About Braided Rivers

I’m Elizabeth. I established Braided Rivers to work with individuals and families to preserve legacy life stories and memoirs with discretion and respect.

Many of the most important parts of a life are never written down:
the reasons behind decisions, the context surrounding events, the experiences that shaped values and character. When these stories are not recorded, they are seldom retained beyond a single generation.

This work exists to establish a lasting family record.

The work itself

These narratives are private commissions. They are not public biographies or creative projects intended for an audience. They are personal records, created for family.

How I work

I work in a deliberate and considered way.

People rarely recall their lives in strict chronology. Material is gathered over a number of conversations and shaped into a coherent written record over time.

Engagements are shaped around the person, and where relevant, the family. There is no singular structure or fixed length.

Some families commission a single life memoir.
Others involve multiple voices or generations.

Form and scope are determined individually.

Privacy and discretion

All work is confidential.

Memoirs are created solely for the people who commission them and those they choose to share them with.

When people come to this work

Families usually commission this work during later life or periods of transition, when establishing a clear record for future generations becomes a priority.

Sometimes the motivation is simple and practical. Sometimes it is unspoken.

Availability

I work with a small number of families each year to ensure the work remains focused and is conducted at the appropriate pace.