Table of contents
How to Write a Biography
You need to present information in a way that is engaging and informative. So, how exactly do you accomplish this? Follow this step-by-step guide and learn how to do it properly:
Choose a subject: Choose the subject of your autobiography. Remember, you should choose a person who genuinely interests you. This will make the writing process smoother, and keep you motivated and inspired until completion. The subject of your biography will also determine the tone and writing style.
Do your research thoroughly: It’s time to do some research on your designated subject. You should be diligent in your research and gather as much information as possible. Try out different sources. Books, articles, and interviews are all great material to start using. Make sure your sources are credible. Take note of the details that make the person unique.
This could be details about their personality, their life story, and so on. By gathering this information, you should be able to paint a better picture of who they are. Aim to understand your subject deeply and don’t just scratch the surface.
Organize your research: When you’re done with the research process, it’s time to organize all you’ve found. You can organize it in a chronological fashion or thematically. This depends on what your biography will be focusing on. Aim to be coherent and compelling when organizing your information.
Prepare an outline: Having an outline prepared before you write will help you write more efficiently. You should aim to create an outline that includes all the key points of your narrative. The main sections can include the subject’s childhood and family life, their career, their achievements, and their legacy.
Outlines help you focus and serve to remind you to write about the most crucial details for each section of your biography.
Start writing the introduction: Follow your outline and start writing the introduction. It should hook your reader right away and it should also provide an overview of your biography’s subject and why they’re important. Your introduction sets the tone for the rest of your work, so try your best to make it engaging.
Develop the biography’s body: The body is where you should provide extensive information about your subject’s story. You should try to write all their major life events, their biggest obstacles, their most notable achievements, along with other parts of their life that are relevant to painting the whole picture of their biography.
Write a thoughtful conclusion: Summarize your key information in your conclusion. This part should reflect on your subject’s story and their legacy. You have the chance to leave a lasting impression on your reader in this section, so make sure you connect with the reader with your writing. To achieve this, look back on what you wrote, is your subject’s story successfully inspiring your reader? If it’s a more tragic background, is it relatable?
Revise and edit your work: Proofread, revise, and edit your work meticulously. You want to confirm its accuracy, clarity, readability, and grammar. You want to make sure your writing flows smoothly, and that everything is relevant to your focus and engages your reader at the same time.
Pro tip: Remember that a biography serves to share a person’s life story, not just to provide information, but to paint an organic picture of who this person is and what their experiences were. It should explore the subject in great detail. In many cases, biographies serve to inspire the reader.
How to Start a Biography
If you’ve never written a biography before, it’s normal to feel a bit overwhelmed or confused. We’ll break down our tips for you in digestible bits, so you can use them to check your writing bit by bit. Here’s how you can start:
Start with a catchy hook: Aim to persuade and aim to catch your reader’s curiosity and interest. The opening sentence should be compelling. Write to draw your reader in. Write in a way that makes them want to learn more about your subject. You could do this by using an intriguing fact about your subject, or an event in their life that’s interesting.
Introduce your biography’s subject: After your hook, write a brief introduction of your subject and present information like their name, their key achievements, and why they’re important as a public figure.
Set your scene and state the biography’s purpose: Set your biography’s scene by adding context to your subject’s life. Introducing elements like the period they lived in and the environment they grew up in can help. Lastly, you can introduce the biography’s purpose. You can explain why your subject is worth reading about and what your audience can expect to gain from reading their story. Checklist: What to Include in a Biography
Here’s a small checklist to remind you of important elements that you should include in your biography. These elements can help provide a complete picture of your subject and their life.
- Early life entries: Include information about your subject’s childhood and early life. Information can involve their family background, where they grew up, and key experiences that happened in their early years.
- Education and professional life: Include information about your subject’s education and career life. Include crucial achievements, turning points, and challenges they’ve experienced. Try to provide insight on how they developed their skills and how they gained expertise. This will help readers understand how they achieved success in whatever field they worked in and it also helps to inspire readers.
- Personal life: Writing extensively on your subject’s personal life can greatly help make a lasting impression on your readers. By adding information about their interpersonal relationships, important personal experiences, and so on, you humanize your subject and potentially make them relatable to your readers. This in turn can help them resonate with your writing more.
Achievements and challenges: Include your subject’s successes and contributions. This can include their awards, publications, and anything that showcases their impact. Additionally, you should also include their struggles and setbacks.
By painting the whole picture and not just highlighting the positives, your subject can potentially become more interesting and inspiring. By adding depth, you showcase your subject’s resilience, determination, and even genius.
Legacy: Typically, you can include your subject’s legacy in your conclusion to maximize your biography’s impact and memorability. Reflect on how their story and work influenced the world, and what type of impact they leave with what they’ve done.
Structuring a Biography
When writing a great biography, you should consider writing it chronologically. This means starting from your subject’s early years to their peak years in clear, timely progression. You can also use a thematic structure. This means you focus on certain aspects of your subject’s story like their work life or their struggles.
Biography Definition and Examples
A biography is simply a written account of someone and their life. It writes an extensive overview of someone’s story and their impact on the world. A biography can be written for anyone, whether they’re famous public figures or common folk who have had interesting lives. There are different kinds of biographies. Examples of biography:
- Autobiography: A biography written by the subject. A first-person account of all key details of their life.
- Authorized biography: A biography that’s been authorized by the subject. Often written with the cooperation of the subject.
- Unauthorized biography: One that hasn’t been authorized by the subject. These can be controversial.
"Examples of Biography
Biographies can come in an infinite amount of forms. If you want to look at notable examples before writing, we encourage you to check out some of our suggestions below:
- “Steve Jobs” by Walter Isaacson: As you can already guess, this biography presents a deep look into the life of Steve Jobs. This biography includes details about his personal life, career, and his impact on the technological industry as the co-founder of Apple.
- “Alexander Hamilton” by Ron Chernow: The biography lets readers explore the life story of one of America’s founding fathers. This gives insight into how he later shaped the U.S. government.
- “Long Walk to Freedom” by Nelson Mandela: An autobiography written by Nelson Mandela. In this biography, we get to know details of Mandela’s story, from his childhood years to his rise in leadership and presidency. "
What is a Biography of a Person?
A biography is a written account of a person’s life. It typically focuses on the subject’s personal and professional life. You can find details on everything from their childhood years to their impact and influence on society.
Biographies are often made to celebrate a subject’s life or pay tribute to their story. It is a good way to share a subject’s story or legacy for future audiences. Biographies don’t only list out details in a dry fashion. Biographies engage, inform, and aim to inspire. Writers who want to write an interesting biography should make it as engaging as possible.
When writing a biography, many things have to be considered and done properly. Research has to be extensive and detailed. The writer must convey the context of the biography and the story itself. Writers should aim to provide deep and valuable insights into their subject’s lives and contributions.
Best Biographies of All Time
Some biographies have stood the test of time. They’re one of the best-written biographies out there. They demonstrate meticulous research and provide readers with very deep insights into the story and lives of their chosen subjects. Here are some of them:
“The Autobiography of Malcolm X” by Malcolm X and Alex Haley: This very impactful autobiography presents the fascinating life of Malcolm X. It chronicles his childhood years to his years as a famous civil rights leader. The autobiography provides a compelling narrative of his life.
“The Rise of Theodore Roosevelt” by Edmund Morris: This biography won a Pulitzer Prize. Readers are provided an extensive look into the story of one of America’s most famous presidents.
“John Adams” by David McCullough: This biography of John Adams successfully provides an in-depth look into his life. It details his achievements and contributions to the founding of the U.S. It can be very helpful to those researching him.
“Team of Rivals: The Political Genius of Abraham Lincoln” by Doris Kearns Goodwin: If you want to read about Abraham Lincoln, then this biography extensively explores his leadership during the Civil War. It gives deep insights into Abraham’s success in bringing a team of political rivals together to save the U.S.
Conclusion
Writing a great biography is delicate work. It is both an art and a science. Before you start writing, read our guide thoroughly and memorize all the information. Integrate what you’ve learned after you’ve truly grasped what they mean. You’ll need a deep understanding of your chosen subject.
Take time to do careful research. Learn how to write in an engaging and informative manner. Whatever you set out in writing, the principles and tips mentioned in our article will help you create content that is both accurate and engaging. Learn how to capture your reader’s attention and learn how to write valuable insights. We hope that you can use all of what you’ve learned for your writing.
