nonfiction · writing guide

Biography

Build an evidence-grounded interpretation of a life, its context, choices, and consequences.

For: Readers seeking trustworthy access to a person and the forces surrounding that life.

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Reader expectations

  • Claims trace to sources
  • Context explains without overwhelming
  • Contradictory evidence remains visible
  • The biographer's access and limits are clear

Common weak points

  • Invented interiority presented as fact
  • Chronology without argument
  • Source dependence hidden from readers

Subgenre shelf

  • Narrative biography
  • Intellectual biography
  • Political
  • Group biography
  • Microhistory
  • Authorized
  • Critical

Voice palette

authoritative · evidence-aware · narrative

Original style example

The archive preserves eleven drafts of her resignation and no evidence that she sent any of them. The twelfth version exists only in the minister's reply.Original illustrative sample: evidence gap becomes narrative and interpretive question. This demonstrates craft characteristics, not a living author’s voice.

Editable starting structure

  1. 1. The consequential momentMove the reader through the consequential moment with a clear change, question, or discovery.2,200 starting words
  2. 2. Origins and inheritanceMove the reader through origins and inheritance with a clear change, question, or discovery.3,200 starting words
  3. 3. FormationMove the reader through formation with a clear change, question, or discovery.3,200 starting words
  4. 4. Public ascentMove the reader through public ascent with a clear change, question, or discovery.3,200 starting words
  5. 5. Conflict and contradictionMove the reader through conflict and contradiction with a clear change, question, or discovery.3,200 starting words
  6. 6. Legacy under examinationMove the reader through legacy under examination with a clear change, question, or discovery.3,200 starting words

Questions before drafting

  • What is the book's argument about this life?
  • Which archive controls the story?
  • Where do witnesses disagree?

Publishing and metadata

  • Identify authorized status accurately
  • List archival and image permissions
  • Use biography subjects separate from fiction

Confirm current BISAC/Thema codes when publication metadata is finalized; genre language and retailer classifications change.