Part I. Preparing. Getting started -- Part II. Writing. Writing in genealogical style -- Making a stylesheet -- Writing when questions remain -- Adding citations -- Incorporating narrative -- Part III. Getting ready to publish. Reviewing and revising your draft -- Selecting illustrations -- Considering design and layout -- Indexing -- Tying up final details -- Part IV. Writing articles and other types of family histories. Writing for the Register and other journals -- Writing for American Ancestors and other magazines -- Writing short or informal family histories -- Appendixes. Using Microsoft Word for genealogical writing -- Sample questionnaire for relatives -- Resources for writing and publishing -- Genealogical manual of style

Using examples from NEHGS's publications, this writing guide outlines how to write your family history clearly and accurately -- from building a genealogical sketch to adding images to indexing. An appendix on genealogical style covers alternate spellings of names, when and how to use lineage lines, how to include adopted children and stepchildren, aspects of double dating, and other issues faced by genealogical writers