As an adult educator and a technical and fiction writer/editor,
I have helped hundreds of students and clients polish their resumes. My mantra has always been, “You have to blow your own
horn, because no one else will.” This
advice is applies to writing a Bio as well, but it can be intimidating no
matter where we are in our professional life.
Since a Bio is shorter than a resume, it is a piece of cake
to write, correct? Not necessarily so. A
Bio is a crucial aspect of an author’s branding strategy. We need to highlight our writing accruements
in a tasteful and professional manner without appearing to be full of ourselves.
There is a lively discussion on this subject on Jane
Friedman’s web site: www.writerunboxed.com. I have reiterated some of the points and
added a few of my own below.
1. Before
you begin, examine other author Bios in your genre of writing.
2. Write
your Bio in third person.
3. The
art of Bio writing is compression, not more adjectives and adverbs. Think in
terms of your marketing persona not your writing persona.
4. Craft
a generic Bio with your:
a. Story
(current activities, where you reside);
b. Backstory
(previous activities);
c. Applicable
external validations (writing or publishing credits, formal education or
training, awards, writing organizations you belong to; volunteer interests);
d. Since
your author Bio is essentially your business card, provide your contact
information, e.g., your web and/or blog and e-mail address.
5. Review
and revise your draft Bio to post on your web site or blog. In this longer Bio (e.g. 150 words or more),
you may wish to include a comment of a personal nature that readers may
identify with. Some authors cleverly inject a humorous comment into their list
of credits.
6. For
Bios to use on other social media sites or to accompany query letters to
publishers or agents, pare down your generic version (e.g. to 50 – 100 words). Don’t be shy about varying the content on
each of your shorter versions to appeal to your target audience.
7. Seek
feedback on your draft Bio from other authors or an editor and ensure it is
grammatically correct before posting it.
Finally, take a deep breath and have fun with this
task. If deep breathing doesn’t help,
have a glass of wine then try again.
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