What are the standards for a famous Bio?
Famous memorial submissions come from members all over the world in many different languages. Before submitting a Famous Biography to Find a Grave, review the following items which describe the style and standards we strive to achieve for every entry. We also suggest using a grammar and spell check tool to catch anything that may have been missed before submission.
Style:
Famous Biographies on Find a Grave should be written in the style of Encyclopedia biographies, using past tense and convey information about the subject in an organized, neutral and professional way.
Original work:
Biographies are required to be entirely a submitter's ORIGINAL work. Snippets of other works can be used in the body of the bio but must be properly credited and cannot be the entire bio OR a large part of it, with the exception of quoted Medal of Honor citations. Newspaper obituaries are not accepted on Famous memorials.
Category Header:
All bios should start out with a simple category header identifying what the person is notable for. It can be Actor, Actress, Blues Musician, Businessman, etc. Multiple identifiers are permitted - US Congressman, US Senator, etc. Except for politicians or world leaders, the nationality of the person is not necessary in the header; i.e., use 'Artist' rather than 'French Artist.' (The nationality or nation of origin should be in the text of the biography) Words like Well-known, Acclaimed, Famous, etc. should not be used in the category header. (They can be used in the description following the category header, i.e. "Blues Musician. She was a well-known singer and dancer...", etc.)
Genealogical data:
Genealogical information about the subject should not be included in a Famous bio, UNLESS the subject is related to someone who is famous. To add family links, click on Suggest Edits and update the fields. Then Save Changes.
Content:
The content of the biography should be focused on the life of the memorialized individual. We’d love to learn more about what the person accomplished or created, the path they took or how it was accomplished, why their work was significant, and what lasting legacy or impact we see today. You may add information about other aspects of their life as well. To protect the privacy of the living, please do not list survivors.
Excessive use of the subject's name in the bio is not necessary. When referring to the individual use the appropriate pronoun. The subject's name will be featured prominently at the top of the memorial.
Famous entries are to be listed under the name by which the person became well-known. For example, Archibald Leach is listed under his well-known name Cary Grant.
Capitalization:
Capitalize the first word in a sentence, proper nouns, titles, locations, periods, and acronyms. Follow standard capitalization rules that are customary for your submitted language.
Acronyms:
Only use an acronym when it is more common than the whole phrase, that it stands for i.e. USS, NASCAR, WWF, etc.
Cities & Countries:
Do not use abbreviations for cities, states, countries, etc. Use New York instead of NY. England instead of Eng.
Dates:
When using dates within the biography, make them standard date sequences, i.e., 'May 2, 1935' rather than the military date sequence, '2 May 1935.'
Date suffixes should not be included. Write "May 2, 1935" rather than "May 2nd, 1935."
Dates of wars are not necessary in bios. Write "He fought in the American Civil War" rather than "He fought in the American Civil War (1861-1865)." When describing a time span, write it out rather than using a dash. i.e "He was president from 1876 to 1884" rather than "He was president 1876-1884."
Personal information:
Personal opinions from the author of the bio are expressly discouraged. You should say, "He was considered by many to be the greatest Flugelhorn player of all time..." rather than saying "He was the greatest Flugelhorn player of all time..." The first can be considered a testable fact; the second is a subjective opinion. Saying things like "The world is a better place because of her accomplishments" or "Good riddance to him because of the pain he caused" are both subjective opinions as well and are discouraged.
Do not include any personal messages from you, the author, to the readers of the bio. Never write things like "It took a long time, but I found his grave. E-mail me with questions."
If a cause of death is included, it should be short and to the point, such as shown on a death certificate.
Links:
Links to other websites or email addresses are not allowed within a biography. Lines like "More information can be found at www.eatatjoes.com..." will not be accepted.
Links to cenotaphs or other burial locations for the same individual should be placed at the bottom of the biography. Learn more about how to Create or Send a Hyperlink.
Formatting and Punctuation:
Use single spacing between sentences and double spacing between paragraphs. Multiple paragraphs are allowed.
Please write out the word 'and' instead of using an '&.'
Periods and commas are placed inside quotation marks. Keep this in mind when referencing titles of works by famous people. Example: He is best known for the film "Citizen Kane."
Dates or references to centuries or decades should not contain an apostrophe as they are not possessive. Write 1980s rather than 1980's.
These guidelines will be added to and updated from time to time. Find a Grave reserves the right to edit any biography submitted to the site to conform to these and any future posted standards.
Learn more at Famous Help Questions