What do you do when you come across journals, letters or personal stories written decades ago by a stranger? Do you throw them away without looking at them or do you take the time to read them?
As for me, I’m innately curious. I’m excited to discover a bit about the past and what was important to the writers, so of course I take the time to read such documents.
A year or so ago, I was pleasantly surprised whenRead More
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
A bona fide bookworm, my love of reading began in early childhood. Even though I possessed my own mini-library at home, I was always looking for new stories to read. Thus, I eagerly anticipated our occasional visits to the local public library.Read More
Dalene Bickel is a ghostwriter, biographer, book coach, and speaker who helps aspiring authors successfully write, develop, and self-publish their faith-based books.