Mary Martin, Ph.D.

On Memoirs and Lying

The American reading public loves a good memoir, and does seem to forgive authors whose memoirs are revealed to be a pack of lies or based thereon (e.g., James Frey, although Oprah might not be included in the population of forgivers; Laura Albert/JT LeRoy;  and most recently, Margaret Seltzer/Margaret B. Jones).

Be that as it may, there is supposed to be a rule at work with memoir: don't lie. The interpretation of that rule can be a bit flexible when it comes to dialogue and other details that add richness to a moment, but the fact that the moment did actually happen (particularly if it's a major moment in the story), should be indisputable.

Some authors do not include anything they do not recall, meaning they don't concoct dialogue they don't remember. Others believe a memoir is flat without dialogue and manufacture it accordingly. But they don't change the net result of the exchanges; they're just trying to bring the story to life and they believe dialogue injects that life.

Finally, our memories are shifty creatures at the mercy of the baggage they're embedded in, and all we can really attest to as authors is: this is my recollection of the events, people and conversations. We do our best to verify what is practical and possible to verify, but some of what is included in memoir gets a free pass from authentication.

How much gets a free pass is the question.

Grantwriting, Book Proposals & Business Planning, Oh My!

I always have a couple of clients that are nonprofit organizations. The writing I do for them varies, and yes, sometimes there's a book involved.

But much of the time the writing is geared toward fundraising, either through brochures and pamphlets, or through grants. Now, I also work on the other side of the grant equation, as a reviewer for several departments of the US Government (education and juvenile justice), which I believe deepens my knowledge of successful grantwriting.

The process and goal of writing a grant isn't all that different from that of a business plan or a book proposal. The idea is to demonstrate that there's a gap in the market or in services, you're uniquely qualified to fill in that gap, and you have a plan for doing so that is likely to yield certain anticipated results or outcomes.

Even if you never ask a foundation for money by writing a grant, the knowledge of what goes into a grant will help you with your book and your business.

Grantwriting 101

Though funders like to have their own applications, once you get past the actual verbiage and the format requested, you'll find that the same basic questions are always asked.

• Describe the magnitude and severity of the problem, and include references/sources.
• Describe what is currently being done to address the problem, if anything.
  • If something is currently being done, what will you do differently?

• Why are you uniquely qualified to address the problem?
• What does your plan (i.e., "program") involve?
  
  • What kinds of activities or interventions?

• What results do you anticipate, and over what period of time?
  • What tools or statistics will you use to evaluate your progress?
  • How do you know what success looks like? What are some "indicators"?

• How much money (or other resources) will it take to accomplish the goals of the program?
  • How much are you requesting of the particular funder whom you're applying to?

Notice how each of the above items is similar to an aspect of business planning and asking investors for their participation.

The cardinal rule in grantwriting, which is also true of proposals to publishers, is to give them what they ask for. There's nothing worse than a generic grant proposal or book proposal. Always follow instructions and customize your proposal to the exact specifications, even the exact wording of headings--and certainly the exact number of pages--that you are asked to submit.

Today's freebie tip: A proposal is your first opportunity to demonstrate that you are easy to work with because . . . you can follow simple instructions and give them what they ask for.