Determine the audience for your life story. If you're writing it for yourself as a personal reflection or plan to give it as a gift to immediate family members and friends, the formatting, organization and overall presentation are less important than if you plan to pursue formal publication. Some of your options for an informal memoir include a handwritten journal, a loose-leaf binder of favorite memories, an audio recording or a CD including photographs and music that hold special meaning.
Make a list of all of the memories you can think of that relate to the following subject areas: growing up as a child, favorite holidays and traditions, different places you've lived and traveled, best/worst subjects in school, first romance, first job, life-changing challenges. As you reflect on the past through these starter categories, other topics will occur to you. You might find it helpful to jot down notes on separate index cards for each topic or create file folders you can add to as you go along.
Fill out self-assessment quizzes and introspective writing exercises. In addition to personality tests you can find in consumer magazines and on the Internet, books such as Barbara Ann Kipfer's "4,000 Questions For Getting To Know Anyone and Everyone", Margaret Tiberio's "The Book of Self-Acquaintance" and Dr. Gregory Stock's "The Book of Questions" will get you thinking about what really makes you tick.
Recruit a friend to interview you as if it were for a newspaper story. Request that she not show you the questions beforehand so that the entire thing will be spontaneous. Tape the session to help jog your memory later when you start to assemble your content.
Ask family members and friends who have known you for a long time to help fill in the blanks about your early years. Study album photographs and ask questions if you're not sure who some of the people are or where the pictures were taken.
Create a working outline before you start writing your autobiography. Life stories are usually written chronologically, starting with the individual's birth and ending in the present day. As you assemble your memoir notes, however, you may decide that it would be more practical to break your chapters into distinct themes such as family values, hopes and dreams, fears and disappointments, favorite mentors, etc.