Autobiographical Incident

“Auto” – indicates “self”. “Bio” - indicates “life”. “Graph” - indicates “write”. You are writing about your life.

An incident is an event that happens in a short period of time. For this type of writing, I will ask you to focus the body of your writing on something that happened on one particular day.

Many of the events that happen in our lives unfold over a period of time. You will be able to write a little about things that led up to the actual day, or incident, in your background BEFORE you tell what happened on “the day”.

One of the things that makes this writing type so powerful is that after you narrate your story, you get to express why it was significant or important to you. That is called “personal significance”.

When choosing a memory to write about, try to remember something that might have:  taught you an important lesson  made you a better person  gave you a new perspective  was “life changing” in some way

This narrative-type essay has three basic parts:  Introduction (Background)  Body (The Incident Itself)  Conclusion (Your Reflection on the Personal Significance of the Incident)

Because this is a narrative piece of writing where you tell your story, it is not necessarily a “five paragraph essay”. It will probably take a little longer than five paragraphs because the body, or “story”, part will be a series of many paragraphs.

This first paragraph captures the reader’s interest by introducing other events that led up to “the day” of the incident. We call that background. Background brings the reader up to the day the incident took place, but the background doesn’t “tell the story”.

Background should include:  a lead (first sentence that “grabs” the reader.  Important people, settings, situations, or conflicts that have led to this incident. This paragraph does not start “the day” of the incident. It only brings the reader up to that day.

“La la la, doo be doo be doo...When I was a baby, my mom tells me, I sang before I could talk. If there was a song on the radio or on T.V., I could repeat it from memory almost instantly. As a toddler, I sang when I was bored, I hummed while chewing my food, and I even crooned myself to sleep. Why was it, then, that when I started school, I suddenly was afraid to sing in front of people? What unforeseen forces were at work, strangling this innate talent out of me?”

 This part of the narrative essay is where to relate the story to the reader using many writing elements.  It should reflect plot structure with setting, characterization, rising action, climax, falling action, and resolution.

Include all of the following in the body of your narrative essay:  focus on a single incident. (ONE day)  use sensory details to describe people, places, times, etc.  use pacing to build suspense  sequence events logically.

Include these as well:  use dialogue to show what others said during the incident.  show your inner thoughts and feelings as the incident unfolds.  provide an end that is well- integrated and makes sense.

To write the conclusion, you need to separate yourself from “the story”. The incident was the “then”. Put yourself in the “now”. Now look at it from today’s perspective instead of how you looked at it while it was happening to you.

In the last paragraph, you need to express, in present tense, how you feel or think TODAY about the incident, showing how it:  taught you an important lesson  made you a better person  gave you a new perspective  was “life changing” in some way

“When I look back on that day, I now realize that being brave doesn’t mean I’m not going to also be scared sometimes. It just means I need to not let the fear control me. I can sing in front of people, and even if my voice cracks or I forget the words, I’m not giving up on my dream. I am going to keep sharing my talent and gift with the world. I’m also not going to let others define who I am or keep me from doing what I’m born to do. I thank Monica for teaching me that. So, bring on the music! I’m ready for my cue...”

Just like with any writing, you must remember to proofread for:  spelling  grammar (does it sound right?)  punctuation and capitalization  paragraphing form (indent with  each new paragraph, especially when using dialogue!)

 First, decide what “the day” of your incident is. When did “that day” happen? Anything before that day is background.  If you started a quickwrite already, reread it and decide which parts to use for the background, the body, and the conclusion.

Divide your prewriting paper into thirds. Write down BRIEF notes to plan what will go into each part:  Intro/Background  Body/Story/Incident/”The Day”  Reflection/Personal Significance

 Once you have a general plan, you’re ready to write.  Remember that all good writers are open to revision as they go, so stop often to read your work and make changes. At this point, neatness doesn’t count! Cross out and revise as needed!