Comments on: Is it narcissistic to write your memoir?

By: Mary "Lynn" Lewis

Mary "Lynn" Lewis — Fri, 12 Oct 2007 14:04:41 +0000

Narcissism can be very entertaining, but if a life has been fairly stable and mundane, I’m not sure how well the story would sell.

By: Nancy

Nancy — Fri, 12 Oct 2007 07:55:53 +0000

I think that the degree of narcissism can depend on what you want the outcome of your writing to be.

If you’re writing only for yourself or for those close to you, I don’t think the act of writing a memoir is narcissistic by any means.

If you plan to have the memoir published, though, I feel it would be narcissistic to ignore the interests of your audience and write whatever you please. (In this case, the narcissism would really only hurt your chances of being published.) Writing for an audience always involves a bit of give and take.

By: Rebecca Laffar-Smith

Rebecca Laffar-Smith — Thu, 11 Oct 2007 14:15:38 +0000

I suspect that in some reasonings ALL writing would be considered narcissistic. Even fiction tends to involve a lot self-reflection. So many times characters have an element of the write written into their core. It might be something hidden or something more obvious. Many times when people write memoirs however it’s from a desire to share something with the world. To help others learn from their own unique experiences.

Narcissism is also given a bad rap. Perhaps because it’s related more to a false image of ourselves. But I thought part of the journey to enlightenment was to “Know Thyself” and “Love Thyself”.

I often wonder how many memoir writers struggle through the writing processes and come out bruised and battered on the other side. Is it then Masochistic Narcissism? *grimaces* Sounds like people will give labels to everything these days.

People want to write memoirs, people want to read memoirs. Does it really matter what the writing and reading process involves? If it’s narcissistic to write a memoir is it voyeuristic to read them?

By: jerrywaxler

jerrywaxler — Mon, 08 Oct 2007 18:16:49 +0000

Hi Thursday,

I hope your grandfather finds some value in my article and can tell his story and share it with others. If he sees only horror in the memories, I can understand his reluctance. But I just reread Frankl’s Man’s Search for Meaning and share his hope that there is meaning in life, if only we can find it. I’d like to imagine that in telling the story your grandfather might spot some redeeming insight or truth popping out like a flower from the ashes.

Jerry

By: Thursday

Thursday — Mon, 08 Oct 2007 17:52:03 +0000

I’m planning to print your post and ask my grandfather to read it. It’s become a sort of family project to help him record his life, but he feels that there are already plenty of memoirs out there by Holocaust survivors.

His story is very difficult, yet very moving, and we feel that, if only for those who come after us, it is an important story to tell.

By: veinglory

veinglory — Sun, 07 Oct 2007 19:20:16 +0000

IMHO the difference is knowing the difference between what you might want to write versus what will actually be of interest to readers….

By: Coralie Cederna Johnson

Coralie Cederna Johnson — Tue, 02 Oct 2007 22:05:30 +0000

Thanks for writing this interesting article! Writing memoirs? Best thing I ever did! I have two increasingly popular books, “The Wishing Years” and “A Tree Grows in Trout Creek,” both collections of stories about my growing up days. Not only was it therapeutic to write the memoirs, but they are also selling well! What a great way to get in touch with your life! And, when you get in touch with your own life, you can only be better at getting in touch with others.