Autobiography Writing

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I'm a creative writing double major at my university, and the last class I'm taking is Autobiography writing. I think this is going to be a GREAT class to take since it's going to make me think about all these moments in my life and all that, but what track should I take?? There's so much that happens in one person's life, even though I'm just 22, I feel like I've been through so much, emotionally at least, that many people have not, so there's a LOT to say there, but where should I begin??

If you had to write your own autobiography, what tracks would you chose to follow?? Just need some ideas! Thanks in advance! <3

     I think I would just start at the beginning, with my earliest memories, then work forwards chronologically, and write down every single thing I could remember, plus whatever other thoughts or reflections those brought to mind. Depending on how detailed I wanted it to be, I might then winnow out things that really are rather dull or insignificant. I might preface that with a brief account of my father's and mother's family history, although I'm not big on family genealogy and history in generally, so it would just be enough to set the scene for my own life. I would divide the work into large sections relating to broad periods of my life, then into shorter chapters dealing with smaller issues or incidents.

     But this is a question that interests me a lot and to which I've given a lot of thought over many years, because I have felt an impulse to write my own autobiography, and even wrote the first few chapters of it maybe 20 years ago.
     But I can't quite get rid of the idea that is egotistical, narcissistic indulgence of the most distasteful kind (I can hear blunt reactions: "Really - of all the things! Just how important do you think you are to do this? How full of yourself are you to write a whole book about your own unremarkable life?"), and I think this inhibits me from getting involved in it.
     I might add that this was never conceived of for publication, or even showing to other people (except maybe to a very few people I deeply trusted and was close to and who were interested), but for my own self-therapy. I have almost no friends, and live an almost hermit-like life; but I have lots of things I somehow long to share with someone else and discuss with them, but have no-one to do this with, and feel that, even if I did have someone, it would come across as hopelessly self-indulgent reflection. So an alternative might be to just write it all out myself. I am quite sure that, if I did this, it would be many hundreds of pages long.

     I would be interested to hear anyone else's thoughts on this. Is autobiography writing (for someone not famous) perhaps seen as more acceptable in a community such as this than I think it would be in the world at large?
     Sorry if I haven't offered many ideas, PrincessMR1899 - but this triggered a matter that is of considerable interest to myself.

Regards, Michael.

NO!! LOL I'm happy you actually responded! I think it's really all I've lived through, and done, and felt emotionally, that led me to taking this course. I love writing, and writing about my emotions is like a therapy for me.

I might not be famous (yet) BUT I am quite sure that I have an interesting life to tell about. I know it would be interesting and relateable to a lot of people.

I don't think it's narcissistic at all, even though my mother says it is, I think it's just getting everything out of my mind and soul, and writing it down on paper, to remember it forever, but to get it out of my system too, so to speak.

My own autobiography would really depend a lot on the time I started writting it. I believe I would really write different stories according to the way I was feeling, and , consequentely, the subjects I would believe were important in my story.

My own autobiography would really depend a lot on the time I started writting it. I believe I would really write different stories according to the way I was feeling, and , consequentely, the subjects I would believe were important in my story.