Writing autobiography novel
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How to Write an Autobiography: The Secret Tips to Finally Get Started
Something unusual just might happen to you when you start working with your family’s photo collection:
You may suddenly get this urge to start writing about what’s happened to you in your life and why it meant so much to you.
And what’s even more surprising, you may also have an overwhelming desire to ask your loved ones to start writing the same about their lives!
Why Write Your Autobiography
As you organize and label your photos, especially older ones, what happens is you will start to put together pieces of the larger “story” of family members’ lives. Each of their lives becomes like one giant puzzle that you’re assembling back together.
At this point, I’ve found their “Life Stories” now either become more clear to you, or sometimes … much less. You may have thought you knew someone really well until you discover photos that show a whole other part of their life you never knew.
For example, I showed my Mom some photos that she hadn’t seen in a long time when we were together over the December holidays. And immediately, all of these stories just came gushing out of her. She would point to a picture and then another and tell me
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Autobiography story structure
by George Odhiambo
(Mombasa, Kenya)
Question: I am working on my autobiography and would like to get guidance on the structure. Can you please help?
Answer:The principles of story structure are the same, regardless whether the story is true or not.
The challenge with a real life story is that one life often contains many stories. So you have to carefully select which aspects of your story are the most relevant to the meaning you wish to convey.
Generally, a biography or autobiography covers an entire life. So the four acts of the story generally look like this...
Act 1: Setup (Childhood)
Here you convey the early influences, including the environment you grew up in and the significant people and events. Set a context for what comes later.
Act 2: Complication (early adulthood)
Here you describe the aspirations and challenges you faced early on, how you took advantage of opportunities, setbacks, etc. Sometimes this is where friends and enemies are made. It is the journey through life.
Act 3: Crisis
Here you describe the major turning point in your life. It may be how you made your crowning achievement, or it could be the "darkness before the dawn."
Act 4: Resolution
Here you describe how your life ended. If you had a crowning ach
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