Faculty:
- Coordinator and Instructor: Kelli Jo Bergheimer
- Other Instructors: Sunny Jane Morton; Rachel Popma
Tuition:
- Regular Price: $585.00
- NGS Member Price: $550.00
Description:
For most people, family history writing isn’t about publishing in academic journals; it’s about preserving and sharing their research with relatives or others who may be interested in their stories. This course teaches practical skills and addresses the most common barriers to completing writing projects.
Student Prerequisites:
Those who have compiled enough genealogical research to be ready to begin sharing it will benefit most from this course. We recognize that even the most experienced researchers aren’t necessarily also experienced writers, and we welcome all levels of writing proficiency (or phobia).
Special Requirements:
Come prepared to think about and plan specific writing projects. Come prepared with your favorite writing tools (laptop, pen/paper) to complete on-the-spot writing exercises. We will be DOING writing and learning about it to increase proficiency and confidence.
All times are listed in Eastern Time.
Live Sessions may be subject to schedule adjustments by your course coordinator.
|
Day |
Session |
Time |
Session Title |
Description |
Instructor |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Monday 14 July |
Intro |
8:30 – 9 AM | Welcome and Introduction |
Get to know your classmates |
Bergheimer |
|
1 |
9 – 10:15 AM | Consider the Big Questions: Whose Stories, What Stories? How and Where to Tell Them, and to Whom? |
We will talk about the decisions you have to make for each family history writing project and how interconnected many of these decisions can be. Who are you writing for? Who are you writing about, and what do you want to say about them? How or where will you publish or share? What writing styles and citation methods will you use? This first session starts with seriously considering these topics: you’ll have confident answers by the end of the week. |
Morton | |
|
2 |
10:45 – 12 PM | A Hands-on Survey of Published Family History Writing | We will explore a variety of print and digital family histories to expand appreciation of what written family history can “look like.” Each student will choose at least one example from our in-person library, study how it answers the “big questions” from the previous session, and summarize its approach for the class. | Morton | |
|
3 |
1:30 – 2:45 PM | GRIP Writers Group – Getting Started | This session focuses on beginning writing using short prompts and exploring how the small-group writer’s sessions will be used throughout the week. | Bergheimer, Morton, Popma | |
|
4 |
3:15 – 4:30 PM | How to Turn Your Research Into Stories | Nobody’s life has a single, clear story arc. There are many little plotlines. Characters overlap and change in intergenerational narratives. We will explore how to carve a story out of an ancestral timeline, and how to focus a story through a particular lens– migration, work, newspaper stories, etc. We will consider problematic parts of family storylines, such as conflicting evidence, missing answers, and confidential or sensitive aspects. | Bergheimer, Morton | |
| Tuesday 15 July |
5 |
9 – 10:15 AM | Simplified Organizing | Sometimes, the challenge in writing is disorganization. We will explore tools to keep you on task, including writing and digital tools. Other times, the challenge in writing is writer’s block. We will look at some potential help for writer’s block, such as journaling, accountability groups, 52 ancestors in a year challenges, and keeping a running list of the next prompts. | Bergheimer |
|
6 |
10:45 – 12 PM | Your First Draft: Thinking it Through | At its heart, drafting is synthesis–bringing our separate pieces together into a whole—but it is rarely a process that starts at the beginning and moves straight to the end. This session will help writers build a toolbox of flexible drafting strategies for their projects. | Popma | |
|
7 |
1:30 – 2:45 PM | GRIP Writers Group – Drafting Workshop | In this session, writers will experiment with selected prompts and strategies from those discussed so far in the course, with the goal of creating a rough draft for further work in Session 8 and/or within their small group. | Bergheimer, Morton, Popma | |
|
8 |
3:15 – 4:30 PM | After the First Draft: Next Steps | In the revision process, we return to analysis, again examining and evaluating the pieces of our work. We will discuss general revision strategies–a “re-vision” or “seeing again” of a draft—to identify the gaps in our writing and our thinking. Guided exercises and group discussions will provide practical experience. | Popma | |
| Wednesday 16 July |
9 |
9 – 10:15 AM | The Story Starts (or Ends) with You | How can you write a compelling personal history of your own life? Perhaps it’s your own story or the story of another relative or ancestor. Learn to write about living or recently living people and the considerations for this type of writing. What will the future want to see from us and about us? | Bergheimer |
|
10 |
10:45 – 12 PM | “Do I Call Her Grandma or Barbara?” Narrative Voice and Creative Nonfiction | Everyone’s family history begins with their memories, most appropriately written in a first-person, subjective perspective. How and when do we transition to the objective, third-person perspective typically used to write about more distant history? What about using creative nonfiction techniques to enhance historical storytelling? We will look closely at the methodological differences between memoirs and historical narratives and the ways we can bridge the gaps. | Morton | |
|
11 |
1:30 – 2:45 PM | GRIP Writer’s Group – Practice is Where It’s At | Hands-on writing sessions will allow attendees to apply their skills and learning to their own particular areas of writing interest. | Bergheimer, Morton, Popma | |
|
12 |
3:15 – 4:30 PM | Turning 1000 Words Into a Picture: Visual Narrative Strategies | Sometimes, a narrative is not enough to successfully communicate our message. We’ll examine different methods for visual presentation of data, including tables, charts, timelines, and graphics, and consider how they can help us present work clearly and efficiently while adding visual interest to our work | Popma | |
| Thursday 17 July |
13 |
9 – 10:15 AM | C.A.T. Got Your Tongue? Compile, Abstract, Transcribe | Writing stories about transcriptions can be a challenge, including citing properly and copyright considerations of transcriptions and manuscripts. Learn how to layer in historical moments, maps, and other devices to build a narrative around transcriptions to bring a transcription to life. | Bergheimer |
|
14 |
10:45 – 12 PM | Edit Your Own Writing: Say it More Powerfully | Once major content revisions are done, it’s time to get pickier with the prose. In this session, you’ll learn from an experienced, award-winning editor how to edit your own work to be more concise, precise, smooth, and powerful. We will talk about crafting better beginnings and endings. Short exercises will help you practice what you learn. | Morton | |
|
15 |
1:30 – 2:45 PM | How Do I Cite My Sources? Let Me Count the Ways | While we will briefly examine traditional forms of genealogical documentation, those forms may not be appropriate for all purposes of family history writing. This session will discuss other options for acknowledging our sources, and we’ll consider which approach may work best for our audience and purpose. | Popma | |
|
16 |
3:15 – 4:30 PM | Get Copyright Right: Practical and Ethical Consideration | This session will provide an overview of copyright considerations, especially as they apply to images and photographs we may want to use in our work. | Popma | |
| Friday 18 July |
17 |
9 – 10:15 AM | GRIP Writers’ Group – Lessons Learned Discussion |
As attendees have experienced the mechanics of writing and been inspired to create during the week, this is an opportunity to look back at our week together and share work with the class. Time will be spent discussing different ways to publish, including print and digital. |
Bergheimer, Morton, Popma |
| 18 | 10:45 – 12 PM | Planning Your Next Steps | Attendees have spent the week conceptualizing and developing their own publication plan, and time will be devoted to self-evaluation. What do you need to learn next? Where do you go to learn more? Attendees will share and discuss their wins from the week and review their publication plan–as it has evolved throughout the week–and next steps. | Bergheimer, Morton, Popma |