How to Avoid Writing a Boring Family History

After reading numerous articles with tips for writing a family history, I have cringed as these articles make the process overly complex and the end result becomes cures for insomnia.

STOP WRITING BORING FAMILY HISTORIES!

Many genealogists dream of writing “The Book” for family history, perhaps you’re one of them. Don’t destroy your admirable goal of turning your filing cabinets of facts into a bound book for your family to appreciate their heritage by printing the worst offender -- a Register Style genealogy book.

Ask yourself, do you really want to read this register-style family history?

Apparently, a well-known genealogy society developed the Register Style Family History in the 1870s. (source) The format succeeds in organizing generations and facts in an economical way.

HOWEVER, we live in an age where you can inexpensively publish a book through Lulu.com or Amazon (among others). These on-demand single-run publishers allow you the freedom to tell better stories without breaking the bank.

So, I must beseech you to implement tip #1 of writing better family histories -- don’t write register style books. Instead, follow these simple steps.

Tip for Writing an Enjoyable Family History

In this video, I’ll walk you through the simple steps to end the boring family history book curse. These easy steps will surprise you, even if you lack creating writing skills.

↪️ Do you want to write a family history book?

Grab your copy of this FREE Writing Guide:

Nine minutes of writing tips you won’t want to ignore

The tough love writing advice in the above video explains the following tips:

1. Add Explanations

2. Describe the Locations

3. Move Genealogy Proofs

4. Add Context

If you’re a prickly genealogist who thinks there is only one way to write a family history, then don’t watch this video as I just might offend you. (Especially when I tell you the truth about your proof arguments and what to do with them)

If you want to share your family history without your family running for the hills to avoid you, then this video is for you.

For a step-by-step process that will help you write your ancestor’s story quickly, order our book from Amazon today.

Watch this video on YouTube.

Writing sample from the book: Descendants of Reinold and Matthew Marvin of Hartford, Ct., 1638 and 1635: Sons of Edward Marvin, of Great Bentley, England, by George Franklin Marvin William Theophilus Rogers Marvin, 1901.

Additional Family History Writing Tips and Examples

If you want even more tips on how to improve your family history writing, then you need to immerse yourself in these articles

• Improve the family histories you have inherited by critically reading each chapter to extract questions that you must answer.

• After you transform facts into sentences, you must add historical context to your writing to add life to your dry details.

• Not all historical context is glorious, such as ancestors owning slaves. Include those stories in your narratives, regardless of your personal feelings on the subject.

• Stop thinking you have a dull ancestor and you who won't make for an interesting subject.

If you have followed all of the above family history writing tips and you want to add more creativity, then watch this video entitled “Adding Drama to Your Family History Writing Projects“

Additional Writing Tips:

1. How to Write Family History More Powerfully from Genealogy Gems -- this one is for creative storytellers

2. 6 Tips for Writing Your Family History from Family Tree Magazine -- these tips cover making a plan and getting help