NonFiction Autobiography: A biography of a person written by that person.

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NonFictionAutobiography A biography of a person
written by that person.

• 3 Types of Autobiography
• Diaries
• Journals
• Memoirs

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MemoirsA memoir is how one remembers ones own
life while an autobiography is history requiring
research, dates, facts, double-checked. Gore
Vidal
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MemoirsThe word memoir means memory in
French.A memoir is NOT a personal narrative, or
single moments. They are more like a plot line
or patterns that bind moments together. Memoirs
are written with scenes, not overly concerned
with facts/statistics.
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Memoirs allow one to select images, events, and
treasures that reveal important things about
themselves. Memoirs are concerned with moments
in time and the meaning of those moments.
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DIARIESDiaries tell what happens within a
specific time frame and is written about specific
things that have happened. Diaries do not
address the person to whom these things happened.
They are instead records of events,
transactions, or observations kept daily or at
very frequent intervals.History unfolds without
knowing the outcome
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Types of Diaries (Day book)1. Fake Diaries
Untrue fictional diaries such as the Princess
Diaries or Vampire Diaries or Diary of a Wimpy
Kid.2. Travel Diaries3. Food Diaries4. Daily
Life5. Exercise6. Weather7. Sleep/Dreams8.
Audio Diaries (recorded)
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Technological Innovations with DiariesBlogs,
Twitter, Online Diaries, Status Updates
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JournalsJournal comes from the French word jour
DayJournals are written less frequently than
diaries and often contain ideas, artwork, jotting
down of thoughts
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What kinds of people write keep diaries?

• Average people
• Teenagers
• Famous people/Presidents/Actors, Writers

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General Thoughts about Diaries
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Famous Diaries

• The Diary of Anne Frank
• Travel Diary of Queen Victoria
• Samuel Pepys
• President John Quincy Adams
• Charles Darwin
• Leonardo da Vinci
• Joseph Goebbels
• Frida Kahlo
• Elisabeth Lindberg
• Beatrix Potter
• Virginia Woolf

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Famous Memoirs

• Tony Curtis
• Carrie Fisher
• Lauren Bacall
• Jeanette Walls The Glass Castle

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Famous Autobiographies

• Helen Keller
• Frederick Douglas
• Benjamin Franklin
• Mark Twain
• Adolf Hitler
• Mahatma Gandhi
• Isadora Duncan
• Black Elk
• Barack Obama
• Maya Angelou
• Fidel Castro
• Bill Clinton
• Frank Lloyd Wright

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Types of Memoirs/Autobiographies

• Victim of a crime/abuse/accident/wrongdoing
• A Child Called It by Dave Pelzer
• Survivor (natural or manmade)
• Into Thin Air by Jon Krakauer (Mt. Everest)
• Politician
• Ronald Reagan An American Life
• Star
• Miles To Go by Miley Cyrus

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Memoir 6 Word Challenge

• Write your memoir of your life thus far. You can
  only use six words.
• Example I keep trying and learn patience.
• Big hair, big heart, big hurry.
• Girl seeking to understand inner self.
• From Not Quite What I Was Planning by Dave
  Eggers. A compilation of six word memoirs.

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Tips for Writing a six word memoir

• Brainstorm by asking yourself questions
• Where was I born?
• Where did I grow up?
• What is my family all about?
• Do I have any pets?
• Where have I traveled?
• What kinds of trauma have I been through?
• What are my favorite hobbies, foods, shows etc
• What is important to you in life?

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A six-word memoir is a statement that tells a
story about who you are and how you live your
life. It expresses your identity, personality,
emotions, family connections, personal interests,
favorite things, wisdom, life philosophy/motto,
beliefs, professions, and/or experiences. The
rules that govern the six-word memoir writing
process are very relaxed. You only need to use
six words! They can come from any language you
choose. Six-word memoirs are revolutionary
because they dont require you to follow English
grammar rules. What a relief! You are free to
write fragmented sentences, one word descriptions
followed by a period or dash, six words that
mirror a grocery list, or six words that no one
can understand or relate to but yourself.Keep in
mindancestrystate of beingphilosophywisdom
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Your six-word memoir is your gift to yourself. It
can address one or more of the following areas
(and other areas not mentioned below) 1) State
of Being and Personal Reflection Example Woman
seeking to understand inner self. 2) Ancestral
Origins Example Descendant of Africans, Native
Americans, Europeans 3) Family Connections Example
s Granddaughter of women with breast
cancer. Daughter of two educators and
entrepreneurs. Sister to three creatively
expressive brothers. 4) Ethnicity, Sexual
Orientation, Age, and Gender Example African
American. Heterosexual. Fortysomething Female.
Womanist. 5) Professions Example Artist. Writer.
Yoga Teacher. Creativity Coach.
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6) Spirituality and Healing Examples A spiritual
being having human experiences Reiki Master
Practitioner. Unitarian. Buddhist
Meditator. Refuge3/People of Color Sangha
Member. 7) Popular Culture Labels Example Go
Green BoHo BAP. Urban Debutante. 8) School
Affiliations Example Setonite. Morganite.
Howardite. Georgetown Law Grad. 9) Organizational
Memberships Example Sigma Gamma Rho Sorority,
Inc. Member. 10) Socioeconomic Status and
Residence Example Middle Class. U Street DC
Homeowner. 11) Political Affiliation Example
Independent Registered Voter. Barack Obama
Supporter.
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Important questions to ask

• Why do people keep diaries?
• Do you think people screen their thoughts?
• What motivates people to keep diaries?
• Why did Anne Franks diary become famous?
• Who do diaries write for? Themselves or an
  audience?
• Do you think they ever intend their work to get
  published? Why?
• How can a diary be used to teach people
  something?