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Storm Cellar Summons Memories for TellTale Souls’ Bio-Vignette No.7

01/17/2013 By Leave a Comment
Darla and Grandmother "Mama"

Photo contributed by Darla Curry: Grandmother Hatti “Mama” holding me. Weather biting your nose and nipping at your toes?  Here's a  story excerpted from my guidebook, TellTale Souls Writing the Mother Memoir: How to Tap Memory and Write Your Story Capturing Character & Spirit that makes grandmother's storm cellar the place for tapping memory.  It begins on page 71 of Act Two in the section entitled “Seeking Buried Treasure.” (You can easily find more stories I’ve posted from the book by searching “Bio-Vignette No.”) In your search for unforgettable memories, look on weather as your friend. Try walking outdoors immediately after a thunder and lightning storm, taking your writing gear to picnic by a waterfall, or listening to the action of the pounding surf to summon memories from the deep. The negative ions generated by Mother Nature charge the air you breathe in a positive way and stimulate relaxation and memory, giving you an edge up with the Mother

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Awash in Mom’s Spirit – TellTale Soul Story No. 6

01/03/2013 By 2 Comments
Colette on swing

Photo contributed by Colette: Swinging on Mom’s clothesline. As you lift the cover opening the New Year 2013, I welcome you to enjoy another story excerpt from my guidebook, TellTale Souls Writing the Mother Memoir: How to Tap Memory and Write Your Story Capturing Character & Spirit.  This story begins on page 67 of Act Two in the section entitled “Locating & Orienting,” where I just asked writers to do a “Free-Write” exercise and then let it rest for a day or so before coming back to it. You can easily find the stories I’ve posted from the book by searching “Bio-Vignette No.” It is through trying to make sense of obscurities at a later date that you will be able to more fully encompass the truth. Oftentimes it is just a word, an image, or a feeling that has come over you that is important for you to discuss—talk about it, share it, have some fun with it. The power of certain words is invigorating and, more than once, I have seen the idea for a story

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Spirited Woman Directory 2013 – TellTale Souls’ Gift to You

12/15/2012 By 2 Comments
Spirited Woman Directory 2013

(Just released: Listen tomorrow to Clearstory Radio-Nashville as host River Jordan interviews me on how TellTale Souls "Give the Gift of Story.") I was invited to take part in the 2013 Spirited Woman Directory.  "It is a gem of creativity, talent, wisdom, information, stories, listings, and resources."  The directory includes 75 uniquely spirited and soulful women—you can find little ol’ me, Lynn Cook Henriksen, on page 99. To be inspired and learn more about "Every Woman Visionaries, click here for your gift copy: The Spirited Woman Directory 2013. My deep desire, for over a dozen years now, has been to guide women and men to write about a significant woman in their lives, and to help them celebrate their connection to women the world over!   It's all about "Keeping Spirits Alive" by "Giving the Gift of Story." The question I ask all daughters and sons to answer—“If you could tell just one small story that would capture your mother's character and keep her

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Read Me – TELLTALE SOULS Story No. 5

12/04/2012 By 2 Comments
Samantha reading to Woody

Photo contributed by Samantha: "Reading to my best friend." I'm back from a bad case of the flue, but, as promised, I'm bringing you another story excerpt from my guidebook, TellTale Souls Writing the Mother Memoir: How to Tap Memory and Write Your Story Capturing Character & Spirit.  It begins on page 62 of Act Two in the section entitled “Locating & Orienting.” You can easily find the stories I've posted from the book by searching "Bio-Vignette No." Pre-teen Samantha’s story brings up more memories of how precious are the simple times mothers and daughters spend together. This little TellTale Soul noticed that she had a good thing going. It’s also one of those universal stories through which mothers the world over can connect.   Read Me By Samantha Kirchhoff The last thing my mom and I used to do before I went to sleep each night was our most special time together. But to get there we went through a few stages, while I was growing up. Long

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TellTale Souls “Keeping Spirits Alive” at St. Stephen’s Art Fair Sunday, 12/2/12, 9 a.m.–2 p.m., Belvedere Ca’s Episcopal Church

11/30/2012 By 2 Comments
Lynn The Story Woman characature

Fair goers—to the annual Art Fair at St. Stephen’s Episcopal Church Sunday, December 2nd, 9 a.m.-2 p.m. in Belvedere, California—will learn that whether the relationship with mother is/was genuinely good or downright dreadful, valuable insight and understanding about the fundamental relationship with mother unfold through writing a short memoir, an intimate bio-vignette. IT’S NOT JUST ANY FAIR, so come follow me, take a look, and listen to begin to answer this question, “If you could tell just one small story that would capture your mother's character and keep her spirit alive for future generations, what would it be?” The “Mother Memoir” is special kind of memoir with a distinct and refreshing difference, one that adds new twists inviting readers and writers into a spirited and soulful world. Learn how tapping memory and learning to write with honesty about intimate, often trying, relationships is the most valuable form of writing, as well as a profound way to

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Spirited Thanksgiving Affair for All TellTale Souls

11/17/2012 By 6 Comments
Turkey

  It was a spirited, early Thanksgiving affair, as it turns out. Huge thanks to the TellTale Souls* who helped make last night's “Souls & Spirits” event at Books Inc—Alameda a truly memorable evening.  And sincere appreciation to the wonderful friends who showed up in support and to the folks who were drawn to it.  We all came away enthralled by the power of “Keeping Spirits Alive!” What season could be better than this to give thanks, through writing personal  Mother Memoir,  to those who mothered us through life, for the lessons that were taught, for the love and care that sustains, and for the understanding this type of writing provides when the mothering wasn’t the kind we wanted or needed? I’m thankful for the deep connections on an emotional level that I would never have felt had it not been for my asking practically everyone I've met, over the past decade, to answer this question, “If you could tell just one small story that would

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Souls & Spirits Event – Books Inc. Honors TellTale Souls

11/11/2012 By 3 Comments
Books Inc Alameda

Catching Spirits Event–Daughters & Sons Share Soulful Stories from the Award-Winning Guidebook “TellTale Souls Writing the Mother Memoir” at Books Inc, Alameda, Friday, November 16 at 7 p.m. Who is your MOM deep down inside? How will she be remembered? Why does it matter? Daughters and sons who pulled out all the stops on emotional memory are reading intimate stories, bio-vignettes, about their mothers on November 16, 2012, at “The Event You Can’t Download” — Books Inc., Alameda. This moving experience is a labor of love by the contributors of Lynn Cook Henriksen’s award-winning guidebook, “TellTale Souls Writing the Mother Memoir: How to Tap Memory and Write Your Story Capturing Character & Spirit,” that has the power to move people and change awareness. Among the San Francisco Bay area contributors who will be sharing their heartfelt Mother Memoirs are Alan Rinzler, Ann Seymour, Blair Kilpatrick, Dominique Crawley, Jarvis Jones, Joyce Turley,

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Memories of La Toilette – TELLTALE SOULS Story No. 4

11/07/2012 By 2 Comments
Leslie Sullivan and her mom, Nikki

As promised, I'm bringing you another story excerpt from my guidebook, TellTale Souls Writing the Mother Memoir: How to Tap Memory and Write Your Story Capturing Character & Spirit.  It begins on page 59 of Act Two in the section entitled “Locating & Orienting.” You can easily find the stories I've posted from the book by searching "Bio-Vignette No." Explore the interior of your childhood home or your current abode—note particular places or rooms that hold emotion. Place yourself firmly and reflectively in a room of your choice in your home by using the innersearch exercise you learned in the last section. Then WRITE one page filled with the emotional sensations that arise while linking them to the images and events from which they developed. Travel from room to room and repeat this process in each place your mind takes you. Leslie, one of the first TellTale Souls, wrote the following telling tale after exploring one busy room in her childhood home. This

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Ghosts of Memories Crying to be Told

10/26/2012 By 2 Comments
Keeping Spirits Alive

I believe in a coming together of spirits between daughters and sons with their individual mothers as they write the Mother Memoir, their bio-vignettes. And I believe an ever widening circle forms around people from all walks of life as stories are shared and embraced for sheer universality of emotion. Memories dance like ghosts in our heads until we realize we have the power to set them free. GHOST DANCE I crept inside and found you oh ghosts of persistent passion, sacred dancers, anticipating me; chant-like voices calling, cries summoning— seeking communion…   Concentric rings of shadows embrace, spirits soar united, receiving, awakening, inscribing one more soul, ghost dance resumes; mothers, sisters, daughters, the throng consumes— we nod in recognition…   I chose the ethereal path seeking you, and found ageless, fervid wisdom, thick liquid; otherworldly things now manifest in core. children of grace, voiceless ones,

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A Twenty Dollar Memory from “Back in the Day”

10/17/2012 By Leave a Comment
Memories of a Twenty

“Back in the day” is a phrase commonly bounced around nowadays, even from younger people who weren’t around “back in the day.”  I think they must be absorbing the common thoughts of their parents and the community overall, who can’t fathom how the cost of simply living is escalating out of control and out of reach for too many people. Many of us remember, and it seems like yesterday, when a $20 bill did mean something. It actually bought groceries that today would tally up to a grand total of $150, easy. Okay, we might say, “It is what it is.”  What does that phrase mean? Perhaps it amounts to a giving up of sorts—nothing we can do about it since “it is what it is,” so that amounts to acceptance of  things or feelings that we don’t think we can do anything about. But what if a $20 bill you thought was there, wasn’t? The following is a deeply ingrained memory of an incident I witnessed happening to my mother.  It’s not a Mother Memoir; the Mother

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