Getting That Memoir to Pay

Getting That Memoir to Pay Youve published your memoir and now its not bringing in the kind of money you expected? Its disappointing, but its not unusual. Turning your memoir into a money-maker is one of the greatest challenges in writing and publishing. But dont be too quick to round-file your book and abandon the life-long dream of writing your story. There are other fairly simple ways of bringing in extra cash from your labor-of-love. 1.   The biggest step in earning more money from your memoir is 2.   Try submitting snippets of your memoir to various publications. My best example is the Chicken Soup for the Soul series, which is basically a collection of mini-memoirs. They pay $200 per story plus 10 copies of the book in which youre to be published. 3.   Sell portions of your memoir to magazines. Womans World Magazine publishes a weekly magazine that offers opportunities for earning money for true stories written in the first person. They pay $25, $100 and $250 for non-fiction stories. Or, pluck a section from your memoir, change the names, embellish it and then submit it as fiction, which pays $800 for romances and $500 for mini-mysteries. 4. Newspapers are always looking for quality human interest stories for their hard copy and on-line publications. For seven years I was paid to write a nostalgic cooking column for a newspaper where I drew fully from my early-life experiences. Pay depends on the individual publication. 5.   Consider speaking engagements. Ive spoken at senior centers, churches, womens groups and military organizations. Network or go on-line to find groups with interests that align with your memoir. The larger the organization the more theyre able to pay. 6.   Enter contests. Contests accept fiction and nonfiction pieces; heres another place where you can take a slice of your memoir, fictionalize it and enter it in a contest, or write a piece of it as creative nonfiction. Entry fees vary, as do winning prizes. 7.   Teach a class. I contacted the Continuing Education Department of our local college and was hired to teach adult cooking, cooking for kids, memoir writing and publishing classes. 8.   Craft shows and farmers markets offer a relaxed, country feel that can set the mood for memoir sales. Bring along your gift-of-gab. Ive sold more books at craft shows than through any other venue. Earning additional funds from your memoir is entirely doable. The key is to think outside the box. Stay focused, flexible, and above all, creative.