Family History Writing Challenge 2014

Lynn Palermo of the Armchair Genealogist conducts a Family History Writing Challenge each year. As you may have noticed, I just registered for this year’s challenge running from February 1 to 28. 
I am excited!

I had signed on to the challenge several years ago and backed away due to time management and computer issues. Lacking a good reason to procrastinate just one more year, I took up the challenge.

My plan is to write about my uncle, Richard William Dollen a.k.a. Uncle Dick. My Uncle Dick has been the subject of many blog posts. Research is nearly complete and is only lacking in official military records. Not requesting his military records is not holding me back as I feel I have ample material to write about.

So how about you? Would you care to sign up for the writing challenge? I would love you company as I always feel the more the merrier. Here are the links to Lynn’s websites:

The Family History Writing Challenge

http://www.familyhistorywritingchallenge.com

The Armchair Genealogist

http://www.thearmchairgenealogist.com

Please let me know if you take up the challenge!

Linda

Happy New Year 2014

May Your New Year Be Blessed 

With Many Genealogical Opportunities!

 Linda

Revisiting Boot Camp

A few days have passed allowing me time to reflect on Hack Genealogy’s Boot Camp for Writing Family History. Saturday’s webinar was divided into two parts.

Boot camp began with Lisa Alzo of the Accidental Genealogist: www.theaccidentalgeneaogist.com speaking on crafting a compelling family narrative.  I came away with a few pearls of wisdom beginning with:

“The Five P’s”

Plan     Prepare     Plot     Produce     Publish

Publishing seems years perhaps decades away. So I focused on Planning and Preparation. As a blogger, I find it fairly easy to write short posts. The challenge for me is writing a longer, complete narrative. Lisa suggested brainstorming ideas such as mind mapping and storyboards.

I have been working on my Uncle Dick’s life story for a very long time and it is time for me to PRODUCE! So, here is my plan per Lisa’s suggestions:

1. Organize all photos and information into one central location.
2. Purchase index cards and create a storyboard.
3.  Use photos to help tell the story.
4. Write daily.

A sample of my first attempt to write using photos

 A Joyous Moment Frozen in Time

Hugs for mother and son reunited following Dick's return from Boot Camp. Dick arrived home just in time for his sister’s wedding. Life was good for this mother and son. I am so glad the moment was captured on film. Can’t you feel the love?

Thomas MacEntee of Hack Genealogy and Geneabloggers (http://www.hackgenealogy.com, and www.geneabloggers.com) presented the afternoon session, “Ten Secrets You Should Know About Microsoft Word.” It never fails, whenever I learn something new I discover how little I know.

Several years ago I took Boston University’s online genealogy course. It was intense and I spent hours and hours creating genealogy documents for class assignments. After listening to Thomas I realized how much easier the class would have been had I understood Microsoft Word.

Today, as I write this post in Microsoft Word, I write with my Show/Hide button on. I can see my spaces and paragraph returns. I also know that there is a widow and orphan in my document. I just wish I could recall how to correct that.

There is another P for you!

Practice     Practice     Practice

Hope you are having a beautiful day,

Linda