Welcome to the first “Bite Size Memoir” challenge.
How do you eat an elephant? One bite at a time.. “Bite Size Memoir” is an invitation for anyone to spend 5 minutes here or there (perhaps with a gorgeous little notebook), recording some snippets about their life. Each week, I’ll provide a prompt for inspiration, so you don’t have to think where to begin. The challenge here is to keep it short with either 150 words of prose or poetry, OR 10 x “I remember ..” statements (Read more about this in last week‘s post).
Bloggers are welcome to use it as a blog-hop, so anyone popping by can follow the threads and see what else you’re up to.
If you don’t have a blog, you can share your ‘bite’ in the comments section below. And of course, please feel free to comment on how you found the exercise as well.
There’s a reminder of exactly how this works, at the end.
Last week I explored the idea of recording memoirs in a bite-size way as a way of approaching a big job done in manageable bites. As I’ve reflected on before, I tussle regularly with routines and structure – sometimes they help me, other times they cramp my style. I’m not great at finishing big projects, so I regularly run along this seesaw from one end to the other! The best I can come up with are clear plans with loose structures or loose plans with clear structures. But I definitely need a bit of something to tackle the bigger tasks! Bite Size Memoir should enable me to tackle the problem of recording a flavour of me, without staring at a mammoth task.
So please take the 10 x “I remember..” statements or 150 word limit as either permission to be brief or to practice with constraints!
DEFINITION OF MEMOIR
I like the author Gore Vidal’s simple definition of memoir: “A memoir is how one remembers one’s own life, while an autobiography is history, requiring research, dates, facts double-checked.”
There are no rights or wrongs about it (other than it should be the truth as you see it.) And everyone has a memoir waiting to be told.
The First Bite-Size Memoir topic is “School at Seven” (This topic is closed now, but you can read the complain of responses here )
One of the reasons I’m starting here, at age seven, is that the study of memory suggests seven to be an age most of us can remember back to. (We obviously have earlier memories but they’re more often isolated incidents).
Most of us will also have experienced school. If you didn’t, perhaps the prompt still provokes memory of that age. I’d still love to hear from you – perhaps re-titled “No School at Seven”.
In our house, “School at Seven” made for great reminiscing and even sharing of new insights (after more than 25 years together.)
To illustrate different approaches, I’ve first tacked it first with 10 x “I remember statements” – This is a great way of filling a blank page if you’re a hesitant writer – and secondly with 150 words of prose. I’ve loved cheating a bit here, as I’ve been able to cover more ground using both! – Nothing to stop you doing the same at home but please choose only one to share. 150 words of poetry is a third option, but isn’t something I’m practiced enough with to go public with 😄
I Remember School at Seven
I remember learning words I kept in Nan’s old tobacco tin.
I remember playtime and British Bulldogs, hopscotch and skipping.
I remember the roughly tarmacked playground and picking gravel out of my knees.
I remember 1/3 pint bottles of milk and drinking the cream off the top with a red straw.
I remember a pot-bellied stove in the classroom and hot water pipes big enough to sit on – or as one kid did – shit on.
I remember going home to tea at A’s and having butterscotch Angel Delight which we never had at home.
I remember the poor kids who smelled and Mum telling me to be nice to them because ‘god only knows..’
I remember reading books at home and Dad teaching me sums because we did a lot of art at school.
I remember my brand new Start-right shoes and those poor kids ill-fitting hand-me-downs.
And I remember wondering why the grown-ups couldn’t fix things for them.Lisa Reiter (age 47), UK
School at Seven – 150 words
I had a squint and I drew a beautiful cathedral while in the blurry world of eye-drops and patches. I was devastated it wasn’t a masterpiece when I finally saw it. And that teacher was in trouble with Mum and Dad for telling me “I shouldn’t come to school if I couldn’t see.” There were different conversations at home when I was caught sniffing glue in the cupboard before I knew it was wrong.
More trouble, standing in the corner after giving S a bloody nose, indignant at the injustice of being in trouble when he’d lifted my skirt! And he coloured people’s arms in blue! The teacher went mad – ‘Stupid boy..’ Playtime was tough because V played bitch-god over who was ‘in or out’ with me often ‘out’. A mischievous tom-boy anyway, chasing T round the playground to kiss him. Him crying and me running faster!Lisa Reiter (age 47), UK
A REMINDER OF HOW THE BITE-SIZE MEMOIR CHALLENGE WORKS
- Each Friday I’ll suggest a topic by 2pm UK time (BST) via my blog and Twitter (using the hashtag #BiteSizeMemoir – You don’t need to be on Twitter to participate.)
2. The challenge will be to write about the topic using
either
10 x “I remember statements”
or
150 x words (prose, or poem if you want to stretch yourself)
Either will make you pick and choose your words carefully whilst keeping a tight focus for time’s sake. You might want to write more, to keep at home, but please only submit one option within the limits for sharing (i.e. 10 statements or 150 word prose/poem)
3. I will aim to compile responses and share them via another post, the following Friday morning, before the next challenge is issued.
4. Therefore, the Deadline for sharing your ‘Bite’ will be 2pm (BST) on the Thursday. You can share in either of two ways:
either
a) Post your response in the comments section of the current topic – I will find it and cut and paste to the compilation of responses. (If you are a first-time commenter on my blog, WordPress will filter you so I can check for spam and you may not see your comment appear immediately but don’t worry – I will find and share it)
or
b) If you have a blog you can post your response on your own blog with a link back to this post, and then also provide the link to me in the comments section. I will then link your contribution back to your post, in the compilation of responses I post next Friday.
5. Give your response a title that includes the challenge prompt of the week – include the year you were born or your age and the country the events took place in – I won’t enforce this but I think it provides a significant context for other readers.
A few rules:
- If you need or want to be anonymous that’s fine – When you post a comment just put ‘Anon’ or a nickname in the name field. It does ask for an email address as part of spam filtering but only I will see it.
- Please keep others anonymous to protect their privacy and dignity – change names or use initials etc.
- If you’ve got an axe to grind, please do it somewhere else.
- If you stumble across this after the deadline, do feel free to contribute and include your blog link but you won’t be included in the compilation.
Finally, I welcome feedback, particularly if anyone spots a flaw in the process! Please remember to submit your Bite Size Memoir by 2pm (BST) Thursday 8th May 2014. Have fun !
August 7, 2014 at 12:03 am
Decided to play catch up since you are on your summer hiatus; I was missing it too much. =) Here is my contribution to your prompt, School at Seven.
http://morgandragonwillow.com/2014/08/sitting-with-courage-bitesizememoir.html
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May 8, 2014 at 10:31 pm
Reblogged this on greeneractivist and commented:
Something interesting I stumbled across.
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May 8, 2014 at 10:39 pm
Thank you! Perhaps come back tomorrow and have a go at the new one..?!
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May 8, 2014 at 9:24 pm
Oops, I missed the deadline this time too. Thought it was Friday at 2p.m. but now I see that is when the new prompt comes out. Think I am going to give this whirl anyway to warm-up for the next one.
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May 8, 2014 at 9:34 pm
I’ll slip it in quietly while no-one’s looking.. shhh !
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May 8, 2014 at 6:44 pm
It’s thanks to Anne’s post (http://annegoodwin.weebly.com/1/post/2014/05/school-at-seven-lisas-bite-sized-memoir-challenge.htm) that I’ve tracked this post down – too late to offer my seven year memory – it’s Thursday 6.45pm – but what a lovely idea. I love that it helps you and it stimulates others – perfect! I’ll try to drop by for the prompts but often feel I’m drowning not waving when it comes to staying on top of social media, writing and, oh yes…life!
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May 8, 2014 at 1:17 pm
Wow, 49 comments so far, you’ve certainly sparked people’s interest. Seems that even I couldn’t resist http://annegoodwin.weebly.com/1/post/2014/05/school-at-seven-lisas-bite-sized-memoir-challenge.html
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May 8, 2014 at 1:40 pm
Welcome to the dark side.. where reality may be stranger than fiction !
As a bit of a tom-boy I remember running with the boys – until that age when they noticed I was a girl and that became uncool.
So lovely that you still have that “Book about Jesus” – I particularly love the angel on the stairway to heaven!
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May 7, 2014 at 5:16 pm
Reblogged this on Anj Handa and commented:
Great post by Lisa Reiter on creating short blogs of 150 words or 10x ‘I remember..’ statements. It’s a good way to get novices to start writing.
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May 7, 2014 at 5:38 pm
Thank you for sharing this with your followers Anj – I would love everyone to feel they could have a go at recording these glimpses of their lives, Lisa
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May 7, 2014 at 1:09 am
I remember that horrible feeling of not recognizing the homework after a long bout of scarlet fever, but that was grades later. I think it’s one of my first memories of panic, though. You write memoir so well! So glad to see you here as well as on Carrot Ranch. I feel like this week has been a journey through classrooms around the globe.
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May 6, 2014 at 11:50 am
Hard Measles
By Paula Moyer
Which came first, fever or blotches? I don’t remember. I remember waking up to them both, and the light hurting my eyes. “Paula has measles,” I heard Mother tell someone. My fever was 105. In 1959 there was no measles vaccine.
Grandmother Winnie appeared and spent every day at our house until I got better, five days later. I quit keeping track of my blotches and slept. Mother drew the Venetian blinds down and the curtains to so that they wouldn’t hurt my eyes. In a fevered delirium, I asked Grandmother Winnie to “please tell those people to be quiet.” There were no people in the house, just chattering in my head.
When the fever broke, Mother brought my homework from school. I started at the lessons that made no sense. When I came back to class, none of my classmates asked. Now I know. They had been sick, too.
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May 6, 2014 at 12:13 pm
Hi Paula, Thank you for sharing this. Since the introduction of widespread vaccinations people won’t remember these occasions where whole classes were ill at the same time. It’s a terrific reminder of how things change and what we might now, take for granted. Not many people will necessarily remember being delirious with a fever either, since paracetamol for kids.
I remember being taken to have tea with a boy who had measles because Mum wanted me to catch it and ‘get it out of the way’ – she was a nurse and I got all my ‘childhood illnesses’ (except chicken pox) out of the way like this before I started school.
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May 6, 2014 at 10:26 am
http://traceyscotttownsend.com/2014/05/05/bitesizememoir-challenge-the-brainchild-of-lisa_reiter/comment-page-1/#comment-111
Thanks for inspiring this, Lisa. I have to admit to writing mine rather hurriedly while I was on my travels at the weekend, therefore I’ve mixed the brief a bit by combining ‘I remember’ with other prose. But never mind, I’ll pay more attention next time! 🙂
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May 6, 2014 at 12:05 pm
Your travels around North Wales look great – thank you for taking time out from cooking on the move to share this piece. Lovely to be reminded of ‘dinner ladies’ which are a big part of a British Primary School experience! Ours would ring a handbell and bark across the playground to break up fights and spats! I seemed to be in the middle of a fair few of those..
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May 5, 2014 at 5:22 pm
Hi Lisa. I’m new to your blog and love the challenge. Here’s my attempt (via a link to the post I made)
http://geofflepard.wordpress.com/2014/05/05/bite-sized-memoir/
If it is easier, this is the memory
School at Seven – Geoff Le Pard (UK) 57
In 1964, Mrs G taught me; I liked her – she gave us sweets instead of merit points and taught us Scottish dancing. She told us about the General Election; it would be exciting because no one knew who would win – there were three parties and two might get together and gang up on the third, she said. I expect it was only an example when she said the Conservatives might join with the Liberals to defeat Labour, but we took it to heart. All the boys found out who their dads voted for and next day we lined up as we had been taught and had a grand battle. The coalition had Labour on the run when the headmaster stopped us. Several parents complained about Mrs G trying to find out how they voted and then Labour won the actual thing. Political disillusionment set in early for me.
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May 5, 2014 at 5:40 pm
Geoff ! This is fab. I laughed out loud especially as it made me think of the time I actually heard someone claim “my Dad’s bigger than your Dad” and it took my brain a bit to work out he was suggesting he’d get him to bop my Dad one!
(My absolute favourite bit is “The coalition had Labour on the run when the headmaster stopped us.”)
Thanks!
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May 5, 2014 at 11:19 pm
You are taking a shine to flash, and writing bright pieces! I sense that you still have a keen awareness of what it’s like to be a school-boy.
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May 5, 2014 at 11:35 pm
Thank you both; you have created the environment for these pieces to flow. Funny how things worked out. My dad, who’d flirted with the Communist party during the Second World War was by then an arch Tory. One of my ‘coalition fighters’ was a boy called Douglas who’s parents were as Liberal as anyone. I’d barely spoken to him before then but after that ‘strange bedfellows’ moment we became great friends and started a school paper in our last year (year 6 in today’s nomenclature). Serendipity?
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May 5, 2014 at 11:42 pm
Serendipity!
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May 5, 2014 at 5:15 pm
Loved the exercise. Tweeted it AND thought I would add it here as well. I look forward to challenge #2
http://juliejordanscott.typepad.com/julie_unplugged/2014/05/bitesizedmemoir1.html
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May 5, 2014 at 5:31 pm
Glad you loved it, Julie. Lovely piece with incredible memory for details, I can’t recall. I have no idea whether we had lockers – I remember a duffle bag to keep PE kit in and that’s about that.
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May 5, 2014 at 11:14 pm
I remember cubby holes, now that you recall lockers! Enjoyed both your pieces.
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May 5, 2014 at 1:16 am
Charli – well said 🙂
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May 4, 2014 at 9:26 pm
Thank you, this was a fun exercise! Here is my entry: http://thelunamatrix.wordpress.com/2014/05/04/bite-size-memoir-1-school-at-seven/
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May 5, 2014 at 9:35 am
Cypress, I’m glad you found this fun despite the horrible time you must have had. Thank you for sharing this really atmospheric piece – it’ll stay with me for a while.
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May 5, 2014 at 7:33 pm
That gave me a mindful to think about. Sharp details made the writing sharp in focus.
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May 4, 2014 at 7:43 pm
A nice prompt to start this project with, thanks!
http://littlemissgonewild.blogspot.com/2014/05/bite-sized-memoir-i-school-at-seven.html
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May 5, 2014 at 9:29 am
I had the tissues out for this one! My son had similar issues with spelling and getting things on paper and I’ve helped in school, watching it dawn on children they’re somehow not doing as well. It can be crushing. Thanks for this beautiful illustration of a single theme of this time at school. It’s really moving.
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May 5, 2014 at 7:14 pm
I enjoyed the progression of “I remember” and how it swept me up into a fuller story about reading. A triumph in the end!
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May 4, 2014 at 2:25 pm
Seven
All it stood for
Is forgotten
Once thought important
It has been
Kidnapped
By the numbers
That followed.
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May 4, 2014 at 8:03 pm
Hi Robert, thank you for taking such a delicate ‘bite’ at this exercise. I hope we’ll learn more with the numbers that follow..
Lisa
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May 4, 2014 at 8:40 pm
“kidnapped by the numbers that follow” is a great line.
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May 4, 2014 at 2:15 pm
I remember school at seven (ish) – Simon aged 49 UK
I remember my mineral collection being unappreciated by kids on the bus.
I remember the leftie teacher being anti American – “how can you trust a country that has a nuclear navy where the admiral has a hat with ‘SKIP’ on it”.
I remember JP and kissing her under the arches.
I remember sitting on the classroom steps not talking to anyone for weeks.
I remember my legs ‘not working properly’ and not being able to do sports for months – I got a sports day medal for holding the finishing tape and went to JD’s for tea.
I remember putting loads of pepper on my food and CB eating peas one or two at a time off the back of her fork – too posh and thin for me.
I remember trying to join the choir and being advised not to!
I remember the beautiful girl with the delicate gums who would stroke my hair at story-time.
I remember doing headstands for as long as possible
I remember the ‘push you off the wall’ game
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May 4, 2014 at 7:58 pm
Thank you Simon for reminding me about headstands in particular and how teachers expressed some outrageous opinion without censor! More indicators in your memories of how being seven at school is a complicated and sometimes unhappy time. xxx
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May 4, 2014 at 8:44 pm
I would have liked your mineral collection. Your piece reads like a photo album of snapshots; very enjoyable.
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May 5, 2014 at 1:14 am
Anon, I know you well.
Americans play “push you off the wall”, too; but don’t always wear our Skip caps 🙂
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May 4, 2014 at 1:35 pm
This was such a fun challenge, Lisa! I doubt any students today clap erasers. I posted mine on my site with a ping back to you!
http://thisgirlclimbstrees.weebly.com/1/post/2014/05/a-writing-challenge.html
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May 4, 2014 at 7:54 pm
So glad you had fun, Ellen. It was funny how I had no idea what you meant about the erasers until I read your lovely piece! There are those few differences in word-use / vocabulary across the pond and down under that suggest a different meaning. Hope my board rubber is not too boardy!
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May 4, 2014 at 8:53 pm
I still like to swing high! Good rhythms in your writing.
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May 4, 2014 at 5:47 am
What a great idea. I hope to participate as this seems to be a good fit for me right now. I came across it via:http://irenewaters19.com/2014/05/04/bite-size-memoir-no-1-school-at-seven/
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May 4, 2014 at 7:49 pm
Would love to share some wanton words, you flirt ! Hope you’re not teasing me…
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May 4, 2014 at 3:23 am
http://irenewaters19.com/2014/05/04/bite-size-memoir-no-1-school-at-seven/
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May 4, 2014 at 7:47 pm
Thanks Irene – another post highlighting the different climates we each grew up in – never had to contend with dust storms in the UK! Still – I share those teacher crushes (later on) and looking at eclipses! Wonderful that you include a picture of yourself at that age, thank you 😊
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May 4, 2014 at 8:59 pm
You reminded me about the fear of going sun-blind, but for the life of me, I can’t remember when I saw the eclipse in grade school. Memory can’t flit to life in light of someone else’s memory.
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May 5, 2014 at 12:20 am
Probably the only reason I remember what year at school I was in was by the classroom and where we went in the playground to see the eclipse and who my teacher was. As I remember the teacher I remember the classroom. We were in a row of buildings at the far side of the playground. If we had been in the other three school blocks I would have been pushing to know what year it had been as I had done multiple classes in each of them.
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May 4, 2014 at 12:21 am
So, funny thing happened on the way to 150 words…somehow it felt like more words than 99 and I ended up with 307! The challenge was paring back to 150. Task accomplished! So glad you are doing this! Here’s my response: http://goo.gl/OTK04R.
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May 4, 2014 at 7:02 pm
A lot to learn form these practices – I’d better stretch my tiny fiction muscles over at the ranch! Such a poignant piece from you, my heart beats a little faster for that little girl who somehow thought it might be her fault you were all moving. Wonderful to draw attention with a child’s eye to the vastly different climates across the US too.
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May 4, 2014 at 9:04 pm
Lisa, this little practices offer big results. Thanks for letting me realize that I could still write creatively from memory. And I’d love to have you flex your fiction muscles over at Carrot Ranch! Another memoirist who participates in flash fiction has created a character from her own middle name and it’s become an alter-ego for her to write fiction. I enjoy the various landscapes of the memories so far!
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May 3, 2014 at 9:18 pm
So wonderful to see this, Lisa! Even for those of us who write fiction, memoir is a great resource for mining ideas from experience. And, I’m a huge fan of constraints, prompts and practicing craft. Off to take a bite out of memoir!
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May 4, 2014 at 6:57 pm
I think if I ever get to writing a novel, my close friends would recognise themselves and I’d be in some trouble..! There must be quite an art to drawing inspiration from the events and people around you but distorting or combining features so they are different enough to get away with! So glad you took a bite! You’re first at my first, so a special place in my memory now!
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May 4, 2014 at 9:06 pm
There’s a joke about fiction writers: keep annoying me and I’ll put you in my novel and kill you off! Fiction lets us write different endings. 🙂
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