Autobiography Essay: Student Guidelines & Examples

Step 1: Definition of a Topic

Writers need to take necessary preparation steps before writing autobiography essays. Basically, a first preparation step is a definition of a topic. For example, to write an autobiography of yourself, people chronologically narrate their life’s key events, experiences, and reflections while highlighting how they have shaped their identities and values (Di Summa-Knoop, 2017). In this case, one should brainstorm for possible ideas that can lead to writing a new issue. Besides, this phase allows students to recall key events they intend to use in their essays. In turn, a unique topic can contain catchy words that attract a reader’s attention.

Step 2: Making Notes on a Topic

A second step in preparation involves making notes on a specific topic identified. For instance, one can write down all the main ideas related to a particular problem (Sanders, 2015). In essay writing, this step relies on brainstorming to recall concepts about life experiences discussed in a chosen topic. As such, people need to identify the most relevant details that relate to a unique life-changing event and group related ideas. Therefore, one must make adequate notes that relate to an autobiography’s topic.

Step 3: Defining a Target Audience

People must consider unique needs of a target audience. In particular, prudent writers take time to consider a complex nature of an intended audience. Basically, such a step involves reviewing a particular level of knowledge and life experiences. For example, autobiographies prepared for college admission or testing should have a standard grammar that meets academic expectations (Herda, 2021). Then, essays prepared for a general public need to contain simple language that readers with different academic levels can understand. In writing, outstanding autobiographies include events that interest a target audience. Besides, having adequate background information about intended readers allows authors to structure essays to meet their needs. Therefore, quality autobiography essays satisfy basic requirements of a target audience.  

Step 4: Setting Up a Stage

A particular step in setting up a specific stage for an autobiography is finding sources of information. For example, autobiographies may contain compelling and accurate details and evidence (Borg, 2021). In this case, writers should find reliable sources that can support main arguments presented in essays. Moreover, some places one may consider for findings sources include a college library and an Internet network. However, students must consider using evidence from credible sources. In turn, peer-reviewed journal articles, published books, and scientific reports are reliable sources one can find and use. Hence, an author needs to consider gathering adequate evidence from credible sources to support essay’s significant arguments and its writing.

Step 5: Taking Notes From Sources

An entire step of writing an autobiography involves taking notes. For example, writers must gather relevant details from credible sources identified (Borg, 2021). In this case, the information identified must relate to a topic developed early. Besides, such sources should support life-changing events considered by authors. Then, one should write down short notes and identify correct bibliographic details of sources. In essay writing, prudent authors revise their records to ensure they remain relevant to a specific topic. Moreover, a review process helps to organize related ideas, select the most compelling arguments, and identify some gaps in the evidence. Hence, right notes play a crucial role in promoting a good quality of an autobiography essay.

Step 6: Creating an Outline

A person needs to use recorded notes to create an autobiography outline for an entire essay. In writing, an essay outline provides an overall structure of an actual piece (Sanders, 2015). Basically, writers should include a brief introduction, a working thesis statement, and main points in a body section. In turn, compelling outlines contain a conclusion that restates a central thesis and summarizes main points. Then, a rough essay structure provides a clear picture of an intended paper’s purpose. Moreover, people must include all the relevant details that relate to a chosen topic. Therefore, they should use the gathered evidence to prepare an autobiography’s outline.  

Step 7: Writing an Annotated Bibliography

Prudent writers create an annotated bibliography by using reliable sources identified. For example, an annotated bibliography’s primary goal is to summarize main points from scholarly sources and determine their significance to an assigned topic (Sanders, 2015). Besides, autobiographers state how each source will contribute to writing an entire essay. In particular, this step plays a crucial role in ensuring authors have adequate background information about a specific topic. Therefore, people should create an annotated bibliography of all the scholarly sources identified during a researching stage.

Step 8: Preparing to Writing

Setting up a particular stage for starting an autobiography is crucial in ensuring students organize ideas used for writing. In this case, prudent writers take full advantage of this step to ensure they develop a clear outline that reveals a correct flow of significant ideas and concepts (Herda, 2021). As such, people should make necessary revisions to ensure their essays meet the required criteria. In turn, this step provides an opportunity to fill the possible knowledge gaps identified in an outline. Hence, adequate preparation leads to an actual writing stage, which makes preparing a final essay easier.  

Step 9: Writing

A particular writing process begins with creating a first draft of an autobiography essay. Basically, writers prepare an actual autobiography essay, which must include all the standard sections. In this case, a strategy’s primary goal is to ensure a person organizes all the ideas into a complete paper (Sanders, 2015). Moreover, such a procedure helps to identify all the opinions that enhance an essay’s overall flow. In particular, people should not mind spelling mistakes and other grammatical errors at this writing stage. Therefore, one needs to begin an actual writing process by preparing a first draft of an autobiographical essay. In turn, some examples of sentence starters for beginning an autobiography essay are:

• As I look back on my life, key threads of my experiences in [hometown] vividly weave together to tell a story of … .
• A particular journey of my life began in a small town of [hometown], where important lessons I learned from my family and community profoundly influenced my … .
• From a specific moment I took my first steps in [year], my life has been a series of adventures and challenges that have shaped who I am today because … .
• Reflecting on my childhood, one of the most critical memories that stand out is the time when [specific event], which taught me a real value of … .
• Born into a family that cherished [specific value], I was raised in an environment that nurtured my growth and instilled in me a deep appreciation for … .
• The early years of my life were marked by various events that, although challenging, ultimately taught me senses of resilience and determination needed to … .
• Growing up in [hometown], surrounded by [family or community], I learned at a young age a real importance of [specific lesson or value], which has continued to guide me through … .
• As a child, my dreams were filled with aspirations of becoming [specific goal], a vision that was fueled by positive encouragement and support of [important person or people] … .
• One of the most transformative experiences of my youth occurred when [specific event], a moment that forever changed my perspective on … .
• My life’s journey took an unexpected and pivotal turn when [specific event], an experience that challenged me in ways I could never have anticipated and ultimately led me to … .

Step 10: Consolidating Evidence

People should consolidate the evidence gathered earlier to prepare a good draft. For instance, one may consider using all the facts presented in an outline, while such selections should include necessary citations (Sanders, 2015). Moreover, one must use accurate and relevant supporting evidence throughout a body of an essay. In turn, combining all the facts and arguments to writing a first draft allows one to determine a good flow of ideas. Therefore, writers must consolidate all the points and pieces of evidence in their selections by following a well-organized outline.

Step 11: Revising Sources

A next step in an essay writing process involves revising obtained sources. For example, some sources may fail to provide strong evidence of arguments presented in a first draft (Sanders, 2015). In this case, people must consider reviewing such sources to ensure their papers contain compelling evidence. Then, prudent writers find new references to replace old ones that fail to suit readers’ needs. Besides, one should not use sources that exceed five years from a particular date of publication. In turn, recent sources contain valuable and up-to-date information relating to a specific topic. However, authors must consider only credible sources of evidence where necessary. Therefore, one should consider reviewing chosen sources and their relevance in supporting main arguments presented when writing an autobiographical essay.

Step 12: Altering an Outline

A next step in a writing process involves altering an outline of an autobiographical essay. For instance, writers read through their papers several times to ensure they meet assigned requirements (Sanders, 2015). In this case, they should alter outlines to capture changes made in first drafts. Basically, such a process may involve adding some points and eliminating those that appear irrelevant. Then, one must consider some of the essential factors that should include a logical flow and clarity of ideas presented ina first draft. In turn, revised outlines must ensure specific facts presented follow an order that excites an intended audience. Therefore, one should use a draft essay to review and modify a basic framework of an autobiography essay.

Step 13: Revising a Thesis

Prudent writers consider revising a working thesis of an autobiography essay. For instance, a working thesis must entail a summary of key facts presented in a provided piece (Herda, 2021). In most cases, scholars add essential ideas in body paragraphs when writing. Basically, a failure to revise a thesis statement makes an essay vague as a reader may fail to experience a good flow of ideas when reading through a complete document. In turn, people should read through a complete piece to grasp main concepts and revise a central argument to ensure its clarity. As such, one of the best strategies to rewrite a thesis statement is through peer reading. In this case, scholars can give a different person a draft essay to read and make constructive criticism, which can improve a central thesis statement. Therefore, people should revise central arguments to ensure they capture all the main ideas.

Step 14: Rechecking a Quality

People should take a writing stage seriously since this processe determines an overall quality of a complete essay. Basically, the most outstanding authors prepare more than one draft (Borg, 2021). In each step, they revise all the elements to enhance an overall quality of a final piece. Besides, scholars focus on a correct structure of paragraphs and sentences. Therefore, one must consider making several revisions to improve an overall quality of an autobiography essay.

Step 15: Wrapping It Up

A next step involves revising initial drafts to develop final essays. For example, students can consider changing compositions thoroughly to eliminate all possible flaws (Sanders, 2015). At this stage, one should focus on reducing grammatical errors and an overall clarity of sentences. In writing, outstanding essays have minimal spelling errors and wrong tenses. Therefore, one must concentrate on revising an autobiography essay to ensure such a paper meets a required perfection level.

Step 16: Editing

Authors must edit autobiographical essays to ensure they meet structural requirements. Basically, different colleges have varying needs when writing essays, and students must ensure their final papers meet all the set requirements (Sanders, 2015). Then, some elements one must consider include spacing, page margins, title page, numbering, and sources. Moreover, prudent authors access college writing requirements in advance and ensure their essays meet set criteria. Hence, the following are other factors that a scholar should consider when editing an autobiography essay.

• Topic sentence – Each paragraph must begin with a topic sentence that relates to a central thesis statement.
• Evidence – Each paragraph must contain relevant evidence to support a topic sentence. In writing, students should consider using real-life cases in each section. Besides, one must provide adequate explanations to ensure a target audience understands an intended meaning of a presented narrative.
• Concluding sentence – Each paragraph must end with a sentence that summarizes main points discussed. In practice, a last sentence contains a transition that links it to a next section.
• Peer-reviewing – Prudent scholars identify peers who can critique final drafts. In this case, writers must rely on feedback from several peers to make final revisions. However, one must determine if critiques remain relevant to a specific topic before making final adjustments.
• Reviewing a thesis statement – A central thesis statement must be a last item a person must revise. Basically, this writing strategy resembles a previous stage in preparing a first draft of an entire essay. In this case, one needs to ensure a main thesis statement remains clear and relates to all the body paragraphs.

Topic: About Me

I. Introduction

My name is Michael Jones, and I was born on the 28^th of July, 1995, in Long Beach, California. In particular, my parents were Eddie Jones and Juliet Jones. My mother passed on in 2015 at the age of 57 from lung cancer, which resulted from her regular smoking habits. My father passed on in 2018 at 60 from multiple organ failure caused by excessive smoking and alcohol consumption. Although I grew up in a family that used abused drugs heavily, I have managed to restrict myself from such unhealthy behaviors.

II. Body Paragraphs

A. Background Information

I was exposed to smoking and drinking at a young age in my family. Uncontrolled smoking and drinking forced my parents to divorce in 2015 when I was ten years of age. I opted to live with my mother since she was caring and less violent. My father remarried and lived with my stepmother until his death. My mother’s smoking habits intensified as she tried to cope with the stress caused by the divorce. I lived with her until the doctor diagnosed her with cancer, and she passed shortly after. Watching my mother’s suffering due to her terminal condition stressed me to an extent I considered engaging in drugs.

B. Describing an Issue

I experienced chronic levels of stress as I took care of my mother. In some instances, I felt taking hard drugs like cocaine was a suitable way of dealing with my challenges. However, I managed to contain a strong urge to take drugs. I felt I had a bright future that required me to take serious steps in my life. Through a particular intervention from a non-governmental organization, I managed to attend high school, where I passed my examinations well. Hence, developing a healthy self-control level enabled me to cope with a temptation of engaging in drugs.

III. Conclusion

In summary, I grew up in a family where smoking and drinking alcohol was a norm. My parents were alcohol and cigarette addicts. Their irresponsible behaviors with the drugs caused them to have chronic illnesses. As such, their actions caused me to develop constant levels of stress, which increased an urge to use drugs. However, I managed to control my feelings and focus on making my life better.