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Some more words on the writing of memoir: I would like to make a short list of books and the writers of those books who have helped me along the way to writing my memoir, SCHROON LAKE, the story of my life growing up in the Adirondack Mountains of upstate New York during the Great Depression.

I was lucky enough to have started in a writing workshop at the beginning of Abigail Thomas's, and my first writing workshop. I was fortunate to have been part of her "freshman class" of writers in the winter of 2000. We met on the upper West Side of Manhattan, at the edge of the Columbia University campus, at Abby's apartment and those who turned up that first night happened to be all women.

Plenty of people write and never have even thought about being part of a group of other writers - nor would they want to approach writing that way. But for me it turned out to be a great boost for me and my deep desire to write the story of the early part of my life. Abby set the tone. I was among a receptive bunch of women and we all took turns reading our pieces aloud - but no one was excpected to "hand anything in" nor were we forced to read aloud if we did not feel ready.

I will give you a few brief quotes from Abby's slim volume, "THINKING ABOUT MEMOIR". These come from the opening Preface.

"Memoir can consist of looking back at a single summer, or the span of a whole lifetime."

"This is about letting the mind open up and wander, about letting one thing lead to another."

"This book is also about the habit of writing as a way to keep track of what's going on in the front and in the back of your mind."

"Memoir is the story of how we got here from there." And she goes on to say in this very short and compact introduction: "I hope this book will inspire different ways to look at the moment you're in right now, and see how far back it can take you. I hope it will make you admire how surprising life is, and I hope you will write."

Those last five words came through so clearly, and certainly to me and I know to the others in our group. Because of Abby's workshop, I was eager to start writing on a regular basis and, the most important thing of all, to keep on going, Writing was and continues to be a vital part of my life.

Posted by Lueza on October 16 2009

Writing Workshops in 2010

Check back here for writing workshops, speaking engagements, and book-signing events. For speaking engagements, to order a copy of the book or writing consulting with the author, contact Dr. Lueza Gelb's publicist (Rose Di Grazia) by email: .

Posted by Lueza on March 09 2009