What is a biography?

A  biography is a life story. A life story is not just a collection of facts.
A good biography is interesting. An interesting biography is one that brings our loved ones back to life.

Before writing a biography, one should collect all the facts and the information possible about the person to be commemorated. Only then, facts, dates and accomplishments, can be written into an interesting life story.

The Jewish Memorial Center’s ‘Biography Kit’, enclosed, will help you with the information needed writing a biography or to create a Memorial.
 

Writing an interesting biography starts by asking questions.

Questions may be:

What were the person’s qualities?
Was the life remarkable?
Was the life admirable?
Was there somebody special who shaped the person’s life?
Did the person shape or influence others lives?
What were the person’s accomplishments?

A creator of a biography should talk to people that knew the person to be commemorated. Their tales, together with relevant documents, sound recordings, film, videotapes and photo albums, may be interesting and useful.
 

Who should write the biography?

Every one that knew the person to be commemorated can write the biography. Several people may also write biographies: family members, friends and acquaintances, can all take part in writing the biography.
Since biographies are not just a collection of facts, they can also contain personal stories, memories, thoughts, testimonials of friends, relatives and acquaintances, eulogies, funeral orations, quotations of the beloved one, and all this can be combined with photographs, graphics, documents, images or artworks.
 

Suggestion

View the biographies and memorials on this web site, and get an idea of the type of information and the content that may appear in any biography or memorial you wish to create.