Getting Started:
Preserving Your Story

The Author Cries Upon Seeing Her First Book A biblical voice sings out This, I have created! Held in hand, a hardcover book, Cloth, they call it, embossed on the side in Gold. My very own name and the four-word title. Did I say, in gold? There must be some mistake. I open the pages, see my photo, breathe, Read from Chapter One, aloud, With gratitude. Two mesmerized felines stare, rapt, At such a brilliant story. One Drops off to sleep in seconds. Thank you, I smile at the yawning cats, Thanks, blue-framed mirror, painted clock on the wall, And to you, flowered couch, walnut table, as well to All who ventured out this sunny day to hear My memoir, wrenched from Pain and History. Thank you everyone for everything! I really mean it. Finally, The story I've been dying to tell, What countless poems All these temperamental years have been about. It's not the hours, but the moments, The moments. And this, my friends, is sure one of them.

—Brenda Serotte, whose memoir, The Fortune Teller's Kiss, was published by the University of Nebraska Press in 2006

Benefits of Preserving Your Story
Why it matters for you to tell your story.

The Value of Telling Life Stories
Inspiration & wisdom from APH Members about why preserving life stories is important.

How Personal Historians Can Help
A range of projects and ideas to consider.

Before You Begin...
A list of questions to ask yourself about what you hope to accomplish.

Pre-Interview Questions
If you decide to be interviewed about your life by a personal historian, here are some helpful things to think about before you begin.

12 Tips for Interviewing Relatives
Prepare yourself to conduct a personal history interview.

Convinced Your Memoir Is The Next Best-Seller?
How the Commercial Publishing Industry Develops Material
Don't book that world cruise just yet.

Supported Self-Publishing
Working with Print-On-Demand Publishers.

Visit our Membership Directory to find the right personal historian for your needs.