Turn my memories into a life story or memoir chapter
Guided questions and a first draft that shape your memories into a warm, readable chapter in your own voice.
The prompt
Help me write a chapter of my life story from my memories.
The period or event: [e.g. "growing up on my parents' dairy farm in the 1950s", "the year I emigrated"]
Who this is for: [e.g. "my grandchildren", "family only", "maybe a published memoir"]
What I remember: [WRITE OR PASTE MEMORIES IN ANY ORDER - people, places, smells, sayings, small moments]
How I talk: [e.g. "plain and funny", "thoughtful", "I use old local sayings"]
Anything private or painful to handle carefully or leave out: [DETAILS]
Step 1: Ask me 8-10 memory-jogging questions about this period (senses, a specific day, what people said, what I didn't understand then but do now). Wait for my answers.
Step 2: Using only what I've told you, write a chapter of about [LENGTH - e.g. 1,200 words] that:
- Opens with one specific scene, not a summary.
- Keeps my voice, phrases, and sayings; avoids fancy wording I wouldn't use.
- Mixes scenes with short reflections on what it meant.
- Ends on a moment or thought, not a moral.
Rules: never invent events, names, dates, or details. Where a detail would help but I haven't given it, put [ADD: e.g. the name of the teacher] so I can fill it in. Treat other living people kindly and flag anything that might hurt or embarrass someone.
Step 3: List 5 other chapters this story could include, based on what I've shared.
Highlighted [brackets] are blanks to replace with your own details.
Fill in the blanks and use this promptMore Creative Writing prompts
What to fill in
- DETAILS
- LENGTH - e.g. 1,200 words
- ADD: e.g. the name of the teacher
How this prompt is built
This prompt follows the Few-Shot structure (Few-shot prompting). A few-shot prompt includes one or more worked examples of the input and the output you want, so the model can copy the pattern instead of guessing it.
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