flowers, but donate money instead to the dead person's favourite charity. Details of survivors. The death of a person is felt most acutely by those nearest to him or her - the family the person lived with. Tell the readers that "she is survived by a widower, six children and 15 grandchildren", or "he is survived by a widow and three young children, who will be cared for by his brother Isaac". How this is worded will vary from one society to another, depending on the pattern of family relationships. You must decide what is suitable for your society, depending on who is most directly affected, emotionally and materially, by the person's death. That is the information which must be included in the obituary. However, what makes an obituary interesting is the detail of the person's life and achievements. Two obit formulas Every life is unique. However, there are two formulas which can be used to write a satisfactory obituary on anybody. Which of the two formulas you use will depend upon the importance of the person who has died. If the person is so well known that their death is worth a news story on page one, then the news of the death and the appreciation of their life will need to be written separately. That is Formula A. If the person is not that well known, but has made a sufficient contribution to society to deserve an obit, then the news of the death and the appreciation of