What is a memoir?

One of LifeBook Memoirs’ authors explains how she believes that the regular 90-minute interviews were just the right length so that she didn’t get tired or lose concentration. They also enabled her to check on the writing as it evolved and meant she could add things she had forgotten to say the first time she was interviewed.

Often the place to start when planning your memoir is to cast your mind back to your very first memories. Nobody really knows how those first memories cement themselves in your mind, but they often make for some great reading! My earliest memory was a time pottering around the kitchen at three years old, whilst my mother was sitting on the floor.

Perhaps you have always wanted to write your memoirs but have never found the time or maybe you have suggested to a relative that you would love to hear all about their life. LifeBook makes capturing your memoirs easy and enjoyable. With the help of the project manager and other team members, we make the process run smoothly.

The Diary of Anne Frank, the Diary of a Nobody, The Secret Diary of Adrian Mole Aged 13½, The Diary of Samuel Pepys – just four of the hundreds of diaries, fact and fiction, that have fascinated and entertained – and sometimes educated – us. A diary can be a window to the soul or a record of events – or perhaps both. Why not start your diary today?

What do we really know about our grandparents and parents? A comment I hear so often is: “I know so little about my grandparents and even my own parents’ lives. What made them the people they became and what choices did they have to make in their lives?” When I read my mother’s memoir as an adult I understood where the root of her anger stemmed from.

Entrepreneur Roy Moëd set up LifeBook, a bespoke autobiography service, in 2010 with the mission of helping older people enjoy their lives and ‘age successfully’. He was inspired by his elderly father, Jules, who was blind, in a care home and felt he had nothing left to live for. Roy was very affected by the benefits of the experience.