WRITE A BIOGRAPHY
You will be writing an autobiography describing yourself. This autobiography will be brief but detailed and concise. The following information will be helpful to you in creating your autobiography. This is a narrative, not a formal essay. Write it like a story, but also keep in mind to use paragraphs as well as proper grammar and punctuation. Think about how Benjamin Franklin's Autobiography gave the reader a greater knowledge of his personal feelings and beliefs. You want your personal narrative voice to be heard by the reader. You can write this essay in one of two ways: as an autobiography in first-person narrative OR as a biography in third person narrative. However, in both cases YOU ARE THE SUBJECT, and you cannot alternate between first and third person narrative. Pick one and stick with it.
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*Basic Facts to Include in Your Autobiography/Biography: (Not necessarily in this order)
1. DATE AND PLACE OF BIRTH
2. FAMILY HISTORY
3. ACCOMPLISHMENTS
4. LIFE CHANGING EVENTS
5. GOALS THEY HAVE FOR THE FUTURE
INTRODUCTION
As always, you’ll want to start off with a bang and captivate your reader.It's a good idea to begin with a really interesting statement, a little known fact, or really intriguing event. After all, your teacher has probably read other autobiographies concerning your subject. You’ll want yours to stand out.
Considering that, you should avoid starting out with a standard but boring line like:
"Meriwether Lewis was born in Virginia in 1774."
Try starting with something like this:
"Late one afternoon in October, 1809, Meriwether Lewis arrived at a small log cabin nestled deep in the Tennessee Mountains. By sunrise on the following day, he was dead, having suffered gunshot wounds to the head and chest. His body was also slashed several times with a shaving razor."
This opening is much more enticing, isn’t it? You’ll have to make sure your beginning is motivating, but it should also be relevant. The sentences will appear gratuitous if they don’t lead to a point, so the next sentence or two should lead in to your thesis statement, or main message of your autobiography.
“It was a tragic end to a life that had so deeply affected the course of history in the United States. Meriwether Lewis, a driven and often tormented soul, led an expedition of discovery that expanded a young nation’s economic potential, increased its scientific understanding, and enhanced its worldwide reputation.”
Questions
Answer at least 20 of these questions and write the response on a separate paper.
1.What is your definition of “happiness”?
2. What was your worst injury?
3. What celebrity would you most want to meet?
4. What is your most memorable travel experience?
5. What’s the farthest from home you’ve ever been?
6. What is the funniest thing that’s ever happened to you?
7. What was your most rebellious moment?
8. If you had to choose, what is the one thing you regret about the way in which you’ve lived your life?
9. What is your happiest memory? Your saddest?
10. What accomplishment are you most proud of?
11. If you could do it all over again, what would you do differently?
12. How do you hope to be remembered?
13. How do you think people will remember you?
14. Who is your biggest fan?
15. Whose biggest fan are you?
16 .What do you like to do in your spare time?
17. When asked, what’s the one question you always answer with a lie?
18. What do you want the epitaph on your tombstone to be?
19. What is your most embarrassing moment?
20. If you could possess one superhuman power, what would it be?
21. What is your greatest fear?
22. What is your greatest hope?
23. What are you really bad at that you’d love to be great at?
24. What do you think happens after death?
25. What place does religion have in your life?
26. If you could be anyone in history, who would it be? Why?
27. What are the main lessons you’ve learned in life?
28. Describe your favorite childhood memory.
29. How would you describe yourself in three adjectives?
30. Describe what you want to do in your life using three verbs.
HOW YOU WILL BE GRADED
Failing - (Must redo) - Not all of the basic facts are covered and the biography contains little detail. There may be many errors in spelling and grammar.
