Judy Sandler compares her debut memoir’s structure and writing process to a hummingbird — short, concentrated flash chapters written in brief, intense bursts influenced by how memory and ADHD shape her approach.
The memoir is composed of short, flash-like chapters that mirror how memory records vivid moments rather than chronology.
Sandler’s ADHD-informed practice — writing in short, energetic bursts — influenced both form and pacing.
The hummingbird metaphor extends to craft choices: close, intense observation followed by retreat and reflection.
# Hummingbird: How the Way I Write Shaped My Memoir
Judy Sandler uses the hummingbird as a concrete organizing image for both the shape of her debut memoir, What Kind of Mother: A Reckoning, and the way she writes it. She frames the book as a collection of short, whiplike chapters — many standing alone as flash essays — because that form matches how she remembers and how she works.
Each chapter becomes a puzzle piece: jagged, rounded, border, or center. The chapters linger in sensory detail and scene, asking readers to connect the pieces rather than receiving a traditional chronological account.
Sandler describes living with ADHD and how that shapes her process. She writes in short bursts, typically in the early morning, then revisits drafts the way a hummingbird returns to a feeder: in brief surges. She compares that efficiency and repeated quick engagement to hummingbirds lapping nectar rapidly and consuming a large amount relative to their size.
This approach affects pacing and language. Short, intense sessions push toward concentrated, vivid prose and a structure that favors moments over extended exposition. The result is a memoir that reads in quick, bright passages rather than long, explanatory chapters.
She also invokes cultural imagery: ancient American cultures saw hummingbirds as messengers of rebirth and love. Sandler positions her book as a kind of messenger — offering pieces of story as a shared experience between writer and reader. She invites readers with curiosity and hunger for truthful accounts.
Sandler invites readers to respond and asks fellow writers how they write, closing the essay with an open invitation for conversation.
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