What My Dinner Fiasco Taught Me about Writing

The other night I decided to make something different for dinner. My family had drifted into a summer rut of eating whatever was quickest and most convenient, not necessarily what was actually tasty or healthy. So, I determined to make something from scratch.

After searching through some recipes (yes, I actually looked through the old recipe box, not online), I found two that I thought would fit the bill. One was for the main meat course and the other for a side dish. Both sounded delicious and, most importantly, included ingredients I knew my family members, for the most part, would enjoy. Oh, one or two would prefer the meat over the side dish and vice versa, but at least everyone would appreciate the extra effort of a quality meal.

Or so I thought.

The meat that I thought everyone would love was not a hit with the kids. My fourteen-year-old suffered through it and ate it because he was really hungry (when isn’t he hungry these days?) but my nine-year old wouldn’t touch it.

As for the side dish, let’s just say it got a little overbaked. Some of the noodles became quite crispy, resulting in the unexpected and disturbing sound of crunch, crunch, crunch at intervals around the table.

And to top it all off, the brownies I made for dessert were flat and oily because I forgot to add an egg to the batter. That remains our little secret. My family never asked why the brownies didn’t look – or taste – like regular brownies (maybe they were afraid to ask), so I never shared my faux pas with them.

Needless to say, it was not a dinner I would have wanted to serve a guest.Read More

A Writer’s Summer Quandary (and 5 things you can do about it)

Ah, the so-called “lazy days” of summer. I love summertime, especially here along the coast. The beach beckons, the days lengthen and there’s an aura of fun and relaxation.

However, summer also usually means that school is out of session. Thus, for those of us writers with children (or grandchildren) in our homes 24/7, it also means that our established writing routines tend to disappear between June and August.

As an author and book coach, it’s a challenge for me to work at full capacity in the summer. It’s also difficult to not feel a bit guilty no matter what I do. If I spend time working, I’m spending time away from my kids. If I spend time with my kids, I’m not working my business to bring in necessary income.

So I strive to seek balance.Read More

Genealogy & Life Story: An Interview with New York Times Bestselling Author Michelle Ule

Genealogy research is distinctly different from life story writing, but genealogists often unearth interesting facts that can shed new light on their own life experiences. I recently interviewed Michelle Ule, a New York Times bestselling author and speaker, who writes inspirational and historical fiction and is currently finalizing the biography Mrs. Oswald Chambers: The Woman behind the World’s Bestselling Devotional, which can be preordered now. She is also a longtime genealogist who self-published a family biography titled Pioneer Stock and is currently editing the life story of her grandfather. I think you’ll find her genealogy tips and surprise findings quite interesting. Prefer to listen to the interview? Click here to access the recording.

Dalene [D]: Welcome, Michelle, and thank you for taking the time to speak with me today.

Michelle[M]: I’m happy to chat with you, Dalene.

D: So with my audience being primarily life story and even family history authors, I thought I’d start out by asking why you think family history and life story writing is important.

M: That’s actually where I began. In my case, the grandfather biography I’m updating was written twenty-seven years ago to celebrate my grandfather’s 100th birthday.

D: Oh, wow!

M: And my end of the celebration was to write his history so I interviewed my aunts, my uncles, my cousins. I had a whole lot of material. I did auxiliary reading to put his life in context. He was an immigrant from Sicily prior to WWI and our family got our citizenship as a result of his service in the Army during WWI. Read More

How to Interview Family Members: The Step-by-Step Process

Have you ever thought of conducting a life story interview with a family member? It’s probably safe to say that each of us has at least one relative who has led a seemingly exciting life, has inspired us because of their ability to overcome significant challenges and/or has actively participated in a significant historical event. You probably love to listen to their stories and may have encouraged them to write them down before it’s too late.

Maybe they’ve said they’ll get around to writing their stories one day…but they’ve been saying that for years. Or maybe they don’t see the value of their experiences the way you do. Or maybe they simply don’t like to write.

Rather than pleading – or worse yet, arguing – with them to get it done, consider a different approach. Ask them if they would allow you to record them as they tell you their story. It could be an audio recording or a video recording, but for the purposes of this article, I will focus on audio recordings.

You don’t have to be a professional journalist; anyone can press the “record” button on a digital recorder or smartphone. However, here are a few tricks of the trade that will enable you to achieve the best results possible.Read More

6 Ways to Preserve Family Stories This Thanksgiving

In just a few days, those of us here in the United States will celebrate the Thanksgiving holiday. Family members will travel across the country (sometimes, around the world) to be together on this special day that is steeped in tradition.

And while this would seem to provide ample opportunity to reconnect and spend quality time together, we Americans are busy people. We often disburse into various groups:

  • Those who watch the Macy’s parade on television.
  • Those who participate in local Turkey Trot races (often done in an attempt to compensate for the overabundance of calories they will consume later that day).
  • Those who gather to watch the football game.
  • Those who go brave the elements (and the crowds) to jump-start their Christmas shopping.
  • Those who bustle around the kitchen preparing the day’s feast…and the list goes on.

Yet there’s one time that you can be certain that everyone will gather in one place: When the food is served.

Typically, this brief time together is full of laughter and catching up with each other’s latest endeavors. But with a little advanced planning, you can extend this time of fellowship and turn it into an opportunity to share and preserve your family history. Here’s how: Read More

Freedom through Education: One Woman’s Quest

Author’s Note: Throughout the month of July, I ran a contest called, “Is There a Legacy in Your Midst?” Individuals nominated a friend or family member to receive a complimentary 30-minute interview and document package from Lasting Legacies. Ms. Valya Shapiro was randomly drawn as the winner. She owns and operates Turnkey Living, Inc., an interior design company outside of Boston, Massachusetts. During our interview, I was impressed by her thoughtful responses and her poignant storytelling ability. I think that you will find the following excerpt of her quest to find freedom through education compelling and inspiring.

Dalene Bickel: Valya, I was hoping that you could share about your childhood in Turkey.

Valya Shapiro: I was born in Istanbul to a Jewish family whose ancestors left Spain in 1492 after the Inquisition, so I have an approximate 500-year history in Turkey. It’s a history which, unfortunately when I grew up, was tumultuous for me.

I was a young child during World War II. Even though Turkey ultimately decided not to enter the War, my father was taken to a concentration camp anyway. It began as a tax that was imposed on all Turkish citizens, but the minority groups (there were three small segments of us in Turkey – Greeks, Armenians, and Jews) were taxed beyond what they could afford. If they could not pay the full amount, they were taken away. Read More

About Dalene


Dalene Bickel is a personal biographer, book coach and speaker who helps individuals successfully write and self-publish their life stories.

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