Suzanne Sherman: Writing the Truth in Memoir

June 21, 2025, 11 a.m.
Finley Center in Santa Rosa

Truth can be a sticky wicket in memoir — essential to the craft but sometimes hard to write. We’ll look at truth from several angles and uncover new ways of handling it in memoir writing. We’ll explore:

  • truth vs fact
  • exact truth and emotional truth
  • writing for yourself and writing for publication
  • methods for writing hard truths
  • revealing family secrets
  • liability and defamation

An editor since 1983 and a memoir coach and consultant for almost 40 years, Suzanne has helped hundreds of writers strengthen their skills and complete and publish their books. Her clients have published with Wiley & Sons, The University of Utah Press, She Writes Press, Chronicle Books, Ten Speed Press, and others. Suzanne taught memoir for Santa Rosa Junior College for 15 years and weekend memoir intensives for the University of California. She offers eight-week memoir writing workshops on Zoom, focusing on craft and story review; details are on her website. Her talk, “Exposure in Memoir,” is available in video on her website. Her books include Girlhood in America: Personal Stories 1910 – 2010, a collection of stories about life under age 13 from around the country and across a century. It’s a rare and fascinating lens to see through; it’s history in motion. Her memoir is currently under consideration by several publishers. Suzanne has lived in Sonoma County since 1996 and is happy to call it her home.