Writing the Author Bio, Part One
By Samuel Thomas Nichols, Inland Empire Branch
Authors are frequently asked to submit a short bio to be included with publication or for use in promotion. However, the operative word “short” is often overlooked or ignored and, what is submitted could be likened more to a resume or a curriculum vitae. This is generally a turnoff to the requester of the bio, who made a specific request, and can often lead to the author’s submission being rejected for no other reason.
We all have a myriad of accomplishments that we take pride in and, of course, there are places to tout those accomplishments. The author bio is not one of those places and, if not, what the heck is an author bio anyway?
An author bio is a snippet, a brief message, that, much like a jingle, should seek to grip the reader’s attention and provide a quotable and memorable takeaway. This should also be accomplished within a single paragraph and that single paragraph should aim for about three sentences.
The writing of your author bio must always be in the third person – even though you are the one writing it. Never use personal pronouns like “I” but always refer to yourself by name. Take, for example, Melinda Spencer’s Amazon author bio (60 words over four sentences):
“ML Spencer lives in Southern California with her three children and two cats. She has been obsessed with fantasy ever since the days of childhood bedtime stories. She grew up reading and writing fantasy fiction, playing MMORPG games, and living, as mom put it, ‘in her own worlds.’ ML now spends each day working to bring those worlds into reality.”
Most publications will request an author bio of less than 300 words and often closer to the 100-to-150-word range. I have seen publications limit the bio to somewhere between 50 and 75 words. You might think this a stretch but take a look at Cati Porter’s Amazon author bio that strings 51 words over two sentences:
“Cati Porter is the author of three books and seven chapbooks, most recently The Body at a Loss (CavanKerry Press, 2019) and Novel (Bamboo Dart Press, 2022). She lives in Inland Southern California with her family where she runs Poemeleon: A Journal of Poetry and directs Inlandia Institute, a literary nonprofit.”
Your author bio should also reflect what your writing is about or you will disappoint your reader, who might actually feel hoodwinked. Look back at Melinda’s bio and you will find it clear that she not only writes fantasy fiction but is fascinated by it. Likewise, Cati is clearly into poetry and although the title Novel might cause a momentary pause, it too is a book of poetry from a publisher that specializes in such. Also, consider the Amazon author bio of Ben Alirez. Although a bit longer it stills weighs in at less than 100 words and even though the images invoked by his titles are genre suggestive they are tempered by his clarifying declaration of hope and promise.
“Ben Alirez is retired after working more than 30 years with the City of Los Angeles, much of it writing correspondence, policies, procedures, and report writing. In 2004, he co-authored a young adult paperback with Paul Langan entitled “Brothers in Arms.” Four years later, he produced “El Gato’s Revenge,” a novel about a promising inner-city boxer struggling with tragedy and vengeance. Ben has now dedicated himself to writing encouraging stories of hope and promise, including ‘Embers of Innocence’ on the COVID-19 pandemic, and a continuation of ‘El Gato’s Revenge.’”
More invaluable advice will follow
In next month’s socalwritersshowase.com.
The entire essay appears on the CWC Inland Empire website.