In With The Old; Publishing Memoir In The New Year

by | Press Releases | 2 comments

Review Board is now open! Submit your Short Prose, Poetry, and Book today!

Day(s)

:

Hour(s)

:

Minute(s)

:

Second(s)

Deadline: Thursday, February 22nd

In With The Old; Publishing Memoir In The New Year

Updated July 2023

Writer’s Relief, Inc., an author’s submission service, encourages writers to check off “publish my memoir” on their New Year’s to-do list.

With many years of experience helping writers submit their work for publication, Writer’s Relief’s President, Ronnie Smith, believes there is no better time to submit memoirs and personal essays than the first months of a new year. For that reason Writer’s Relief has decided to open a number of spots on their invitation-only client list to memoir writers.

“The New Year is a time of reflection and of committing to success,” Smith said, “so it’s a great time for memoirs. There’s something that appeals to people about curling up with a good book in January and February. Agents and editors are no exception.”

Centuries ago memoirs were one of the most respected forms of writing, with novels way down at the bottom of the pile. It was believed that the real-life stories of enlightened observers were more meaningful to readers than stories that were “not true.”

And yet, despite the age-old popularity of memoirs, aspiring writers have often found it difficult to write about their own lives, partly because of the question of what is “true” or “not true.” Herman Rosenblat’s memoir Angel at the Fence, which was touted by Oprah in the same way she’d once championed James Frey’s A Million Little Pieces, was the latest memoir to become the subject of public scrutiny when Holocaust historians questioned the feasibility of the book’s plot.

“There are two schools of thought about memoir writing,” Smith said. “Some believe that each and every syllable of a conversation that happened a decade ago must be rendered with perfect word-for-word exactness. But many editors understand that memoir is an art form—that’s why it’s called creative nonfiction. A work can be both true and have creative elements at the same time.”

Another common misconception that Smith encounters about memoirs is the belief that a memoir needs to cover a person’s entire lifespan or that it needs to be the size of a full-length book.

Submit to Review Board

“Memoirs can range in tone and scope, discussing anything from a decade to a single day. Some memoirs inspire and motivate, while others point toward injustice and oppression in the world,” Smith said. “For as many unique personalities as there are in the world, there are unique memoirs.”

The memoir market is driven by two forms: the book-length memoir and the personal creative essay. Writer’s Relief has successfully placed creative nonfiction in a number of venues; however, Smith stresses the importance of knowing the market if one is seeking traditional print publications. She finds that short works (up to 5,000 words) have the best shot at finding publication in traditional literary journals and magazines. Longer works must be 40,000 words or more to be considered book-length.

“Our Review Board reads memoirs from many unknown and established writers who want to join our client list. We’ve found that even if a writer isn’t, say, a classical pianist-turned-astronaut who uncovered a real-life terrorist plot, there may be a market for the memoir if it’s meaningful and well-written,” Smith said.

At most traditional publishing houses and literary agencies, the memoir market is crowded and competitive, so the manner in which submissions are made is critical. Writer’s Relief is a unique company that strategically targets creative writers’ work to venues within the publishing industry, increasing the likeliness of publication.

Writer’s Relief accepts only those clients whose writing is strong and effective; however, new writers whose work shows promise are as welcome as veteran writers. For guidelines on how to submit a memoir or personal essay to Writer’s Relief, visit www.new.writersrelief.com.

“Because New Year’s is one of the best times to submit nonfiction to agents and editors, we encourage writers who have written either long or short memoirs to send them to our Review Board,” Smith said.

For more information please visit http://www.new.writersrelief.com, or contact (866) 405-3003. Questions or comments may be e-mailed to info@wrelief.com.

2 Comments

  1. Ellen M. Magnuson

    I have been receiving Writer’s Relief for a few years now. I always find it informative and facinating. As an amateur scribbler and Toastmaster writer and speech delivery member of same, I had decided your clients must be above my writing ability level. So I resisted temptation to contact.
    However, I have written my Memoir. I designed the lay out and cover etc.. 100 books 9″x6″ were printed by a printing company in Arizona. I decided not to try and get it published (I was told it is often three years or more). I couldn’t wait that long to have friends, relatives and my brother, (in hospital) read my book. They read and loaned out, or ordered more, now many of them are encouraging me to “do something more with S’Truth.”
    Would the book have to undergo changes incurring double expense?
    Do you have any advice for me?
    Ellen M.

    Reply

Submit a Comment

Your email address will not be published. Required fields are marked *

Review Board is now open! Submit your Short Prose, Poetry, and Book today!

Day(s)

:

Hour(s)

:

Minute(s)

:

Second(s)

 

 

See ALL the services we offer, from
FREE to Full Service!

Click here for a Writer’s Relief
Full Service Overview

Search

Reviews

“Getting that first poem published was the hardest threshold to cross. My team at Writer’s Relief kept encouraging me…then came the acceptance! We celebrated…then I continued writing, and Writer’s Relief continued doing the wonderful work they do!”

—King Grossman, Writer
(Watch King’s video testimonial here!)

“Every piece I have sent out with their help has been accepted for publication! I am looking forward to working with the team on getting my new novel out into the world.”

Services Catalog

Free Publishing Leads
and Tips!

Featured Articles



Featured Video

Follow us!



YES, IT'S MY LUCKY DAY!
Sign me up for
FREE Publishing Leads & Tips
  • This field is for validation purposes and should be left unchanged.

WHY? Because our insider
know-how has helped
writers get over 18,000 acceptances.

FREE Publishing Leads and Tips! Our e-publication, Submit Write Now!, delivered weekly to your inbox.
  • BEST (and proven) submission tips
  • Hot publishing leads
  • Calls to submit
  • Contest alerts
  • Notification of industry changes
  • And much more!
close-link


STOP! BEFORE YOU GO...
Sign me up for
FREE Publishing Leads & Tips
  • This field is for validation purposes and should be left unchanged.

WHY? Because our insider
know-how has helped
writers get over 18,000 acceptances.

FREE Publishing Leads and Tips! Our e-publication, Submit Write Now!, delivered weekly to your inbox.
  • BEST (and proven) submission tips
  • Hot publishing leads
  • Calls to submit
  • Contest alerts
  • Notification of industry changes
  • And much more!
close-link

Pin It on Pinterest

Share This