Is it time for another update?
Christmas has passed and New Year’s is upon us. Time for resolutions…or not. I don’t really believe in them although we all look for times and statements to improve our lives. Who can resist saying “this year I want to….” Fill in the blank…we’ve all done it.
Well this year, I do have a resolution I hope to make good on. I have a new business that I believe in and I have to become a salesman to make it work. That is foreign to me. Trying to get someone to buy something they may not know they need…or want.
Hopefully, I can convince this is a worthy past-time. It’s all in the name of preservation. Preserving your memories, those of your family. Maybe it’s an attempt to preserve local history…keeping in mind if you are preserving your memories and your family stories, you are preserving local history.
Some people want, and need, to tell the story of their parents or grandparents or a special loved one. Even if your relatives have lived ordinary lives, their story deserves to be told. Your children and grandchildren need to know the stories of those who came before them. It’s who you are…the sum of your background, your upbringing or your values. It explains to a new generation why the family has certain traditions or made specific choices in life.
When I initially started pursuing this line of “work” it was to help people write their memoirs. But that is such a pretentious word for some people…it is just a more succinct word for memories. If you keep a diary or journal, you are preserving the days of your life. One day, someone will be able to review those words and know you. If you simply put your memories into a more formal layout, it becomes a memoir, a storybook of your life.
In this digital world, people have hundreds of pictures on their computers. Will they ever be printed? Likely most will not, but we continue to keep them…at least until the next computer failure. There are websites to help you preserve and protect your digital data…why not do it yourself?
Upload your pictures to a photo site, preferably mine (www.photostoriesNmore.com) and use the software to organize it into a book. Add cutlines (captions) to explain the pictures, or short stories of what was happening that day, for that event, or in that year. In a matter of minutes, even less than an hour in some cases..you’ve got a book. Use a pre-made template for a book, a poster, a family fold or card, or design something for scratch…it’s that easy, and there are classes, and suggested quotes and layouts to help you achieve your goal. We have the whole package…it’s all up to you, but you’re not alone.
I’ve been telling people for years…”write it down.” Savor your memories, your life experience and then save it for the next generation. But now, I’ve got a means to help them do it. You don’t even have to write anything if that’s your preference. Put your pictures to work, or those of your family. Remember a picture can be worth a thousand words.
Wednesday, December 30, 2009
Thursday, November 19, 2009
This year, I need to create more tree ornaments. Last year, my tree was covered with red and gold ornaments from simple foam poster board....the centerpiece? All my family's pictures. You can do it,too. Make a memory tree...another one-of-a-kind Christmas decoration. No one will have a tree like yours, because yours is all personal pictures.
But you can make a more personal Christmas all around.
'tis the season...and I can help. Yep, this is blatant sales, but it's so easy I can't resist. I'm excited to introduce my newest venture, and it's still in keeping with my basic beliefs...preservation! Preserve your history, your family's, your town's whatever...if you don't tell the story who will?
In this message, I simply want to show you how to make truly personal Christmas cards. Use a favorite photo from this year's activities, or pull up an old family photo that should be shared.
The Heritage Makers Holiday Hits Sale! This is my biggest sale of the season! Let me help you cruise through this month and next knowing you have your gift giving under control -- especially your Heritage Makers gifts.
This week, Christmas cards are on sale for only $49.95 for 50! A little steep? They’re personalized, one of a kind…made by you. Contact me today to get this amazing deal!
To see this week's special, follow this link www.photostoriesNmore.com
Not ready to embark on a new past-time? Check us out after Christmas and let me help you start next year's presents...personal ones. The story of your life, a family member, record a special trip or just create a one-of-a-kind photo album...and indestructible one with a guarantee! Of course, you can cut and paste, but chuck the scissors, and ditch the glue...all you need is a computer and all those pictures stored on your computer. Got boxes of pictures in your closet, the attic, maybe your junk drawer...scan them or let me help...we offer scanning services, too!
Wednesday, September 9, 2009
Personal publishing consultant…
I always think the word “consultant” sounds a little pompous…like I know more than someone else so therefore I can be a consultant. At my age, I could be a consultant on many things…but not necessarily something you would want my advice on.
However, personal publishing in this context means I might know something, and with a little more training, to go with the experience I already have…and I’m it…a consultant.
It will take a little cash…doesn’t everything? But that’s just to get the supplies that make the business a little easier, AND direct you, the customer to the right site. Well, if I do this my way, my consulting could take you in many directions.
I want you to follow something I believe in. I’ve written about. I’ve practiced. But, with this new pursuit, while you’re doing it and maybe helping me with a business, I’ll have time to do more myself.
Of course, there is the little matter of my job, but with a little creative scheduling…And I’ve done that many times, this can work.
Thousands, millions? of women, and some men, I suppose, across the country have invested in paper, scissors, punches, glue and glitter to scrapbook their way to family fame.
Well I’m not a scrapper in the traditional sense. Goodness knows I have plenty of scraps that need preserving. I just choose to do it with no mess no fuss…digitally. And I found it, the site I want to use to do my digital scrapbooking. It’s a little pricey-er than some sites, but it offers so much more than some of the standards.
Anyone can sign on to a photo site and compile a photobook with digital images, embellish it with backgrounds, digital “stickers” and even a few quotes or captions ( my journalese let’s me call them cutlines). But I want you, and me, to do more.
You CAN write a book! You can tell your stories, your family history, capture your memories or those of your family members. People are doing it and I want to help more people do it.
All those readers of the Hartland Historical Society newsletter have heard me expound on it for years…a few have tried…the trick is “write it down.”
I’ve started a few “memoirs” and it really isn’t about setting down to write a book. It’s about capturing memories…one story at a time, one event at a time, maybe one person at a time. Today, more than ever, people are discovering what they’ve lost in family memories, the stories, the pictures or maybe the stories that go with the pictures. Don’t you ever wonder when you see an old picture? Who is that? Why are they doing that? What are they doing?
I have a great family album, leather-bound, gilt-edged and a brass clasp…but who are the people? I now know two of them with some creative sleuthing. But no one identified the pictures in the 1800s and here are these people…my relatives and I don’t know who they are or why we have their pictures.
I’ve written columns about this…mark your pictures, date your pictures, keep them in an album, create a scrapbook or now even better, and easier create a digital album or scrapbook…it couldn’t be easier, even if you don’t own a computer.
But, of course, you do…you’re reading this.
And if you are reading a blog you are not just an occasional computer user. You know your way around the Internet. You can use the software. Maybe you already upload your digital pictures to a photo website. Maybe they offer a digital album, photobook option….most do these days. Some sites offer more…more backgrounds, more design options, more help and classes, too. Check it out….as soon as my wehsite is set I’ll let you know how to get there and how I can help you.
Heck, I can help you now…it just depends on how much you want to do in the way of family history.
However, personal publishing in this context means I might know something, and with a little more training, to go with the experience I already have…and I’m it…a consultant.
It will take a little cash…doesn’t everything? But that’s just to get the supplies that make the business a little easier, AND direct you, the customer to the right site. Well, if I do this my way, my consulting could take you in many directions.
I want you to follow something I believe in. I’ve written about. I’ve practiced. But, with this new pursuit, while you’re doing it and maybe helping me with a business, I’ll have time to do more myself.
Of course, there is the little matter of my job, but with a little creative scheduling…And I’ve done that many times, this can work.
Thousands, millions? of women, and some men, I suppose, across the country have invested in paper, scissors, punches, glue and glitter to scrapbook their way to family fame.
Well I’m not a scrapper in the traditional sense. Goodness knows I have plenty of scraps that need preserving. I just choose to do it with no mess no fuss…digitally. And I found it, the site I want to use to do my digital scrapbooking. It’s a little pricey-er than some sites, but it offers so much more than some of the standards.
Anyone can sign on to a photo site and compile a photobook with digital images, embellish it with backgrounds, digital “stickers” and even a few quotes or captions ( my journalese let’s me call them cutlines). But I want you, and me, to do more.
You CAN write a book! You can tell your stories, your family history, capture your memories or those of your family members. People are doing it and I want to help more people do it.
All those readers of the Hartland Historical Society newsletter have heard me expound on it for years…a few have tried…the trick is “write it down.”
I’ve started a few “memoirs” and it really isn’t about setting down to write a book. It’s about capturing memories…one story at a time, one event at a time, maybe one person at a time. Today, more than ever, people are discovering what they’ve lost in family memories, the stories, the pictures or maybe the stories that go with the pictures. Don’t you ever wonder when you see an old picture? Who is that? Why are they doing that? What are they doing?
I have a great family album, leather-bound, gilt-edged and a brass clasp…but who are the people? I now know two of them with some creative sleuthing. But no one identified the pictures in the 1800s and here are these people…my relatives and I don’t know who they are or why we have their pictures.
I’ve written columns about this…mark your pictures, date your pictures, keep them in an album, create a scrapbook or now even better, and easier create a digital album or scrapbook…it couldn’t be easier, even if you don’t own a computer.
But, of course, you do…you’re reading this.
And if you are reading a blog you are not just an occasional computer user. You know your way around the Internet. You can use the software. Maybe you already upload your digital pictures to a photo website. Maybe they offer a digital album, photobook option….most do these days. Some sites offer more…more backgrounds, more design options, more help and classes, too. Check it out….as soon as my wehsite is set I’ll let you know how to get there and how I can help you.
Heck, I can help you now…it just depends on how much you want to do in the way of family history.
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