{"id":83251,"date":"2023-02-27T09:20:52","date_gmt":"2023-02-27T17:20:52","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/sou.edu\/academics\/?p=83251"},"modified":"2024-01-25T09:54:13","modified_gmt":"2024-01-25T17:54:13","slug":"english-majors-in-action-community-memoir-writing","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/sou.edu\/academics\/english-majors-in-action-community-memoir-writing\/","title":{"rendered":"English Majors in Action: Community Memoir Writing"},"content":{"rendered":"\n<style type=\"text\/css\" data-created_by=\"avia_inline_auto\" id=\"style-css-av-9y7hw8j-ed8ec6639bf005030f47cf70426c66fc\">\n.avia-section.av-9y7hw8j-ed8ec6639bf005030f47cf70426c66fc{\nbackground-color:#f3f3f3;\nbackground-image:unset;\n}\n<\/style>\n<div id='av_section_1' aria-label='SOU English Stories - Blog Roll Template - Intro Section' class='avia-section av-9y7hw8j-ed8ec6639bf005030f47cf70426c66fc main_color avia-section-default avia-no-border-styling  avia-builder-el-0  el_before_av_submenu  avia-builder-el-first  avia-bg-style-scroll container_wrap fullsize'  ><div class='container av-section-cont-open' ><main  role=\"main\" itemprop=\"mainContentOfPage\"  class='template-page content  av-content-full alpha units'><div class='post-entry post-entry-type-page post-entry-83251'><div class='entry-content-wrapper clearfix'>\n\n<style type=\"text\/css\" data-created_by=\"avia_inline_auto\" id=\"style-css-av-9j1cz0z-29d2324c89d9b2bcdf3ab5f2cb8a31ae\">\n#top .av-special-heading.av-9j1cz0z-29d2324c89d9b2bcdf3ab5f2cb8a31ae{\npadding-bottom:0;\nfont-size:36px;\n}\nbody .av-special-heading.av-9j1cz0z-29d2324c89d9b2bcdf3ab5f2cb8a31ae .av-special-heading-tag .heading-char{\nfont-size:25px;\n}\n#top #wrap_all .av-special-heading.av-9j1cz0z-29d2324c89d9b2bcdf3ab5f2cb8a31ae .av-special-heading-tag{\nfont-size:36px;\n}\n.av-special-heading.av-9j1cz0z-29d2324c89d9b2bcdf3ab5f2cb8a31ae .av-subheading{\nfont-size:15px;\n}\n\n@media only screen and (min-width: 480px) and (max-width: 767px){ \n#top #wrap_all .av-special-heading.av-9j1cz0z-29d2324c89d9b2bcdf3ab5f2cb8a31ae .av-special-heading-tag{\nfont-size:0.8em;\n}\n}\n\n@media only screen and (max-width: 479px){ \n#top #wrap_all .av-special-heading.av-9j1cz0z-29d2324c89d9b2bcdf3ab5f2cb8a31ae .av-special-heading-tag{\nfont-size:0.8em;\n}\n}\n<\/style>\n<div  class='av-special-heading av-9j1cz0z-29d2324c89d9b2bcdf3ab5f2cb8a31ae av-special-heading-h2 blockquote modern-quote modern-centered  avia-builder-el-1  avia-builder-el-no-sibling  av-inherit-size av-linked-heading'><h2 class='av-special-heading-tag '  itemprop=\"headline\"  >English Stories<\/h2><div class=\"special-heading-border\"><div class=\"special-heading-inner-border\"><\/div><\/div><\/div>\n\n<\/div><\/div><\/main><!-- close content main element --><\/div><\/div><div class='clear'><\/div><div id='sub_menu1'  class='av-submenu-container av-940zydv-a117e6376359ff4dc829195797941c00 alternate_color  avia-builder-el-2  el_after_av_section  el_before_av_section  goofy-foot no-border av-sticky-submenu submenu-not-first container_wrap fullsize' style='z-index:301' ><div class='container av-menu-mobile-disabled av-submenu-pos-center'><ul id=\"menu-english\" class=\"av-subnav-menu\" role=\"menu\"><li role=\"menuitem\" id=\"menu-item-61578\" class=\"menu-item menu-item-type-post_type menu-item-object-page menu-item-top-level menu-item-top-level-1\"><a href=\"https:\/\/sou.edu\/academics\/english\/\" itemprop=\"url\" tabindex=\"0\"><span class=\"avia-bullet\"><\/span><span class=\"avia-menu-text\">English<\/span><span class=\"avia-menu-fx\"><span class=\"avia-arrow-wrap\"><span class=\"avia-arrow\"><\/span><\/span><\/span><\/a><\/li>\n<li role=\"menuitem\" id=\"menu-item-61581\" class=\"menu-item menu-item-type-post_type menu-item-object-page menu-item-top-level menu-item-top-level-2\"><a href=\"https:\/\/sou.edu\/academics\/english\/programs\/\" itemprop=\"url\" tabindex=\"0\"><span class=\"avia-bullet\"><\/span><span class=\"avia-menu-text\">Programs<\/span><span class=\"avia-menu-fx\"><span class=\"avia-arrow-wrap\"><span class=\"avia-arrow\"><\/span><\/span><\/span><\/a><\/li>\n<li role=\"menuitem\" id=\"menu-item-75932\" class=\"menu-item menu-item-type-post_type menu-item-object-page menu-item-top-level menu-item-top-level-3\"><a href=\"https:\/\/sou.edu\/academics\/english\/stories\/\" itemprop=\"url\" tabindex=\"0\"><span class=\"avia-bullet\"><\/span><span class=\"avia-menu-text\">Stories<\/span><span class=\"avia-menu-fx\"><span class=\"avia-arrow-wrap\"><span class=\"avia-arrow\"><\/span><\/span><\/span><\/a><\/li>\n<li role=\"menuitem\" id=\"menu-item-93739\" class=\"menu-item menu-item-type-post_type menu-item-object-page menu-item-top-level menu-item-top-level-4\"><a href=\"https:\/\/sou.edu\/academics\/english\/careers-for-english-majors\/\" itemprop=\"url\" tabindex=\"0\"><span class=\"avia-bullet\"><\/span><span class=\"avia-menu-text\">Careers<\/span><span class=\"avia-menu-fx\"><span class=\"avia-arrow-wrap\"><span class=\"avia-arrow\"><\/span><\/span><\/span><\/a><\/li>\n<li role=\"menuitem\" id=\"menu-item-93947\" class=\"menu-item menu-item-type-post_type menu-item-object-page menu-item-top-level menu-item-top-level-5\"><a href=\"https:\/\/sou.edu\/academics\/english\/teaching-english-faq\/\" itemprop=\"url\" tabindex=\"0\"><span class=\"avia-bullet\"><\/span><span class=\"avia-menu-text\">Teaching English FAQ<\/span><span class=\"avia-menu-fx\"><span class=\"avia-arrow-wrap\"><span class=\"avia-arrow\"><\/span><\/span><\/span><\/a><\/li>\n<li role=\"menuitem\" id=\"menu-item-94248\" class=\"menu-item menu-item-type-post_type menu-item-object-page menu-item-top-level menu-item-top-level-6\"><a href=\"https:\/\/sou.edu\/academics\/english\/oregon-writing-project\/\" itemprop=\"url\" tabindex=\"0\"><span class=\"avia-bullet\"><\/span><span class=\"avia-menu-text\">Oregon Writing Project<\/span><span class=\"avia-menu-fx\"><span class=\"avia-arrow-wrap\"><span class=\"avia-arrow\"><\/span><\/span><\/span><\/a><\/li>\n<li role=\"menuitem\" id=\"menu-item-61585\" class=\"menu-item menu-item-type-post_type menu-item-object-page menu-item-top-level menu-item-top-level-7\"><a href=\"https:\/\/sou.edu\/academics\/english\/about\/\" itemprop=\"url\" tabindex=\"0\"><span class=\"avia-bullet\"><\/span><span class=\"avia-menu-text\">About<\/span><span class=\"avia-menu-fx\"><span class=\"avia-arrow-wrap\"><span class=\"avia-arrow\"><\/span><\/span><\/span><\/a><\/li>\n<li role=\"menuitem\" id=\"menu-item-61579\" class=\"menu-item menu-item-type-post_type menu-item-object-page menu-item-top-level menu-item-top-level-8\"><a href=\"https:\/\/sou.edu\/academics\/english\/faculty\/\" itemprop=\"url\" tabindex=\"0\"><span class=\"avia-bullet\"><\/span><span class=\"avia-menu-text\">Faculty<\/span><span class=\"avia-menu-fx\"><span class=\"avia-arrow-wrap\"><span class=\"avia-arrow\"><\/span><\/span><\/span><\/a><\/li>\n<li role=\"menuitem\" id=\"menu-item-61580\" class=\"menu-item menu-item-type-post_type menu-item-object-page menu-item-top-level menu-item-top-level-9\"><a href=\"https:\/\/sou.edu\/academics\/english\/contact\/\" itemprop=\"url\" tabindex=\"0\"><span class=\"avia-bullet\"><\/span><span class=\"avia-menu-text\">Contact<\/span><span class=\"avia-menu-fx\"><span class=\"avia-arrow-wrap\"><span class=\"avia-arrow\"><\/span><\/span><\/span><\/a><\/li>\n<\/ul><\/div><\/div><div class='sticky_placeholder'><\/div>\n<div id='av_section_2' aria-label='SOU English Stories - Blog Roll Template - Blog Section' class='avia-section av-7p49awj-db71f85a72cb4da7ee7e34152463198e main_color avia-section-default avia-shadow  avia-builder-el-3  el_after_av_submenu  avia-builder-el-last  avia-bg-style-scroll container_wrap fullsize'  ><div class='container av-section-cont-open' ><div class='template-page content  av-content-full alpha units'><div class='post-entry post-entry-type-page post-entry-83251'><div class='entry-content-wrapper clearfix'>\n\n<style type=\"text\/css\" data-created_by=\"avia_inline_auto\" id=\"style-css-av-7brshpv-db7fdca772015cf0084f907e24bfa16e\">\n.flex_column.av-7brshpv-db7fdca772015cf0084f907e24bfa16e{\nborder-radius:0px 0px 0px 0px;\npadding:0px 0px 0px 0px;\n}\n<\/style>\n<div  class='flex_column av-7brshpv-db7fdca772015cf0084f907e24bfa16e av_one_fifth  avia-builder-el-4  el_before_av_three_fifth  avia-builder-el-first  first flex_column_div av-zero-column-padding  '     ><\/div>\n<style type=\"text\/css\" data-created_by=\"avia_inline_auto\" id=\"style-css-av-o7m8pf-6a94eb7f60abe9d7e738f0d096f46dbc\">\n.flex_column.av-o7m8pf-6a94eb7f60abe9d7e738f0d096f46dbc{\nborder-radius:0px 0px 0px 0px;\npadding:0px 0px 0px 0px;\n}\n<\/style>\n<div  class='flex_column av-o7m8pf-6a94eb7f60abe9d7e738f0d096f46dbc av_three_fifth  avia-builder-el-5  el_after_av_one_fifth  el_before_av_one_fifth  flex_column_div av-zero-column-padding  '     ><p>\n<style type=\"text\/css\" data-created_by=\"avia_inline_auto\" id=\"style-css-av-67dl8nn-071ac5699ace711c2247df0c8eb21a91\">\n.avia-image-container.av-67dl8nn-071ac5699ace711c2247df0c8eb21a91 img.avia_image{\nbox-shadow:none;\n}\n.avia-image-container.av-67dl8nn-071ac5699ace711c2247df0c8eb21a91 .av-image-caption-overlay-center{\ncolor:#ffffff;\n}\n<\/style>\n<div  class='avia-image-container av-67dl8nn-071ac5699ace711c2247df0c8eb21a91 av-styling-no-styling avia-align-  avia-builder-el-6  el_before_av_heading  avia-builder-el-first '   itemprop=\"image\" itemscope=\"itemscope\" itemtype=\"https:\/\/schema.org\/ImageObject\" ><div class=\"avia-image-container-inner\"><div class=\"avia-image-overlay-wrap\"><picture><source srcset=\"https:\/\/sou.edu\/academics\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/14\/2023\/02\/ROU-Blog-English-Majors-in-Action-Blog-Roll-Photo.webp 1200w,https:\/\/sou.edu\/academics\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/14\/2023\/02\/ROU-Blog-English-Majors-in-Action-Blog-Roll-Photo-300x150.webp 300w,https:\/\/sou.edu\/academics\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/14\/2023\/02\/ROU-Blog-English-Majors-in-Action-Blog-Roll-Photo-1030x515.webp 1030w,https:\/\/sou.edu\/academics\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/14\/2023\/02\/ROU-Blog-English-Majors-in-Action-Blog-Roll-Photo-768x384.webp 768w,https:\/\/sou.edu\/academics\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/14\/2023\/02\/ROU-Blog-English-Majors-in-Action-Blog-Roll-Photo-705x353.webp 705w\" sizes=\"(max-width: 1200px) 100vw, 1200px\" type=\"image\/webp\"><img src=\"https:\/\/sou.edu\/academics\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/14\/2023\/02\/ROU-Blog-English-Majors-in-Action-Blog-Roll-Photo.jpg\" height=\"600\" width=\"1200\" srcset=\"https:\/\/sou.edu\/academics\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/14\/2023\/02\/ROU-Blog-English-Majors-in-Action-Blog-Roll-Photo.jpg 1200w, https:\/\/sou.edu\/academics\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/14\/2023\/02\/ROU-Blog-English-Majors-in-Action-Blog-Roll-Photo-300x150.jpg 300w, https:\/\/sou.edu\/academics\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/14\/2023\/02\/ROU-Blog-English-Majors-in-Action-Blog-Roll-Photo-1030x515.jpg 1030w, https:\/\/sou.edu\/academics\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/14\/2023\/02\/ROU-Blog-English-Majors-in-Action-Blog-Roll-Photo-768x384.jpg 768w, https:\/\/sou.edu\/academics\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/14\/2023\/02\/ROU-Blog-English-Majors-in-Action-Blog-Roll-Photo-705x353.jpg 705w\" sizes=\"(max-width: 1200px) 100vw, 1200px\" class=\"wp-image-83259 avia-img-lazy-loading-not-83259 avia_image  sp-no-webp\" alt=\"SOU Blog English Majors in Action Blog Roll Photo\" decoding=\"async\" fetchpriority=\"high\" itemprop=\"thumbnailUrl\"  > <\/picture><\/div><\/div><\/div><br \/>\n\n<style type=\"text\/css\" data-created_by=\"avia_inline_auto\" id=\"style-css-av-lej52mm8-e76a811fc81d883e1ad9be5f35c0508c\">\n#top .av-special-heading.av-lej52mm8-e76a811fc81d883e1ad9be5f35c0508c{\npadding-bottom:0;\nfont-size:28px;\n}\nbody .av-special-heading.av-lej52mm8-e76a811fc81d883e1ad9be5f35c0508c .av-special-heading-tag .heading-char{\nfont-size:25px;\n}\n#top #wrap_all .av-special-heading.av-lej52mm8-e76a811fc81d883e1ad9be5f35c0508c .av-special-heading-tag{\nfont-size:28px;\n}\n.av-special-heading.av-lej52mm8-e76a811fc81d883e1ad9be5f35c0508c .av-subheading{\nfont-size:18px;\ncolor:#404040;\n}\n\n@media only screen and (min-width: 480px) and (max-width: 767px){ \n#top #wrap_all .av-special-heading.av-lej52mm8-e76a811fc81d883e1ad9be5f35c0508c .av-special-heading-tag{\nfont-size:0.8em;\n}\n}\n\n@media only screen and (max-width: 479px){ \n#top #wrap_all .av-special-heading.av-lej52mm8-e76a811fc81d883e1ad9be5f35c0508c .av-special-heading-tag{\nfont-size:0.8em;\n}\n}\n<\/style>\n<div  class='av-special-heading av-lej52mm8-e76a811fc81d883e1ad9be5f35c0508c av-special-heading-h1 custom-color-heading blockquote modern-quote  avia-builder-el-7  el_after_av_image  el_before_av_textblock  top-30 av-inherit-size av-linked-heading'><div class='av-subheading av-subheading_above'><p>SOU Alumni Memoir Writers<\/p>\n<\/div><h1 class='av-special-heading-tag '  itemprop=\"headline\"  >Catching up with Alumni<\/h1><div class=\"special-heading-border\"><div class=\"special-heading-inner-border\"><\/div><\/div><\/div><br \/>\n\n<style type=\"text\/css\" data-created_by=\"avia_inline_auto\" id=\"style-css-av-lej5441f-b4ab9d10da3bfa3f133244362399054e\">\n#top .av_textblock_section.av-lej5441f-b4ab9d10da3bfa3f133244362399054e .avia_textblock{\nfont-size:12px;\n}\n<\/style>\n<section  class='av_textblock_section av-lej5441f-b4ab9d10da3bfa3f133244362399054e '   itemscope=\"itemscope\" itemtype=\"https:\/\/schema.org\/BlogPosting\" itemprop=\"blogPost\" ><div class='avia_textblock'  itemprop=\"text\" ><p><em>February 27, 2023<br \/>\nBy Jewel Blanchard, Senior English Major.<br \/>\nPictured above: <i><span style=\"font-weight: 400\">SOU Alumnus Daniel Alrick working with memoir client, Stan Luther.<br \/>\n<\/span><\/i><\/em><\/p>\n<\/div><\/section><br \/>\n\n<style type=\"text\/css\" data-created_by=\"avia_inline_auto\" id=\"style-css-av-k59w7n-22b04dcd7d36276cb0fb704e671fb797\">\n#top .av_textblock_section.av-k59w7n-22b04dcd7d36276cb0fb704e671fb797 .avia_textblock{\nfont-size:15px;\n}\n<\/style>\n<section  class='av_textblock_section av-k59w7n-22b04dcd7d36276cb0fb704e671fb797 '   itemscope=\"itemscope\" itemtype=\"https:\/\/schema.org\/BlogPosting\" itemprop=\"blogPost\" ><div class='avia_textblock'  itemprop=\"text\" ><p>How do we want to be remembered? This essential question is one that SOU alumni Daniel Alrick and Julie Kanta, help answer for their clients. The two freelance writers graduated from the SOU Professional Writing Program in 2014 (which has now evolved to become the <a href=\"https:\/\/sou.edu\/academics\/english\/programs\/foundations-of-professional-writing\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">Foundations of Professional Writing Microcredential<\/a>). Much of Julie&#8217;s and Daniel&#8217;s respective careers since then has been helping clients dictate and preserve their legacies through the writing and production of their oral histories and memoirs.<\/p>\n<p>For Julie Kanta, memoir writing began in a very personal way. An English major with a concentration in Professional Writing, she also had a double minor in EMDA and Shakespeare Studies. Julie got her start in the memoir genre as she developed her final capstone project for the English major, which she envisioned as a way to combine different parts of her degree. According to Julie, &#8220;I wanted to do a memoir-type of a project that combined both a written story and the photographs and the media parts of peoples&#8217; memories.&#8221; And she saw no better person to center this kind of story on than her own mother, who had emigrated to the United States from Denmark in 1960 with her girl scout troop. Titled <em>American Ice Cream: a Danish Girl\u2019s Discovery of Independence<\/em>, Julie ghost wrote and edited her mother&#8217;s stories of emigration and life in America, incorporating her mother&#8217;s old photographs, postcards, and diary entries alongside writing. Julie continued and finalized the project after graduating from SOU, and <em>American Ice Cream<\/em> was officially published in 2021.<\/p>\n<\/div><\/section><br \/>\n\n<style type=\"text\/css\" data-created_by=\"avia_inline_auto\" id=\"style-css-av-42ejfsj-e613748e0a8465ea920441e4c29fdb5a\">\n#top .av_textblock_section.av-42ejfsj-e613748e0a8465ea920441e4c29fdb5a .avia_textblock{\nfont-size:26px;\n}\n<\/style>\n<section  class='av_textblock_section av-42ejfsj-e613748e0a8465ea920441e4c29fdb5a '   itemscope=\"itemscope\" itemtype=\"https:\/\/schema.org\/BlogPosting\" itemprop=\"blogPost\" ><div class='avia_textblock rising-quote av_inherit_color'  itemprop=\"text\" ><blockquote>\n<p class=\"dig-4\" style=\"text-align: left\"><em>&#8220;So part of my goal was to be able to take those physical memories that she had\u2026 and to restore them not only digitally but then re-put them in a book so they wouldn&#8217;t just keep deteriorating over time and then be lost\u2026So essentially we had a both written and visual memoir.&#8221;<\/em><\/p>\n<p class=\"pop-8\" style=\"font-size: 0.6em;text-align: right\">\u2013 Julie Kanta<\/p>\n<\/blockquote>\n<\/div><\/section><br \/>\n\n<style type=\"text\/css\" data-created_by=\"avia_inline_auto\" id=\"style-css-av-46qcksz-30eac32a092653d6399d06c487ad9bb9\">\n#top .av_textblock_section.av-46qcksz-30eac32a092653d6399d06c487ad9bb9 .avia_textblock{\nfont-size:15px;\n}\n<\/style>\n<section  class='av_textblock_section av-46qcksz-30eac32a092653d6399d06c487ad9bb9 '   itemscope=\"itemscope\" itemtype=\"https:\/\/schema.org\/BlogPosting\" itemprop=\"blogPost\" ><div class='avia_textblock'  itemprop=\"text\" ><p>A few years after her graduation, Julie got her second brush with memoir writing, when Dr. Edwin Battistella contacted her about a memoir-writing opportunity for retired SOU athletics coach, Dan Bulkley. Bulkley was approaching his 100th birthday, and was looking to write his own memoir reflecting on his eclectic life. Dr. Battistella had seen Julie&#8217;s capstone project up close, and knew she would be a great fit for this project. Bulkley\u2019s memoir, titled <em>My Century in Motion<\/em>, followed Bulkley&#8217;s life and career, including his role in the Senior Olympics, which began when he was 80 years old. In addition to helping Bulkley write his memoir, Julie also helped him self-publish his book, as well as curate and include his personal photographs\u2014 though Julie notes that this memoir wasn\u2019t quite as visual as <em>American Ice Cream<\/em>. With these two memoir-writing experiences under her belt (as well as other miscellaneous professional and technical writing and publishing experiences with her company <a href=\"https:\/\/plumbcreative.com\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">Plumb Creative<\/a>), Julie was ready for her next endeavor.<\/p>\n<\/div><\/section><br \/>\n\n<style type=\"text\/css\" data-created_by=\"avia_inline_auto\" id=\"style-css-av-581xho3-916d92bcb5484eee86e1034d0b819ede\">\n.avia-image-container.av-581xho3-916d92bcb5484eee86e1034d0b819ede img.avia_image{\nbox-shadow:none;\n}\n.avia-image-container.av-581xho3-916d92bcb5484eee86e1034d0b819ede .av-image-caption-overlay-center{\ncolor:#ffffff;\n}\n<\/style>\n<div  class='avia-image-container av-581xho3-916d92bcb5484eee86e1034d0b819ede av-styling-no-styling avia-align-  avia-builder-el-12  el_after_av_textblock  el_before_av_textblock  pop-20'   itemprop=\"image\" itemscope=\"itemscope\" itemtype=\"https:\/\/schema.org\/ImageObject\" ><div class=\"avia-image-container-inner\"><div class=\"avia-image-overlay-wrap\"><picture><source srcset=\"https:\/\/sou.edu\/academics\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/14\/2023\/02\/SOU-Blog-English-Majors-in-Action-First-Photo.webp 1200w,https:\/\/sou.edu\/academics\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/14\/2023\/02\/SOU-Blog-English-Majors-in-Action-First-Photo-300x150.webp 300w,https:\/\/sou.edu\/academics\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/14\/2023\/02\/SOU-Blog-English-Majors-in-Action-First-Photo-1030x515.webp 1030w,https:\/\/sou.edu\/academics\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/14\/2023\/02\/SOU-Blog-English-Majors-in-Action-First-Photo-768x384.webp 768w,https:\/\/sou.edu\/academics\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/14\/2023\/02\/SOU-Blog-English-Majors-in-Action-First-Photo-705x353.webp 705w\" sizes=\"(max-width: 1200px) 100vw, 1200px\" type=\"image\/webp\"><img src=\"https:\/\/sou.edu\/academics\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/14\/2023\/02\/SOU-Blog-English-Majors-in-Action-First-Photo.jpg\" height=\"600\" width=\"1200\" srcset=\"https:\/\/sou.edu\/academics\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/14\/2023\/02\/SOU-Blog-English-Majors-in-Action-First-Photo.jpg 1200w, https:\/\/sou.edu\/academics\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/14\/2023\/02\/SOU-Blog-English-Majors-in-Action-First-Photo-300x150.jpg 300w, https:\/\/sou.edu\/academics\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/14\/2023\/02\/SOU-Blog-English-Majors-in-Action-First-Photo-1030x515.jpg 1030w, https:\/\/sou.edu\/academics\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/14\/2023\/02\/SOU-Blog-English-Majors-in-Action-First-Photo-768x384.jpg 768w, https:\/\/sou.edu\/academics\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/14\/2023\/02\/SOU-Blog-English-Majors-in-Action-First-Photo-705x353.jpg 705w\" sizes=\"(max-width: 1200px) 100vw, 1200px\" class=\"wp-image-83260 avia-img-lazy-loading-not-83260 avia_image  sp-no-webp\" alt=\"SOU Blog English Majors in Action First Photo\" decoding=\"async\" fetchpriority=\"high\" itemprop=\"thumbnailUrl\"  > <\/picture><\/div><\/div><\/div><br \/>\n\n<style type=\"text\/css\" data-created_by=\"avia_inline_auto\" id=\"style-css-av-4nv7soj-96307fac118a4d073180d0ceb63f16a1\">\n#top .av_textblock_section.av-4nv7soj-96307fac118a4d073180d0ceb63f16a1 .avia_textblock{\nfont-size:12px;\n}\n<\/style>\n<section  class='av_textblock_section av-4nv7soj-96307fac118a4d073180d0ceb63f16a1 '   itemscope=\"itemscope\" itemtype=\"https:\/\/schema.org\/BlogPosting\" itemprop=\"blogPost\" ><div class='avia_textblock'  itemprop=\"text\" ><p><em>Pictured Above: My Century in Motion book cover. Text reads: &#8220;My Century in Motion; Dan Bulkley; with Julie Kirsten Kanta.&#8221;<\/em><\/p>\n<\/div><\/section><br \/>\n\n<style type=\"text\/css\" data-created_by=\"avia_inline_auto\" id=\"style-css-av-2792z3n-5eeb40f0438a54e09a4e1ab22d74a147\">\n#top .av_textblock_section.av-2792z3n-5eeb40f0438a54e09a4e1ab22d74a147 .avia_textblock{\nfont-size:15px;\n}\n<\/style>\n<section  class='av_textblock_section av-2792z3n-5eeb40f0438a54e09a4e1ab22d74a147 '   itemscope=\"itemscope\" itemtype=\"https:\/\/schema.org\/BlogPosting\" itemprop=\"blogPost\" ><div class='avia_textblock'  itemprop=\"text\" ><p>Meanwhile, Daniel Alrick&#8217;s memoir-writing experience had begun on a similarly personal project. Daniel took up writing in this genre by helping with the memoir of his friend and neighbor, Steven Weiner, who was in hospice when Daniel joined the project. Weiner wrote a newsletter titled &#8220;The Suspicious Humanist,&#8221; which Daniel followed; it would partially inspire Weiner&#8217;s final memoir, titled <em>When Nothing is Real: Notes of a Humanist<\/em>. Daniel recalls that his contributions to the project put him under &#8220;a lot of pressure\u2026because [Weiner] had terminal cancer.&#8221; Unfortunately, Weiner passed away before the memoir was finished, but he was able to read and approve much of the manuscript before then.<\/p>\n<p>Since contributing to <em>When Nothing is Real<\/em>\u2026, Daniel has written or helped write five other memoirs. A lot of his writing process includes a focus on recording and preserving his clients&#8217; oral histories. He always records clients&#8217; stories, whether those audio recordings end up in the final project or not. According to Daniel, &#8220;the reason you take oral history is so you can see how a person describes their whole life and their place in it,&#8221; and this recording process is integral to memoir-writing. Part of Daniel\u2019s body of work included reviewing and transcribing the recorded interviews of Dan Bulkley, in his first collaboration with Julie on <em>My Century in Motion<\/em>. After Daniel transcribed these recordings, Julie then pieced together and wrote the manuscript. Again, <em>My Century<\/em>\u2026 was just one of the first memoir projects Daniel has taken on over the years. With all of his expertise and experience interviewing, recording and writing for this genre, Daniel found himself ready for a new project, which would involve him collaborating with Julie for the second time.<\/p>\n<\/div><\/section><br \/>\n\n<style type=\"text\/css\" data-created_by=\"avia_inline_auto\" id=\"style-css-av-2gzefg3-1b1510654a0461da82d94e7bd7d7e774\">\n#top .av_textblock_section.av-2gzefg3-1b1510654a0461da82d94e7bd7d7e774 .avia_textblock{\nfont-size:26px;\n}\n<\/style>\n<section  class='av_textblock_section av-2gzefg3-1b1510654a0461da82d94e7bd7d7e774 '   itemscope=\"itemscope\" itemtype=\"https:\/\/schema.org\/BlogPosting\" itemprop=\"blogPost\" ><div class='avia_textblock rising-quote av_inherit_color'  itemprop=\"text\" ><blockquote>\n<p class=\"dig-4\" style=\"text-align: left\"><em>&#8220;It&#8217;s the person&#8217;s own voice, they have their [own] words, their voice is what the whole point is.&#8221;<\/em><\/p>\n<p class=\"pop-8\" style=\"font-size: 0.6em;text-align: right\">\u2013 Daniel Alrick<\/p>\n<\/blockquote>\n<\/div><\/section><br \/>\n\n<style type=\"text\/css\" data-created_by=\"avia_inline_auto\" id=\"style-css-av-len1jhjk-d8a4efecd13d2825bf29c5f6a5a114fc\">\n#top .av_textblock_section.av-len1jhjk-d8a4efecd13d2825bf29c5f6a5a114fc .avia_textblock{\nfont-size:15px;\n}\n<\/style>\n<section  class='av_textblock_section av-len1jhjk-d8a4efecd13d2825bf29c5f6a5a114fc '   itemscope=\"itemscope\" itemtype=\"https:\/\/schema.org\/BlogPosting\" itemprop=\"blogPost\" ><div class='avia_textblock'  itemprop=\"text\" ><p>When Julie and Daniel got started on their current memoir-writing project, they had no idea how invested they would become. According to Julie, after a string of past client communication breakdowns and some hurdles in her personal life, she had little interest in writing another memoir. However, only a few months ago, Dr. Battistella emailed both Julie and Daniel with a new and exciting memoir-writing prospect. The memoir would be for World War II veteran Stan Luther, who served 30 years in the United States Air Force, taught community college night classes, raised a family, and, more recently, moved to Medford. When Daniel realized that Stan had served in the navy air force, he knew Julie would be a great fit and encouraged her to join the project. Her past service in the Air Force would give her further insight into Stan&#8217;s life, stories, and military terminology, and that was partly why Stan was interested in hiring her in particular. With both of them agreeing to join the project, Julie and Daniel were drawn back into the world of memoir-writing!<\/p>\n<\/div><\/section><br \/>\n\n<style type=\"text\/css\" data-created_by=\"avia_inline_auto\" id=\"style-css-av-1rgz5o3-5cacc82c5dad7a25ecb6f43e7aad86eb\">\n.avia-image-container.av-1rgz5o3-5cacc82c5dad7a25ecb6f43e7aad86eb img.avia_image{\nbox-shadow:none;\n}\n.avia-image-container.av-1rgz5o3-5cacc82c5dad7a25ecb6f43e7aad86eb .av-image-caption-overlay-center{\ncolor:#ffffff;\n}\n<\/style>\n<div  class='avia-image-container av-1rgz5o3-5cacc82c5dad7a25ecb6f43e7aad86eb av-styling-no-styling avia-align-  avia-builder-el-17  el_after_av_textblock  el_before_av_textblock  pop-20'   itemprop=\"image\" itemscope=\"itemscope\" itemtype=\"https:\/\/schema.org\/ImageObject\" ><div class=\"avia-image-container-inner\"><div class=\"avia-image-overlay-wrap\"><picture><source srcset=\"https:\/\/sou.edu\/academics\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/14\/2023\/02\/SOU-Blog-English-Majors-in-Action-Second-Photo.webp 1200w,https:\/\/sou.edu\/academics\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/14\/2023\/02\/SOU-Blog-English-Majors-in-Action-Second-Photo-300x150.webp 300w,https:\/\/sou.edu\/academics\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/14\/2023\/02\/SOU-Blog-English-Majors-in-Action-Second-Photo-1030x515.webp 1030w,https:\/\/sou.edu\/academics\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/14\/2023\/02\/SOU-Blog-English-Majors-in-Action-Second-Photo-768x384.webp 768w,https:\/\/sou.edu\/academics\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/14\/2023\/02\/SOU-Blog-English-Majors-in-Action-Second-Photo-705x353.webp 705w\" sizes=\"(max-width: 1200px) 100vw, 1200px\" type=\"image\/webp\"><img src=\"https:\/\/sou.edu\/academics\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/14\/2023\/02\/SOU-Blog-English-Majors-in-Action-Second-Photo.jpg\" height=\"600\" width=\"1200\" srcset=\"https:\/\/sou.edu\/academics\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/14\/2023\/02\/SOU-Blog-English-Majors-in-Action-Second-Photo.jpg 1200w, https:\/\/sou.edu\/academics\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/14\/2023\/02\/SOU-Blog-English-Majors-in-Action-Second-Photo-300x150.jpg 300w, https:\/\/sou.edu\/academics\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/14\/2023\/02\/SOU-Blog-English-Majors-in-Action-Second-Photo-1030x515.jpg 1030w, https:\/\/sou.edu\/academics\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/14\/2023\/02\/SOU-Blog-English-Majors-in-Action-Second-Photo-768x384.jpg 768w, https:\/\/sou.edu\/academics\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/14\/2023\/02\/SOU-Blog-English-Majors-in-Action-Second-Photo-705x353.jpg 705w\" sizes=\"(max-width: 1200px) 100vw, 1200px\" class=\"wp-image-83255 avia-img-lazy-loading-not-83255 avia_image  sp-no-webp\" alt=\"SOU Blog English Majors in Action Second Photo\" decoding=\"async\" fetchpriority=\"high\" itemprop=\"thumbnailUrl\"  > <\/picture><\/div><\/div><\/div><br \/>\n\n<style type=\"text\/css\" data-created_by=\"avia_inline_auto\" id=\"style-css-av-11nlicz-1269fb0033a3d6dbce8632d1edee2d8f\">\n#top .av_textblock_section.av-11nlicz-1269fb0033a3d6dbce8632d1edee2d8f .avia_textblock{\nfont-size:12px;\n}\n<\/style>\n<section  class='av_textblock_section av-11nlicz-1269fb0033a3d6dbce8632d1edee2d8f '   itemscope=\"itemscope\" itemtype=\"https:\/\/schema.org\/BlogPosting\" itemprop=\"blogPost\" ><div class='avia_textblock'  itemprop=\"text\" ><p><em>Pictured above: Stan Luther sitting at the end of his dining table.<\/em><\/p>\n<\/div><\/section><br \/>\n\n<style type=\"text\/css\" data-created_by=\"avia_inline_auto\" id=\"style-css-av-lej5ath4-602b35a780f7f0c7ec2b594a601e287f\">\n#top .av_textblock_section.av-lej5ath4-602b35a780f7f0c7ec2b594a601e287f .avia_textblock{\nfont-size:15px;\n}\n<\/style>\n<section  class='av_textblock_section av-lej5ath4-602b35a780f7f0c7ec2b594a601e287f '   itemscope=\"itemscope\" itemtype=\"https:\/\/schema.org\/BlogPosting\" itemprop=\"blogPost\" ><div class='avia_textblock'  itemprop=\"text\" ><p>When asked about where his interest in writing a memoir came from, Stan says that he had been ruminating on the idea for years. The way he sees it, he has lived a long life, and wanted to put some of his experiences down on paper, &#8220;for the family.&#8221; But the idea only grew from there and, at the behest of his sons, evolved into plans to write a full-fledged memoir. Stan and his sons did some investigation into finding ghostwriters before reaching out to SOU and Dr. Battistella, who in turn got him in touch with Julie and Daniel. Stan had been writing bits and pieces of his stories for years, but this work fell into what he calls a &#8220;military writing style,&#8221; unfit for a memoir in his eyes. This is much of the reason why he values the writing assistance of Julie and Daniel, who can expand and soften Stan&#8217;s style.<\/p>\n<\/div><\/section><br \/>\n\n<style type=\"text\/css\" data-created_by=\"avia_inline_auto\" id=\"style-css-av-m73n83-b53974bb14b78bcd5753e1abe0749ce0\">\n#top .av_textblock_section.av-m73n83-b53974bb14b78bcd5753e1abe0749ce0 .avia_textblock{\nfont-size:26px;\n}\n<\/style>\n<section  class='av_textblock_section av-m73n83-b53974bb14b78bcd5753e1abe0749ce0 '   itemscope=\"itemscope\" itemtype=\"https:\/\/schema.org\/BlogPosting\" itemprop=\"blogPost\" ><div class='avia_textblock rising-quote av_inherit_color'  itemprop=\"text\" ><blockquote>\n<p class=\"dig-4\" style=\"text-align: left\"><em>&#8220;I never did like writing a whole lot. It&#8217;s not a pleasure, it\u2019s more like work.&#8221;<\/em><\/p>\n<p class=\"pop-8\" style=\"font-size: 0.6em;text-align: right\">\u2013 Stan Luther<\/p>\n<\/blockquote>\n<\/div><\/section><br \/>\n\n<style type=\"text\/css\" data-created_by=\"avia_inline_auto\" id=\"style-css-av-len1p3qg-5dfc9ab5a466dc946a2e629ed5953a54\">\n#top .av_textblock_section.av-len1p3qg-5dfc9ab5a466dc946a2e629ed5953a54 .avia_textblock{\nfont-size:15px;\n}\n<\/style>\n<section  class='av_textblock_section av-len1p3qg-5dfc9ab5a466dc946a2e629ed5953a54 '   itemscope=\"itemscope\" itemtype=\"https:\/\/schema.org\/BlogPosting\" itemprop=\"blogPost\" ><div class='avia_textblock'  itemprop=\"text\" ><p>From Stan&#8217;s perspective, the hardest part of the memoir-writing process is trying to recall his own stories. Thankfully, he jokes that while his short-term memory &#8220;track&#8221; is slowing down, once he gets started trying to recall his life the long-term &#8220;track&#8221; comes back to him more easily. Because of his time writing for the military, and in academic settings, Stan says that there was no difficult adjustment period when he got started writing with Julie and Daniel; those prior experiences more than prepared him for this project. Though not all clients have the same level of responsibility in the writing process, Stan has been reading over the manuscript for his own memoir throughout the writing process, making notes, and offering feedback to his ghost writers as they go along. He says that he enjoys the way this transformation of his stories and memories into a memoir &#8220;puts things into perspective&#8221; as he looks back on his 95 years of life.<\/p>\n<p>For Daniel&#8217;s and Julie&#8217;s parts, the memoir-writing process can vary quite a bit, and be a huge responsibility. The interviewing, recording, and researching processes, which Daniel is taking on for Stan&#8217;s memoir, are intensive, just to be able to get to the point where the actual writing can begin. From there, the writing process, which Daniel is also helming for this project, involves regular consultation with the client. This ensures that the stories included in the manuscript are relevant, written authentically, and in a voice that resembles the client\u2019s. Feedback from clients often includes corrections and input on the specific wording and definitions of technical terminology relevant to their careers and passions. This input can be crucial if Daniel and Julie (or any ghost writer, for that matter) don\u2019t have as much inherent knowledge about these specialized subjects, like athletics or the military, for example. Though this hasn\u2019t necessarily happened with Stan, Daniel recalls times when his personal writing sensibilities have disagreed with those of his client, and he has had to make the respectful decision of an employee, step back, and let the client take the lead on their project.<\/p>\n<\/div><\/section><br \/>\n\n<style type=\"text\/css\" data-created_by=\"avia_inline_auto\" id=\"style-css-av-len1ptw5-8a02bc82c980bdbc214fb3488e0451fc\">\n#top .av_textblock_section.av-len1ptw5-8a02bc82c980bdbc214fb3488e0451fc .avia_textblock{\nfont-size:26px;\n}\n<\/style>\n<section  class='av_textblock_section av-len1ptw5-8a02bc82c980bdbc214fb3488e0451fc '   itemscope=\"itemscope\" itemtype=\"https:\/\/schema.org\/BlogPosting\" itemprop=\"blogPost\" ><div class='avia_textblock rising-quote av_inherit_color'  itemprop=\"text\" ><blockquote>\n<p class=\"dig-4\" style=\"text-align: left\"><em>&#8220;You have to almost live the person\u2019s life over again.&#8221;<\/em><\/p>\n<p class=\"pop-8\" style=\"font-size: 0.6em;text-align: right\">\u2013 Daniel Alrick<\/p>\n<\/blockquote>\n<\/div><\/section><br \/>\n\n<style type=\"text\/css\" data-created_by=\"avia_inline_auto\" id=\"style-css-av-len1smj5-0eb4f2b09833862cf03b2c700a0dd3c7\">\n#top .av_textblock_section.av-len1smj5-0eb4f2b09833862cf03b2c700a0dd3c7 .avia_textblock{\nfont-size:15px;\n}\n<\/style>\n<section  class='av_textblock_section av-len1smj5-0eb4f2b09833862cf03b2c700a0dd3c7 '   itemscope=\"itemscope\" itemtype=\"https:\/\/schema.org\/BlogPosting\" itemprop=\"blogPost\" ><div class='avia_textblock'  itemprop=\"text\" ><p>Meanwhile, Julie works on the formatting, design, and publishing aspects of the writing process. She describes herself as the &#8220;editor\/project manager\/layout designer,&#8221; and works from a book design plan that she puts together, which then evolves to include details like page number, typeface, margin size, etc. This also encompasses curating, restoring, and appropriately placing photographs within the manuscript, as directed by clients and their families. However, she notes that to avoid messy, last-minute changes, she waits to begin the book layout until the story is finished. Near this point in the process, the story is reviewed for overarching themes so that a book title can be developed, if a client doesn&#8217;t already have their title in mind. Then, Julie will submit this one last draft for client feedback before sending it in for publishing. Altogether it\u2019s an extensive process: &#8220;it&#8217;s literally months and months of time and effort.&#8221;<\/p>\n<p>The hardest part of the memoir-writing process for Julie is getting the first draft completed, when the project is still in the early stages and feels daunting. From his viewpoint as someone who works more closely with clients, Daniel pinpoints the toughest part of this writing process as being the &#8220;tremendous responsibility&#8221; of encapsulating a client&#8217;s life. However, both writers see the even greater value of writing in this genre. &#8220;Being able to tell someone&#8217;s story as a good one [is] extremely rewarding\u2026 their stories have gotten down in their lifetime, whether or not they live to see the final product,&#8221; says Daniel. Julie describes the sense of completion\u2014even if it isn&#8217;t her own story that she has finished\u2014as being the most rewarding part of the process, especially when she gets to see the delighted faces of her clients and their families.<\/p>\n<\/div><\/section><br \/>\n\n<style type=\"text\/css\" data-created_by=\"avia_inline_auto\" id=\"style-css-av-13r14pf-d80ae5dd2153201ce4ecabd8752b6a84\">\n.avia-image-container.av-13r14pf-d80ae5dd2153201ce4ecabd8752b6a84 img.avia_image{\nbox-shadow:none;\n}\n.avia-image-container.av-13r14pf-d80ae5dd2153201ce4ecabd8752b6a84 .av-image-caption-overlay-center{\ncolor:#ffffff;\n}\n<\/style>\n<div  class='avia-image-container av-13r14pf-d80ae5dd2153201ce4ecabd8752b6a84 av-styling-no-styling avia-align-  avia-builder-el-24  el_after_av_textblock  el_before_av_textblock  pop-20'   itemprop=\"image\" itemscope=\"itemscope\" itemtype=\"https:\/\/schema.org\/ImageObject\" ><div class=\"avia-image-container-inner\"><div class=\"avia-image-overlay-wrap\"><picture><source srcset=\"https:\/\/sou.edu\/academics\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/14\/2023\/02\/SOU-Blog-English-Majors-in-Action-Third-Photo.webp 1200w,https:\/\/sou.edu\/academics\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/14\/2023\/02\/SOU-Blog-English-Majors-in-Action-Third-Photo-300x150.webp 300w,https:\/\/sou.edu\/academics\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/14\/2023\/02\/SOU-Blog-English-Majors-in-Action-Third-Photo-1030x515.webp 1030w,https:\/\/sou.edu\/academics\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/14\/2023\/02\/SOU-Blog-English-Majors-in-Action-Third-Photo-768x384.webp 768w,https:\/\/sou.edu\/academics\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/14\/2023\/02\/SOU-Blog-English-Majors-in-Action-Third-Photo-705x353.webp 705w\" sizes=\"(max-width: 1200px) 100vw, 1200px\" type=\"image\/webp\"><img src=\"https:\/\/sou.edu\/academics\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/14\/2023\/02\/SOU-Blog-English-Majors-in-Action-Third-Photo.jpg\" height=\"600\" width=\"1200\" srcset=\"https:\/\/sou.edu\/academics\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/14\/2023\/02\/SOU-Blog-English-Majors-in-Action-Third-Photo.jpg 1200w, https:\/\/sou.edu\/academics\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/14\/2023\/02\/SOU-Blog-English-Majors-in-Action-Third-Photo-300x150.jpg 300w, https:\/\/sou.edu\/academics\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/14\/2023\/02\/SOU-Blog-English-Majors-in-Action-Third-Photo-1030x515.jpg 1030w, https:\/\/sou.edu\/academics\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/14\/2023\/02\/SOU-Blog-English-Majors-in-Action-Third-Photo-768x384.jpg 768w, https:\/\/sou.edu\/academics\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/14\/2023\/02\/SOU-Blog-English-Majors-in-Action-Third-Photo-705x353.jpg 705w\" sizes=\"(max-width: 1200px) 100vw, 1200px\" class=\"wp-image-83254 avia-img-lazy-loading-not-83254 avia_image  sp-no-webp\" alt=\"SOU Blog English Majors in Action Third Photo\" decoding=\"async\" fetchpriority=\"high\" itemprop=\"thumbnailUrl\"  > <\/picture><\/div><\/div><\/div><br \/>\n\n<style type=\"text\/css\" data-created_by=\"avia_inline_auto\" id=\"style-css-av-len1th2j-be0bd7db4db2a4654021ccebc407f7f8\">\n#top .av_textblock_section.av-len1th2j-be0bd7db4db2a4654021ccebc407f7f8 .avia_textblock{\nfont-size:12px;\n}\n<\/style>\n<section  class='av_textblock_section av-len1th2j-be0bd7db4db2a4654021ccebc407f7f8 '   itemscope=\"itemscope\" itemtype=\"https:\/\/schema.org\/BlogPosting\" itemprop=\"blogPost\" ><div class='avia_textblock'  itemprop=\"text\" ><p><em>Pictured above: Julie Kanta. Photo from the Plumb Creative website. <\/em><\/p>\n<\/div><\/section><br \/>\n\n<style type=\"text\/css\" data-created_by=\"avia_inline_auto\" id=\"style-css-av-t57ugj-0160d2f3120848df84bd37b5b03da540\">\n#top .av_textblock_section.av-t57ugj-0160d2f3120848df84bd37b5b03da540 .avia_textblock{\nfont-size:15px;\n}\n<\/style>\n<section  class='av_textblock_section av-t57ugj-0160d2f3120848df84bd37b5b03da540 '   itemscope=\"itemscope\" itemtype=\"https:\/\/schema.org\/BlogPosting\" itemprop=\"blogPost\" ><div class='avia_textblock'  itemprop=\"text\" ><p>Of course, the practice of memoir-writing is extremely important beyond these warm and fuzzy feelings. In addition to feeling like he is writing something for the posterity of his clients&#8217; families, Daniel mentions the sense of his ghostwriting taking on a greater historical significance, especially as many of his clients have been senior citizens who lived through important world events: &#8220;And [clients&#8217;] formative years and their life experiences in pursuing their respective marriages and careers\u2026 is something that will not recur in the same way again. So in that sense it&#8217;s important to gain perspective on what was the continuum of a life lived.&#8221;<\/p>\n<p>Certainly Stan sees the writing of his memoir in the same way. Part of his conviction in wanting to write and publish his life stories was initially to document and preserve his historical experiences, especially the Cuban missile crisis, which he playfully nicknames &#8220;the little fuss we had down there.&#8221; According to Stan, he happened to be &#8220;the ranking guy on alert&#8221; during a chapter of the Crisis, which overlapped with his time serving in the military. So, from the beginning, &#8220;a big part&#8221; of his memoir is to preserve a piece of history.<\/p>\n<p>However, that&#8217;s not the only significance that Stan has derived from the writing of his memoir. One of his biggest takeaways from this process was recognizing in hindsight how supportive his family has been to him throughout his life, while he was largely focused on his career. He noticed this especially when it came to his wife Nellie, who passed away recently. Stan says that while he was serving in the military, getting his master\u2019s degree, and teaching night school, Nellie was dedicated, driven, and a source of strength for both him and their children. He admits he had always known and been grateful for his wife&#8217;s help, but it had never hit him just how much she had given over the years to raise their children and support his passions, before the kids went off to college and she began her own career as a social worker for the Red Cross. It has been these kinds of perspective shifts that Stan has especially treasured, that only came to him through the memoir-writing process.<\/p>\n<\/div><\/section><br \/>\n\n<style type=\"text\/css\" data-created_by=\"avia_inline_auto\" id=\"style-css-av-11tyuj7-d8add77fe1964215f2276e1d82b7394b\">\n.avia-image-container.av-11tyuj7-d8add77fe1964215f2276e1d82b7394b img.avia_image{\nbox-shadow:none;\n}\n.avia-image-container.av-11tyuj7-d8add77fe1964215f2276e1d82b7394b .av-image-caption-overlay-center{\ncolor:#ffffff;\n}\n<\/style>\n<div  class='avia-image-container av-11tyuj7-d8add77fe1964215f2276e1d82b7394b av-styling-no-styling avia-align-  avia-builder-el-27  el_after_av_textblock  el_before_av_textblock  pop-20'   itemprop=\"image\" itemscope=\"itemscope\" itemtype=\"https:\/\/schema.org\/ImageObject\" ><div class=\"avia-image-container-inner\"><div class=\"avia-image-overlay-wrap\"><picture><source srcset=\"https:\/\/sou.edu\/academics\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/14\/2023\/02\/SOU-Blog-English-Majors-in-Action-Fourth-Photo.webp 1200w,https:\/\/sou.edu\/academics\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/14\/2023\/02\/SOU-Blog-English-Majors-in-Action-Fourth-Photo-300x150.webp 300w,https:\/\/sou.edu\/academics\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/14\/2023\/02\/SOU-Blog-English-Majors-in-Action-Fourth-Photo-1030x515.webp 1030w,https:\/\/sou.edu\/academics\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/14\/2023\/02\/SOU-Blog-English-Majors-in-Action-Fourth-Photo-768x384.webp 768w,https:\/\/sou.edu\/academics\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/14\/2023\/02\/SOU-Blog-English-Majors-in-Action-Fourth-Photo-705x353.webp 705w\" sizes=\"(max-width: 1200px) 100vw, 1200px\" type=\"image\/webp\"><img src=\"https:\/\/sou.edu\/academics\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/14\/2023\/02\/SOU-Blog-English-Majors-in-Action-Fourth-Photo.jpg\" height=\"600\" width=\"1200\" srcset=\"https:\/\/sou.edu\/academics\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/14\/2023\/02\/SOU-Blog-English-Majors-in-Action-Fourth-Photo.jpg 1200w, https:\/\/sou.edu\/academics\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/14\/2023\/02\/SOU-Blog-English-Majors-in-Action-Fourth-Photo-300x150.jpg 300w, https:\/\/sou.edu\/academics\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/14\/2023\/02\/SOU-Blog-English-Majors-in-Action-Fourth-Photo-1030x515.jpg 1030w, https:\/\/sou.edu\/academics\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/14\/2023\/02\/SOU-Blog-English-Majors-in-Action-Fourth-Photo-768x384.jpg 768w, https:\/\/sou.edu\/academics\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/14\/2023\/02\/SOU-Blog-English-Majors-in-Action-Fourth-Photo-705x353.jpg 705w\" sizes=\"(max-width: 1200px) 100vw, 1200px\" class=\"wp-image-83258 avia-img-lazy-loading-not-83258 avia_image  sp-no-webp\" alt=\"SOU Blog English Majors in Action Fourth Photo\" decoding=\"async\" fetchpriority=\"high\" itemprop=\"thumbnailUrl\"  > <\/picture><\/div><\/div><\/div><br \/>\n\n<style type=\"text\/css\" data-created_by=\"avia_inline_auto\" id=\"style-css-av-len1ut46-5a9fde2ce718a1887b89aa05a5234e05\">\n#top .av_textblock_section.av-len1ut46-5a9fde2ce718a1887b89aa05a5234e05 .avia_textblock{\nfont-size:12px;\n}\n<\/style>\n<section  class='av_textblock_section av-len1ut46-5a9fde2ce718a1887b89aa05a5234e05 '   itemscope=\"itemscope\" itemtype=\"https:\/\/schema.org\/BlogPosting\" itemprop=\"blogPost\" ><div class='avia_textblock'  itemprop=\"text\" ><p><em>Pictured above: Stan Luther looking at his wall of awards and mementos.<\/em><\/p>\n<\/div><\/section><br \/>\n\n<style type=\"text\/css\" data-created_by=\"avia_inline_auto\" id=\"style-css-av-rpauib-ad6fe9adedec5c706488843bcb0ee16e\">\n#top .av_textblock_section.av-rpauib-ad6fe9adedec5c706488843bcb0ee16e .avia_textblock{\nfont-size:15px;\n}\n<\/style>\n<section  class='av_textblock_section av-rpauib-ad6fe9adedec5c706488843bcb0ee16e '   itemscope=\"itemscope\" itemtype=\"https:\/\/schema.org\/BlogPosting\" itemprop=\"blogPost\" ><div class='avia_textblock'  itemprop=\"text\" ><p>After several months of work <em>A Life in the Atmosphere: A Memoir of Flight<\/em>, <a href=\"https:\/\/plumbcreative.com\/stories\/2023\/a-lifetime-in-the-atmosphere-a-memoir-of-flight\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">is available for purchase<\/a>. Daniel Alrick and Julie Kanta have worked incredibly hard to complete this project and their efforts have paid off. Stan feels proud of the work accomplished and is excited for his story to be shared in hopes of inspiring others.<\/p>\n<p>When asked to reflect on her perceived importance of memoir as a genre, Julie reflects on her own desire to live a &#8220;memorable&#8221; life. This universal hope can make people feel small when they don&#8217;t get the chance or courage to be able to preserve their stories in the way that a memoir can. But the power of preservation can make a person and their life feel valuable again. Julie recalls the writing process of <em>American Ice Cream<\/em>, and her mother&#8217;s incredulity at the fact that someone wanted to write her life stories. However, Julie doesn&#8217;t view her mother&#8217;s life as less valuable just because she &#8220;didn&#8217;t have a spectacular job or change the world.&#8221; Her interesting stories are meaningful, and deserve to be passed on. If for no other reason, &#8220;because then we know her better.&#8221; It is this same philosophy that Julie and Daniel offer and apply to all of the clients that are so lucky to work with them in the preservation of their memories.<\/p>\n<\/div><\/section><br \/>\n\n<style type=\"text\/css\" data-created_by=\"avia_inline_auto\" id=\"style-css-av-len20lic-c7fe5d8bd89faa89aa9f5a3fefda60b4\">\n#top .av_textblock_section.av-len20lic-c7fe5d8bd89faa89aa9f5a3fefda60b4 .avia_textblock{\nfont-size:26px;\n}\n<\/style>\n<section  class='av_textblock_section av-len20lic-c7fe5d8bd89faa89aa9f5a3fefda60b4 '   itemscope=\"itemscope\" itemtype=\"https:\/\/schema.org\/BlogPosting\" itemprop=\"blogPost\" ><div class='avia_textblock rising-quote av_inherit_color'  itemprop=\"text\" ><blockquote>\n<p class=\"dig-4\" style=\"text-align: left\"><em>&#8220;I don&#8217;t think that anyone has a boring story, right? Everyone has something in their lives that is worth sharing with people&#8230;.I like to make people feel like their story is worth telling.&#8221;<\/em><\/p>\n<p class=\"pop-8\" style=\"font-size: 0.6em;text-align: right\">\u2013 Julie Kanta<\/p>\n<\/blockquote>\n<\/div><\/section><br \/>\n\n<style type=\"text\/css\" data-created_by=\"avia_inline_auto\" id=\"style-css-av-3anz7zn-7789578bad1f257781c8d1172e95617d\">\n#top .av_textblock_section.av-3anz7zn-7789578bad1f257781c8d1172e95617d .avia_textblock{\nfont-size:15px;\n}\n<\/style>\n<section  class='av_textblock_section av-3anz7zn-7789578bad1f257781c8d1172e95617d '   itemscope=\"itemscope\" itemtype=\"https:\/\/schema.org\/BlogPosting\" itemprop=\"blogPost\" ><div class='avia_textblock'  itemprop=\"text\" ><p>If you\u2019re interested in getting into the memoir-writing industry, Daniel and Julie have a few pieces of advice. They say to start spending some time trying to write your own stories, while considering <em>which<\/em> life stories you\u2019re choosing to highlight, and <em>how<\/em> and <em>why<\/em> you\u2019re choosing to tell them. From there, you can try your hand at taking oral histories and writing short memoir pieces for close friends or family, with whom you have an established, trusting relationship. That way, you will get more experience in writing and collaborating with a client, while also getting a feel for how to tell other people&#8217;s stories and help them find their written voice. With an understanding of storytelling as an art, and practice capturing someone else&#8217;s authentic voice and experience, you&#8217;ll be on your way to writing memoirs professionally.<\/p>\n<hr class=\"top-30\" \/>\n<p>Blogging for the English Program is another great way to expand your resume; it is a content-management and content-strategist position that exercises writing skills.<\/p>\n<p>If you&#8217;re interested in building your content-management and content-strategist skills by blogging for the English Program next year, contact Margaret Perrow.<\/p>\n<p>Interested in being featured on the English Program blog? Or know someone who is interested? Contact English Program blogger Jewel Blanchard at <a href=\"mailto:blancharj@sou.edu\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">blancharj@sou.edu<\/a>.<\/p>\n<p><span class=\"heavy=man\">Learn more about SOU&#8217;s English Programs:<\/span><br \/>\n<a href=\"https:\/\/sou.edu\/academics\/english\/\">English Home Page<\/a> | <a href=\"https:\/\/sou.edu\/academics\/english\/programs\/english-ba\/\">English BA\/BS<\/a> | <a href=\"https:\/\/sou.edu\/academics\/english\/programs\/english-minor\/\">English Minor<\/a> | <a href=\"https:\/\/sou.edu\/academics\/english\/programs\/teaching-english-to-speakers-of-other-languages\/\">TESOL Certificate Program<\/a><\/p>\n<\/div><\/section><br \/>\n\n<style type=\"text\/css\" data-created_by=\"avia_inline_auto\" id=\"style-css-av-2tdvdzn-5e1dd3a1a2e856b9eb3661ed934fba9c\">\n#top .hr.av-2tdvdzn-5e1dd3a1a2e856b9eb3661ed934fba9c{\nmargin-top:0;\nmargin-bottom:20px;\n}\n.hr.av-2tdvdzn-5e1dd3a1a2e856b9eb3661ed934fba9c .hr-inner{\nwidth:50;\n}\n<\/style>\n<div  class='hr av-2tdvdzn-5e1dd3a1a2e856b9eb3661ed934fba9c hr-custom  avia-builder-el-32  el_after_av_textblock  el_before_av_heading  hr-center hr-icon-no'><span class='hr-inner inner-border-av-border-thin'><span class=\"hr-inner-style\"><\/span><\/span><\/div><br \/>\n\n<style type=\"text\/css\" data-created_by=\"avia_inline_auto\" id=\"style-css-av-2gryidv-12b6b26d6fd199a2745c3510a7eabfe5\">\n#top .av-special-heading.av-2gryidv-12b6b26d6fd199a2745c3510a7eabfe5{\npadding-bottom:20px;\nfont-size:24px;\n}\nbody .av-special-heading.av-2gryidv-12b6b26d6fd199a2745c3510a7eabfe5 .av-special-heading-tag .heading-char{\nfont-size:25px;\n}\n#top #wrap_all .av-special-heading.av-2gryidv-12b6b26d6fd199a2745c3510a7eabfe5 .av-special-heading-tag{\nfont-size:24px;\n}\n.av-special-heading.av-2gryidv-12b6b26d6fd199a2745c3510a7eabfe5 .av-subheading{\nfont-size:15px;\n}\n\n@media only screen and (min-width: 480px) and (max-width: 767px){ \n#top #wrap_all .av-special-heading.av-2gryidv-12b6b26d6fd199a2745c3510a7eabfe5 .av-special-heading-tag{\nfont-size:0.8em;\n}\n}\n\n@media only screen and (max-width: 479px){ \n#top #wrap_all .av-special-heading.av-2gryidv-12b6b26d6fd199a2745c3510a7eabfe5 .av-special-heading-tag{\nfont-size:0.8em;\n}\n}\n<\/style>\n<div  class='av-special-heading av-2gryidv-12b6b26d6fd199a2745c3510a7eabfe5 av-special-heading-h2 blockquote modern-quote modern-centered  avia-builder-el-33  el_after_av_hr  el_before_av_button  av-inherit-size'><h2 class='av-special-heading-tag '  itemprop=\"headline\"  >Get notified when new English stories are published!<\/h2><div class=\"special-heading-border\"><div class=\"special-heading-inner-border\"><\/div><\/div><\/div><br \/>\n<div  class='avia-button-wrap av-22hwuoj-0a50965bab18922a1ae5ac885e7a6c48-wrap avia-button-center  avia-builder-el-34  el_after_av_heading  el_before_av_hr '><a href='https:\/\/docs.google.com\/forms\/d\/e\/1FAIpQLSdB-YJRDHj3QYJJkUw4TuSh2eYZGSXo7GW60qGcOGUj2wLAWw\/viewform?vc=0&amp;c=0&amp;w=1&amp;flr=0'  class='avia-button av-22hwuoj-0a50965bab18922a1ae5ac885e7a6c48 av-link-btn avia-icon_select-no avia-size-large avia-position-center avia-color-theme-color'  target=\"_blank\"  rel=\"noopener noreferrer\"  aria-label=\"SUBSCRIBE HERE\"><span class='avia_iconbox_title' >SUBSCRIBE HERE<\/span><\/a><\/div><br \/>\n\n<style type=\"text\/css\" data-created_by=\"avia_inline_auto\" id=\"style-css-av-61f577-776bffce2d3a264bea427a5bef6477d8\">\n#top .hr.av-61f577-776bffce2d3a264bea427a5bef6477d8{\nmargin-top:20px;\nmargin-bottom:0;\n}\n.hr.av-61f577-776bffce2d3a264bea427a5bef6477d8 .hr-inner{\nwidth:50;\n}\n<\/style>\n<div  class='hr av-61f577-776bffce2d3a264bea427a5bef6477d8 hr-custom  avia-builder-el-35  el_after_av_button  el_before_av_social_share  hr-center hr-icon-no'><span class='hr-inner inner-border-av-border-thin'><span class=\"hr-inner-style\"><\/span><\/span><\/div><br \/>\n<div  class='av-social-sharing-box av-14ux68j-f970989866178759629405fa167568f4 av-social-sharing-box-default  avia-builder-el-36  el_after_av_hr  avia-builder-el-last  av-social-sharing-box-fullwidth'><div class=\"av-share-box\"><h5 class='av-share-link-description av-no-toc '>Share this Story<\/h5><ul class=\"av-share-box-list noLightbox\"><li class='av-share-link av-social-link-facebook' ><a target=\"_blank\" aria-label=\"Share on Facebook\" href='https:\/\/www.facebook.com\/sharer.php?u=https:\/\/sou.edu\/academics\/english-majors-in-action-community-memoir-writing\/&#038;t=English%20Majors%20in%20Action%3A%20Community%20Memoir%20Writing' aria-hidden='false' data-av_icon='\ue8f3' data-av_iconfont='entypo-fontello' title='' data-avia-related-tooltip='Share on Facebook'><span class='avia_hidden_link_text'>Share on Facebook<\/span><\/a><\/li><li class='av-share-link av-social-link-twitter' ><a target=\"_blank\" aria-label=\"Share on X\" href='https:\/\/twitter.com\/share?text=English%20Majors%20in%20Action%3A%20Community%20Memoir%20Writing&#038;url=https:\/\/sou.edu\/academics\/?p=83251' aria-hidden='false' data-av_icon='\ue932' data-av_iconfont='entypo-fontello' title='' data-avia-related-tooltip='Share on X'><span class='avia_hidden_link_text'>Share on X<\/span><\/a><\/li><li class='av-share-link av-social-link-linkedin' ><a target=\"_blank\" aria-label=\"Share on LinkedIn\" href='https:\/\/linkedin.com\/shareArticle?mini=true&#038;title=English%20Majors%20in%20Action%3A%20Community%20Memoir%20Writing&#038;url=https:\/\/sou.edu\/academics\/english-majors-in-action-community-memoir-writing\/' aria-hidden='false' data-av_icon='\ue8fc' data-av_iconfont='entypo-fontello' title='' data-avia-related-tooltip='Share on LinkedIn'><span class='avia_hidden_link_text'>Share on LinkedIn<\/span><\/a><\/li><li class='av-share-link av-social-link-mail' ><a  aria-label=\"Share by Mail\" href='mailto:?subject=English%20Majors%20in%20Action%3A%20Community%20Memoir%20Writing&#038;body=https:\/\/sou.edu\/academics\/english-majors-in-action-community-memoir-writing\/' aria-hidden='false' data-av_icon='\ue805' data-av_iconfont='entypo-fontello' title='' data-avia-related-tooltip='Share by Mail'><span class='avia_hidden_link_text'>Share by Mail<\/span><\/a><\/li><\/ul><\/div><\/div><\/p><\/div>\n<style type=\"text\/css\" data-created_by=\"avia_inline_auto\" id=\"style-css-av-s75unn-02a48f2c1035858473458a20a5a08a78\">\n.flex_column.av-s75unn-02a48f2c1035858473458a20a5a08a78{\nborder-radius:0px 0px 0px 0px;\npadding:0px 0px 0px 0px;\n}\n<\/style>\n<div  class='flex_column av-s75unn-02a48f2c1035858473458a20a5a08a78 av_one_fifth  avia-builder-el-37  el_after_av_three_fifth  avia-builder-el-last  flex_column_div av-zero-column-padding  '     ><\/div>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p style=\"font-size:13px\" class=\"pop-4 heavy-man\">By Jewel Blanchard, senior English major<\/p>\n<p class=\"pop-0\">Two 2014 SOU English \/ Professional Writing alumni have written several memoirs in their careers, and are currently collaborating on a memoir for a World War II veteran in Medford. They discuss their process, what it\u2019s like to write for memoir clients, and the importance of memoir as a genre.<\/p>\n<div class=\"avia-button-wrap avia-button-left\"><a class=\"avia-button avia-color-dark avia-size-large avia-position-left \" href=\"\/academics\/english-majors-in-action-community-memoir-writing\/\" aria-label=\"Read more about this story here.\">READ MORE<\/a><\/div>\n","protected":false},"author":14,"featured_media":83259,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"aside","meta":{"_acf_changed":false,"footnotes":""},"categories":[296,284],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-83251","post","type-post","status-publish","format-aside","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-english","category-featured","post_format-post-format-aside"],"yoast_head":"<!-- This site is optimized with the Yoast SEO Premium plugin v26.0 (Yoast SEO v26.0) - https:\/\/yoast.com\/wordpress\/plugins\/seo\/ -->\n<title>SOU English Majors in Action: Community Memoir Writing<\/title>\n<meta name=\"description\" content=\"Two 2014 SOU English \/ Professional Writing alumni have written several memoirs in their careers, and are currently collaborating on a WW2...\" \/>\n<meta name=\"robots\" content=\"index, follow, max-snippet:-1, max-image-preview:large, max-video-preview:-1\" \/>\n<link rel=\"canonical\" href=\"https:\/\/sou.edu\/academics\/english-majors-in-action-community-memoir-writing\/\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:locale\" content=\"en_US\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:type\" content=\"article\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:title\" content=\"English Majors in Action: Community Memoir Writing - SOU Academic Programs\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:description\" content=\"Two 2014 SOU English \/ Professional Writing alumni have written several memoirs in their careers, and are currently collaborating on a memoir for a World War II veteran in Medford. They discuss their process, what it\u2019s like to write for memoir clients, and the importance of memoir as a genre.\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:url\" content=\"https:\/\/sou.edu\/academics\/english-majors-in-action-community-memoir-writing\/\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:site_name\" content=\"SOU Academic Programs\" \/>\n<meta property=\"article:publisher\" content=\"https:\/\/www.facebook.com\/SOUAshland\/\" \/>\n<meta property=\"article:published_time\" content=\"2023-02-27T17:20:52+00:00\" \/>\n<meta property=\"article:modified_time\" content=\"2024-01-25T17:54:13+00:00\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:image\" content=\"https:\/\/sou.edu\/academics\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/14\/2023\/02\/SOU-Blog-English-Majors-in-Action-on-Facebook.jpg\" \/>\n\t<meta property=\"og:image:width\" content=\"1200\" \/>\n\t<meta property=\"og:image:height\" content=\"630\" \/>\n\t<meta property=\"og:image:type\" content=\"image\/jpeg\" \/>\n<meta name=\"author\" content=\"Sean Glassford\" \/>\n<meta name=\"twitter:card\" content=\"summary_large_image\" \/>\n<meta name=\"twitter:title\" content=\"English Majors in Action: Community Memoir Writing - SOU Academic Programs\" \/>\n<meta name=\"twitter:description\" content=\"Two 2014 SOU English \/ Professional Writing alumni have written several memoirs in their careers, and are currently collaborating on a memoir for a World War II veteran in Medford. They discuss their process, what it\u2019s like to write for memoir clients, and the importance of memoir as a genre.\" \/>\n<meta name=\"twitter:image\" content=\"https:\/\/sou.edu\/academics\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/14\/2023\/02\/SOU-Blog-English-Majors-in-Action-on-Twitter.jpg\" \/>\n<meta name=\"twitter:creator\" content=\"@souashland\" \/>\n<meta name=\"twitter:site\" content=\"@souashland\" \/>\n<meta name=\"twitter:label1\" content=\"Written by\" \/>\n\t<meta name=\"twitter:data1\" content=\"Sean Glassford\" \/>\n\t<meta name=\"twitter:label2\" content=\"Est. reading time\" \/>\n\t<meta name=\"twitter:data2\" content=\"13 minutes\" \/>\n<script type=\"application\/ld+json\" class=\"yoast-schema-graph\">{\"@context\":\"https:\/\/schema.org\",\"@graph\":[{\"@type\":[\"Article\",\"BlogPosting\"],\"@id\":\"https:\/\/sou.edu\/academics\/english-majors-in-action-community-memoir-writing\/#article\",\"isPartOf\":{\"@id\":\"https:\/\/sou.edu\/academics\/english-majors-in-action-community-memoir-writing\/\"},\"author\":{\"name\":\"Sean Glassford\",\"@id\":\"https:\/\/sou.edu\/academics\/#\/schema\/person\/d63857b3b310cf49180208a32b86d2bc\"},\"headline\":\"English Majors in Action: Community Memoir Writing\",\"datePublished\":\"2023-02-27T17:20:52+00:00\",\"dateModified\":\"2024-01-25T17:54:13+00:00\",\"mainEntityOfPage\":{\"@id\":\"https:\/\/sou.edu\/academics\/english-majors-in-action-community-memoir-writing\/\"},\"wordCount\":5626,\"publisher\":{\"@id\":\"https:\/\/sou.edu\/academics\/#organization\"},\"image\":{\"@id\":\"https:\/\/sou.edu\/academics\/english-majors-in-action-community-memoir-writing\/#primaryimage\"},\"thumbnailUrl\":\"https:\/\/sou.edu\/academics\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/14\/2023\/02\/ROU-Blog-English-Majors-in-Action-Blog-Roll-Photo.jpg\",\"articleSection\":[\"English\",\"Featured\"],\"inLanguage\":\"en-US\"},{\"@type\":\"WebPage\",\"@id\":\"https:\/\/sou.edu\/academics\/english-majors-in-action-community-memoir-writing\/\",\"url\":\"https:\/\/sou.edu\/academics\/english-majors-in-action-community-memoir-writing\/\",\"name\":\"SOU English Majors in Action: Community Memoir Writing\",\"isPartOf\":{\"@id\":\"https:\/\/sou.edu\/academics\/#website\"},\"primaryImageOfPage\":{\"@id\":\"https:\/\/sou.edu\/academics\/english-majors-in-action-community-memoir-writing\/#primaryimage\"},\"image\":{\"@id\":\"https:\/\/sou.edu\/academics\/english-majors-in-action-community-memoir-writing\/#primaryimage\"},\"thumbnailUrl\":\"https:\/\/sou.edu\/academics\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/14\/2023\/02\/ROU-Blog-English-Majors-in-Action-Blog-Roll-Photo.jpg\",\"datePublished\":\"2023-02-27T17:20:52+00:00\",\"dateModified\":\"2024-01-25T17:54:13+00:00\",\"description\":\"Two 2014 SOU English \/ Professional Writing alumni have written several memoirs in their careers, and are currently collaborating on a WW2...\",\"breadcrumb\":{\"@id\":\"https:\/\/sou.edu\/academics\/english-majors-in-action-community-memoir-writing\/#breadcrumb\"},\"inLanguage\":\"en-US\",\"potentialAction\":[{\"@type\":\"ReadAction\",\"target\":[\"https:\/\/sou.edu\/academics\/english-majors-in-action-community-memoir-writing\/\"]}]},{\"@type\":\"ImageObject\",\"inLanguage\":\"en-US\",\"@id\":\"https:\/\/sou.edu\/academics\/english-majors-in-action-community-memoir-writing\/#primaryimage\",\"url\":\"https:\/\/sou.edu\/academics\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/14\/2023\/02\/ROU-Blog-English-Majors-in-Action-Blog-Roll-Photo.jpg\",\"contentUrl\":\"https:\/\/sou.edu\/academics\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/14\/2023\/02\/ROU-Blog-English-Majors-in-Action-Blog-Roll-Photo.jpg\",\"width\":1200,\"height\":600,\"caption\":\"SOU Blog English Majors in Action Blog Roll Photo\"},{\"@type\":\"BreadcrumbList\",\"@id\":\"https:\/\/sou.edu\/academics\/english-majors-in-action-community-memoir-writing\/#breadcrumb\",\"itemListElement\":[{\"@type\":\"ListItem\",\"position\":1,\"name\":\"Home\",\"item\":\"https:\/\/sou.edu\/academics\/\"},{\"@type\":\"ListItem\",\"position\":2,\"name\":\"English Majors in Action: Community Memoir Writing\"}]},{\"@type\":\"WebSite\",\"@id\":\"https:\/\/sou.edu\/academics\/#website\",\"url\":\"https:\/\/sou.edu\/academics\/\",\"name\":\"Southern Oregon University Academic Programs\",\"description\":\"SOU Academic Programs\",\"publisher\":{\"@id\":\"https:\/\/sou.edu\/academics\/#organization\"},\"alternateName\":\"SOU Academic Degree Programs\",\"potentialAction\":[{\"@type\":\"SearchAction\",\"target\":{\"@type\":\"EntryPoint\",\"urlTemplate\":\"https:\/\/sou.edu\/academics\/?s={search_term_string}\"},\"query-input\":{\"@type\":\"PropertyValueSpecification\",\"valueRequired\":true,\"valueName\":\"search_term_string\"}}],\"inLanguage\":\"en-US\"},{\"@type\":\"Organization\",\"@id\":\"https:\/\/sou.edu\/academics\/#organization\",\"name\":\"Southern Oregon University\",\"alternateName\":\"SOU Ashland\",\"url\":\"https:\/\/sou.edu\/academics\/\",\"logo\":{\"@type\":\"ImageObject\",\"inLanguage\":\"en-US\",\"@id\":\"https:\/\/sou.edu\/academics\/#\/schema\/logo\/image\/\",\"url\":\"https:\/\/sou.edu\/academics\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/14\/2025\/04\/SOU-LOGO-HZ-CMY-POS-scaled-1.jpg\",\"contentUrl\":\"https:\/\/sou.edu\/academics\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/14\/2025\/04\/SOU-LOGO-HZ-CMY-POS-scaled-1.jpg\",\"width\":2560,\"height\":621,\"caption\":\"Southern Oregon University\"},\"image\":{\"@id\":\"https:\/\/sou.edu\/academics\/#\/schema\/logo\/image\/\"},\"sameAs\":[\"https:\/\/www.facebook.com\/SOUAshland\/\",\"https:\/\/x.com\/souashland\",\"https:\/\/www.instagram.com\/souashland\/\",\"https:\/\/www.linkedin.com\/school\/southern-oregon-university\/\",\"https:\/\/www.youtube.com\/user\/SouthernOregonUniv\"],\"description\":\"Southern Oregon University - SOU - is a Liberal Arts University in Ashland, Oregon. Serving the Southern Oregon and Northern California regions, SOU provides offers many higher education degree pathways, including: Major degree Undergraduate programs, Masters degree Graduate programs, Minor degrees, Certificate programs, and Micro-credential pathways. Southern Oregon University also provides Summer Youth Programs for students in the region from K-12, as well as continuing education programs through the Osher Lifelong Learning Institute (OLLI). Southern Oregon University welcomes students from abroad through SOU's International Programs, which also provides current SOU students opportunities to study away across the country and internationally through a multitude of partner universities. The beautiful SOU campus, nestled in the hills of Ashland, OR welcomes the surrounding community to come and enjoy many hosted events, including: sporting events at the SOU Raider Stadium and Lithia Motors Pavilion, theater performances hosted by the SOU Theatre program , musical performances at the SOU Musical Recital Hall, and art exhibitions at the Schneider Museum of Art and other campus art galleries. Southern Oregon University has many specialized programs which help lower tuition costs, grant in-state tuition, provide accelerated graduation, give opportunities to adult learners, and allow students to graduate with internships leading to job placement.\",\"email\":\"provostsoffice@sou.edu\",\"telephone\":\"541-552-6114\",\"legalName\":\"Southern Oregon University\",\"foundingDate\":\"1872-09-01\"},{\"@type\":\"Person\",\"@id\":\"https:\/\/sou.edu\/academics\/#\/schema\/person\/d63857b3b310cf49180208a32b86d2bc\",\"name\":\"Sean Glassford\",\"image\":{\"@type\":\"ImageObject\",\"inLanguage\":\"en-US\",\"@id\":\"https:\/\/sou.edu\/academics\/#\/schema\/person\/image\/\",\"url\":\"https:\/\/secure.gravatar.com\/avatar\/9d06c0ea896caf32907bcbdeae4e268bf90877fa2c09e7f919bd803e87634d1d?s=96&d=mm&r=g\",\"contentUrl\":\"https:\/\/secure.gravatar.com\/avatar\/9d06c0ea896caf32907bcbdeae4e268bf90877fa2c09e7f919bd803e87634d1d?s=96&d=mm&r=g\",\"caption\":\"Sean Glassford\"}}]}<\/script>\n<!-- \/ Yoast SEO Premium plugin. -->","yoast_head_json":{"title":"SOU English Majors in Action: Community Memoir Writing","description":"Two 2014 SOU English \/ Professional Writing alumni have written several memoirs in their careers, and are currently collaborating on a WW2...","robots":{"index":"index","follow":"follow","max-snippet":"max-snippet:-1","max-image-preview":"max-image-preview:large","max-video-preview":"max-video-preview:-1"},"canonical":"https:\/\/sou.edu\/academics\/english-majors-in-action-community-memoir-writing\/","og_locale":"en_US","og_type":"article","og_title":"English Majors in Action: Community Memoir Writing - SOU Academic Programs","og_description":"Two 2014 SOU English \/ Professional Writing alumni have written several memoirs in their careers, and are currently collaborating on a memoir for a World War II veteran in Medford. They discuss their process, what it\u2019s like to write for memoir clients, and the importance of memoir as a genre.","og_url":"https:\/\/sou.edu\/academics\/english-majors-in-action-community-memoir-writing\/","og_site_name":"SOU Academic Programs","article_publisher":"https:\/\/www.facebook.com\/SOUAshland\/","article_published_time":"2023-02-27T17:20:52+00:00","article_modified_time":"2024-01-25T17:54:13+00:00","og_image":[{"width":1200,"height":630,"url":"https:\/\/sou.edu\/academics\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/14\/2023\/02\/SOU-Blog-English-Majors-in-Action-on-Facebook.jpg","type":"image\/jpeg"}],"author":"Sean Glassford","twitter_card":"summary_large_image","twitter_title":"English Majors in Action: Community Memoir Writing - SOU Academic Programs","twitter_description":"Two 2014 SOU English \/ Professional Writing alumni have written several memoirs in their careers, and are currently collaborating on a memoir for a World War II veteran in Medford. They discuss their process, what it\u2019s like to write for memoir clients, and the importance of memoir as a genre.","twitter_image":"https:\/\/sou.edu\/academics\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/14\/2023\/02\/SOU-Blog-English-Majors-in-Action-on-Twitter.jpg","twitter_creator":"@souashland","twitter_site":"@souashland","twitter_misc":{"Written by":"Sean Glassford","Est. reading time":"13 minutes"},"schema":{"@context":"https:\/\/schema.org","@graph":[{"@type":["Article","BlogPosting"],"@id":"https:\/\/sou.edu\/academics\/english-majors-in-action-community-memoir-writing\/#article","isPartOf":{"@id":"https:\/\/sou.edu\/academics\/english-majors-in-action-community-memoir-writing\/"},"author":{"name":"Sean Glassford","@id":"https:\/\/sou.edu\/academics\/#\/schema\/person\/d63857b3b310cf49180208a32b86d2bc"},"headline":"English Majors in Action: Community Memoir Writing","datePublished":"2023-02-27T17:20:52+00:00","dateModified":"2024-01-25T17:54:13+00:00","mainEntityOfPage":{"@id":"https:\/\/sou.edu\/academics\/english-majors-in-action-community-memoir-writing\/"},"wordCount":5626,"publisher":{"@id":"https:\/\/sou.edu\/academics\/#organization"},"image":{"@id":"https:\/\/sou.edu\/academics\/english-majors-in-action-community-memoir-writing\/#primaryimage"},"thumbnailUrl":"https:\/\/sou.edu\/academics\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/14\/2023\/02\/ROU-Blog-English-Majors-in-Action-Blog-Roll-Photo.jpg","articleSection":["English","Featured"],"inLanguage":"en-US"},{"@type":"WebPage","@id":"https:\/\/sou.edu\/academics\/english-majors-in-action-community-memoir-writing\/","url":"https:\/\/sou.edu\/academics\/english-majors-in-action-community-memoir-writing\/","name":"SOU English Majors in Action: Community Memoir Writing","isPartOf":{"@id":"https:\/\/sou.edu\/academics\/#website"},"primaryImageOfPage":{"@id":"https:\/\/sou.edu\/academics\/english-majors-in-action-community-memoir-writing\/#primaryimage"},"image":{"@id":"https:\/\/sou.edu\/academics\/english-majors-in-action-community-memoir-writing\/#primaryimage"},"thumbnailUrl":"https:\/\/sou.edu\/academics\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/14\/2023\/02\/ROU-Blog-English-Majors-in-Action-Blog-Roll-Photo.jpg","datePublished":"2023-02-27T17:20:52+00:00","dateModified":"2024-01-25T17:54:13+00:00","description":"Two 2014 SOU English \/ Professional Writing alumni have written several memoirs in their careers, and are currently collaborating on a WW2...","breadcrumb":{"@id":"https:\/\/sou.edu\/academics\/english-majors-in-action-community-memoir-writing\/#breadcrumb"},"inLanguage":"en-US","potentialAction":[{"@type":"ReadAction","target":["https:\/\/sou.edu\/academics\/english-majors-in-action-community-memoir-writing\/"]}]},{"@type":"ImageObject","inLanguage":"en-US","@id":"https:\/\/sou.edu\/academics\/english-majors-in-action-community-memoir-writing\/#primaryimage","url":"https:\/\/sou.edu\/academics\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/14\/2023\/02\/ROU-Blog-English-Majors-in-Action-Blog-Roll-Photo.jpg","contentUrl":"https:\/\/sou.edu\/academics\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/14\/2023\/02\/ROU-Blog-English-Majors-in-Action-Blog-Roll-Photo.jpg","width":1200,"height":600,"caption":"SOU Blog English Majors in Action Blog Roll Photo"},{"@type":"BreadcrumbList","@id":"https:\/\/sou.edu\/academics\/english-majors-in-action-community-memoir-writing\/#breadcrumb","itemListElement":[{"@type":"ListItem","position":1,"name":"Home","item":"https:\/\/sou.edu\/academics\/"},{"@type":"ListItem","position":2,"name":"English Majors in Action: Community Memoir Writing"}]},{"@type":"WebSite","@id":"https:\/\/sou.edu\/academics\/#website","url":"https:\/\/sou.edu\/academics\/","name":"Southern Oregon University Academic Programs","description":"SOU Academic Programs","publisher":{"@id":"https:\/\/sou.edu\/academics\/#organization"},"alternateName":"SOU Academic Degree Programs","potentialAction":[{"@type":"SearchAction","target":{"@type":"EntryPoint","urlTemplate":"https:\/\/sou.edu\/academics\/?s={search_term_string}"},"query-input":{"@type":"PropertyValueSpecification","valueRequired":true,"valueName":"search_term_string"}}],"inLanguage":"en-US"},{"@type":"Organization","@id":"https:\/\/sou.edu\/academics\/#organization","name":"Southern Oregon University","alternateName":"SOU Ashland","url":"https:\/\/sou.edu\/academics\/","logo":{"@type":"ImageObject","inLanguage":"en-US","@id":"https:\/\/sou.edu\/academics\/#\/schema\/logo\/image\/","url":"https:\/\/sou.edu\/academics\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/14\/2025\/04\/SOU-LOGO-HZ-CMY-POS-scaled-1.jpg","contentUrl":"https:\/\/sou.edu\/academics\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/14\/2025\/04\/SOU-LOGO-HZ-CMY-POS-scaled-1.jpg","width":2560,"height":621,"caption":"Southern Oregon University"},"image":{"@id":"https:\/\/sou.edu\/academics\/#\/schema\/logo\/image\/"},"sameAs":["https:\/\/www.facebook.com\/SOUAshland\/","https:\/\/x.com\/souashland","https:\/\/www.instagram.com\/souashland\/","https:\/\/www.linkedin.com\/school\/southern-oregon-university\/","https:\/\/www.youtube.com\/user\/SouthernOregonUniv"],"description":"Southern Oregon University - SOU - is a Liberal Arts University in Ashland, Oregon. Serving the Southern Oregon and Northern California regions, SOU provides offers many higher education degree pathways, including: Major degree Undergraduate programs, Masters degree Graduate programs, Minor degrees, Certificate programs, and Micro-credential pathways. Southern Oregon University also provides Summer Youth Programs for students in the region from K-12, as well as continuing education programs through the Osher Lifelong Learning Institute (OLLI). Southern Oregon University welcomes students from abroad through SOU's International Programs, which also provides current SOU students opportunities to study away across the country and internationally through a multitude of partner universities. The beautiful SOU campus, nestled in the hills of Ashland, OR welcomes the surrounding community to come and enjoy many hosted events, including: sporting events at the SOU Raider Stadium and Lithia Motors Pavilion, theater performances hosted by the SOU Theatre program , musical performances at the SOU Musical Recital Hall, and art exhibitions at the Schneider Museum of Art and other campus art galleries. Southern Oregon University has many specialized programs which help lower tuition costs, grant in-state tuition, provide accelerated graduation, give opportunities to adult learners, and allow students to graduate with internships leading to job placement.","email":"provostsoffice@sou.edu","telephone":"541-552-6114","legalName":"Southern Oregon University","foundingDate":"1872-09-01"},{"@type":"Person","@id":"https:\/\/sou.edu\/academics\/#\/schema\/person\/d63857b3b310cf49180208a32b86d2bc","name":"Sean Glassford","image":{"@type":"ImageObject","inLanguage":"en-US","@id":"https:\/\/sou.edu\/academics\/#\/schema\/person\/image\/","url":"https:\/\/secure.gravatar.com\/avatar\/9d06c0ea896caf32907bcbdeae4e268bf90877fa2c09e7f919bd803e87634d1d?s=96&d=mm&r=g","contentUrl":"https:\/\/secure.gravatar.com\/avatar\/9d06c0ea896caf32907bcbdeae4e268bf90877fa2c09e7f919bd803e87634d1d?s=96&d=mm&r=g","caption":"Sean Glassford"}}]}},"acf":[],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/sou.edu\/academics\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/83251","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/sou.edu\/academics\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/sou.edu\/academics\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/sou.edu\/academics\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/14"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/sou.edu\/academics\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=83251"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/sou.edu\/academics\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/83251\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/sou.edu\/academics\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/83259"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/sou.edu\/academics\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=83251"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/sou.edu\/academics\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=83251"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/sou.edu\/academics\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=83251"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}