0:00
/
Transcript

WATCH: Melissa Petro on How to Write a Hybrid Memoir

The prolific writer and first-time book author tells us how she finds the strength to write about her most vulnerable experiences—and how she reframed her memoir concept and landed a book deal.

This Open Book conversation with Melissa Petro, author of Shame on You: How to Be a Woman in the Age of Mortification, is one that has been particularly helpful for a lot of writers in our community. So many of us have lots of material for a memoir but no firm concept about how that material comes together into a marketable book.

Melissa chatted with us about how she re-conceptualized her memoir into a hybrid book that feels very of-the-moment — and got a publisher’s attention with her new proposal. Give it a watch by clicking play above.

BTW, we have just a couple seats left in Melissa’s Nonfiction Book Development Boot Camp, which starts next week. If you’re ready to take on a full-length book—memoir, narrative nonfiction, or something in between—but you’re not totally sure how it takes shape, this two-day workshop is designed to help you transform your idea into a structured, strategic vision you can confidently pitch, write and publish.

Learn More + Sign Up


To make sure you never miss a post, become a free or paid subscriber to Narratively Academy.

Discussion about this video

User's avatar

Ready for more?