A Guide to Writing An Autobiography

Your autobiography is your life story. It must contain the same basic elements as an essay: an introduction with a thesis statement, body section with several paragraphs or even chapters, and a strong conclusion. “At the same time, your autobiography must have an interesting theme and narrative,” explain writing experts at https://writers-house.com/.

The word “autobiography” can be literally translated as “self-life-writing.” It’s the story of somebody’s life told by this exact person. When writing an autobiography, think of what makes your story unique and develop your narrative based on it. You can better understand the meaning of your narrative if you do some research, taking notes. The main thing is to create a story that will be interesting to read.

Research Your Background

Your biography, as well as any other biography, should include such important details as the place of your birth, your main interests, events that made you who you are, and crucial details about your personality. The first step is to gather information on your background. Here are some tips:

• Is there any interesting information about the place where you were born?
• Is the history of your family related to that place?
• Are there any particular reasons why your family came to that region?

You may start your autobiography with words like “I was born in Huntsville, Alabama…,” but it’s not the best solution. Start with some experience. You may also begin your story by explaining how your family came to the place where you were born. If your narrative is based on some very important event that changed your life, you may tell your readers something about that moment. Remember your favorite novel or movie and think of how it begins. You may also get inspired by reading other biographies before you start to write your own story.

Remember Your Childhood

Even if your childhood was not really interesting, you should mention it in your autobiography. Try to remember the most memorable experiences which are worth sharing them with others. Highlight your favorite moments. For example, if you’re from a big city, you should understand that many people who live in the country have never had the same experiences, such as riding a subway. If you’re from the country, you should realize that many people from the suburbs have never camped in their backyards.

Even if some moments don’t look unique to you, you should realize that there are many people who will find them interesting. All you have to do is just distance yourself from your usual perspective a little bit and think about a wide audience and people who have never been to the place where you were born and know little to nothing about your culture. Select moments that can illustrate your life symbolically and contribute to your narrative.

Think of Your Culture

Generally speaking, culture is a way of life. Your culture includes your family’s traditions and values. It also includes holidays you’ve celebrated, the food you’ve eaten, your clothes, your slang, the games you love, etc. If you’re from a religious family that practices some rituals, they are also a part of your culture.

To write an interesting autobiography, remember how your family celebrated certain events or days, and share these special moments with your readers. You may want to answer these questions:

• Do you identify some food with a certain day of the year?
• What is the most unique gift you’ve ever received? What was the occasion?
• Do you wear a certain outfit during some special events?

We recommend that you consider your best memories in the first place, however, be honest and authentic. Make your story more vivid by including specific details. For example, when writing about some special day, remember what you were talking about with your family while having breakfast, or how your relatives came into town. Such details will help you make your story more realistic and engaging.

Choose a Theme

Once you’ve considered your life from other people’s point of view, choose the most interesting memories and establish your theme. What event or fact from your life is the most important and interesting? You may consider your story in the historical context, mentioning some historical events that can help your readers better understand your experiences and your story, in general. We’ve already mentioned the importance of details, and historical details can be especially beneficial for your story, making it more engaging and unique.

One Day in Your Life

You may also approach the task creatively and make an ordinary day your theme. Describe your everyday routine when you were a child and now. Write about your work, household chores, etc.

Such a theme allows you to create a very detailed story. For example, if you grew up in the country, you can describe the smell of wheat and the taste of your own cow’s milk. Describe differences in smells that are unfamiliar for city people, compare different objects that you’ve seen around, and do whatever you can to help readers imagine your story and see it clearly.

That Special Event

If there was an event or a special day in your life that changed it forever or had a significant impact on your personality, it can be a perfect theme. It may be either a good or bad event. For example, you may have thought about creating a family for the first time in your life when you’ve seen your newborn sister. Or you may have decided to change your life after your relative passed.

Writing the Autobiography

No matter whether the key to your story is an event, a day in the life, or some characteristic of your personality, you can make it your theme. You should define this theme in the introduction.

Write an outline with memories or activities that are important in the context of your theme, creating subtopics. Devote every paragraph of the body of your autobiography to one of those subtopics. In the conclusion, summarize all your experiences and explain or restate the main theme.