When it comes to how to write an autobiography, this stands exceptionally well from all other nonfictional writing types. Most of the famous books we have today, online and offline, show that most readers are keen on knowing where these writers came from and how they began their journey.
Biography and Autobiography are purely two different stuff, which would be briefly explained shortly. But one thing that you have to know is that a biography written by its subject is known as an autobiography. An autobiography writing signifies a firsthand experience of the Author’s journey in life.
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An autobiography writing is known to offer this total intimacy with the said writer, whereby readers can somewhat be in the Author’s shoes—having a touch of the writer’s experience in the subtlest form.
What is autobiography writing?
An autobiography is simply the nonfictional story of someone’s life, written by the subject themselves from their point of view.
When it comes to an autobiography, it’s known to serve varying goals, and its main purpose depends on the kind of writing. There are four types of autobiographies;
- Memoir
- Autobiography
- Personal Essay
- Autobiographical essay for college
Reasons why you need an Autobiography
They need what made you click
Ever been to a birthday party or a funeral; I don’t think you’ve ever heard anyone say something bad about the subject—no matter the mistakes they’d made in life. In the same vein, no one wants to sit and read about every bit of mistake you make during your journey in this world.
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When it comes to writing your biography, one thing you need to keep in mind is, not every mistake you’ve made in life counts to your readers.
Just dish out the advice you need your followers or readers to learn from, and don’t feed them on the gory side of life and all.
IN ESSENCE, you don’t need to make every detail known.
Your Accomplishment is written down
When it comes to autobiography writing, this is a big one. If you are learning how to write an autobiography, you should learn how to include your accomplishments. No matter your field, your accomplishment is like your portfolio which gives credence to your readers.
Of course, you can place in other teamwork achievements. Still, you don’t need to focus on your religious life because some of your readers may be inclined to different ideologies and beliefs—so it would be better to keep it as a medium.
It boosts your ego
When it comes to this part in writing, you begin to glow with confidence. The beauty of autobiography writing is to show you how you’ve conquered all of your difficulties and praising God for pulling you through them. Most readers do resonate with the idea and read them till the very end.
You’re the leader
No one can write your story for you; yes, not in every detail. You may tell a family member to write your story for you, but they wouldn’t be as perfect as you when writing it. There’ll surely be some mistakes.
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So knowing what others think about you is good, but one thing is for sure, no one can ever tell your story the way you do. No one can ever speak or write about the sacrifices you made when it comes to life. Or the amount of love you showed to other people if you don’t put it down on paper.
Six things to include in an autobiography
The six things that need to be in an autobiography are;
- Defining and describing your origin
- Your life and story must be included
- A personal story of some of your mistakes.
- Compelling title
- Use your authentic and first narrative voice. All autobiography examples deal with personal accounts in life, and as such, it needs to include your most vulnerable writing.
- It needs to be chronological in order; this adds its authenticity
Step by Step Process of how to write an autobiography
I must say it can be very demanding when it comes to autobiography writing, especially during the first draft. However, here’s a step-by-step guide.
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1. Begin by brainstorming the idea
If you are learning how to write an autobiography, the first thing you need to do is to compile all of the life experiences you suspect might be most compelling to your readers. Make sure you go through your memories and be sure to cover all areas of your life.
And that should include from your childhood to high school to your first day at your job, not forgetting events in your life that seemed to wow you in some way.
When writing, there’s a likely tendency that many of the ideas gotten to put on paper may not make it in the final draft. Nonetheless, it’s adequate to keep the process in line.
2. Make an Outline
If you are learning how to write an autobiography for the first time, your major priority will be how to draft an outline. To do that, begin to organize a narrative around the most compelling ideas and narratives from your brainstorm. The stuff here is, if you do sprinkle life’s important events in the book, you’ll be able to grip your reader’s attention from start to finish.
3. Develop a Theme
When it comes to writing an autobiography, it’s much more than simply making a chronological account of your life’s situation; anyone can do that. In this case, it’s much more interesting to make a theme and offer some insight and original thought on the write-up.
This is to say, instead of writing a linear narrative of significant life events or situations, all you need to do is review your life story and take out the major theme that serves as a backbone of your Autobiography.
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All you need to do is think of the numerous things important to you, such as your love life, professional career, and the likes. When you’re done with this, you’ll surely hook your reader with a catchy story about yourself.
4. Write the First Draft
For this part, you will have to establish the general idea of the Autobiography by simply setting the period you so wish to cover and incorporating the basic first sketches of significant events.
And you don’t have to write it all; that’s the reason you need to build an outline.
5. Take a little Break
As soon as your first draft is complete, take a few days off and relax the mind. This is done to read your work in the freshest way possible, in the newest perspective.
By removing yourself from the writing process for a few days or more can surely help to aid in establishing a perfect autobiography.
6. Time to Proofread
When you’ve had your brief leave, it’s high time you proofread your work. Yes, do look out for all forms of grammatical errors and the likes, but what’s more important here is, you should be able to look out for weak moments in the autobiography writing and come up with spectacular improvements—something to capture your reader’s interest.
In essence, think about the stuff you look out for when reading another person’s Autobiography as related to the niche you’re writing on. When that’s found, apply to your Autobiography.
Where to download autobiography examples and templates
For some people, writing an autobiography can be a big deal. And that includes whether it is a novel, Autobiography, or short story—that’s no exclusiveness when it comes to this. One thing is for sure; never write an autobiography without an outline on the side.
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The one goal for writing an autobiography outline before the actual book is to act as some directive as you write. An outline is one heck of a ‘warning note’ which warns you of your setback as you proceed.
If you want to learn how to write an autobiography, below is some sites where you can download some autobiography templates. In most cases, some of the websites also offer autobiography examples.
1.Template.Net
Template.net is a popular website where users can download autobiography templates. The templates have been designed in a way that is very simple for people to use. If you are learning how to write an autobiography, you can make use of the templates on this website.
2. TemplateLab
Templatelab is yet another website that you can download autobiography examples. There are over 30 autobiography examples on the website. If you wish to learn how to write an autobiography, you can check the example autobiographies on the website.
3. SampleTemplates
If you are looking for where to download autobiography templates and examples, sampleTemplates is a platform to look out for. The website has a variety of autobiography templates for various fields which you can pick from.
Autobiography versus Memoir
Autobiography |
Memoir |
| a. Autobiography covers the Author’s entire life up to the very point of writing. | a. A memoir is known to focus on the part of the Author’s life |
| b. When it comes to Autobiography, authors are known to tell their life stories because they are famous and significant. | b. Memoirs are known to include just anyone. |
| c. Autobiography writings tend to be written in chronological order. | c. Memoirs are known to move back and forth in time. |
| d. People love to read autobiographies because they desire to know a particular person. | d. People read memoirs because they are interested in certain stories or subjects or drawn to their writing style or voice. |
| e. Autobiography writing is known to emphasize facts and how the writer is said to fit the historical record. | e. Memoirs are known to emphasize personal experiences as well as insights into things. |
Read also, How to Write a Memo (With Powerful Tips and Steps to Follow)
Autobiography versus Biography
| Autobiography |
Biography |
| a. This is an account of someone’s life written by the narrator | a. An account of a person’s life written by a third party narrator. |
| b. This is written to inform and explain the motivation and thoughts behind certain actions. | b. Biographies are written to inform and complete a given context. |
| c. Written later in life | c. Can be written at anytime |
| d. Written in the first person | d. Written in the third person. |
Conclusion
When you’ve fully learned how to write an autobiography, all of your new drafts should be followed by new reads from your close network. This is to help you to refine your skills and get better in the process.
Hopefully, with your knowledge on how to write an autobiography, you’ll end up having a final draft that’s surely perfect in all category, and holds to the most significant factors of your life and personal pursuit in general.
