, Leslie Lang, Gail Miyasaki, Warren Nishimoto, Mark Panek, Laurie Rubin, Phil Slott, Christine Thomas, David Ulrich, Chris Vandercook and Cedric Yamanaka.

Here are practical tips and tools to take a wannabe author from, "You ought to write a book about that" to getting words down on paper to share with family, friends and generations to come. —Robbie Dingeman, editor of HONOLULU Magazine and co-author of Honolulu Homicide: Murder and Mayhem in Paradise

Everyone has a story to tell. Darien Gee instills the confidence every new author needs to let the words fly. —Pamela Young, KITV news reporter and co-author of My Name is Makia: A Memoir of Kalaupapa

Darien Gee is the national bestselling author of six novels, four written under the pen name Mia King. Her books have sold in 14 countries and are available in hardback, paperback, audio, and digital formats. She has been teaching writing and publication classes, including her popular "Writing the Memoir" and "Memoir Master Class" workshops, for over 15 years in Hawaii and throughout the United States. Darien’s hugely popular North Hawaii News column, "Writer's Corner," has helped thousands of people express their creativity through writing practically anything, including novels, life stories and memoirs.

Winner, Hawai'i Book Publishers Association 2015 Ka Palapala Po'okela Award of Excellence, Special Interest Books

Author: Darien Gee
Softcover, 144 pp
Release Date: May 2014

Excerpts & Worksheets

Available in e-book format!