Writing Your Legacy
- Deborah Ann Martin
- 2 days ago
- 6 min read
We often think of a legacy as money, property, or something people leave in a will. But some of the most powerful legacies are made of words. Stories. Lessons. Truths. The kind that can't be bought but can change a life. You don't have to be famous or wealthy to leave something meaningful behind. Your voice, your memories, your perspective—they all matter. And writing them down is one of the most powerful things you can do.
I didn't think about my legacy until I got diagnosed with cancer. We all go through our personal hells, triumphs, funny times, the history-all of it gone. I had kept my poems in a file on my computer, which my kids would probably delete. I know I can't take the material stuff with me, but then I realized that all the information of a lifetime is gone when I am gone.
That's why I started this website. Not just for me to pass down all the knowledge I gained, but for everyone else to pass down theirs as well. What is the purpose of knowledge if it all goes away? If we don't start writing it down, we will lose our history. The older generation passed all this information down. Right now, most of the younger generation doesn't want to hear it. But someday, they will or their children will. Your story matters.
What Legacy Writing Really Means
Legacy isn't just about what you leave in a bank account. It's about what you leave in someone's heart. Legacy writing is the act of recording your life—your lessons, your beliefs, your experiences—so others can understand where they come from, what you've lived through, and what you've learned along the way. It can be a letter, a recipe with a story behind it, a journal entry, a collection of poems, or even captions under old family photos. Legacy writing is not about being perfect. It's about being real.
How People Preserved Legacies in the Past
Before the digital age, families passed down their stories in simple but lasting ways. Oral storytelling was central to many cultures. Elders would sit children down and tell them how they had survived, what they had learned, and who had come before them. In many homes, letters, journals, and diaries were the only records of daily life. Settlers, soldiers, homemakers, and travelers wrote about the world as they saw it. These handwritten pages are now treasures—insight into the past that textbooks could never fully capture.
Family Bibles once held pages of family records, notes about births, deaths, and prayers. Memoirs and 'commonplace books'—used in the 18th and 19th centuries—were filled with quotes, observations, and personal truths like Anne Frank's diary that I was required to read in school. I love visiting museums to read letters from the Civil War era or letters from Irish immigrants to their families back home. All of these helped us understand the world through someone else's eyes.
How People Preserve Legacies Today
Today, we have more options than ever. Some families gift 'StoryWorth' subscriptions—weekly emailed questions sent to a loved one, compiled into a hardcover book. Others use guided journals with prompts that spark memories. Digital scrapbooking, photo apps with notes, or even audio recordings are used to save thoughts and family history.
A growing number of people use blog platforms, Google Docs, or Word templates to write family letters or share memories. Some write emails to their grandchildren and store them for future delivery. Legacy writing today is more accessible and more needed than ever.
I have added groups to this website so people can share their wisdom with others going through similar situations. I am blogging some of the knowledge I have. I have taken my file, which contains all my poems, and started compiling them into books. I want to inspire people to consider their legacy before they are diagnosed with a serious illness.
What to Write About—Even If You Think You Have Nothing
Do you think your life is too boring to write about? Think again. Children and grandchildren don't know what life was like when you were young unless you tell them. They don't know what you ate, how much your first paycheck was, how you survived the hard times, or how you celebrated holidays.
Here are some ideas:
- What were meals like in your house growing up
- What school, dating, or family traditions were like
- What jobs did you have, what they paid, and what you learned
- What music, clothes, or technology shaped your world
- What gas cost, what cars looked like, who your neighbors were
The magic is in the details. A simple story about what Sunday dinners looked like can paint a vivid picture. Your perspective makes it valuable, not because of drama, but because of truth.
When I was growing up, they allowed poor teenagers to work in the summer. One summer, I worked interviewing older people about depression and World War II. I interviewed my grandparents and great-grandmother. They lived through it. My grandfather served in the Army. Forty years later, I wish I had those records. I wish I had those tape recordings to hear my parents' voices again. When we studied those wars in class, I gained a different perspective beyond just reading about them on paper. It wasn't just an assignment that I was forced to read and do papers on them. I had real people's stories that gave a better understanding. History is real. History books are facts and boring. Real lives are not boring.
Writing Legacy as Healing
Legacy writing isn't just for others. It's for you, too. Writing about your life can help you process grief, honor your past, and find peace. You may write about your journey through cancer, divorce, war, addiction, or loss. These reflections not only bring healing, but they can serve as a survival guide for someone else.
You don't need to be a professional writer. Just be honest. Think of your writing as a letter to someone who needs it—because someday, someone will.
Write, Just Write
When I give speaking engagements, I always encourage people to write. Write a journal. Write a children's book for kids and grandkids. Write your life story. Write about the knowledge you've gained. I don't care what you write but leave a legacy. If writing isn't your thing, now you can record it and let the computer put it into words for you. Someday, I will figure out how to do that.
The Prompt Corner
The Prompt Corner is a special place to encourage writing. Here are five writing prompts to help you begin your legacy writing journey. You can write one page or many. What matters is starting.
Here are five writing prompts to explore your own story and reflect on why you write:
What do you wish your grandchildren (or future family) knew about the world you grew up in?
What were your biggest struggles, and what helped you through them?
What was your favorite meal as a child? Describe the food, the people, the smell.
Write about one item you owned growing up and the story behind it.
What do you want people to remember you for—and what stories support that?
Try one or all of these. The goal isn't perfection—it's connection. Your words may outlive you. That's the power of legacy.
Free & Paid Tools to Support Your Writing
Each week, we feature a few tools to support your personal and creative writing journey. Explore these and see which ones fit your needs today:
StoryWorth – Weekly emailed questions turned into a keepsake book
Day One Journal – Digital journaling app with photo and audio features
LegacyBox – Digitize old letters, photos, and videos for future generations
Google Docs- A free tool to create, organize, and share your memory books or journal entries with loved ones.
Microsoft Word – Use pre-built templates for letters, journals, memory books, and more. Especially helpful if you want to print a keepsake later.
Some of the tools listed may include affiliate links. If you choose to use them, it helps support our website at no extra cost to you.
Want more tools? Check out the full list of writing resources on the resource page on our website.
Write with Us: Your Story Is Enough
You might think your life is too quiet, too simple, or too ordinary to matter—but that's not true. Every life holds a unique point of view. Every story carries wisdom. Legacy writing isn't about being impressive. It's about being honest.
Join our Groups Section and begin telling your story—one chapter at a time. Your words are your legacy.
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