Essay Outline – Memoir
Essay Outline – Memoir
Name: Date:
-Complete this summary and outline with your own Memoir information with complete details.
-Give at least one complete statement for each category of the outline
–Remove all examples below before adding your own statements.
Topic of Memoir: ________________________
Part I – Summary:
In a minimum of 250 words, complete a short summary explaining what your story is about. Be sure to explain the complication that must be resolved, as well as what moral of the story will be (this can be adjusted later if your story changes during drafting).
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Part II – Outline:
Intro Paragraph (General-to-Specific):
General Statement (What general category does your topic fit into?):
Specific Statement (A specific example—not your topic):
Your topic (refer back to your specific example, then introduce your own topic):
Thesis Statement (Lead-in thesis foreshadowing the complication): Example: A lot of kids get into mischief on vacations, but we never thought we would end up in such a dangerous predicament on a school trip—overseas…
*For each of the paragraphs below, write your own topic sentences, give at least five, full supporting details that you will include in each paragraph, and include your own complication and impasse.
Body Paragraph I—Intro story, set the scene, and end in a complication:
Topic sentence (tell the reader what the story is about): During the second half of my junior year, I was looking forward to one thing above all else: Our class trip to Germany.
| Details (subtopics and support):
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2.
3.
4.
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End with the complication (the problem that must be resolved): It was at that moment that we realized we were lost in a country we did not know well, and we had no idea how we were going to find our way back to our hotel.
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Body Paragraph II—Advance the story (internal dialogue reacting to the situation and/or raising the stakes—what happens if the complication is NOT resolved?):
Topic Sentence: As soon as this realization hit, a number of things began running through my mind.
| Details (subtopics and support) advancing the story: This paragraph should serve to advance the story through internal dialogue (What was your reaction to the complication? How did you feel? What were your fears?). It can also introduce additional problems (What are you afraid will happen if the complication is not resolved? What other issues arise due to your situation?).
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End with an impasse: Despite all of our efforts, we simply could not figure out where we were. |
Body Paragraph III—Resolve the complication:
Topic Sentence: Having admitted defeat, we resigned ourselves to do the only thing we could: Call our high school chaperone’s cell—at 2:00 AM—and tell her what we had done.
| Details (subtopics and support): Resolve the complication from end of body paragraph one. This should start right away in topic sentence.
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2.
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5.
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Conclusion Paragraph—1. What did you learn, and 2. What is the moral of the story:
For this conclusion, you should be able to explain these two items to your reader:
- In the end, I learned that _______________.
- Therefore, the moral of the story is _________. This one should be a saying (like one in the hand is worth two in the bush; a rolling stone gathers no moss; etc.).
| In the end, I realized that…
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