Today we’d like to introduce you to Karen Ray.
Hi Karen, we’d love for you to start by introducing yourself.
Once upon a time, a gangly girl with a tender heart and big blue eyes that saw much sat at the outskirts of the fireside, listening to storytelling. While the other children played in the summer twilight, chasing frogs and each other by flashlight, she listened to the elders. Listened to the laughter, the dramatic tales, and the stories of overcoming hardships, the stories that often began…Remember when…
My desire to help others share their stories grew when I sat in the long-abandoned hayloft of my great-grandfather’s dairy barn as a ten-year-old girl. Dust motes danced in the warm sun slanting through the window. Leaning against a fragrant stack of hay, I turned the faded pages of my great-grandfather’s carefully written logbook, feeling the power of his story and our connected history. That little leather-bound book was lost along the way, but the memories are mine forever. And every time I pick up the hammer I inherited from him to hang a photo or make a repair, I can almost smell the hay and hear the clinking of a milk pail.
Those firelit evenings and hayloft musings planted a desire to save life stories and help others give voice to their Remember the Time moments.
I went on to earn a Journalism degree from UW-Madison and raise a family. I always collected stories, journaled, and observed. Years later, in a memoir-writing class with students spanning a wide range of ages and experiences, I watched the joy they felt as they listened to each other’s histories. A chance reading of an article about writing personal histories for others, which I found in a waiting room, further piqued my interest. This sealed my long-standing dream of helping families document their own stories; I began Remembering the Time memoir service.
My goal is to capture the natural bent for storytelling we share at gatherings of family and friends and help others create a gift that reaches beyond their own lives into future generations. Some have called me a “Memoir Midwife” as I help bring stories to life.
I’m sure it wasn’t obstacle-free, but would you say the journey has been fairly smooth so far?
This has been a growth experience for me, just as writing a book is for the individuals and families I work with. Often, folks know they want to write about their experiences and what they’ve learned in life. My challenge is helping them see that doing it themselves may be a years-long struggle. I don’t believe it should take that long and I want them to experience the joy of completing their story and holding their own book if they choose to take it the entire journey.
I’ve honed my interviewing process, read memoirs in a wide variety of styles, and sharpened my writing skills through fearless writing, editing, cross-genre work, and classes.
At times, even if the story is begun, it often doesn’t get completed when people work on their own. Folks can get confused, overwhelmed, and lose momentum. My goal is to help them see that, with the right support, they can do this. Just as I reach out for help in areas outside my expertise, they have resources available too.
One reason I love giving live workshops is to help others see the power of their stories and give them tools to get started. Only they can tell their one-of-a-kind story; I help make it happen.
Thanks – so what else should our readers know about your work and what you’re currently focused on?
I’m not only a writer, editor, and memoir coach; I’m a human being who loves the gift of life. I grew up in southern New Mexico and earned a journalism degree from the University of Wisconsin-Madison. I returned to the high desert of my childhood state and enjoy reading history, writing, anything outdoors, and all things rusty and dusty. When not writing my own essays, poetry, and books, or editing others’ work, I love to ramble down back roads collecting stories and photographs of lesser-known people and places.
I believe everyone’s life story is precious and unique. As the founder of Remembering the Time memoir and family history service, I help others create a life legacy of their personal stories. While I often work with a client’s draft manuscript, my specialty is conducting oral history interviews to draw out the best stories from a client’s heart and soul.
A typical day involves wordsmithing clients’ memoirs alongside a collection of furry office staff. I married my high school sweetheart, whom I first met when I was eight. Together we’ve explored many corners of the 100-year-old Gila Wilderness here in New Mexico. I have three adult kids I’m delighted to call friends and look forward to whatever next adventure we can share together.
My personal work, spanning essays, poetry, and business writing, has been published in a wide variety of newspapers, magazines, and journals. My book, Tell Your Life Story: 10 Tips and Techniques to Write Your Memoir, is a handy guide to help others begin their life story journey. I wrote this book after years of coaching, guiding, and editing many personal history clients in the creation and publication of their books. I’ve also created Celebrating Stories: A Journal to Unlock the Magic of Storytelling, and Life Pages: Explore Your Personal History: A Weekly Planner. Additional books are in the creative process. I continue to coach and guide others in sharing their memories and am always looking forward to hearing the next interesting story.
How do you define success?
Success is gratitude in action. When I can help others see their lives clearly, the power of their purpose, the meaning in their experiences, and the grace found in what I call the beautiful ordinary, as well as the extraordinary moments, that is the best gift I can give.
Pricing:
- Pricing varies according to the scope of the project. Small projects can be every bit as meaningful as large ones. Each is highly individual and I strive to bring clients’ vision for their story to life. Please contact me for a free consultation.
Contact Info:
- Website: https://www.rememberingthetime.net
- Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/rememberingthetime/
- Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/RememberingtheTime
- LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/karenlray/
- Other: https://substack.com/@karenray7
