So you’re ready to publish your family history? That’s great! The more you share your findings with friends and relatives, the more they will want to get involved. The biggest decision is simply deciding you are ready to create your MyCanvas book or poster. It can be quite challenging when you start to think of all the ancestors you are missing in your research but here are some tips to help you focus your findings.

Focus on One

Pick  one grandparent or great-grandparent and focus on learning everything you can about them and two or three generations of their ancestors. After you’ve decided the Who, you already have the When and Where….you’re almost there! Here is a video we found to help you put together your first MyCanvas product.

Less is so much MORE

When you do share, do so in “bite-sized pieces.” Don’t overwhelm the non-genealogists with too many charts and forms. Take the time to write a story or two about each ancestor based on what you’ve learned about their lives. Add pictures. Keep it to just four or five generations.

WHY create a family history chart or book

So maybe some of your resolutions have fallen through the cracks. Creating a family history book can also be difficult if we don’t have a good reason or a solid deadline. Here is a list we found on the Ancestry.com website:

• Create a giant wall chart for a family reunion so everyone knows where they fit into the family.
• One book about a grandparents ancestors makes an easy Christmas gift for all the siblings and cousins.
• When there is a new baby born into the family create a chart to show their lineage.
• A chart showing three or four generations of the new couple makes a great wedding present.
• A military focused book honoring all those in the family who have served would make a great memorial.
• Having a goal to create a book is going to force me to focus on making one section of my family tree as complete and as well documented as possible.
• We should share more and more often. You never know when you are going to create another genealogist in the family.

What’s your reason?

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