The Differences between Memoir, Autobiography, and Biography - article

Author Learning Center — Wed, 27 Mar 2019 19:03:26 GMT

Current Revision posted to Choosing Your Topic by Author Learning Center on 3/27/2019 7:03:26 PM

Creative Nonfiction: Memoir vs. Autobiography vs. Biography

Writing any type of nonfiction story can be a daunting task. As the author, you have the responsibility to tell a true story and share the facts as accurately as you can—while also making the experience enjoyable for the reader.

There are three primary formats to tell a creative nonfiction story: memoir, autobiography, and biography. Each has its own distinct characteristics, so it’s important to understand the differences between them to ensure you’re writing within the correct scope.

Memoir

A memoir is a collection of personal memories related to specific moments or experiences in the author’s life. Told from the perspective of the author, memoirs are written in first person point of view.

The defining characteristic that sets memoirs apart from autobiographies and biographies is its scope. While the other genres focus on the entire timeline of a person’s life, memoirs structure themselves on one aspect, such as addiction, parenting, adolescence, disease, faith, etc.

They may tell stories from various moments in the author’s life, but they should read like a cohesive story—not just a re-telling of facts.

“You don’t want a voice that simply relates facts to the reader. You want a voice that shows the reader what’s going on and puts him or her in the room with the people you’re writing about.” – Kevan Lyon in Writing a Memoir

Unlike autobiographies and biographies, memoirs focus more on the author’s relationship to and feelings about his or her own memories. Memoirs tend to read more like a fiction novel than a factual account, and should include things like dialogue, setting, character descriptions, and more.

Authors looking to write a memoir can glean insight from both fiction and nonfiction genres. Although memoirs tell a true story, they focus on telling an engaging narrative, just like a novel. This gives memoir authors a little more flexibility to improve upon the story slightly for narrative effect.

However, you should represent dialogue and scenarios as accurately as you can, especially if you’re worried about libel and defamation lawsuits.

Examples of popular memoirs include Eat, Pray, Love by Elizabeth Gilbert and The Glass Castle by Jeannette Walls.

Key traits of a memoir:

- Written in 1^st person POV from the perspective of the author
- Less formal compared to autobiographies and biographies
- Narrow in scope or timeline
- Focused more on feelings and memories than facts
- More flexibility to change the story for effect

Autobiography

Like a memoir, an autobiography is the author’s retelling of his or her life and told in first person point of view, making the author the main character of the story.

Autobiographies are also narrative nonfiction, so the stories are true but also include storytelling elements such as a protagonist (the author), a central conflict, and a cast of intriguing characters.

Unlike memoirs, autobiographies focus more on facts than emotions. Because of this, a collaborator often joins the project to help the author tell the most factual, objective story possible.

While a memoir is limited in scope, an autobiography details the author’s entire life up to the present. An autobiography often begins when the author is young and includes detailed chronology, events, places, reactions, movements and other relevant happenings throughout the author’s life.

“In many people’s memoir, they do start when they’re younger, but it isn’t an, ‘I got a dog, then we got a fish, and then I learned to tie my shoes’…it isn’t that kind of detail.” – Linda Joy Meyers in Memoir vs. Autobiography

The chronology of an autobiography is organized but not necessarily in date order. For instance, the author may start from current time and employ flashbacks or he/she may organize events thematically.

Autobiographers use many sources of information to develop the story such as letters, photographs, and other personal memorabilia. However, like a memoir, the author’s personal memory is the primary resource. Any other sources simply enrich the story and relay accurate and engaging experiences.

A good autobiography includes specific details that only the author knows and provides context by connecting those details to larger issues, themes, or events. This allows the reader to relate more personally to the author’s experience.

Examples of popular autobiographies include The Diary of a Young Girl by Anne Frank and I Know Why the Caged Bird Sings by Maya Angelou.

Key traits of an autobiography:

- Written in 1^st person POV from the perspective of the author, occasionally with the help of a collaborator
- More formal and objective than memoirs, but more subjective than biographies
- Broad in scope or timeline, often covering the author’s entire life up to the present
- Focused more on facts than emotions
- Requires more extensive fact-checking and research than memoirs, but less than biographies

Biography

A biography is the story of events and circumstances of a person’s life, written by someone other than that person. Usually, people write biographies about a historical or public figure. They can be written with or without the subject’s authorization.

Since the author is telling the account of someone else, biographies are always in third person point of view and carry a more formal and objective tone than both memoirs and autobiographies.

Like an autobiography, biographies cover the entire scope of the subject’s life, so it should include details about his or her birthplace, educational background, work history, relationships, death and more.

Good biographers will research and study a person’s life to collect facts and present the most historically accurate, multi-faceted picture of an individual’s experiences as possible. A biography should include intricate details—so in-depth research is necessary to ensure accuracy.

“If you’re dealing principally with historical figures who are long dead, there are very few legal problems…if you’re dealing with a more sensitive issue…then the lawyers will be crawling all over the story.” – David Margolick in Legal Issues with Biographies

However, biographies are still considered creative nonfiction, so the author has the ability to analyze and interpret events in the subject’s life, looking for meaning in their actions, uncovering mistakes, solving mysteries, connecting details, and highlighting the significance of the person's accomplishments or life activities.

Authors often organize events in chronological order, but can sometimes organize by themes or specific accomplishments or topics, depending on their book’s key idea.

Examples of popular biographies include Steve Jobs by Walter Isaacson and The Immortal Life of Henrietta Lacks by Rebecca Skloot.

Key traits of a biography:

- Written about another person, often a celebrity or public figure, and told in 3^rd person point of view
- More formal and objective than both memoirs and autobiographies
- Broad in scope or timeline, often covering the subject’s entire life up to the present
- Focused solely on facts
- Requires meticulous research and fact-checking to ensure accuracy

Tags: article, Nonfiction, Biographies and Memoirs

The Differences between Memoir, Autobiography, and Biography - article

Author Learning Center — Wed, 27 Mar 2019 18:54:58 GMT

Revision 4 posted to Choosing Your Topic by Author Learning Center on 3/27/2019 6:54:58 PM

Creative Nonfiction: Memoir vs. Autobiography vs. Biography

Memoir

They may tell stories from various moments in the author’s life, but they should read like a cohesive story—not just a re-telling of facts.

“You don’t want a voice that simply relates facts to the reader. You want a voice that shows the reader what’s going on and puts him or her in the room with the people you’re writing about.” – Kevan Lyon in Writing a Memoir

However, you should represent dialogue and scenarios as accurately as you can, especially if you’re worried about libel and defamation lawsuits.

Examples of popular memoirs include Eat, Pray, Love by Elizabeth Gilbert and The Glass Castle by Jeannette Walls.

Key traits of a memoir:

Written in 1^st person POV from the perspective of the author
Less formal compared to autobiographies and biographies
Narrow in scope or timeline
Focused more on feelings and memories than facts
More flexibility to change the story for effect

Autobiography

Like a memoir, an autobiography is the author’s retelling of his or her life and told in first person point of view, making the author the main character of the story.

Unlike memoirs, autobiographies focus more on facts than emotions. Because of this, a collaborator often joins the project to help the author tell the most factual, objective story possible.

“In many people’s memoir, they do start when they’re younger, but it isn’t an, ‘I got a dog, then we got a fish, and then I learned to tie my shoes’…it isn’t that kind of detail.” – Linda Joy Meyers in Memoir vs. Autobiography

Examples of popular autobiographies include The Diary of a Young Girl by Anne Frank and I Know Why the Caged Bird Sings by Maya Angelou.

Key traits of an autobiography:

Written in 1^st person POV from the perspective of the author, occasionally with the help of a collaborator
More formal and objective than memoirs, but more subjective than biographies
Broad in scope or timeline, often covering the author’s entire life up to the present
Focused more on facts than emotions
Requires more extensive fact-checking and research than memoirs, but less than biographies

Biography

Since the author is telling the account of someone else, biographies are always in third person point of view and carry a more formal and objective tone than both memoirs and autobiographies.

“If you’re dealing principally with historical figures who are long dead, there are very few legal problems…if you’re dealing with a more sensitive issue…then the lawyers will be crawling all over the story.” – David Margolick in Legal Issues with Biographies

Authors often organize events in chronological order, but can sometimes organize by themes or specific accomplishments or topics, depending on their book’s key idea.

Examples of popular biographies include Steve Jobs by Walter Isaacson and The Immortal Life of Henrietta Lacks by Rebecca Skloot.

Key traits of a biography:

Written about another person, often a celebrity or public figure, and told in 3^rd person point of view
More formal and objective than both memoirs and autobiographies
Broad in scope or timeline, often covering the subject’s entire life up to the present
Focused solely on facts
Requires meticulous research and fact-checking to ensure accuracy

Tags: article, Nonfiction, Biographies and Memoirs

The Differences between Memoir, Autobiography, and Biography - article

Author Learning Center — Wed, 27 Mar 2019 18:45:03 GMT

Revision 3 posted to Choosing Your Topic by Author Learning Center on 3/27/2019 6:45:03 PM

Creative Nonfiction: Memoir vs. Autobiography vs. Biography

Memoir

They may tell stories from various moments in the author’s life, but they should read like a cohesive story—not just a re-telling of facts.

“You don’t want a voice that simply relates facts to the reader. You want a voice that shows the reader what’s going on and puts him or her in the room with the people you’re writing about.” – Kevan Lyon in Writing a Memoir

However, you should represent dialogue and scenarios as accurately as you can, especially if you’re worried about libel and defamation lawsuits.

Examples of popular memoirs include Eat, Pray, Love by Elizabeth Gilbert and The Glass Castle by Jeannette Walls.

Key traits of a memoir:

Written in 1^st person POV from the perspective of the author
Less formal compared to autobiographies and biographies
Narrow in scope or timeline
Focused more on feelings and memories than facts
More flexibility to change the story for effect

Autobiography

Like a memoir, an autobiography is the author’s retelling of his or her life and told in first person point of view, making the author the main character of the story.

Unlike memoirs, autobiographies focus more on facts than emotions. Because of this, a collaborator often joins the project to help the author tell the most factual, objective story possible.

“In many people’s memoir, they do start when they’re younger, but it isn’t an, ‘I got a dog, then we got a fish, and then I learned to tie my shoes’…it isn’t that kind of detail.” – Linda Joy Meyers in Memoir vs. Autobiography

Examples of popular autobiographies include The Diary of a Young Girl by Anne Frank and I Know Why the Caged Bird Sings by Maya Angelou.

Key traits of an autobiography:

Written in 1^st person POV from the perspective of the author, occasionally with the help of a collaborator
More formal and objective than memoirs, but more subjective than biographies
Broad in scope or timeline, often covering the author’s entire life up to the present
Focused more on facts than emotions
Requires more extensive fact-checking and research than memoirs, but less than biographies

Biography

Since the author is telling the account of someone else, biographies are always in third person point of view and carry a more formal and objective tone than both memoirs and autobiographies.

“If you’re dealing principally with historical figures who are long dead, there are very few legal problems…if you’re dealing with a more sensitive issue…then the lawyers will be crawling all over the story.” – David Margolick in Legal Issues with Biographies

Authors often organize events in chronological order, but can sometimes organize by themes or specific accomplishments or topics, depending on their book’s key idea.

Examples of popular biographies include Steve Jobs by Walter Isaacson and The Immortal Life of Henrietta Lacks by Rebecca Skloot.

Key traits of a biography:

Written about another person, often a celebrity or public figure, and told in 3^rd person point of view
More formal and objective than both memoirs and autobiographies
Broad in scope or timeline, often covering the subject’s entire life up to the present
Focused solely on facts
Requires meticulous research and fact-checking to ensure accuracy

Tags: article, Nonfiction, Biographies and Memoirs

The Differences between Memoir, Autobiography, and Biography - article

Author Learning Center — Thu, 24 Aug 2017 20:25:52 GMT

Revision 2 posted to Choosing Your Topic by Author Learning Center on 8/24/2017 8:25:52 PM

Telling a person’s life story can be an exciting but daunting task, whether you’re telling your own story, or someone else’s story. There are three primary formats used to tell a life story – memoir, autobiography, and biography – each with its own, distinct characteristics. As a writer, it’s important to understand the differences in these often confusing, nonfiction genres.

Memoir

“Memoir” is from the French word mémoire, meaning memory or reminiscence. A written memoir is a collection of personal memories related to specific moments or experiences in the author’s life, connected to a person, event, place, or object. The writing is based on the author’s personal knowledge and is an intimate story about private or public happenings. For instance, it may be about the author’s experience of being held captive, overcoming addiction, fighting in a war, or living in a cult. It might be about a recurring event, such as spending every childhood summer at a family cabin. The topic is intentionally focused and will not include aspects of the author’s life beyond the selected scope. Events are included only if they are meaningful and relevant to the story.

"[Memoirs] should be true and based on the author’s best recollection, even if the truth is difficult and uncomfortable."

Memoirs are works of nonfiction. They should be true and based on the author’s best recollection, even if the truth is difficult and uncomfortable. Also, memoirs are narrative nonfiction, meaning they are written in story form and include dialogue. The author may not remember conversations exactly, but should represent dialogue and scenarios as accurately as possible.

Here are some other traits of a memoir:

- The author is the main character and the story is written from the author’s perspective using the first person singular voice (I, not we, one, or you).

- Unlike an autobiography that is written at the end of a life, a memoir can be written at any time because it is based on a specific time or experience.

- Memoirs are often less formal than an autobiography and focus on thoughts and feelings, reactions and reflections, seeking to connect with the emotion of an experience.

- Context, such as background information, is woven into the story but is not the focus of the story.

- Like a novel, it includes setting, character relationships, and dialogue.

Autobiography

An autobiography is a person’s life story, written by that person. The story is usually told in the first person because the writer is the main character of the story.

While a memoir is limited in scope, an autobiography details the author’s entire life up to the present time and is expected to include public and private information about the author. The story starts when the author is young and includes detailed chronology, events, places, reactions, movements and other relevant happenings throughout the author’s life. Unlike memoir that focuses on emotional connection, autobiographies focus on facts.

Autobiographers use many sources of information to develop the story such as letters, photographs, and other personal memorabilia, but personal memory is the primary resource. These sources may enrich the story and relay accurate and engaging experiences.

"...a good autobiography includes specific details that only the author knows..."

There are specific narrative techniques that appear in successful autobiographies. First, point of view is often detached, meaning the narrator recalls details from his or her past but then reflects on personal growth from the experience. Second, the chronology is organized but not necessarily in date order. For instance, the author may start from current time and employ flashbacks or he may organize events thematically. Third, a good autobiography includes specific details that only the author knows and provides context by connecting those details to larger issues, themes, or events. This allows the reader to personally relate to the experience.

Here are some other traits of an autobiography:

- It is written from the author’s perspective using the first person singular voice (I, not we, one, or you).It is typically written late in life since it encompasses an entire lifetime.

- Like a memoir, it is narrative nonfiction, so the stories are true but also include storytelling elements, such as a protagonist (the author), a central conflict, and a cast of intriguing characters.

- The writer is always the center of his or her own narrative, while a historian who writes a biography is outside of the narrative in order to be objective.

- It is usually more formal than a memoir and more subjective than a biography.

Biography

A biography is the story of events and circumstances of a person’s life, written by someone other than that person. It is usually written about a historical or public figure and can be written with or without the subject’s authorization.

A biographer researches and studies a person’s life to collect facts and create a historically accurate, multi-faceted picture of that individual’s experiences. The biography includes intricate details such as birthplace, educational background, work history, relationships, and death. Biographers analyze and interpret events in a person's life, looking for meaning in their actions, uncovering mistakes, solving mysteries, connecting details, and highlighting the significance of the person's accomplishments or life activities. They often write in chronological order, but sometimes organize writings by themes or specific accomplishments or topics.

Biographies are written in the 3^rd person and are often more impartial than an autobiography because they are based on research and facts rather than on subjective personal experiences. Biographers use many research sources, including interviews, letters, diaries, photographs, essays, reference books, newspapers, and other historical documents.

At their core, biographies, like autobiographies and memoirs, are meant to be engaging, compelling stories. The biggest differences between the three genres are the role and perspective of the author, the level of subjectivity, and the scope of information covered in the story.

Tags: article, Nonfiction, Biographies and Memoirs

The Differences between Memoir, Autobiography, and Biography - article

Author Learning Center — Thu, 24 Aug 2017 18:55:23 GMT

Revision 1 posted to Choosing Your Topic by Author Learning Center on 8/24/2017 6:55:23 PM

Memoir

Here are some other traits of a memoir:

The author is the main character and the story is written from the author’s perspective using the first person singular voice (I, not we, one, or you).
Unlike an autobiography that is written at the end of a life, a memoir can be written at any time because it is based on a specific time or experience.
Memoirs are often less formal than an autobiography and focus on thoughts and feelings, reactions and reflections, seeking to connect with the emotion of an experience.
Context, such as background information, is woven into the story but is not the focus of the story.
Like a novel, it includes setting, character relationships, and dialogue.

Autobiography

An autobiography is a person’s life story, written by that person. The story is usually told in the first person because the writer is the main character of the story.

Here are some other traits of an autobiography:

It is written from the author’s perspective using the first person singular voice (I, not we, one, or you).
It is typically written late in life since it encompasses an entire lifetime.
Like a memoir, it is narrative nonfiction, so the stories are true but also include storytelling elements, such as a protagonist (the author), a central conflict, and a cast of intriguing characters.
The writer is always the center of his or her own narrative, while a historian who writes a biography is outside of the narrative in order to be objective.
It is usually more formal than a memoir and more subjective than a biography.

Biography

Tags: article, Nonfiction, Biographies and Memoirs