"Inspirational and very useful . . . quite literally packed with valuable tips and exercises and is almost a mini-course in writing your family history."—Bedfordshire Family History Society
Gill Blanchard's practical step-by-step guide to writing a family history is designed for anyone who wants to bring their ancestors' stories to life. She looks at ways of overcoming the particular problems family historians face when writing a family history—how to deal with gaps in knowledge, how to describe generations of people who did the same jobs or lived in the same area, how to cover the numerous births, marriages and deaths that occur, and when to stop researching and start writing.
Her book provides examples to help readers find their own writing style, deal with family stories, missing pieces of information and anomalies. It also offers advice on key aspects of composition, such as adding local and social history context and using secondary material. The focus throughout is on how to develop a story from beginning to end.
Exercises are a key feature of the text. There is guidance on the various formats a family history can take and how to choose the appropriate one, with examples of format and layout. Production and publishing are also covered—books, booklets, newsletters, websites, blogs and ebooks.
"If you're toying with the idea of writing a family history-themed book, whether it be for general publication or simply for family members, read this first and then take the plunge. Who knows, it could be a bestseller!"—Family Tree Magazine

- 244 pages
- English
- ePUB (mobile friendly)
- Available on iOS & Android
eBook - ePub
About this book
Information
Print ISBN
9781781593721
Subtopic
Creative WritingTable of contents
- Front Cover
- Family History From Pen & Sword
- Title Page
- Copyright Page
- Contents
- Acknowledgements
- Introduction – Who, What, Where, When, Why and How
- Chapter 1 What Kind of Ancestral Story
- Chapter 2 When to Stop Researching
- Chapter 3 Developing Writing Skills
- Chapter 4 Make it Interesting –‘Bringing the Past to Life’
- Chapter 5 The Nitty-Gritty – From Editing, Proofreading and Acknowledgements to Copyright
- Chapter 6 Publishing
- Directory of Useful Resources
- Select Bibliography
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Yes, you can access Writing Your Family History by Gill Blanchard in PDF and/or ePUB format. We have over 1.5 million books available in our catalogue for you to explore.