A new Web site has launched in beta which offers free space (currently up to 10MB) for writing your own autobiography, posting photos and videos, and even a section for "Last Words" to be posted only upon confirmation of your passing. You can create biographies for your ancestors too, and biographies can be connected to form a family tree. Chapters in each biography can be public or private, and include sections for family, growing up, work, life and friends, hobbies, health, romance, education, travel and adventures, recipes, entertainment and holidays. You can also create your own chapter topics, and add sub-topics as well. There's even space to start your own blog!

WebBiographies.com is the brainchild of Scott Purcell, who grew up thinking he wanted to be famous, but finally realized he just wanted to "be remembered." The first 10MB of space are free - enough to accommodate "your average novel." If you plan to add a lot of photos or videos, you can upgrade to 100MB for $24.99 a year or 2 gigabytes for $84.99 annually. Scott Purcell's own autobiography is very large, with over 700 photos, pages of text, and some video - over 400MB worth! It's a good example of the flexibility of this Web site. Some entries are open to the public, while certain sub-chapters within a chapter may be password protected to family members or invited guests only due to the sensitivity of the information or private details that really don't need to be open to everyone.

In the "Last Words" section at Web Biographies you can write a final chapter, to be posted only upon confirmation of your passing - such as when a family member sends in a newspaper copy of your obituary. You can also choose to have password-protected sections of your biography opened to the public after your death. "Essentially, you can write your own epitaph," says Purcell.

History has to start somewhere, so why not start with yourself? In addition to WebBiographies.com, there are also other online options geared toward helping you write your autobiography or life story. It's not only a great way to leave your own legacy, but also to collect stories from far-flung family members for a family reunion or family history book.