Understanding the proper obituary notice format

There are many ways to approach writing an obituary notice. Here's a guide to help you create any of these obituary formats for your loved ones.

Some people prefer to write their own obituary and include it with their final wishes as a subsection of their last will and testament, while another common obituary notice format is to create a personal farewell to a friend or loved one that has passed on. The third category of obituary notice format is the fun goodbye to a past friend. Here's a guide to help you create any of these styles of obituaries for your loved ones.

Who knows you better than yourself? When you're thinking about your own demise and preparing other documents for the end of your life, why not write your obituary as well? This format is a way to reflect on your life and share some wisdom after your death. The specific details like dates, times and locations can all be added after you have passed. However, the substantial content of your obituary notice can be written in advance and included with your will and other end of life documents.

The most common obituary is a simple personal farewell to a friend or loved one that has passed. This notice covers the basics like name, date of birth, date of death, family member names and funeral arrangements. A personal farewell such as this focuses on the pertinent details of a person's life that need to be shared with the community when they have died. Those that know them will share stories at their wake and funeral, so this obituary notice format is strictly for sharing the most basic details in a serious and direct way.

While death is obviously a serious matter, many people prefer to write an obituary that focuses on the fun times from a person's life. These obituaries can be happy and even funny expressions of the life of a friend or family member. Take some time to think about the memories and share some stories of their life. This type of notice should cover the important details such as name, date of birth, date of death and time and location of the funeral. However, it can also tell a story that will help people understand the deceased as a person and gain insight into how they lived their lives.