Family History - Get Started on Your Book
Nan Barnes
In yesterday’s post I discussed why it’s important to take the step beyond researching your family history and write about it.
We meet a lot of people who are working on their family histories. Most of them say that they intend to publish a book on that history. But not yet. They have more research to do. They’ll be ready to begin working on their book in six months, a year, two years or some indeterminate date in the future. I understand. Whenever you are researching there are always more sources to check, more leads to pursue, more stories to uncover.
For all of us who are addicted to research, The Genealogy Forum offers some cogent advice on the subject “How Do I Write a Family History.” They advise: “You don't have to wait until all your research is done to start!”
The Forum offers some ideas of questions on how to limit the subject for a book. They include:
By limiting your focus, you can write about what you know. Get it published and share it with your family members. Your book will mean a lot more to future generations than raw research data.
Does that mean your research is at an end? Of course not. Learn more and write a second volume with your new findings.
Click here to see the full GeneaologyForum.com post.
We meet a lot of people who are working on their family histories. Most of them say that they intend to publish a book on that history. But not yet. They have more research to do. They’ll be ready to begin working on their book in six months, a year, two years or some indeterminate date in the future. I understand. Whenever you are researching there are always more sources to check, more leads to pursue, more stories to uncover.
For all of us who are addicted to research, The Genealogy Forum offers some cogent advice on the subject “How Do I Write a Family History.” They advise: “You don't have to wait until all your research is done to start!”
The Forum offers some ideas of questions on how to limit the subject for a book. They include:
- Do I want to trace one surname completely? or several connected families? or all my family lines?
- What is the time frame I am interested in?
- Do I want to do an entire history or just trace the family while they lived in a particular place?
By limiting your focus, you can write about what you know. Get it published and share it with your family members. Your book will mean a lot more to future generations than raw research data.
Does that mean your research is at an end? Of course not. Learn more and write a second volume with your new findings.
Click here to see the full GeneaologyForum.com post.