You're Invited to the June Chronicles Writing Challenge
Along with an invitation to join the new Chronicles Club membership
Every family historian wants to save their family’s history.
Most put off getting started for a better day. The truth is that day doesn’t come. The Chronicles Writing Challenges is your opportunity to start writing your family history in a fun and easy way.
Chronicles capture moments-in-time from your ancestor’s life. They include an image to help tell the story of that moment, and are intentionally short so they are easy to create and easy to share with family.
Once you have 3 to 5 chronicles on one ancestor, you have enough for a complete chapter within a family history book, once you fill in the details of their in-between those events.
The June Chronicles Writing Challenge runs June 1st - 10th and to participate all you need to do is be a free subscriber of this Substack, Chronicle Makers. Click to button below to add yourself to the challenge.
😀 How the challenge works:
Use the daily prompt or pick a topic of your choice.
Write 50-150 words about that moment in your ancestor’s life.
Choose an image to go with your writing (photo, map, drawing, record, screenshot, etc).
Publish it to social media or your blog (or both!) with the hashtag #10daysofchronicles (this helps us find each other out there). You can also post it in the comments of the post.
That’s it!
We will also hold two group calls where you can share your successes and ask any questions you may have. Click the links below to RSVP for those calls on Zoom:
Chronicles Challenge Kick-off Call (30 minutes) June 1st
Chronicles Challenge Celebration Call (30 minutes) June 11th
This is the perfect opportunity for genealogists of all levels to come together, and start (or continue!) their family history writing.
And if you want to upgrade your family history writing even more, I invite you to join the Chronicles Club!
Upgrade Your Experience with the Chronicles Club
Once you’ve written some chronicles, you are ready to start combining and improving them into publishable family history.
The Chronicles Club gives you a place to get community, accountability, and improve your family history writing. No more procrastinating about saving and sharing one of your most precious possessions - all your genealogy work!
The Club runs online, and is based right here in Substack as a paid subscription.
What You Get from the Chronicles Club
Community
Our members come from various backgrounds, and we are all new to family history writing. You will make friends and not have to struggle alone.
Improved Writing Skills
The best way to learn something new is to do it, get feedback, and then do it again. You will write, get feedback, and then make changes. You’ll also learn ways to be clearer and more engaging in your writing.
Constructive Feedback
Receiving feedback helps you refine what you want to say and you’ll get many new ideas on how to share your ancestors’ stories. Unlike school, this will be fun and uplifting feedback, not criticism.
Motivation and Accountability
Regular meetings and deadlines will help you stay motivated and stay on track with your projects. We’re all in this together!
Chronicles Club Details
What We’ll Do: Share our writing and make improvements to it.
When: Writers meetings two Thursdays a month this summer, 1pm-2pm eastern, plus 24/7 here in the chat.
Where: Online with our own private chat on Substack and on Zoom for our writers meetings.
What to Bring: One page of family history writing for feedback. You’ll be paired with another writer to get suggestions on your writing.
Cost: Substack paid subscription of $10 per month. Discounts for annual subscribers. Stay as long as you need to finish your family history.
Don't miss this chance to improve your writing and share your family stories with a supportive community.
If you have questions, please leave a comment or hit reply to this email to reach me.
I look forward to writing along with you this summer!