How to Write an Autobiography: Questions, Principles, & What to Include

When you are assigned an autobiography to write, tens, and even hundreds of questions buzzing in your head. How to start your life story? What to include? How to make your memoir flow? Don’t worry about all this and use the following three simple principles and 15 easy questions for writing a life story that truly deserves a high grade.

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❗ 3 Main Principles of Writing an Autobiography

First and foremost, you should remember that an autobiography (also called a memoir) is a story about your own life. If you write the life story of another person, that is called a biography.

You will quickly write a winning autobiography if you follow these three simple principles:

❓ 15 Questions for Writing an Autobiography

Even when you use the 3 above-discussed principles, you might still stumble in the middle of your autobiography. Your inspiration can betray you after you start writing a memoir. But the following 15 questions won’t let you down. This list will help you generate brilliant ideas for your autobiographies whenever you need them:

1. What famous quote can describe your life?
2. Which 3 adjectives can be used to describe you as a person?
3. Who influenced your personal development?
4. What are your best and worst childhood memories?
5. What is your family social and ethnic background?
6. What are your relations with parents and other relatives?
7. What are your main achievements in life?
8. What are the weaknesses that you would like to get rid of?
9. What are your goals for the future?
10. What places would you like to visit and why?
11. What skills would you like to develop and why?
12. What was the most memorable day in your life?
13. What was the most important lesson you have ever learned in your life?
14. What are the most important values in life, in your opinion?
15. Which fault would you never forgive others or yourself?

If you are a student, your life story might not be that long. However, these 15 questions will guide you in writing an autobiography that you can be proud of and the 3 simple principles discussed above will help you make your memoir flawless.

🤗 What to Include in an Autobiography?

1. Explore your background. Try to recall how a biography of a prominent person usually starts. It always opens with their parents’ or even grandparents’ achievements or vices. Rather than beginning the autobiography with your date of birth, dedicate a paragraph to your ancestors. Providing background information will put your life into a complete picture. The following questions will help you decide which events prior to your birth are worth attention.

2. Pick out your childhood memories. This is the most touching paragraph of your piece of writing. Even though your childhood may seem ordinary, the following template questions will guide you in the right direction. Something in your life will always be unique for everybody else.

3. Research your culture. Your family traditions are unique. In the modern world, every family is free to observe or ignore some customs. Special moments are what we recall many years later. Sometimes they are formed spontaneously, but most of them are created by our family, friends, and relatives.

🔗 References

1. Autobiography | Definition, History, Types, Examples, & Facts. Britannica
2. What Is an Autobiography? (And How to Write Yours) – ThoughtCo
3. The Autobiography of a Student – jstor
4. THE STUDENT AUTOBIOGRAPHY: structured or unstructured? Wiley Online Library
5. 5 Ways to Write an Autobiography – wikiHow