So, what’s the homework?
You will be writing a biography. Not an autobiography? Afraid not. It will be a biography. This means you need a subject – but whom will this subject be? Read no further than the next sentence, and all will be revealed.
You will be writing the biography of either your mother, or father. In the absence of such a character, you will write the story of the “parental figure to whom you are most close.”
What does this mean?
It means that over the next few weeks, you will be focusing on creating the story of their life. Now, we will be doing other things in class as well – things linked inextricably to the genre – but your main task for this unit is this work.
Break it down for me a bit more.
Your biography will catalogue your subject’s life from birth to their current state. It will run no less than two thousand words – it can go over if you feel you need the extra words.
But what will we cover?
That’s up to you. Remember though – as always, you are writing for an audience. In this case, it’s a high school teacher who does not want to become bored from reading tedious tales.
Hmm – but how can we avoid that?
By taking every single thing you have learned this unit and putting it into action. You’re writing non-fiction, and yet those skills still apply! It’s fantastic, isn’t it? All of that stuff earlier on about setting up your character, and describing them, that’s useful. Being able to paint a picture of your setting will also come in handy here. Knowing where to add images – something we picked up in the children’s book unit… well, you can put that in here too.
So, how do I start off?
Lucy was born on September 4 1969. She was born in St. Michael’s Hospital at 5:00am.
[that right there? That is how to – absolutely – not start! Let’s try something else.]
The gentle warm breeze, blowing softly through the loosely curtained windows of St. Michael’s hospital heralded the coming of a new life. The warm colours, an apparent trace of nineteen sixties design before the seventies ushered in olive greens and dead browns, would provide the background for one Lucy Chamberlain, as she entered the world, silent as the morning mist rising over the lands outside.
[you see how that’s a little different? Of course you do. Now we can move on.]
Aside from a beginning – what do we need?
Stories – the stories that make us who we are, and who we were! And how do you find out about them? Shock of shocks – you’ll have to sit down and… talk… to your subject!
[Starting Questions]
When and where were you born? ___________________________________________
What is your earliest memory? _____________________________________________
What was your home like? ________________________________________________
What was your room like? ________________________________________________
[School Years]
What was your education like when you were age 5 – 11? ______________________
_______________________________________________________________________
What is your strongest memory from those years? ____________________________
_______________________________________________________________________
What was your education like when you were age 12 – 17? _____________________
_______________________________________________________________________
What is your strongest memory from those years? ____________________________
_______________________________________________________________________
When / Why was the first time you seriously lied to your parents? _______________
_______________________________________________________________________
Do you regret having lied to them, or did it lead to a good experience? ___________
_______________________________________________________________________
What were your friends like? ______________________________________________
_______________________________________________________________________
Who was the best influence you had? _______________________________________
Who was the worst influence you had? ______________________________________
[From then ‘til Now]
What are the top five most powerful memories, good or bad, that you keep with you to this day? Expand upon them.
What is the one thing that you are so glad you did? ___________________________
_______________________________________________________________________
What is the one thing you wish you never did? _______________________________
_______________________________________________________________________
What is the one thing you always wish you did? ______________________________
_______________________________________________________________________
Why didn’t you do it? ___________________________________________________
_______________________________________________________________________
[The Coming Storm]
How did you meet your partner? __________________________________________
_______________________________________________________________________
At what point did children enter into the picture? ____________________________
_______________________________________________________________________
How did this change things? ______________________________________________
_______________________________________________________________________
