My junior american studies students wrote their own. As the story goes, hemingway was once challenged to tell a story in six words. The sixword memoirs book series by multiple authors includes books one life. At a writers conference i recently attended, publishing veteran jane friedman said 80,000 words is good for most fiction, below 60,000 isnt novel length territory, and above 120,000 is likely too much. Because this memoir is only six words, the words you choose must be powerful. They might even write sixword memoirs from these characters at different points in the story, showing their perspective as it changes or doesnt over time. Once asked to write a full story in six words, legend has it that novelist ernest hemingway responded. The sixword memoir contest officially ended after a month, but the stories kept coming. Six word memoirs from writers famous and obscure, edited by penn alumni larry smith and rachel. Numerous and frequentlyupdated resource results are available from this search. Inspired by the book not quite what i was planning.
Sixword memoir of the day apr 30, 2020 see more memoirs. Since then, sixword memoir project has become a global phenomenon and a bestselling book. I love this book, if only because it makes me want to write a sixword memoir for my life. The sixword limit in particular has spawned the concept of sixword memoirs, 7 including a collection published in book form in 2008 by smith magazine, and two sequels published in 2009. In this book, students can write sixword memoirs from the perspectives of rump, red, opal, king barf, the aunts, the trolls, pixies, frederick and bruno, and the miller. Sixword memoirs by writers famous and obscure harper collins, 2008.
Reliable information about the coronavirus covid19 is available from the world health organization current situation, international travel. At the bottom of the page, write the rough draft of your sixword memoir. It all changed in an instant is the fourth collection of sixword memoirs from the magazine. Sixwords memoirs on jewish life smith, larry, david, larry, radnor, josh on. Six word memoirs six word memoir is the story of your lifesome part of it or all of ittold in exactly six words. Based off of hemingways sixword story, i have complied a few of my own sixword memoirs. Pick one of your own memoirs and try to write it a few different ways. Life stories distilled can you pare the story of your life into just six words.
Enter your six words in the comments section below for fellow readers to see. This is a list of 6word memoirs from the book i cant keep my own secrets. The inspiration for sixword memoirs came courtesy of a legend about ernest hemingway. Smith was founded january 6, 2006, by larry smith and tim barko.
In settings such as in boardrooms, classrooms, staff retreats, and conferences, six word memoirs is a simple concept thats become an effective tool to spark conversation, crystalize goals, and boil anything down to its core. Six word memoirs is a bestselling book series and phenomenon found in classroom, churches, and at live six word slams across the world. You can also submit yours for consideration for the next sixword memoir book by clicking here. Never worn showed the world that the most influential pieces of writing dont have to be the size of a book. See more ideas about 6 word memoirs, six words and six word memoirs. The project was inspired, in part, by the legend of ernest hemingway responding to a challenge of a sixword story with for. The urban legend of ernest hemingways sixword story. A compelling sixword memoir also provokes three more important words from those who receive it. Six words memoirs on jewish life smith, larry, david, larry, radnor, josh on. So when i saw this compilation of 6 word stories for a bargain price, i downloaded it immediately. The new yorkbased, online smith magazine is releasing a collection of sixword memoirs called not quite what i was planning. Six word memoirs from writers famous and obscure, edited by penn alumni larry smith and rachel fershleiser, the hub decided to write their own sixword stories.
Check out these speedy life stories from not quite what i was planning. For most publishers, a book is novellength when its between 50,000 and 110,000 words. Sixword memoirs by writers famous and obscure, edited by larry smith and rachel fershleiser, is an anthology of several hundred sixword autobiographies. In this spirit of simple yet profound depth, the online magazine smith asked readers to write the story of their own lives in a single sentence. The latest addition to the series, things dont have to be complicated. Thatched, but this compelling little book will have readers and their friends hunting for favorites and inventing sixword selfdefinitions of their own. Sixword memoirs on jewish life, not quite what i was planning. Writers famous and obscure on love, sex, money, friendship, family, work, and much more six word memoir.
Sixword memoirs by writers famous and obscure boing boing. Creating a 6 word story stretches your writing muscle and forces you to be spare and concise with your words. A short, fun video with tips for writing great sixword memoirs from smith magazine, the creators of the sixword memoir project and bestselling book series. The sixword story attributed to the famous author read. Inspired by ernest hemingways legendary shortest of short stories for sale. The ninth book in the bestselling six word memoir series brings us all the way back to the start of the project as we ask. Check out our new, free teaching guide, six words on my life now. Not quite what i was planning is a collection of sixword. Be advised, too, that though the book is 225 pages long, most of the pages contain just two or three of the sixword memoirs. Memoir writing writing notebook narrative writing 6 word memoirs ap language poetry for kids teaching secondary middle school writing six words. Locate an image online, in a magazine, or one from home that represents your memoir. Online shopping from a great selection at books store. You get the feeling that there may be a lot there, but in the end, theres a good taste in your mouth, but not much more.
Illustrated sixword memoirs by students making sense of the world, comes from tedbooks and collects dozens of visual sixword autobiographies from students between the ages of 8 and 35. Illustrated sixword memoirs by students from grade school. Sixword memoirs by writers famous and obscure, and several more. Six words from smith magazine began in collaboration with twitter in november 2006 with a simple prompt, can you tell the story of your life in six words. Taking a cue from novelist ernest hemingway, who, according to literary legend, was once challenged to write a short story in only six words, smith magazine set out to do the same. How does a familys journey to america tell the story of this country as a whole. Get my phd, probably in something like neuropsychology. How can we improve the craft of 6word memoirs by using punctuation and by cutting unnecessary words. Six word memoirs from writers famous and obscure, edited by penn alumni larry smith and rachel fershleiser, the hub decided to write their own six word stories. The general concept of trying to tell a story with the absolute minimum of words became known by the general term of flash fiction. Baby shoes, never worn, smith asked his readers to describe their lives in six words. Use a thesaurus to change one or two of your average words. Help others see that they can be healthy without eating meat. Above all, six words is a great way for anyone and everyone to start telling their story.
In the introduction, smith speaks to the liberating quality of constraints. Sixword memoirs in 2006, smith online magazine had a contest. Many of the six word memoirs are very clever, and some are touching. Life stories distilled once asked to write a full story in six words, legend has it that novelist ernest hemingway responded. Oclcs webjunction has pulled together information and resources to assist library staff as they consider how to handle. The contests success led to the publication of the book not quite what i was planning. I use 6word memoirs as part of a longer unit on memoir. The first in smiths sixword memoir book series, not quite what i was planning. These questions have been answered, six words at a time, by. Five years on, participants have contributed more than half a million minimemoirs.