I show the difference between speculating and concluding when writing a biography, and make the case that both are necessary. Much depends on the quality and volume of the evidence.

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Victoria Glendinning, Jonathan Swift: A Portrait (New York: Henry Holt, 1999)

I talk about the definition of biography (what a biography is and what it isn't); briefly mention the origin of biography as a form of writing; and provide examples of the variety of biography, using three biographical works I have written.

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> Matt Balaker and Wayne Jones, Greg Giraldo: A Comedian's Story (Laguna Beach: Starkbill Publishing, 2019)

> Nigel Hamilton and Hans Renders, The ABC of Modern Biography (Amsterdam: Amsterdam University Press, 2018)

> Wayne Jones, Less and Less: Personal Minimalism (Ottawa: William & Park, 2013, republished 2023)

> Wayne Jones, My Sam Johnson: A Biography for General Readers (Ottawa: William & Park, 2023)