Getting Started

Have you ever thought how wonderful it would be if you came across a diary or journal of one of your ancestors...one that not only documented the details of their everyday lives, but also those of their character, personality, and interests?

Have you ever considered that someday YOU will be an ancestor...even if you have no children or grandchildren, those generations within your family that come after you will someday look at you as someone who lived "long ago." One of the best legacies that you can leave for future generations is the story of your life along with sharing memories of those who have gone before you. How to begin? That is the purpose of this blog.

I have purchased journals in the past, some with blank pages, others with questions and lines for you to fill out with the answers. The problem I've encountered is that I don't always remember to journal consistently, especially in blank journals or diary-style, with the date written at the top of each page. With the question-and-answer style of journal, there either seems to be not enough lines, or too many. I have found that a blog format meets my needs. I can write as much or as little as I like, and edit without the mess of erasures or cross-outs. By having a blog and being accountable to my online audience, I hope to journal consistently.

I invite you to come along with me on my journal journey (both words have the same root). I will post a question, or group of questions, related to a single topic. You can subscribe to this blog by using the "Subscribe to: Posts (Atom)" link at the bottom of this page, and receive the questions each week. Both you and I can post our answers in our respective blogs. Or you may choose to simply post a response on your desktop or laptop using Notepad or Microsoft Word (or whatever it is you use for documents). You may choose instead to handwrite your answers in a blank journal. You can be creative and print up your posts to display in a scrapbook, along with photographs or drawings. If you post to your computer, remember to back up your hard drive regularly and often! If you join me on this journal, drop me a line (see my profile for contact info).

Never blogged before, but you would like to? I recommend reading Robert Ragan's article "How to Create Your Own Genealogy Blog in Less Than 5 Minutes." It's a very simple, easy-to-use tutorial.

A word of caution: the Internet is a public place. Use common sense when writing about personal data or living people. You may wish to edit (filter) the info you place on a public blog, and keep a duplicate posting with the more private info on your hard drive or in a bound journal.

About the name of this blog: I tried to come up with a snazzy title like "Future Ancestor," "HerStory," or some such thing, but they were all taken. I settled with "AnceStories2." AnceStories is my website; it is full of Stories of my Ancestors, hence the name. I already have a blog called "AnceStories," which is mainly an online research log. So here we are with AnceStories2. I hope you write great stories for your descendants!