If you are an author of memoir, then you know the story isn’t entirely about you. It’s about the reader. Taking the “me” out of memoir is important if you seek publication for your story. If you use the pronoun “I” in every sentence you actually create a division between you and the reader. Imagine the difference between these two passages. The trees formed a canopy high above my head. A gentle breeze and the shade provided some relief from the summer heat. In the forest, the birds hid in the lush branches and sang. I walked under a canopy of trees high above my head. I felt relief from the summer heat in the shade with a gentle breeze. In the first, the narrator creates a world with words that the reader can step into and experience for themselves in their imagination. When you read this passage, you feel as though you are there walking through the forest. As a memoir writer, you show the reader what you have experienced or witnessed. The second scenario is too egocentric. Such narrators call attention to themselves. This style of narration excludes readers from the meaning-making process which is what makes this genre so rewarding to readers. Readers want to make their own inferences about the tree canopy, a breeze, shade, and birdsong. The narrator in this second example tells the reader what to think, instead of what to think about. Memoir needs to offer the reader an arm-chair adventure, vicarious experiences,…

In a city like Green Bay, something is always happening. Last weekend, though, was particularly special, as the second annual UntitledTown Book and Author Festival kicked off on the afternoon of Thursday, April 19 and filled the city with enjoyment until the evening of Sunday, April 22. I made the three hour trip south from the northwoods of Wisconsin to Green Bay just to attend the festival, and gosh, was it worth it. Not only was the weather beautiful, but the spirit of enthusiasm, encouragement, and excitement was tangible. UntitledTown 2018, much like last year’s festival, was again a reminder of why I love the literary arts and the city of Green Bay so much. Over the course of the weekend, I rode the trolley all across downtown, attending numerous different events and, many times, wishing I could attend several at once. UntitledTown 2018 offered the chance to meet authors like Roxanne Gay, Christopher Moore, Michael Perry, Danez Smith, and R.L. Stine – who is hilarious, by the way. Because of UntitledTown, I was able to meet one of my favorite authors, Dan Chaon, and have him sign my copy of his book. However, in addition to meeting lots of great authors, the Festival also allowed me to do things like sit down with a real literary agent and ask him questions, attend panels that helped me learn how to market myself as a writer and how to keep up a writing habit with a busy schedule, as well as…

Has your inbox been full of messages related to new privacy policies? Have you read them? Why is this happening now? On May 25, a new law goes into effect across the European Union. The General Data Protection Regulation strengthens individual privacy rights and has teeth for enforcement. Each notice is a result of legislation to protect citizens in other countries. This is not a result of U.S. legislation and it shows you how digital connections span the globe. Media critic Bob McChesney wrote a book with John Nichols titled People Get Ready: The Fight Against a Jobless Economy and a Citizenless Democracy (2016). We are on the verge of our nation’s darkest hour or its greatest moment. As writers and citizens, the issues of a free press, copyright, and privacy strike close to home. We can’t ignore what we know now about Russian propaganda and disinformation campaigns in which Facebook, Google, Twitter, Microsoft, YouTube, and Amazon were complicit. And the enormous profits. But it’s more than the money. It’s about meaning. In an environment based on ratings and rankings, the truth is determined by what is popular not on facts, evidence, and reason. And if the measure of what is popular can be rigged, whether for profit or political gain, we all lose. We now live in a world in which Google determines what we see and read. Google controls 89% of all internet searches. If you are trying to get found online as an author, then Google is…