I'd like to solicit some feedback from my readers. I'm considering posting the story of how my mother survived the war. It was published in a book called, "Hiding to Survive" by Maxine Rosenberg. Reading through the book, it's just about the right length, but in places she really didn't do my mother justice.
The story is horrific but also full of hope. There are unbelievable acts of cruelty mixed with equally unbelievable acts of heroism. Even reading the simplified version in Rosenberg's book, I can't stop my eyes from welling up.
No offense to Psychotoddler, but I don't think this is the appropriate place for the story. I would start a separate blog for the serial, which would likely be posted in 7 or 8 parts. I will either exerpt the book, or see if my mother is willing to rewrite it for me.
I'd like to get some comments and see if there is interest in this before I undertake it.
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There are some instruction on Blogger about posting a book. But you can also post a PDF as link, or web page as a link. Then you can highlight different chapters at will.
Me and my can of worms...
My Mom really hates that book. The story was written on a grade school level. I suggested she write it up herself, and I would type it up.
She said she doesn't have a computer, doesn't want to deal with one, and her (manual) typewriter is on its deathbed.
She wants me to write it up myself. I told her what a terrible writer I am, and that she is lightyears ahead of me (which is true), but being the Jewish Mother that she is she refused to believe me.
She is going to send me a copy of the tape that Steven Spielberg made of her interview and I'll try to synopsize it in a serial format.
This is actually a much bigger undertaking than I had initially anticipated, so some yea or nay feedback is appreciated. You can also email me privately at mskiermd @ sbcglobal.net if you don't want to post your comments or sign up for blogger.
But now that I talked to my Mom, I'm pretty much committed...
I agree the topic is not consistent with your blog, but is seems like a worthwhile project. You could either post is somewhere and link to it or do a separate blog. The neat thing about a separate blog is the comments feature.
Another option you might consider is having your mother dictate her story and then either transcribe the tape, pay someone (maybe a high school internship of some sort or a pro) or have a voice recognition do the heavy lifting.
The important thing is not to loose the story - from her perspective. Good luck. I'll read the whole story as will many others.
You know, depending on the age of your computer (and if she lives in the same area as you) you could do a voice dictation thing right into Word.
Otherwise, I wouldn't worry about being a good writer or not (you are a good writer, by the way), since it's a narrative of her experience. I think hearing it in her own words is the way to go.
On Blogger you can add a second blog to your account.
As many outlets as possible should be utilized to tell these stories before these folks are no longer with us.
She was interviewed by Steven Spielberg's foundation about 10 years ago, so there's a 3 1/2 hour interview right there. She's going to send me the tape. I could just transcribe it (I'm not sure how the computer would handle her accent) but I think it will work better if I summarize it myself.
Still, it's a huge undertaking, but I think it may be useful for my kids to have this and anyone else who wants to learn something about the period. She has a broad and unique experience, and she's very eloquent. Just wish she was computer savvy! She's about 900 miles away, Michelle.
YES YES YES. Can't wait to read it. Don't worry about keyboard artistry and all that linguistic fancy footwork. Just let the facts speak for themselves.
Good luck. I'm always available if you need coaching or editorial advice. I won't tell you how to write it or critique what you have, but I may be able to give you pointers on picking a place to start, winnowing 3-1/2 hours down to the length you want and organizing the material so it flows.
Let me know.
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