Today we’d like to introduce you to Nora Kerr.
Nora, please share your story with us. How did you get to where you are today?
I started Memoir for Me almost 3 years ago after a very personal experience with my father. He had been fighting cancer, and the day came when doctors told us that we wouldn’t have a lot of time with him. I suddenly realized that there was so much I didn’t know about him–about his childhood, starting out in his career, what he was most proud about… I wanted to ask him everything. So I did! He was game for all of it and was touched that someone cared about his life enough to ask questions that had probably never been asked.
The interview experience and resulting book with stories of his life told in his voice combined with photographs spanning his years became the blueprint for my business. I’m so happy to have returned to my creative writing and photography roots and now run this business full-tilt and have been lucky enough to have told the stories of over 60 people since starting in 2015. I take that very personal experience with my father –the same sense of urgency, passion, and care –to every one of my clients. In doing this work, I have learned that truly everybody has a story. They’re often just waiting to tell it!
Overall, has it been relatively smooth? If not, what were some of the struggles along the way?
When I started Memoir for Me in 2015, I didn’t know the first thing about running a business. All I knew was I had just had this amazing experience with my own dad and wanted to share that with others. I was confident in my abilities as a writer and I knew I had the passion for the work, but sales and marketing, pricing, etc. has been a learned (and sometimes painful) experience.
Like many businesses, my client load ebbs and flows. I have slow periods when I question what I’m doing, but then I deliver a book to a client and their reaction tells me I’m doing exactly what I’m supposed to be doing with my life. It’s so much more to me than a job.
I believe in this company. I’d say my biggest challenge is believing in myself. Success in business takes A LOT of work, patience, and persistence that can be a bit of an emotional rollercoaster to manage as a working mom of two, juggling a lot of responsibilities. But I wouldn’t trade it for anything in the world.
Please tell us about Memoir for Me.
Memoir for Me specializes in capturing the life stories that matter through personal interviews. We create life story books, videos, and even keepsake picture frames that highlight these special memories.
We are not an online bookmaking service–there are no templates or drag and drop options here. Each book or video is custom-made for your family and takes 6-8 weeks to complete. I personally listen to hours of interview tapes to make sure every quote included in a book is exactly as that person intended.
We are also not a ghost-writing service. We are not aiming to write someone’s biography, but are truly after memoirs–discovered only through personal conversations. We aim to capture the moments (good and bad) in a person’s life that made them who they are today.
I’ve worked on baby books, wedding albums, engagement stories, retirement books, milestone birthday books, and more, but my favorite type of project is the one that seems most urgent: capturing life stories from elderly parents and grandparents for future generations.
If you had to go back in time and start over, would you have done anything differently?
This is one of the questions I ask my clients! Interestingly enough, most of them live lives of no regrets.
I don’t regret much because even in my failures, I have learned volumes. But I’d probably tell “2013 me” to welcome suggestions and feedback, but weigh them carefully. When I launched, I was running in many different directions, trying to please everyone when it came to product offering or pricing. It’s true what they say, you try to please everyone, you end up pleasing the wrong type of clients–or worse, nobody. I was trying to be everything to everybody, and my marketing and messaging were muddled as a result.
Pricing:
- Memory Frames Start at $99
- Life Story Books and Videos Start at $599
Contact Info:
- Website: memoirforme.com
- Email: nora@memoirforme.com
- Instagram: instagram.com/memoirforme
- Facebook: facebook.com/memoirforme
- Twitter: twitter.com/memoirforme
Image Credit:
Kim Grotto, Alexandra Gerard, Patricia O’Shea
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