How to Write a Life Story
Writing Your Life Story
Writing your life story questions:
Writing Your Life Story Sections
Section I: The People who Shaped You
- How would you describe your mother to someone who had never met her?
- What is a key lesson you learned from your father?
________________________________________
Section II: Your Memories
- Describe your childhood home, inside and outside.
- If you had money to spend as a child, what did you buy? Were you a
better saver than spender?
- What were your most memorable experiences from high school?
(Think about your first date, school dances, first time you drove a
car to school, band, chorus, clubs, projects, school plays, talent
shows, sports, etc.)
________________________________________
Section III: The Real World
(adulthood)
-What is your favorite work? What is your least favorite work?
-Have you found true love? Describe what true love means to you.
-What is the hardest part of being a parent?
________________________________________
Section IV: Bringing it all Together
-What does it take to succeed in life?
-What was the best time of your life? Why?
LifeBio helps you with writing your life story online and how to write a life story.
It was surprising to me to talk with an avid genealogist who couldn't see the value in writing her own life story. "Write my life story, why?" she said. I was puzzled. Why wouldn't a genealogist see the value in her own life story? Instead she was focused on uncovering the lives of her deceased relatives.
The future of genealogy is going to be the possibility of really knowing at least a brief biography of every relative. In theory, there is no reason why the future is not right NOW. It starts with YOU.
Here are a few tips on how to write a life story:
1) Just get started -- inside www.lifebio.com there are templates of questions to create a short bio or a LONG life story. You can even skip around to see over 35 big topics and then there are 5-15 questions available inside every topic.
2) Review your photos -- they provide ample ideas for life stories (pick out your favorites)
3) Ask your children or grandchildren what stories they would like to have recorded. Reminisce about these stories and think about all your senses because these details will make your story more interesting.
What would your relatives 100 years from now want to know about you? Just think....what do you wish you knew about your relatives from 100 ago? If you could go back in time, you would want to know what their childhood was like, what kind of work they did, how did they feel about major historical events (and how were they affected), and what could they share about the family and the love in their lives. This is a good basis for the beginnings of your own personal history. You'll want to share about the people, places, and life/historical events that really made a difference to you.
Start to think about your own genealogy record as something that requires more than just birth, marriage, and death dates. Fill in the gaps for future genealogists in your family by telling and sharing at least a short biography (like the "About Me" inside www.lifebio.com or create a whole "Biography" that shares many more details. It certainly makes it easier when you aren't just staring at a blank sheet of paper or blank computer screen---guiding biography questions can help. You can even create a Legacy Book that will be treasured by your family for years to come.
There is no time like the present and no better gift to the future. Give future genealogists a break! Tell your story and fill in their unanswered questions 100 years from now.
Beth Sanders
Founder & CEO
LifeBio.com