Autobiographies, biographies, and memoirs. What do they all have in common? Each genre tells a story of an individual’s life. What is the difference? Memoirs will give a collection of stories in no particular order, while the other two will give a more chronological approach. The difference between autobiographies and biographies, one is written by the person whose life is being recounted and the other is when a person writes about someone else’s life.

So, when is it appropriate to write either of these? Now we can dive a little more into the nitty gritty. Simply put, you and the people you walk by on the street have a chance of sharing the same life experiences. However, when it comes to your story compared to the world it becomes far less unique, even more so, if the both of you grew up during the same time era.

Bringing on the next question. How can you stand out in the crowd? I’m glad you asked. In a world full of people writing stories about themselves and others, you must know where you fit in and be clear on the motive behind why you want to write your story. Once you have figured that out, determine the best way to deliver your story so that your message is received.

For starters, after soul searching and experimentation, people eventually figure out where they fit in in this world. Freaks, geeks, bibliophiles, science nerds, movie buffs, et cetera you’ve found yourself cozy at one of these tables. With that you know where to sit when entering a space. So, if you know you want to write a book centered around your life understand that most autobiographies and biographies are typically taken over by people who were a part of historical events.

For instance, I recently finished the biography of Princess Diana and the book went over her early childhood all the way to the fatal day of the car wreck and beyond. It is not up to date as far as 2023, but enough to where Duchess Meghan is mentioned. Let’s dive in. What made me want to read this book? And it wasn’t because she was a princess. Disney gave us all our fix on that. I was interested because who it was. As I gained more information on Queen Di I came to learn how sad her experience was while dealing with the royals even though she was one of the greatest humanitarians of our time. Not only that, after suffering for so long, she found freedom all for it to come to a tragic end.

I knew that picking up Queen Di’s book would inform me of her life, what happened during her time with the royals, and how she over came it. Granted there was so much more revealed but that was the icing on the cake because what’s a book without info left out of the blurb, right?

So already Queen Di checks off celebrity status and the fact she had something to offer, and her legacy is seemingly a huge part of world history. 

On the contrary, if I were to state Eli Wiesel That name is not familiar offhand so I doubt reading his book would be of interest. But if I switch gears and say Eli Wiesel is a survivor of the Jewish Holocaust, ears would then begin to perk up because we know during the 1940s one of the most heinous attempted genocides was taking place just overseas. Though Eli Wiesel is not known, when he was during that time in history is enough to make a reader pick up his book to buy.

Now that we know some of the scenarios to grab attention ask yourself: What is my motive behind to write my story? Sometimes telling a story on what happened in your life will not be enough, so what is your motive behind it all? Take Alex Elle for example, her book After the Rain is about healing and what to do after the storm has passed. She share memories of tough times in her life and how she over came them. Therefore the motive or shall we say theme behind her memoir is self-care. Because though she went through tough times like most of us in this world, to be able to put into words how she persevered in not something that comes so easy. Some don’t reflect enough to know how they got through but to be able to write efficiently and provide effective advice on how to apply it to life will help someone in need to amplify their own life.

And finally, structure. Once you have discovered the premise of your book, how to deliver is your next obstacle. The author has to be able to deliver the story in a way that invokes certain emotions so that they can couple it with the premise of the book. It is far to easy to get side tracked and speak on stories that lead into others, causing everything to feel all over the place. However, remaining focused will helped to keep things simple which will allow for everything to be tied together in the end.

This is not to say you cannot or should not write an autobiography but it is to suggest there is a better shot of getting your audiences attention when they can relate to your intention behind the book. We have always been told it’s okay to stand out but try to stand in the line with others like you while making it known what you have to offer. Once you make it known what you have to offer make sure it is clear and consistent throughout your manuscript. So when you start putting the pen to paper or fingers to keyboard, let your heart roam free with sharing while taking heed that the memories your are sharing will all connect to the message you want to deliver.