Publishing Memoirs, Biographies

[barry1010]

I really don't understand what drives a person to publish their memoirs and biographies, exposing themselves to the world.
I enjoy travelogues and reading about a person's adventures such as climbing Everest or reaching the North Pole but I don't need to know about their private lives and innermost thoughts.
I can understand keeping journals, diaries, writing down problems, thoughts and experiences but not publishing them.
Maybe it is my desire and need for privacy that is out of step with the rest of the world.

Suzie Fletcher has recently published her memoirs. I admire her skills on The Repair Shop and she seems to be a lovely lady but why she needs to tell the world that she was abused and lived in fear of her now dead husband is beyond me.

Would you publish your autobiography? Do you enjoy this sort of book?

[naomi24]

No. I value my privacy and guard it - but some people, I think, just like talking about themselves and perhaps imagine that others are as interested in their lives as they are. I've read
autobiographies of people who interest me, but I wouldn't read this one. I've never heard of her.

[Old_Geezer]

Money.

Don't tend to read biographies,an exception being when I was much younger and a friend suggested I should read Spike Milligan's series of them, which I confess, I did enjoy.

[barry1010]

My life has been far too ordinary to warrant a biography and I think only a saint could publish an honest memoir that didn't upset a few people. That's another angle I very much dislike - you are not only telling the world about yourself, as you have every right to do, but also telling them about other people who may want their privacy.

[Old_Geezer]

In some cases it may be cathartic for the writer.

[barry1010]

I suspect you are right in the majority of cases, OG.

[barry1010]

It doesn't need to be published to be cathartic, though. I expect there are a few fallings out following revelations.

[237SJ]

I really enjoy autobiographies. I don't find many of them that introspective - the author is talking about their life and the time that they were brought up in. I`m reading Annie Nightingale's book at the moment and she hardly mentions herself at all. Each chapter is dedicated to someone she met. Before that I read David Essex (I liked him when I was a kid) and previous to that I have been reading a fascinating book about a woman who was brought up in a harem in Iran and lived through the revolution. I`m not a fan of fiction - I can't help thinking it is all just a figment of someone's imagination.

[barry1010]

I thinks some biographies are works of fiction, too :D
Which book by Nightingale are you reading, SJ?

[Ken4155]

I love reading autobiographies of those who i admire/love to bits.

As regards your last comment Barry, Ozzie Osborne begins his autobiography by saying, "This is my story as i remember it." Given his proclivity for hard drugs, some of what he writes may well be fiction. Brilliant book, though:-)

[237SJ]

It's Hey Hi Hello. I particularly like autobiogs from the music industry. Peter Frampton next.

[Ellipsis]

People are different. Some people like to read biographies, some don't. Likewise some people like to write them, some don't. It's all part of life's rich tapestry ...

[-SharonA-]

I love reading biographies. My fave author for this genre is Kitty Kelley.

[pastafreak]

I'm not particularly attracted to biographies or autobiographies. I only would if it was someone who is or will be recognised historically...someone who has made important contributions or achievements in a subject of interest to me.
I have no interest in show business or gossip biographies, and I don't understand the purpose of those written by or about someone who's not even 50 years old.