Asking for suggestions from this list of knowledgeable people. I have most (but not all) of the family in order, but I know my children and grandchildren will find it a) boring, b) confusing, c) intimidating d) regretably tossed in the trash and wished for in about 40 years. I would like to write it out as a story. But whenever I start, it seems daunting...and the transitions lead me from one to the next to the next. Not necessarily all of which should be included, or they take me in the wrong direction. Starting at the beginning and moving forward becomes quite confusing in very short order. Or they become long narratives which I find boring, and I KNOW the stories. Can someone(s) please offer suggestions, or books which might help with the structure and make this the fascinating story I've discovered. I will be most grateful for any and all help...and boy, do I need some suggestions. Thanks, Pat Pat FLOOR: The place for storing your priceless genealogy records --------------------------------- Get your own web address for just $1.99/1st yr. We'll help. Yahoo! Small Business.

> Asking for suggestions from this list of knowledgeable people. > > I have most (but not all) of the family in order, but I know my children > and grandchildren will find it a) boring, b) confusing, c) intimidating d) > regretably tossed in the trash and wished for in about 40 years. > > I would like to write it out as a story. But whenever I start, it seems > daunting...and the transitions lead me from one to the next to the next. Not > necessarily all of which should be included, or they take me in the wrong > direction. Starting at the beginning and moving forward becomes quite > confusing in very short order. Or they become long narratives which I find > boring, and I KNOW the stories. > > Can someone(s) please offer suggestions, or books which might help with the > structure and make this the fascinating story I've discovered. I will be most > grateful for any and all help...and boy, do I need some suggestions. > > Thanks, > > Pat > > > Pat > FLOOR: The place for storing your priceless genealogy records > > > > > Try "Genealogical Writing in the 21st Century (A guide to Register Style and More, Editor: Henry B Hoff, Published by New England Historic Genealogical Society > > --------------------------------- > Get your own web address for just $1.99/1st yr. We'll help. Yahoo! Small > Business. > ************************** > Visit SFGenealogy.com! > http://www.sfgenealogy.com > ------------------------------- > To unsubscribe from the list, please send an email to > [email protected] with the word 'unsubscribe' without the quotes > in the subject and the body of the message

Hi Pat, I am sure by now you have had many suggestions and my apologies I did not follow those replies. I find it hard to tell a story as if you were there along with your ancestors, but in telling my research story to others I tend to find words that do tell a story, of course you cannot avoid facts and dates. I research the times of my ancestors, history of the land at the time, why they may have emigrated, forced to, religion or war, the famine as in Ireland when my great grandfather was born 1 Jan 1847, Meath Co, something of where they came from, a description of the time and place. I offer my thoughts and theories, try to imagine them living at that time and describe what I know or feel. The scrafices they may/must have made, the chances they may/must have taken. From my research at one time I had no idea how my grandmother would of came to meet my grandfather, but city directories told me one side and the family stories another. My mother told me my grandmother was in the 1920 NY Follies as a dancer and that she worked as a telephone operator. In a 1920 city directory I found my grandfather unmarried working for AT&T. So I then knew how they met. I would suggest record your telling the story to someone, play it back, listen to yourself and from that write. I did one time video my wife and her aunt flipping through the family albums the aunt had, telling the story of the pictures. With todays computers, you can verbally tell the story (voice over) as you have a slide show of pictures and documents (scanned) and burn to DVD's. You can incorporate home digital video, VHS tapes or 8/16mm film too. I have been on a mission to capture old VHS video tapes. I have many scanned photographs dating back to the 1890-1950's. So bringing the story to life with pictures, your voice, other family voices, even if you have nothing to say you can add background music, music from that period and time, national anthems, etc. And by being on DVD's, they can be duplicated and given to other family and to hand down over the years. I found this link that may give you ideas. There are people in the business of doing this all for you - http://www.writecorner.com/oral_history.asp This is a brief research story of my family - http://www.begnal-enterprises.com/genealogy/story.html Another story online is of my Pereira Cardoso side - http://www.begnal-enterprises.com/genealogy/cardoso/cstory.html Eventually I will re-write and update, add thoughts and findings. Also, some genealogy programs allow you to tell the story from your notes, adding pictures, video etc. Family Tree Maker is one. I hope I have been of some help..... -- Regards, D.R. "Doc" Begnal-Young - "Pay It Forward" Genealogy Assistance - 13 years researching online http://www.begnal-enterprises.com/genealogy/genealogy-assistance.html Begnal-Blaschko/Blaszko/Blaskow-Perry/Pereira Cardoso-Wilson www.begnal-enterprises.com/genealogy/ Serving the Greater Salt Lake Valley, UT Pat wrote: >Asking for suggestions from this list of knowledgeable people. > > I have most (but not all) of the family in order, but I know my children and grandchildren will find it a) boring, b) confusing, c) intimidating d) regretably tossed in the trash and wished for in about 40 years. > > I would like to write it out as a story. But whenever I start, it seems daunting...and the transitions lead me from one to the next to the next. Not necessarily all of which should be included, or they take me in the wrong direction. Starting at the beginning and moving forward becomes quite confusing in very short order. Or they become long narratives which I find boring, and I KNOW the stories. > > Can someone(s) please offer suggestions, or books which might help with the structure and make this the fascinating story I've discovered. I will be most grateful for any and all help...and boy, do I need some suggestions. > > Thanks, > > Pat > > >Pat > FLOOR: The place for storing your priceless genealogy records > > > > > > >--------------------------------- >Get your own web address for just $1.99/1st yr. We'll help. Yahoo! Small Business. >************************** >Visit SFGenealogy.com! >http://www.sfgenealogy.com >------------------------------- >To unsubscribe from the list, please send an email to [email protected] with the word 'unsubscribe' without the quotes in the subject and the body of the message > > > > >