What is the difference between an autobiography and a memoir? Although they can be used interchangeably and often are, in the world of publishing there are clear distinctions between the two. The easiest way to think about is this: autobiographies cover the author's entire life, while memoirs deal with a particular aspect of his or her life.
Presidential Memoirs Focus on Time in Office
That's why former presidents write their memoirs, because—although they may deal briefly with their early lives—the book will be primarily about their time in office, that period with which readers have a context. Memoirs are the outlet for specific subject matter. A business mogul's memoir will deal with how she made it to the top. A baseball player's memoir will discuss coming up through the minors.
Another popular memoir subject is dealing with a crisis or near-death experience. Michael Greenberg's superb Hurry Down Sunshine, about his daughter's onset of bipolar disease and how it affected the family is a good example. So is Patricia Hampl's The Florist's Daughter, as it deals mostly with her St. Paul upbringing and parents.
Memoirs are often, but certainly not always, written by lesser or unknown people, because it is the subject matter that is the focus of the text. Few readers would be interested in your next door neighbor's life story (his autobiography). But if that same guy had survived a mountaintop plane crash in Tibet and walked 180 miles to civilization on a broken leg dragging along another passenger, his memoir would likely be of interest.
Autobiographies Are Truly Life Stories, Usually of the Famous
Autobiographies, on the other hand, are almost exclusively the domain of the famous or well-known. Because they are generally a chronological telling of the author's life from birth through every phase of his or her life, the autobiographer generally must be well-known enough for their to be a large following among the reading public.
An autobiography is truly a "life story." Movie stars, political leaders, artists, and those famous folks who've lived a major portion of their lives write them. The Autobiography of Mark Twain, a massive tome that is practically a history of 19th America is a classic autobiography. So are The Autobiography of Malcolm X and Narrative of the Life of Frederick Douglass (An American Slave, Written by Himself).
By nature, then, memoirs are more focused (yet can be more freeform within that focus), while autobiographies follow a stricter, chronological form. Those considering writing their own life story best keep this in mind: either go out and star in an Oscar-winning film (or become a U.S. Senator), or live through something absolutely stupendous, and take notes while doing so.
Dale Van Every - Dale Van Every is a freelance and fiction writer living in Minneapolis, Minnesota. He earned his Masters Degree in English Literature from ...
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