Autobiography is not the same as memoir
I’ve noticed a growing trend with celebrities writing ‘memoir’ when they really mean ‘autobiography’. I imagine this is because it sounds more literary or even trendy to say memoir rather than autobiography.
Before I go into the detail of the differences between an autobiography and memoir, let me clarify one crucial point. There is nothing wrong with writing an autobiography! If you’ve written an autobiography, then call it that (said in my best Cecily Cardew voice). Don’t try and dress it up as something else because you think it sounds cooler.
Added to this, don’t worry about what genre you are writing while you are writing. You’ll soon spot when your writing flows and when it seems trickier, so let your writing guide the genre, rather than the other way round. You may be adamant you want to write a memoir, but you end up writing an autobiography, or the other way round. Either result is fine!
As you’ll see, there is some crossover between these two forms of life writing, but the basic principles are as follows.
Main features of autobiography
An account of a whole life from birth to present day.
Factual and historical accuracy.
Chronological order.
A few anecdotes sprinkled throughout, but mainly centred on chronological events and milestones.
Told in first-person (I was born… In 2004 I went to university…).
Ideal format if you want your reader to know everything about your life.
Popular for writing your part in your family history.
Main features of memoir
Focuses on a specific period, experience, or theme in your life, such as:
o your relationship with water
o training for a sporting event or a coast-to-coast walk (think Salt Path, Finding Hildasay)
o a time in your life like the early years of motherhood or navigating menopause.
Told in first-person.
More freedom to be emotional, reflective, or opinionated.
Ideal if your writing style is particularly lyrical or uses vivid imagery.
Uses dialogue and storytelling devices to create a scene – often more about the ‘spirit’ of a memory rather than guaranteeing a detailed account.
More artistic licence to employ literary devices.
Has further branches you can explore for presentation, including a collection of essays.
Things to consider with memoir:
Often employs a non-linear approach, meaning structure can be tricky.
Easy to repeat yourself or forget which recollections you’ve already shared in the book.
Hard to decide what’s relevant and what can be removed.
My two top tips when it comes to writing memoir:
1) Remember the main focus of your memoir: is it to bring your reader along with you on your literal journey from the start of your adventure to the end? To gain them access to a tumultuous period in your life and educate them? To value the certain theme your memoir pivots on?
2) Be ruthless and skip any back story or details about your childhood, unless it’s relevant to the above point.
A final tip when it comes to understanding the difference between autobiography and memoir is to read more of each genre (but do bear in mind the recent tendency to mislabel these for marketing purposes). You may find you enjoy the straightforward and chronological nature of autobiography and relish the chance to write a comprehensive account of your life so far. Often, writers focus too much on what kind of book they want to write rather than the book they will write.
If you try and force an autobiography to become a memoir, the result will likely be a confusing and incoherent book. What matters more than genre is allowing your writing to flow and for you to feel you have written a book that sounds like you and covers what you want.
By all means, take a look at my other blog posts that cover further tips for writing a successful memoir (links below), but don’t shoehorn your book to become a memoir if it would be happier as something else.
Comments