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There are dozens, if not hundreds, of associations and groups from which you can learn. Here are a few to get you started:

Association of Personal Historians (APH)

The mission statement, from the website www.personalhistorian.org, is “The APH is a not-for-profit international trade association. The purpose of the Association is to advance the profession of helping individuals, organizations, and communities preserve their histories, memories, and life stories. APH focuses on providing educational, training, and networking opportunities to help professional personal historians, from beginners to advanced, build their personal history businesses.” The APH has an active listserv where members can post questions, discuss issues, share resources and problem solve, a quarterly newsletter, educational materials, and an annual conference. (You can attend the conference without being a member, but as a member you get a discount.) Annual dues are around $200 and there are about 700 members worldwide, with most in the US. APH members work in a wide variety of media and formats. Search the member directory and check out websites of personal historians to see what they’re offering and how they’re pricing their products and services.

Explore Oral History Associations

There are several excellent oral history associations that you may want to join, depending on your interests. The WWW — the World Wide Web, or the wonderful window on the world — is a fountain of knowledge and inspiration. Look at the resources section at the back of this book for a list of oral history associations, or just search on Google.

The websites for these associations, some connected with academic institutions, will give you a good idea of best practices, latest research findings, interesting projects, annual conferences, and much more, including education and training. Do a search for oral history courses and workshops. Baylor University Institute of Oral History, for instance, not only has wonderful how-to resources and a collection of oral histories on its website, but it runs workshops on how to conduct an oral history. Countless other sites have fascinating recordings, such as firsthand accounts by former slaves, immigrants, Holocaust survivors, people who founded towns and businesses, First Nations and Native Americans, and just about every facet of society around the world. What a treasure chest we are building!