An excellent resource for writing prompts, Writing Alone and with Others , by Pat Schneider, is filled with numerous exercises to jumpstart your writing. Her prompts are based in taking concrete images, so you may be inspired to write full, vivid pieces.

One of my favorite exercises by her that has helped me numerous times can be paraphrased like this:

Take a photograph, or recall one from your memory. Start writing with the words, "In this one you are..." Start with describing the photograph, the people, the place, the time. Give yourself at least five minutes of uninterrupted writing time per image.

This exercise is excellent for those of you trying to write a memoir, or put together a full-blooded narrative to go along with your photos and/or genealogy. As always, if you'd like tailored guidance and more exercises to spur your writing, we'd love to help through our writing coaching service!

October is Family History Month here in the US! In honor of the month, we'll attempt to post family stories, short narratives, and photos daily. We know how difficult it can be to get your family history started! We encourage our readers to simply start - even if your stories are out of chronological order, even if you only have 15 minutes a day, and even if the story is at first imperfect, try to capture one moment or story at a time. If you'd like more tailored guidance or assistance developing your snippets into full stories, we would love to help you with our Writing Coaching Service, and Narrative Transcription which can be done in-person, or remotely over email, phone, Skype/FaceTime sessions.