| Putting together your own family history book | | | | of diaries or journals, you can still get somewhat |
| can be a lot of fun, but to make it a good one, | | | | of a grasp of what their daily lives were like if |
| you have to put a lot of thought and hard work | | | | you research the history of the times and regions |
| into the project. Here are some tips to get you | | | | when and where they lived. If you visit the local |
| started. | | | | libraries, you can often see newspapers from the |
| Choosing a Theme. | | | | time period you are researching(and perhaps even |
| There are a few different types of family history | | | | find stories about your relatives), as well as other |
| books. You can either choose to create a | | | | forms of town and regional histories. If your |
| scrapbook/photo album type book, or a more | | | | ancestors were, say, coal miners, find out as |
| text-heavy memoir that follows a narrative. If | | | | much as you can about what life was like for coal |
| you are going to write the latter type of book, | | | | miners in that particular period. Don't forget either, |
| there are a couple ways to go about it. First you | | | | that depending on how long ago your ancestors |
| could interview as many members of your family | | | | lived, there may still be people around who have |
| as possible, especially the older generation. This is | | | | some memories of them. |
| a great way to keep family stories alive in a form | | | | Writing It. |
| that can be enjoyed for generations to come. | | | | Whatever you do, don't feel like you have to |
| You could also center the book around a central | | | | simply tell someone's life story from beginning to |
| theme or person such as the first ancestor to | | | | end. It is always a good idea to start in the middle |
| come to America or to settle in your region. The | | | | of a big event and work your way outward. |
| possibilities for interesting angles are endless, or | | | | When you are writing this family history, think of |
| rather, limited only by what your research can | | | | your favorite novels and how the authors |
| turn up. Do keep in mind, though, that | | | | managed to successfully draw you in. Your |
| all-encompassing family histories can be rather | | | | research will help a lot in this realm. The more |
| daunting depending on how many lines there are | | | | information you have, the more detail you can |
| to follow. | | | | add, and the more interesting your book will be. |
| If you decide to go with a family photo book or | | | | Choosing A Binding Style. |
| scrapbook, it might be interesting to go from | | | | Here you will have to decide what kind of book |
| oldest to newest, and to include as much | | | | you want to create for your family history. If you |
| information as you can on the people, places and | | | | are thinking along the lines of a bookshelf or |
| things that are pictured. | | | | library-ready hardcover, thermal binding is what |
| Doing Your Research. | | | | you are after. This style gives your book that |
| Though constructing your family history is a fun | | | | permanent look and feel, and is surprisingly easy |
| project, there is a lot of hard work involved, and | | | | and inexpensive to do yourself. Take a look |
| the more you put into it, the more your readers | | | | around online for machines and supplies, or make |
| will get out of it. Even if the person or people that | | | | a visit to your local prit shop and see what they |
| you are focusing on didn't leave much in the way | | | | have to offer. |