Guess Who’s Coming to the Party?

What party you say?

No not Rootstech!

The other party, The Family History Writing Challenge.

The month long event where family history writers will get busy writing their stories.

So far the month is shaping up to be quite the event. We are over 60 strong presently, with membership coming in every day. We’ve got The Family History Writing Challenge website established where all the posts will be published once the month begins. You can also sign up there and find the link to the forum. In the forum, we will celebrate our successes, offer each other encouragement, kick each other in the butt and exchange our writing tips and tricks.

Now I would like to introduce to our line-up of guests who will be joining this party.  I am excited about these guest authors, they bring individually and collectively a wide range of family history writing experience to our group. Looking forward to their posts and perhaps with a little encouragement they will join us in the forum with their advice.

Here they are, The Family History Writing Challenge Guest Authors.



Julie Cahill
Genealogy has been a passion of Julie's since 2007 and she has been a professional writer for as long as she can remember. She provides writing, editing, and design services to assist other genealogists in telling their family stories. Julie is working toward the American Records certificate through the National Institute for Genealogical Studies and has completed the ProGen Study Group program. She is currently the Recording Secretary and Education Committee Chair for the Illinois State Genealogical Society and Treasurer for the Letitia Green Stevenson Chapter NSDAR, and serves on many committees for each organization.
You can find Julie at one of her three genealogy blogs: GenBlog, Writing Your Way to the Past, and Who Will Tell Their Story?.



Biff Barnes
Biff Barnes is a writer, educator, and historian who has published extensively about San Francisco. He was a William Robertson Coe Fellow in American History at Stanford University. His experience with historical research, oral history, and academic writing is invaluable to family history authors as they plan and organize their books.
Biff Barnes is part of the Stories To Tell team of editors and book designers who help authors to create memoirs and family history books. They have worked with hundreds of authors to develop their fiction, non-fiction, and creative non-fiction books. As an editor, he helps to plan the book's content, edits text and images, and design a professional, unique book for his clients.  Biff offers great writing advice in his Stories to Tell Blog



Lisa Alzo
Lisa Alzo, M.F.A. currently resides in Ithaca,  New York. She earned a Bachelor of Science degree in Nutrition from West Virginia Wesleyan College in 1987 and Master of Fine Arts in Nonfiction Writing from the University of Pittsburgh in 1997.
Lisa began writing creatively in the fourth grade with an assignment entitled, “All About Me,” and went on to win several  English/Writing Awards throughout high school and college.  Lisa has published articles in Ancestry Magazine, Discovering Family History, Family Chroncile, Family Tree Magazine, Genealogical Computing, Reunions Magazine, NGSNews Magazine, Western Pennsylvania History Magazine, FEEFHS Journa and Rocenka: Journal of the Czechoslovak Genealogical Society Internation, The Associaton of Professional Genealogists Quarterly.
An avid genealogist for 22 years, Lisa currently teaches online genealogy course for Family Tree University and the National Institute for Genealogical Studies. She is the recipient of the 2002 Mary Zirin Prize given by the Association for Women in Slavic Studies to recognize the achievements  of independent scholars, and is a frequent speaker for national conferences, genealogical and historical societies.
You can find this busy writer at her website Lisa Alzo  and The Accidental Genealogist. 


Linda Gartz
Linda cut her journalistic teeth in the television business—researching, producing, and writing documentaries that have aired nationally on CBS, ABC, NBC, and PBS and have been syndicated on cable nation-wide.
Linda has published article in magazines, literary journals, and newspapers nationwide.
Linda is the Family Archaeologist, digging deep into twentieth century history as unearthed through her family’s letters, diaries, photos, and artifacts spanning more than a hundred years.  Join her on a quest to uncover the joy, struggle, loss, and resilience her ancestors experienced—and the secrets revealed along the way. You may recognize some of your own family’s past in hers and learn techniques for investigating, organizing, preserving, and enjoying a genealogical treasure trove.
Linda's experience clearly displays she understands the power of storytelling. You can find her at her webpage Linda Gartz and her blog, Family Archaeologist.




Sharon DeBartolo Carmack
Sharon is a Certified Genealogist with an MFA in Creative Nonfiction Writing. She is a partner in the Salt Lake City-based research, writing, and publishing firm of Warren, Carmack & Associates. Sharon offers consulting, mentoring, writing, and editing services for nonfiction books, with an emphasis on memoirs, biographies, histories, family histories, and annotated diaries.
The author of sixteen books and hundreds of articles, columns, and reviews that have appeared in nearly every major genealogical journal and publication, some of Sharon’s book titles include You Can Write Your Family History, Carmack’s Guide to Copyright & Contracts, and Your Guide to Cemetery Research.
Her work has also appeared in Creative Nonfiction, Brevity: A Journal of Concise Literary Nonfiction, Steinbeck Review, Hippocampus Magazine, Writer’s Digest, and Personal Journaling. She is an assistant editor for Brevity and a contributing editor for Family Tree Magazine.
Along with a BA (summa cum laude) in English from Regis University and an MFA (with Distinction) in Creative Nonfiction Writing from National University, Sharon holds a Diploma in Irish Studies from the National University of Ireland, Galway.
Sharon teaches nonfiction writing classes for Writer’s Digest University, and Irish research classes for Family Tree University.
Sharon can be reached through her Web site: www.SharonCarmack.com.



You don’t want to miss out, Sign-up now!

Road Trip To Rootstech – The Countdown Begins

We are exactly one week away from Rootstech. I think I’m finally got all my ducks in a row. Airline tickets are booked. We will be flying out of Detroit early on Wed morning, putting us in Salt Lake by 10:30 am, fingers crossed all goes well. I forked out the extra $$$ for a direct flight, being winter I didn’t want to chance been stranded in another hub. We will head to Detroit the night before, stay in an airport hotel where we will leave the car. That’s the plan.

Since we last talked I’ve got a chance to look at the Rootstech schedule, I have a rough outline of the lectures I want to attend. I don’t want to be too absolute with it as I have learned from past conferences to leave a little wiggle room for last minute changes. Haven’t really committed to too many extras, like the lunches. I was interested in the brightsolid lunch, but I was slow on the draw and it is sold out. Note to self don't take to long to think about these things.

One thing I do find confusing about the lecture schedule has to do with the hands-on lectures. These hands-on lectures have a limited capacity so you have to register for them, however they are not really clearly identified as such on the schedule. I found my self marking them in my calendar only to realize later they require a registration. How many others will do the same? How many will show up at the lecture disappointed they can't get in, or take someone else's seat? A previous reader mentioned something to this effect and now I know to what he was referring.

Who is going to the comedy show? Hmmm.... should I go solo or buy the hubby a ticket? Assuming he'll be back from skiing.

By now you are all aware of the RootsTech App (Apple or Android) This is certainly a wonderful added addition to organizing and improving my conference experience. The contacts seems to be a bit of an issue, bumping seems a more likely option. I understand there are still some tweeks and changes still coming for the App. Nice work RootsTech!

The syllabi are ready for download. Head to the schedule for those lectures that provided a syllabus where you will find a link under there respective listing.

Since my last post, many of you who have been to RootsTech and or live in the area have been most helpful for this Newbie RootsTechie! I appreciate your help. There has been a few posts around the blogosphere with plenty of great suggestions.

Amy Coffin from We Tree Genealogy and The Wallflowers Guide to RootsTech!

Julie Cahill from Genblog and 11 Tips for Attending RootsTech 2012

Banai from The Ginger Jewish Genealogist and The Insider’s Guide to the Family History Library and SLC.

And most recently Randy Seaver at Genea-Musings shared with us this great must have, The Chart Chick's Guide to Salt Lake City written by Janet Hovorka. I've added it to Dropbox, so I'll have it readily available on my iphone.

This week’s focus will be to finish up my blog posts for the next week, and make sure The Family History Writing Challenge members are ready to go. As well I need to get my own research in order for my visit to the family history library. Since we are getting in to Salt Lake City a little earlier then I first anticipated I might squeeze some time in on Wednesday to get started on some research at The Library, before the excitement and events of the conference swallow me up.

I’ve added the updated list of names of the Geneabloggers at the conference to my Dropbox, I’m going to do my best to meet them all. Be sure to ask for my business card while at RootsTech, you’ll be the first to see my new logo. ( Not yet up on my blog). And check out the jewellery I will be wearing while at the conference, heritage jewellery courtesy of drtaylordesigns. I love it. I think you will too.

I haven't forgotten about those of you who aren't luck enough to be joining us. I've gathered the live-streaming lecture schedule here. This is a fantastic online learning opportunity for armchair genealogists.

One last question to those who have been to Salt Lake City, or those that live in the area….the most important question…..where to eat? Janet has a nice round up of places in her book. However, if you got  a hot spot you want to share, point me in the direction of the best of the best of the local cuisine, feel free to leave them in the comments below.

Now the only thing left to do is pack!

RootsTech: Live-Streaming Schedule

RootsTech has announced the live-streaming schedule for this year's conference. I attended the live streaming last year and I encourage you to attend from the comfort of your armchair. This is a fantastic online learning opportunity for genealogists of all levels of experience. You will not be disappointed. 

The live-streaming will cover all lectures taking place in Room 155. Keep in mind that the times of these lectures are Mountain Standard Time, be sure to convert to your timezone.Use this link. Time Zone Converter

Thursday Feb 2 

8:30 - 10 am
Inventing the Future, as a Community (Keynote)
by Jay Verkler

11:00 am - 12:00 pm
Do I Trust the Cloud?
by D. Joshua Taylor
Description: With iCloud, Dropbox, and other cloud computing services taking center stage in data storage, genealogists are asking, “Do I trust the cloud?” Discover the basics concepts of cloud computing and how they relate to storing your genealogical data. In addition, relevant case studies will provide you with the resources needed to make a decision on whether or not cloud storage is for you.
(Rated for Intermediate Users)


1:45 - 2:45 pm
Effective Database Search Tactics by Kory Meyerink
Description: Online genealogy research requires effective searching of databases. With billions of names in thousands of databases, it’s easy to get lost. This dual focus presentation helps researchers search more effectively while also encouraging developers to incorporate more advanced search techniques, such as truncation, keyword, fielded data, proximity, phrase, and wild word searching.
(Rated for Intermediate Users)


3:00 - 4:00 pm
Twitter – It’s Not Just “What I Had For Breakfast” Anymore
 by Thomas MacEntee
Description: Twitter. You’ve heard about it on the news and read about it in magazines and newspapers. You’ve seen televisions shows display their “tweets” especially for celebrities like Oprah and others. You wonder what all the fuss is about, why so many people are talking about it, and if you really should be interested in what someone else is doing. And more importantly, you wonder if you are missing out on something which could be useful as a genealogy research tool. Social media applications such as Twitter allow you to build a group of subscribers or “followers” who can follow your conversations or broadcasts of information and respond automatically or pass the information along to their own followers. Sort of like the child’s game of Operator – but one that actually works!
(Rated for Intermediate Users)

Friday Feb 3

8:30 - 9:30 am
Exabyte Social Clouds and other Monstrosities (Keynote)
by Josh Coates
Description: Josh presents and discusses the origins, implications and possible eventualities of key technologies that are shaping our technological infrastructure.

9:45 - 10:45 am
Publish Your Genealogy Online
by Laura Prescott
Description: This lecture will discuss the fundamentals of publishing family data to a website, whether it is done through a big-name genealogy site, or by using genealogy software and a personal domain. We will explore options for appearance, access, costs, and privacy issues. Even without a computer-based genealogy program, there are some reasonable alternatives for placing a genealogy online. Whether you use a PC or a Mac, or even a public computer at your local library, you have choices for software, online access, and the final presentation. We’ll also review additional important considerations like degree of interaction, multimedia, and sources. Although the process may seem intimidating, after we work through each of the steps and explore the various options, the adventure into publishing an online genealogy will enter the realm of possibilities.
(Rated for Intermediate Users)


11:00 am - 12:00 pm
Optimizing Your Site for Search Engines
 by Robert Gardner
Description: With the explosion of genealogical information available on the World Wide Web, it is becoming more and more important to make that information available and prominent on Internet search engines, such as Google, Bing, and Yahoo. This session is targeted at site owners and software engineers. It will discuss standards and techniques for making the information on your site easy for search engines to crawl, index, and rank. Topics will include optimal page layout, sitemaps, and a proposal for a new genealogy-specific microdata standard that will allow search engines and other internet tools to make the most of your genealogy content.
(Rated for Developers)

1:45 - 2:45 pm
Genealogists “Go Mobile”
by Sandra Crowley
Description: Instead of a backpack that contains a laptop, camera, portable scanner, flash drives with our files, and maybe even printed copies of our research, we now have SmartPhones, electronic tablets and other devices. The world of genealogy and technology is rapidly changing, and we want to know how to use the future to find our past. Our family tree is truly in our pocket – in a form that we can access, update, print and share. This session will take a look at the latest trends in hardware, software and cloud storage and examine what the future might look like.
(Rated for Intermediate Users)

3:00 - 4:00 pm
Google's Toolbar and Genealogy
by David Barney
Description: The web is a vast resource for finding genealogical data, but the problem has always been filtering through all the irrelevant content to find just what you are looking for. Google’s mission is to make the world information (and that includes genealogical data) universally accessible and useful. Learn about Google’s recent efforts to organize genealogical data and make it easier to find the specific information you are looking for.
(Rated for Intermediate Users)
Saturday Feb 4

8:30 - 9:30 am
Making the most of technology to further the family history industry (Keynote)
 by Tim Sullivan
Description: From the arduous task of scrolling through microfiche, to bringing family history research online, to taking your family tree with you on the go, Ancestry.com is leading the technology landscape for family history. With technology available to surface the 7 billion records and 29 million family trees on the site, Ancestry.com has the sophisticated engineering and systems in place to take on the challenges of the fast growing family history industry, while also creating an avenue for users to weave search results into an edifying and meaningful family history story. Get the inside details of the technology behind Ancestry.com from some of their top technology leaders in this don’t-want-to-miss panel discussion.

9:45 - 10:45 am
Genealogy Podcasts and Blogs 101
by Lisa Louise Cooke
Description: Genealogy podcasts and blogs are the perfect way to pursue your family history no matter where you are. They are packed full of genealogy news, tips, entertainment and interviews with the experts. In this session Lisa Louise Cooke, host of the Genealogy Gems Podcast and author of the Genealogy Gems News Blog, will teach you how to locate them, subscribe to them for free, and the variety of listening methods. You will be up and running in one session!
(Rated for Beginners Users)

11:00 am - 12:00 pm
Future of FamilySearch Family Tree
by Ron Tanner
Description: Discuss how FamilySearch has changed recently and the new features that are being planned for new.familysearch.org including new concepts to allow people to change data.
(Rated for Beginner Users)

1:45 - 2:45 pm
Privacy in a Collaborative Environment by Noah Tutak
Description: When we work together on genealogy, we’re no longer are constrained to “My tree” or “Your tree." Suddenly, we’re all working on “Our tree.” In this presentation, Noah Tutak, CEO of Geni.com, will explain how to properly handle private and public data in a collaborative genealogical environment.
(Rated for Beginner Users)

Let’s Be Honest

I have a confession. I have on occasion allowed a myriad of thoughts to overtake my brain and create chaos in my head. That dark dispirited voice nags at me over and over again. The voice cries:

"What if my writing isn’t good enough? What if my family doesn’t like my writing? The harshest critics can be my family, if they don’t like my writing…they don’t like me.  What if people discover I really don’t know what I’m doing?"

See you’re not alone. It's not as dark and dismal as you care to believe. We all have had that same nagging evil voice in our head, the voice that resonates from one place FEAR. Not a writer in the world, correction not a human on this planet who hasn’t beaten down that voice. Actually, in my opinion the difference between those who DO in this world and those who DON’T, is defined by their ability to beat down that negative voice.

I told myself I could continue to make all the excuses I wanted. Oh, I have done them all, I don’t have the time, I don’t have the talent. I don’t have enough research. However, once I got really honest with myself and recognized it was fear holding me back and not my excuses, I was free to do the work. Once I faced the real perpetrator head on, acknowledged it for what it was, I was able to move forward.

I’m not going to kid you, the fear never really vanishes, however, I have learned to utilize it to do the best job I can do, I don’t let it paralyze me from starting or finishing. However, I did embrace something even bigger to assist me in writing my family history stories…..PASSION.

I propelled my passion for genealogy into my families stories. Passion is what put a family history book into the hands of my family members. Passion is what will put my family history book into the Canadian National Archives. Passion is what has propelled me to write further family history books. I allowed that passion to fuel me. I used the same passion that prompted me to spend years searching for ancestors and channel it into writing the stories. I employed the passion, push downed the fear and started writing. 

My next step to my family history writing journey was committing to a deadline and a partner. I engaged a cousin to take this journey with me. You know the old saying “safety in numbers.”  We set a deadline, a family reunion, we were committed. We went public to our family and from then on there was no turning back.

Why am I telling you all this?  I want you to let go of your fear, your excuses and join  The Family History Writing Challenge. The Challenge is an opportunity to push the fear aside, set a deadline and join a community of supporters and finally write your family stories.

The Family History Writing Challenge is a place where you can declare your intentions publicly in a safe environment, where you don’t have to go it alone. As of this writing I am excited and pleased by the number of genealogy friends who have joined. By the time we start on Feb 1st, I anticipate we will be 100 strong. Together, we will support and encourage each other, offer words of advice, even peer edit if you’re so inclined. I will be there each and every day for you.

If you would like this kind of encouragement and peer support then sign-up for The Family History Writing Challenge . Daily reminders and emails will keep you focused and on your path. However, I’m taking it one step further. We are all friends in this journey. As a special way of encouraging, conversing and helping one another I have set up The Family History Writing Challenge Forum, where you can post your questions, ask advice, offer advice to others, and share your wins, all in an effort to keep you focused and let you know that you are not alone on this journey.

Join the The Family History Writing Challenge and then join the Forum. Now you have crossed the biggest obstacles off your list; letting go of the fear and making the commitment and surrounding yourself with support.

You can also follow us along on twitter with the hashtag #FHWC. Feel free to tweet using this hashtag if you need some support from myself or any members of the challenge. Input=Output, embrace all aspects of the challenge and maximize your results and experience.

Be honest with yourself, what is really stopping you from writing your family history? Join us and start writing your family stories today.

Monday Morning Mentions

Monday Morning Mentions is an opportunity to reflect on the events of the week at the Armchair Genealogist and in the blogging and  book community. Over my morning cappuccino, I will take the opportunity to share with you some of my favourite blogs posts this week and give a nod to my peers.

You can also find me on Facebook. Stop by and leave a message. I often will link some great finds there as well.  You can also follow me on twitter at @LynnPal or my twitter paperThe Armchair Genealogist Journal. 

At the Armchair Genealogist this week, posts included the following:

Monday Morning Mentions

Tuesday's Tip - Geneablogger's Radio

Take the Challenge - Write Your Family History in 29 Days

Internet Genealogy – a great genealogy or internet tip that will benefit any armchair genealogist.
This week’s mention: 

Judy Russell at The Legal Genealogist brings us a great three part post this week. How Old Did Folks Have to Be? Part 1 , How Old Did Folks Have to Be? Part 2  and How Old Did Folks Have to Be? Part 3. If you're trying to put an age to your ancestor, Judy's knowledge of Colonial charters, statutes and common law can definitely aid in your research. I found this fascinating stuff. Judy's really making me think outside the box. 

And if you want a quick lesson in DNA, and really this was one I could understand, Judy's post  A Relative Match...Or Maybe Not  was every bit as interesting and informative.

Writing Family History - great advice or information on writing your family history.
This week’s mention: 

Finding Truth in Fiction: The Power of Creative Storytelling. This post is written by Max Andrew Dubinsky. Max wrote this guest post on Jeff Goin's blog this week. In light of our Family History Writing Challenge starting next week, this post really resonated with me and I hope it does with you as well. 

New Genealogy Blog – we will tip our hat to a newcomer who impresses us right out of the box

This week’s mention:  

Barry's Blog is the official blog of My Genshare developed by Barry Ewell. Currently Barry's Blog has several great videos to assist the family historian.Check out this week's vlog Why Digital Preservation is Important to You

Sarah from the Geneapprentice has started a new website GeneaJobs where you can search or post genealogy jobs and volunteer opportunties. Nice work Sarah! 

Books that Move and Matter - each week we will feature an ebook or print book with the family historian in mind. It may come as a great source of information, for research or writing or playing to our historical interests, or may just be a great read I think genealogists will love.

  In 8 days, Megan Smolenyak Smolenyak will release her newest book Hey, America, Your Roots Are Showing . Her third book, I personally am looking forward to reading the inside stories behind Megan's most fascinating cases. It's available for pre-order, in both print and digital. You can learn more about Megan at Honoring Your Ancestors.

You can find more new genealogy bloggers at Thomas' list of New Genealogy Blogs at Geneabloggers.

For other great reads, Randy at Genea-Musings offers the Best of the Genea-Blogs

Consider Julie Cahill's Friday Finds at Genblog.

Dan Curtis, Professional Personal Historian always puts together some interesting selections in Monday's Link Round-Up.

Deb Ruth at Adventures in Genealogy offers Follow Friday Gems.

Have a great genealogy week, keep researching and writing!