Mine Your Memories

As I approach my 70^th year, I have a growing appreciation for my storehouse of memories. Many things weaken or diminish with the passing years, but if I’m observant, I can gather fresh life experiences every day. These are a priceless resource for my writing. 

Even painful experiences can serve me well. I remember the utter helplessness when my first serious girlfriend dumped me for another guy. I remember the numbness of being summarily fired from my dream job just before Christmas. I remember the acrid taste in my mouth as I watched my wife lying on her hospice bed day after day, dying of cancer. These experiences cost me dearly. Why should I try to put them out of my mind? They might bring something redemptive to my writing.

A recent movie titled, “The Man Who Invented Christmas,” showed Charles Dickens populating his “Christmas Carol” with characters he encountered in his daily life. He made exact replicas, down to their names. For example, a grumpy old waiter at Dickens club, named Marley, became the shuffling specter of Scrooge’s business partner, also named Marley. 

Now it would not be very creative or legally prudent to use my memories in such cookie-cutter fashion. (My least favorite high-school teacher could sue for slander if I made my villain an exact copy of him!)  But if I incorporate a few of his eccentric habits and colorful phrases into a fictional character, that character gains authenticity.

Rather than trying to use a memory as a template for your character or setting, I suggest that you take inspiration from it. Use it as a litmus test for what you create. How realistic is the character’s response when bad news comes? How authentic does the cooking smell in your heroine’s kitchen? How plausible is that Oklahoma native's slang expression? These are sorts of questions your memories can answer. 

We often hear that a skilled writer has good instincts. Even more important, I believe, a skilled writer has rich memories.

Joe Allison has been a member of the Indiana chapter of American Christian Fiction Writers since 2010. He lives in Anderson, IN. His non-fiction books include Setting Goals That Count and Swords and Whetstones.