How to Write a Biography Without Plagiarism

Take care to reference sources to avoid plagiarism when writing a biography.

Writing a biography is a challenging task, but can also be a fun and rewarding way to learn about the life of an important person. Because the subject of your biography will likely be someone who is already famous and with a variety of published works by or about him, a fear of plagiarism is understandable. However, by finding your own unique angle and choosing the right sources for references, you can write a good biography free of plagiarism.

Instructions

1. Use an encyclopedia or official website to learn the basics about the person you are writing about. Brainstorm a list of questions you would like to ask this person in order to get to know him better. These questions do not need to go in your biography, so feel free to think outside the box and come up with a few different angles.

2. Go to the library and find as many printed materials about your subject as possible. Avoid other biographies if at all possible, as that is what you are trying to write and you may unknowingly plagiarize. Choose other sources such as anything written by your subject himself (like an article or a journal), old newspaper articles or letters about him, or books that study a specific time in his life or accomplishment.

3. Create a page with your subject's basic information, including his full name, dates of birth and death, family, job(s), country of origin, and any major accomplishments for which he is known.

4. Read through your sources and take notes on what you find interesting. Keep your brainstorm from Step 1 handy so you can look for answers to any of the questions you had about your subject. Try to find something specific about your subject's life to focus on as a theme. If you write a birth-to-death biography with all general information, you will run a greater risk of plagiarizing another work. For example, there are many biographies on the life and presidency of Abraham Lincoln. However, your biography could focus on Lincoln's love of studying machines and gadgets, and relate that interest to other more well-known events in Lincoln's life.

5. Write a basic outline for your biography, including an introduction in which you state what your theme is (your particular angle of studying the subject), several paragraphs in the body, each marking a chronological point in the subject's life, and a conclusion. As you outline, take note each time you reference one of your resources, and take a note that you used that resource for your bibliography to avoid plagiarism.

6. Use the outline as a guide to write your biography. Each time you quote or paraphrase a fact you learned from another source, include an in-text citation, which is typically the last name of the author of the source and the page number. Even if you paraphrase, you must give credit to the source to avoid plagiarism. Include each reference in your bibliography.

References

• infoplease: How to Write a Biography

Resources

• Read this Article in Spanish
• Bellingham Public Schools: The Biography Maker