An autobiography is account of an individual’s life experiences and can be used to record milestones as well as the challenges and difficulties encountered along the way. In essence your autobiography is the story of your life, and the story told is solely dependent on what you wish to reveal. There are no stipulations of how many pages an autobiography should be. If you believe you can capture the essence of your experiences in one or two pages go for it!
Writing a book however takes a lot of work and time. It’s easier to write the autobiography if you know of your intentions from an early stage; the best way to start would be the keeping of a journal. However, if your decision was impromptu don’t worry as there are ways to collecting and compiling the information just the same.
Steps to Writing an Autobiography
- Identify and understand the reason for writing your autobiography.
- Determine who your audience will be (are you writing to publish or for private- this factor in how and what you share).
- Develop a theme.
Instructions
Whet your investigative skills
- Start by documenting your memories – it doesn’t matter how trivial something may seem; a memory can lead to the recollection of others.
- Seek additional information from past schools or other sources.
- Converse with family and friends, old and new, to rehash any buried memories. Actually another person’s recollection may be more precise than your own.
- Revisiting your old neighborhood and/or childhood homes may create a memory spark.
- If you were already keeping a journal this process will be much easier. However there may be unaccounted periods within the journal, especially those that occurred before the journal began.
Compile your information
- Prepare a chronological timeline noting events and contacts for each period.
- If you note any significant gaps, dig further to see if you can uncover any new information.
- Sub categories can also be used for easier reference.
Begin writing
- You can begin your autobiography any way you like. Just take into account (as all good writers do) that your first paragraph must be strong and entice the reader to continue reading.
- Your autobiography should also have a body and conclusion.
- The autobiography doesn’t have to be filled with just past experiences or actual accounts. It can also include your aspirations and references to your mental and emotional states in your life. What it must have are facts.
Tips
- Research well written autobiographies to get a feel of how its done.
- The easiest way to write the autobiography is to let it flow by timelines.
- If you’re thinking of writing an autobiography in the future start documenting your experiences right away!
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