Sample Memoir Essays

Each sample essay presented on this Web site is from a writer in one of my classes. I selected these essays not only for their enjoyment value, but for their instructional value. I suggest that you begin by reading each sample purely for pleasure. Then, read it over several times, noticing the craft that went into how the story was told.

Sample One: Facing Accidents on the Praries (Shows how to breathe life into a story)

Sample Two: Mom, Dad, and Intricate Pillars (Shows how to use a photograph as a starting point)

Sample Three: Christmases Remembered (Shows a way to record special holiday memories)

Sample Four: The Big City (Shows a way of recording high points, or important memories, of one's career.)

Sample Five: My Crow, Jim (Shows a way of finding and expressing meaning in life's joys and losses.)

Sample Six: Crayon Magic (Shows how to recapture the innocence of childhood through perspective and dialogue.)

Sample Seven: The Jaunty Lady Decorator (Shows how to base an essay on the way your home decorating reflects your personality.)

Sample Eight: Shine Mister (Shows how to tell an urban childhood adventure with humor.)

Sample Nine: Old Fashioned Holiday Dinners

Sample Ten: Turkey-less Thanksgiving in The '30s

Sample Eleven: Thanksgiving