The rise of memoir

Posted by admin on Jan 20, 2009 in From the Editor | 0 comments

It was World War Two. Herman Rosenblat, a teenager trapped in a concentration camp in Germany, needed a miracle. What he got was an angel.

Everyday, a girl from a nearby farm would meet him at the concentration camp fence would sneak him apples, giving him hope to go on. But the story gets better: years later, Rosenblat met his angel again, this time on a blind date in New York state, where they had both emigrated years earlier. The pair, reunited after the inspiring genesis of their love, soon married, and remain so today.

You know what would make this story even better?

If it was true.

Angel at the Fence, Rosenblat’s memoir, was recently cancelled after his publisher found out his tale had been proven false by holocaust scholars – which the author admitted to, after the story had been optioned as a film, made into a children’s book, featured in a magazine and shared with millions via email forwards.

Rosenblat’s memoir is just the latest in a string of false memoirs, including last year’s Love and Consequences by Maragaret Jones, and James Frey’s highly-publicized 2003 fancification, A Million Little Pieces.

Why does this trend of untrue memoir exist? Because authors know what readers want: personal stories. Memoir and literary non-fiction are hot sellers, and publishers are picking up the genre, weakening the novel’s hold on the literary market.

The “I” in writing – the author himself – has been augmented through the years. In addition to the rise of memoir, the format of news writing has gradually evolved to include more personal narrative as opposed to hard facts. Where an author was once asked to mask themselves in newspapers and magazines, personal essays and snippets of experience are welcomed.

Why have memoirs, and other forms of stories about personal experience, become so popular? Why are readers more willing than ever to share in a writer’s consciousness, to accept their voice as one worth hearing?

People have an inherent need to tell stories. And with the rise of blogs and self-publishing sites such as lulu.com, personal experience no longer needs to be relegated to the pages of a diary – everyone has the opportunity to make their story heard. Admittedly, this means that there is more bad writing to wade through to get to the good stuff. But the good stuff is more available than ever.

Part of the phenomena is the simple fact that a story is more powerful, more poignant, if we know it is true. If a little girl really can bring hope to a teenager in a concentration camp, it makes the reader feel that hope is still possible, the amazing can still take place and humanity still has the capacity to surprise itself. And even though Rosenblat’s particular story proved false, there are plenty of true stories of literary merit found on bookstore shelves, in magazines, journals and newspapers.

When a writer reveals to others a real part of her soul, she’s asking them to share her experience – her pain and joy. Readers transcend being mere readers, and become listeners. The rise of the “I” allows readers to become part of the “we”; what some may see as the most narcissistic form of writing is often the most inclusive.

The rise of memoir means many things for publishers, writers and readers. But mostly, it means we all have a greater opportunity to add our own story to the narratives being told – and heighten our chances of bringing hope, perspective and wisdom to others.