Biographies, Autobiographies and Memoirs

1. Biographies, Autobiographies and Memoirs The Writing Process

2. Warm up At your table, discuss the following: • Why is writing about memories important? • Do you believe you need to know about the past in order to be wise? • Do you think knowing the past can be valuable in shaping the future? • Do you think it is important to share your memories with other people? Explain and support your beliefs.

3. Reasons for writing an autobiographyMost autobiographies are written with a combination of these reason in mind. Family legacy- Leaving family members with a record of your life so future generations have a sense of where they came from. Coming of Age- The story of growing from a child to an adult is one of the most important transitions in life. We all went through it, and can learn from other people’s experience of this transition. Coming of Age often includes a summary of family life. While some of these books are extreme, others are merely documenting a slightly different form of upbringing. Second Coming of Age- The transition from childhood to being an adult is a big deal, but it's not the only time people go through life changing transitions. For example, a person who has a heart transplant might completely change their view of what is important in life and decide to write a memoir that encourages to make changes to their life before it is too late. Living through a significant time in history - Recollections will offer people a glimpse into those historic events and periods. For example, living through the Cultural Revolution has encouraged many Chinese writers to write autobiographies. Nostalgia- Capturing what it is like to be alive during a certain time period. For example, I might write about a childhood without cell phones and the internet War and other horrific events- People who were actually in war must live with memories. That are often mentally scarring. Sharing war memories informs readers of the realities of war, shares parts of history, and often helps the writer and/ or reader heal from trauma of war. Romance- Often about challenging or forbidden romances that battle against racism or other extreme circumstances.

4. Reasons for writing an autobiographyMost autobiographies are written with a combination of these reason in mind. Public or Celebrity life- People are fascinated by celebrity, that strange sense of knowing someone they have never met. People who read these books are often looking for a formula to success or enjoy daydreaming about what it would be like to live such a life. Charity or service- Telling a story about helping others can highlight the hardships of a group of people, show the important and value of helping these people, and can also encourage the reader to consider becoming a charity worker themselves. These memoirs often emphasize how rewarding charity and service work can be. Personal struggle or witness- People often write about overcoming a hardship. This can be mental or physical health challenges such as caring for aging parents or surviving cancer. Sharing personal struggles can give people inspiration to survive similar situations or to value life more. Social or cultural struggle or witness- People can write about their personal experiences with social injustice. For example battling racism or succeeding in an Ivy league university when you are from a poor neighborhood. These writers often want to pass along lessons learned from personal experience and often want to share their personal belief system that grew out of their life experience. Rags to riches- A type of Coming of Age story. These are generally written as a way to inspire others. The general message is that as long as people have belief in themselves and are willing to persevere in the face of hardship or rejection, they can succeed. Travel- A travel memoir gives people the opportunity to experience other parts of the world and understand more about the culture of societies that are foreign to them.

5. Thinking about publishing an autobiography or biography • Imagine that you were asked to write your autobiography today. What focus would your autobiography have? E.G. Personal struggle, coming of age, travel memoir (could be a couple of reasons) • Imagine that you have just turned thirty and that all your dreams that you had as a Grade 7 student have come true. You have been asked to write an autobiography. What do you imagine the focus of this new autobiography would be? • Do you have anybody in you extended family or amongst your close family friends that you feel could write a good autobiography or have a biography written about their lives?

6. You don’t have to start at the beginning…. Don’t: To avoid a boring story, don’t start from the beginning with sentence like, "I was born in such-and-such-a-year, and then, and then, and then .... and here I am."  Do: It's better to catch small glimpses of various times of your life--those moments that stand out in your memories that you can easily put down on paper.  Inspirations Sometimes you may have old photo albums or old magazines that you will find useful to bring out those old memories.  Sometimes you'll have items and knick-knacks around the house that will also stimulate those memories.  Sometimes talking with your family can remind you of certain memories or remember different things about a moment. Always be sure to hold on to your view point and consider how it changes after listening to other people. Whatever causes that spark, stick with it and get those memories on paper.

7. Steps to writing about a moment in life 1. Decide what you want to tell the reader about your life. For example: • ‘The moment I learnt to share’ • ‘The moment I first knew I wanted to be a doctor’ • ‘The moment I knew that we were meant to be together’ • ‘The moment I realized my parents could be scared too’ (Developing a new viewpoint, developing an understanding, a turning point (good/ bad) where the you start living your life a different way, inspirational, making a discovery, learning a valuable lesson, valuing something more/ less, 2. Choose a moment where this message is clearly shown and write brief plan of story. (You can choose to openly state what you hope the reader to learn about you from the shared moment of your life or you can imply what the importance of the moment is to you.) When- Christmas 1982 What- My sister and I both receive Strawberry Shortcake dolls. I received Strawberry Short cake whilst my sister got Apricot Kisses. Conflict/ Tension (positive or negative)- Sister upset/ wanted Strawberry Shortcake Conclusion- I said we should swap/ thought that a happy Christmas was more important than a doll. Significance- This shows that even as a small girl I valued the need for compromise. Perhaps this is why I want to work for the United Nations when I grow up.

8. Possible starting points Identification of the importance of the moment (Explicit, foreshadowed, implied) “I clearly remember the moment I first learnt…” “Many people say that ignorance is bliss but I didn’t really understand this saying until…” “The moment I changed my mind about… was the moment I understood…” “As I entered the ring, it didn’t occur to me that my life was about to change forever.” “Everyday was just like the other: I sat at the same lunch table, chatted with the same three friends and then was late to class because I hadn’t quite managed to print my homework out at the library. Then I met Ben and life lost any sense of rhythm.” “When I was five, my favorite time of day was… I loved doing this because…”

9. Story Shape • Focus on a specific moment • Focus on a specific day • Focus on a specific object • Capture a specific time period by describing an important day or event e.g. ‘my year in Miss Brown’s class’ could be shown during the International day • Capture a change in feelings by a before and after contrast e.g. Landing at Manila airport for the first time, the last time you were at Manila airport (the importance is your changed perspective of the city) • Detailed • Show don’t tell when it comes to emotion • Use the right tense spelling(past, present, future) for words that show time e.g. I was, I am, I will