Sitting down to write a full-length autobiography, memoir, family history, local history book or whatever subject you have chosen can be daunting so why not write your book in bite-sized pieces.
Pick out something that interests you
Choose an anecdote, a special memory, a specific event or whatever inspires you and then scribble a bite-sized story about it. If you approach writing in this way you will soon have a collection of stories you can share with family and friends.
Look for a theme
You could write a random selection of stories based on individual events, memories, special occasions, holidays, people, specific periods, places etc.. Or, you could look to see if there is a theme or thread you could develop into a series of stories. If you then decide you want to produce a complete book, the bite-sized pieces you have already written will give you a great start. If your goal is to write a full-length book, breaking it down into manageable bite-sized pieces not only means that you are more likely to succeed but you will also have the satisfaction of seeing your story gradually evolve.
Concentrate on one idea at a time
For each story try to concentrate on just one particular event, incident, place, person etc. at a time. This will help you to focus your ideas and stop you from wandering off into other areas or topics. You can save all of your other ideas for subsequent stories.
How long is a bite-sized story?
The length of each story you write will largely depend on what you are writing about and how inspired or motivated you feel. You might be able to say everything you want in two to three hundred words or it may take 2000 words or more but length really doesn’t matter. If you write your book in bite-sized pieces, not only will the task become much more manageable, you will also have a better chance of succeeding simply by getting past the first major hurdle for many new or inexperienced writers – getting started.
