the act or process of creating your own identity (= the person you are and the qualities you have), or the person that is the result of this

At 19 she took on a new, Canadian persona and discovered the trick of self-creation. 19岁时她发现了塑造自我的秘诀，给自己新打造了一个加拿大人的形象。

Autobiography implies a self-creation as well as self-criticism on the part of the author. 自传既意味着作者的自我创造，也意味着自我批评。