by Naomi Hafter, Librarian, Humanities Department

In a memoir, even in an essay or an article, your focus is on an event or time period. A time period smaller than a biography. A memoir is a chance to be the hero of your story — here are some tips how.

This is a perfect time to begin writing and describing your experiences and thoughts as we go through this period of quarantine and watching our world change due to the COVID-19. Or, maybe there’s another story or memory you’d like to write about.

Whether you’d like to be a blogger, journalist, write memory or experience now is a great time to begin. Here some tips to get started.

• Before you start writing you’ll want to choose a topic or theme.

• What are your interests or what do you want to describe?

• Describe your surroundings, include details to grab people’s interests.

• Who are the other people, your characters?

• Tell us, your reader, how they fit into your story, memory. 

• Think about your audience. This will help you with your ‘voice.’ This means how you describe or talk about what you’re telling people.  

• What is your story and what you’d like to reflect on.

• What’s unique to your story?

• What caught your attention in the first place?

Once you’ve written your experience or thoughts consider looking it over again or showing it to a friend before you send it out publicly. This will help you make sure your writing is clear.

Interested in more?Our database Gale Courses Gale Courses offers classes on writing.

Also, Maryland’s Digital Library Maryland’s Digital eLibrary Consortium has books on writing, essays, and biographies.

We lost  two Civil Rights icons on Friday, July 17, 2020 with the passing of Rev. Cordy Tindell Vivian and Congressman John Lewis. Both men were known for getting into “good trouble, necessary trouble”, one of John Lewis’s most notable quotes. 

Both men leave behind such a strong legacy. C.T. Vivian was a major force during the Civil Rights movement. He worked alongside Rev. Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. and the Southern Christian Leadership Conference in the fight for racial equality. He was also a part of the Freedom Riders, challenging segregated buses. 

Like C.T. Vivan, John Lewis was a part of the Freedom Riders. He started his work at a young age, he was a keynote speaker, at the age of 23, at the historic 1963 March on Washington. He continued his work for equality in Congress where he served for over three decades representing Georgia. 

Here’s a list of books, ebooks, and other materials to not only learn about both men but also to get inspired by them.

Black Power and the American Myth By C.T. Vivian

by Cornelia Beckett, Program Specialist, Programs and Outreach Dept.

Hoopla has a rich collection of poetry, either for kids or edited for them. If you’re looking for a foundation in the classics, Robert Frost, Emily Dickinson, Carl Sandburg and Walt Whitman have lovingly illustrated collections selected just for kids. The odes to nature in these classic collections are perfect to tie in with a walk in nature to draw what you see, take photographs or just be.

Have a budding (or reluctant) poet at home? Children’s poet laureate and fan favorite Jack Prelutsky wrote Pizza, Pigs and Poetry to inspire kids to put their own pencils to paper. Plenty of prompts! (And alliteration)

“Thinker: My Puppy Poet and Me” by Coretta Scott King Award-winning author Eloise Greenfield, illustrated by Ehsan Abdollahi, is a lighthearted and beautifully illustrated book for dog lovers, and a perfect intro to poetry that doesn’t feel like a stuffy poetry primer. Bright collages accentuate this story of a boy and his dog who turn their world to poetry, and can’t wait to share their creations at school. 

Where the Sidewalk Ends by Shel Silverstein. The all-time great Silverstein collection, with its irreverent rhymes and simple, weird and unforgettable line drawings, is a perfect collection of short poems for the kid who hates poetry, or prefers storytelling. Perfect for fans of Lemony Snicket or Roald Dahl. Parents might remember these classics from their own childhood, and there’s no better time to introduce Silverstein to the next generation.

“Can I Touch Your Hair? Poems of Race, Mistakes, and Friendship” dives right into the bold and sometimes difficult subject matter of talking to kids about race. This honest and fearless book is full of poetry about friendship that serves as thought-provoking conversation starters about a tough subjects including prejudice, racism, and personal boundaries.