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Writing Your Author Bio? Here Are 20 Great Examples. (Plus a Checklist!)

October 15, 2020 by Diana Urban

Writing your author bio can be a daunting task, but a well-crafted bio can help readers learn more about what makes you and your books so interesting. You should regularly maintain your bio on places like your BookBub Author Profile so fans and potential readers seeking you out can learn more about you and why they should pick up your latest book.

Stuck on what to include? While there is no one-size-fits-all formula, here are some examples of author bios we love so you can get some inspiration when crafting your own bio. We’ve also created an Author Biography Checklist with recommendations on what to include, as well as where to keep your author bio up to date online.

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1. Ramona Emerson

Ramona Emerson is a Diné writer and filmmaker originally from Tohatchi, New Mexico. She has a bachelor’s in Media Arts from the University of New Mexico and an MFA in Creative Writing from the Institute of American Indian Arts. After starting in forensic videography, she embarked upon a career as a photographer, writer, and editor. She is an Emmy nominee, a Sundance Native Lab Fellow, a Time-Warner Storyteller Fellow, a Tribeca All-Access Grantee and a WGBH Producer Fellow. In 2020, Emerson was appointed to the Governor’s Council on Film and Media Industries for the State of New Mexico. She currently resides in Albuquerque, New Mexico, where she and her husband, the producer Kelly Byars, run their production company Reel Indian Pictures. Shutter is her first novel.

Why we love it: Ramona makes a splash as a new author by detailing her extensive experience in both writing and filmmaking. Her background makes an effective setup for her debut novel about a forensic photographer.

2. Courtney Milan

Courtney Milan writes books about carriages, corsets, and smartwatches. Her books have received starred reviews in Publishers Weekly , Library Journal , and Booklist . She is a New York Times and a USA Today Bestseller. Courtney pens a weekly newsletter about tea, books, and basically anything and everything else. Sign up for it here: https://bit.ly/CourtneysTea Before she started writing romance, Courtney got a graduate degree in theoretical physical chemistry from UC Berkeley. After that, just to shake things up, she went to law school at the University of Michigan and graduated summa cum laude. Then she did a handful of clerkships. She was a law professor for a while. She now writes full-time. Courtney is represented by Kristin Nelson of the Nelson Literary Agency.

Why we love it: Courtney concisely leads with her accolades and bestseller status before diving into more personal information with a witty tone. She also includes a call-to-action for readers to sign up to Weekly Tea, one of her mailing lists.

3. Adam Silvera

Adam Silvera is the number one New York Times bestselling author of More Happy Than Not , History Is All You Left Me , They Both Die at the End , Infinity Son , Infinity Reaper , and—with Becky Albertalli— What If It’s Us . He was named a Publishers Weekly Flying Start for his debut. Adam was born and raised in the Bronx. He was a bookseller before shifting to children’s publishing and has worked at a literary development company and a creative writing website for teens and as a book reviewer of children’s and young adult novels. He is tall for no reason and lives in Los Angeles. Visit him online at www.adamsilvera.com .

Why we love it: Adam begins his bio with his bestseller accolades and a list of his popular titles. But we especially love how he also includes his previous experience in children’s literature. It’s a fantastic way an author can craft a unique and credible bio using information besides accolades or bestseller status.

4. Farrah Rochon

USA Today Bestselling author Farrah Rochon hails from a small town just west of New Orleans. She has garnered much acclaim for her Crescent City-set Holmes Brothers series and her Moments in Maplesville small town series. Farrah is a two-time finalist for the prestigious RITA Award from the Romance Writers of America and has been nominated for an RT BOOKReviews Reviewers Choice Award. In 2015, she received the Emma Award for Author of the Year. When she is not writing in her favorite coffee shop, Farrah spends most of her time reading, cooking, traveling the world, visiting Walt Disney World, and catching her favorite Broadway shows. An admitted sports fanatic, she feeds her addiction to football by watching New Orleans Saints games on Sunday afternoons. Keep in touch with Farrah via the web: Website: https://www.farrahrochon.com/ Facebook: http://www.facebook.com/farrahrochonauthor Twitter: http://www.twitter.com/FarrahRochon Instagram: https://instagram.com/farrahrochon/ Newsletter: http://bit.ly/2povjuZ Join my online Fan Club, the Rochonettes! https://www.facebook.com/groups/FarrahRochon/ Farrah’s Books In Order: The Holmes Brothers Deliver Me (Mar. 2007) Release Me (May 2008) Rescue Me (Jan. 2009) Chase Me (Jan. 2017) Trust Me (May 2017) Awaken Me (Jan. 2018) Cherish Me (Jun. 2018) Return To Me (Aug. 2019) New York Sabers Huddle With Me Tonight (Sept. 2010) I’ll Catch You (Mar. 2011) Field of Pleasure (Sept. 2011) Pleasure Rush (Mar. 2012) Bayou Dreams A Forever Kind of Love (Aug. 2012) Always and Forever (Jan. 2013) Yours Forever (Mar. 2014) Forever’s Promise (Apr. 2014) Forever With You (Feb. 2015) Stay With Me Forever (Aug. 2015) Moments in Maplesville A Perfect Holiday Fling (Nov. 2012) A Little Bit Naughty (Mar. 2013) Just A Little Taste (Jan. 2014) I Dare You! (Nov. 2014) All You Can Handle (June 2015) Any Way You Want It (Feb. 2016) Any Time You Need Me (June 2016) Standalones In Her Wildest Dreams (Jan. 2012) The Rebound Guy (July 2012) Delectable Desire (Apr. 2013) Runaway Attraction (Nov. 2013) A Mistletoe Affari (Nov. 2014) Passion’s Song (Feb. 2016) Mr. Right Next Door (Sept. 2016) Anthologies A Change of Heart (The Holiday Inn Anthology – Sept. 2008) No Ordinary Gift (Holiday Brides Anthology – Oct. 2009) Holiday Spice (Holiday Temptation Anthology – Sept. 2016) Christmas Kisses (Reissue–Contains Tuscan Nights and Second-Chance Christmas previously published by Harlequin Kimani

Why we love it: Farrah packs a lot of information into that first paragraph, elegantly describing the awards she’s received and has been nominated for. We also love how she makes it easy for readers to find her on whichever social media platform they prefer and to discover which book to start with for each series.

5. Angie Fox

New York Times bestselling author Angie Fox writes sweet, fun, action-packed mysteries. Her characters are clever and fearless, but in real life, Angie is afraid of basements, bees, and going up stairs when it is dark behind her. Let’s face it. Angie wouldn’t last five minutes in one of her books. Angie is best known for her Southern Ghost Hunter mysteries and for her Accidental Demon Slayer books. Visit her at www.angiefox.com

Why we love it: We love how Angie distinguishes herself from her characters, making herself relatable to readers. She also mentions her bestseller status and best-known works in a humble way.

6. Tiffany D. Jackson

Tiffany D. Jackson is the critically acclaimed author of Allegedly , Monday’s Not Coming , and Let Me Hear a Rhyme . A Walter Dean Myers Honor Book and Coretta Scott King–John Steptoe New Talent Award winner, she received her bachelor of arts in film from Howard University, earned her master of arts in media studies from the New School, and has over a decade in TV and film experience. The Brooklyn native still resides in the borough she loves. You can visit her at www.writeinbk.com .

Why we love it: This is an excellent example of a short, concise bio — a perfect snippet for journalists, bloggers, or event coordinators who need to grab Tiffany’s bio for their article or programming.

7. Kwame Alexander

Kwame Alexander is the New York Times Bestselling author of 32 books, including The Undefeated ; How to Read a Book ; Solo ; Swing ; Rebound , which was shortlisted for prestigious Carnegie Medal; and his Newbery medal-winning middle grade novel, The Crossover . He’s also the founding editor of Versify, an imprint that aims to Change the World One Word at a Time. Visit him at KwameAlexander.com

Why we love it: We adore how Kwame calls out his aim to “change the world one word at a time” along with a handful of his best-known books. Short and sweet!

8. Glynnis Campbell

For deals, steals, and new releases from Glynnis, click FOLLOW on this BookBub page! Glynnis Campbell is a USA Today bestselling author of over two dozen swashbuckling action-adventure historical romances, mostly set in Scotland, and a charter member of The Jewels of Historical Romance — 12 internationally beloved authors. She’s the wife of a rock star and the mother of two young adults, but she’s also been a ballerina, a typographer, a film composer, a piano player, a singer in an all-girl rock band, and a voice in those violent video games you won’t let your kids play. Doing her best writing on cruise ships, in Scottish castles, on her husband’s tour bus, and at home in her sunny southern California garden, Glynnis loves to play medieval matchmaker… transporting readers to a place where the bold heroes have endearing flaws, the women are stronger than they look, the land is lush and untamed, and chivalry is alive and well! Want a FREE BOOK? Sign up for her newsletter at https://www.glynnis.net Tag along on her latest adventures here: Website: https://www.glynnis.net Facebook: bit.ly/GCReadersClan Goodreads: bit.ly/GlynnisGoodreads Twitter: https://www.twitter.com/GlynnisCampbell Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/GlynnisCampbell Pinterest: https://www.pinterest.com/GlynnisCampbell BOOK LIST: The Warrior Maids of Rivenloch: THE SHIPWRECK A YULETIDE KISS LADY DANGER CAPTIVE HEART KNIGHT’S PRIZE The Warrior Daughters of Rivenloch: THE STORMING A RIVENLOCH CHRISTMAS BRIDE OF FIRE BRIDE OF ICE BRIDE OF MIST The Knights of de Ware: THE HANDFASTING MY CHAMPION MY WARRIOR MY HERO Medieval Outlaws: THE REIVER DANGER’S KISS PASSION’S EXILE DESIRE’S RANSOM Scottish Lasses: THE OUTCAST MacFARLAND’S LASS MacADAM’S LASS MacKENZIE’S LASS California Legends: THE STOWAWAY NATIVE GOLD NATIVE WOLF NATIVE HAWK

Why we love it: Like other authors, Glynnis leads with her bestseller status, but not before making sure readers know to follow her on BookBub! We like how her personality shines through in her all-caps calls to action and that she includes the characteristics of her books in a fun way so readers will know what to expect from her work.

9. Laurelin Paige

Laurelin Paige is the NY Times , Wall Street Journal , and USA Today bestselling author of the Fixed Trilogy . She’s a sucker for a good romance and gets giddy anytime there’s kissing, much to the embarrassment of her three daughters. Her husband doesn’t seem to complain, however. When she isn’t reading or writing sexy stories, she’s probably singing, watching edgy black comedy on Netflix or dreaming of Michael Fassbender. She’s also a proud member of Mensa International though she doesn’t do anything with the organization except use it as material for her bio. You can connect with Laurelin on Facebook at facebook.com/LaurelinPaige or on twitter @laurelinpaige. You can also visit her website, laurelinpaige.com , to sign up for emails about new releases. Subscribers also receive a free book from a different bestselling author every month.

Why we love it: We love Laurelin’s bio because she lets her fun personality shine through! She also includes information about a monthly giveaway she runs through her mailing list, which is enticing and unique.

10. Mia Sosa

Mia Sosa is a USA Today bestselling author of contemporary romance and romantic comedies. Her books have received starred reviews from Publishers Weekly , Kirkus Reviews , Booklist , and Library Journal , and have been praised by Cosmopolitan , The Washington Post , Buzzfeed , Entertainment Weekly , and more. Book Riot included her debut, Unbuttoning the CEO , in its list of 100 Must-Read Romantic Comedies, and Booklist recently called her “the new go-to author for fans of sassy and sexy contemporary romances.” A former First Amendment and media lawyer, Mia practiced for more than a decade before trading her suits for loungewear (okay, okay, they’re sweatpants). Now she strives to write fun and flirty stories about imperfect characters finding their perfect match. Mia lives in Maryland with her husband, their two daughters, and an adorable dog that rules them all. For more information about Mia and her books, visit www.miasosa.com .

Why we love it: This is such a well-constructed bio, with a paragraph for each (1) listing accolades and praise from trade reviews, (2) including a blurb about Mia’s overall author brand, (3) describing her previous work experience and how she became an author, and (4) sharing personal information and directing readers to where they could learn more.

11. Aiden Thomas

Aiden Thomas is a trans, Latinx, New York Times Bestselling Author with an MFA in Creative Writing from Mills College. Originally from Oakland, California, they now make their home in Portland, OR. Aiden is notorious for not being able to guess the endings of books and movies, and organizes their bookshelves by color. Their books include Cemetery Boys and Lost in the Never Woods .

Why we love it: A well-known advocate of diverse books, Aiden leads with their identity markers to connect right away with readers of similar identities. The rest of their concise bio fits information about their bestseller status, education, location, personality, and popular titles into just a few short sentences!

12. Wayne Stinnett

Wayne Stinnett is an American novelist and Veteran of the United States Marine Corps. Between those careers, he’s worked as a deckhand, commercial fisherman, divemaster, taxi driver, construction manager, and over the road truck driver, among many other things. He now lives on a sea island, in the South Carolina Lowcountry, with his wife and youngest daughter. They also have three grown children, five grand children, three dogs and a whole flock of parakeets. Stinnett grew up in Melbourne, Florida and has also lived in the Florida Keys, the Bahamas, and Cozumel, Mexico. His next dream is to one day visit and dive Cuba.

Why we love it: What better way to introduce an author of novels about travel, seafaring, and military adventures than to share his first-hand experiences! By weaving in relevant professional background and a glimpse of his home life by the sea, Wayne demonstrates deep knowledge of his subjects to his readers, as well as connecting with them on a personal level by describing his family and goals for the future.

13. June Hur

June Hur was born in South Korea and raised in Canada, except for the time when she moved back to Korea and attended high school there. She studied History and Literature at the University of Toronto. She began writing her debut novel after obsessing over books about Joseon Korea. When she’s not writing, she can be found wandering through nature or journaling at a coffee shop. June is the bestselling author of The Silence of Bones , The Forest of Stolen Girls , and The Red Palace , and currently lives in Toronto with her husband and daughter.

Why we love it: We love how June includes her background and what inspired her writing. Sharing a story’s origins is a wonderful way to meaningfully connect with readers.

14. Claire Delacroix

Bestselling author Claire Delacroix published her first medieval romance in 1993. Since then, she has published over seventy romance novels and numerous novellas, including time travel romances, contemporary romances and paranormal romances. The Beauty , part of her successful Bride Quest series, was her first book to land on the New York Times list of bestselling books. Claire has written under the name Claire Cross and continues to write as Deborah Cooke as well as Claire Delacroix. Claire makes her home in Canada with her family, a large undisciplined garden and a growing number of incomplete knitting projects. Sign up for Claire’s monthly medieval romance newsletter at: https://view.flodesk.com/pages/622ca9849b7136a9e313df83 Visit Claire’s website to find out more about her books at http://delacroix.net

Why we love it: While Claire has an extensive backlist, she succinctly describes her publishing success and subgenres. She also includes all of her pen names so readers can easily find her, no matter which name they’re looking for.

15. Vanessa Riley

Vanessa Riley writes Historical Fiction and Historical Romance (Georgian, Regency, & Victorian) featuring hidden histories, dazzling multi-culture communities, and strong sisterhoods. She promises to pull heart strings, offer a few laughs, and share tidbits of tantalizing history. This Southern, Irish, Trini (West Indies) girl holds a doctorate in mechanical engineering and a MS in industrial engineering and engineering management from Stanford University. She also earned a BS and MS in mechanical engineering from Penn State University. Yet, her love of history and lattes have overwhelmed her passion for math, leading to the publication of over 20+ titles. She loves writing on her southern porch with proper caffeine.

Why we love it: Vanessa launches into her bio by sharing the specific time periods she writes in, as well as the diverse characters and emotions her readers can look forward to, appealing directly to her ideal audience . She then shares a bit of personal info, leaving readers with an image of her in her element: writing on a porch while sipping tea.

16. April White

April White has been a film producer, private investigator, bouncer, teacher and screenwriter. She has climbed in the Himalayas, survived a shipwreck, and lived on a gold mine in the Yukon. She and her husband share their home in Southern California with two extraordinary boys and a lifetime collection of books. Her first novel, Marking Time , is the 2016 winner of the Library Journal Indie E-Book Award for YA Literature, and her contemporary romantic suspense, Code of Conduct , was a Next Generation Indie Award and RONE Award Finalist. All five books in the Immortal Descendants series are on the Amazon Top 100 lists in Time Travel Romance and Historical Fantasy. More information and her blog can be found at www.aprilwhitebooks.com .

Why we love it: April’s bio is short and sweet, but is packed with interesting information. She was a private investigator and survived a shipwreck? How can you not want to learn more about this author? She also elegantly includes her books’ status and subgenre in the last paragraph, along with a call-to-action for readers to learn more.

17. Julia Quinn

#1 New York Times bestselling author Julia Quinn loves to dispel the myth that smart women don’t read (or write) romance, and if you watch reruns of the game show The Weakest Link you might just catch her winning the $79,000 jackpot. She displayed a decided lack of knowledge about baseball, country music, and plush toys, but she is proud to say that she aced all things British and literary, answered all of her history and geography questions correctly, and knew that there was a Da Vinci long before there was a code. On December 25, 2020, Netflix premiered Bridgerton , based on her popular series of novels about the Bridgerton family. Find her on the web at www.juliaquinn.com .

Why we love it: Julia takes a unique approach, making her bio more voicey and focused on her interests. Yet she keeps it up to date, including her latest news in the last sentence (above the call-to-action).

18. Rick Mofina

USA Today bestselling author Rick Mofina is a former journalist who has interviewed murderers on death row, flown over L.A. with the LAPD and patrolled with the Royal Canadian Mounted Police near the Arctic. He’s also reported from the Caribbean, Africa and Kuwait’s border with Iraq. His books have been published in nearly 30 countries, including an illegal translation produced in Iran. His work has been praised by James Patterson, Dean Koontz, Michael Connelly, Lee Child, Tess Gerritsen, Jeffery Deaver, Sandra Brown, James Rollins, Brad Thor, Nick Stone, David Morrell, Allison Brennan, Heather Graham, Linwood Barclay, Peter Robinson, Håkan Nesser and Kay Hooper. The Crime Writers of Canada, The International Thriller Writers and The Private Eye Writers of America have listed his titles among the best in crime fiction. As a two-time winner of Canada’s Arthur Ellis Award, a four-time Thriller Award finalist and a two-time Shamus Award finalist, the Library Journal calls him, “One of the best thriller writers in the business.” Join Rick Mofina’s newsletter from his website and receive a free eBook! You can also find Rick Mofina’s new exclusive serialized thriller, The Dying Light , by subscribing to Radish Fiction com For more information please visit www.rickmofina.com https://www.facebook.com/rickmofina or follow Rick on Twitter @Rick Mofina

Why we love it: Including Rick’s first-hand experiences as a journalist lends him credibility in his genres of Crime Fiction and Thrillers. He also includes a list of well-known authors who have praised his work, and these endorsements may encourage those authors’ fans to give Rick a try. The free ebook offer effectively sweetens the deal!

19. J.T. Ellison

J.T. Ellison is the New York Times and USA Today bestselling author of more than 25 novels, and the EMMY® award winning co-host of the literary TV show A Word on Words . She also writes urban fantasy under the pen name Joss Walker. With millions of books in print, her work has won critical acclaim, prestigious awards, been optioned for television, and has been published in 28 countries. J.T. lives in Nashville with her husband and twin kittens, where she is hard at work on her next novel.

Why we love it: This is a great example of a concise bio suitable for use in any blog or publication. J.T. keeps to just the essential ingredients of a professional author bio: accolades, genres, experience, and a bit of what she’s up to today for a personal touch.

20. James S.A. Corey

James S.A. Corey is the pen name for a collaboration between Daniel Abraham and Ty Franck. James is Daniel’s middle name, Corey is Ty’s middle name, and S.A. are Daniel’s daughter’s initials. James’ current project is a series of science fiction novels called The Expanse Series. They are also the authors of Honor Among Thieves: Star Wars (Empire and Rebellion).

Why we love it: We love co-author bios that reveal how the duo came up with their pseudonym as a fun fact for readers! We also like that the reminder of this bio simply points readers straight to their buzziest works.

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Click to tweet: If you’re writing your author bio, these examples are so helpful! #writetip #pubtip http://bit.ly/1OSBcDO

Click to tweet: Make sure to keep your author bio updated! Here are some great bio examples, PLUS a printable checklist of what to include and where to keep it up to date. #amwriting http://bit.ly/1OSBcDO

This post was originally published on October 15 2015 and has been updated with new examples and a PDF checklist!

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11 Good Author Bio Examples

It’s funny that one of the hardest things for some writers to write is a paragraph about themselves! Many writers—especially unpublished writers and first-time authors—aren’t sure how to write a short author bio or a longer introductory one. So today, I’m sharing what I think are some great author bio examples.

Sooner or later, we all have to write one. Some agents and editors ask for biographical information as part of a query or submission. Publishers usually ask their authors for them for their website and the back of the book. Most authors want to set up profiles on platforms like Amazon, Goodreads, and BookBub, and some writers want a short author bio for Facebook, Twitter, Instagram, or other social media accounts. And when writers set up a website, an “about the author” paragraph or statement is often front and center.

(By the way, if you’re interested in setting up a website, be sure to check out my post on author website examples !)

I’m including author bio examples from several different kinds of writers here. A couple of them haven’t yet published anything yet. The right approach for you will depend on your goals, your personality, where you are on your writing journey, and where the biographical information will appear, so I’ve tried to include several approaches.

If you’ve ever been intimidated by author bios that are basically a long list of publishing credentials and awards, let me share a little secret. Readers may not connect with those bios as much as they connect with yours! Serious and academic authors often have professional reasons to have author bios that function as resumes. However…

Readers respond to honesty, simplicity, originality, and sometimes, a sense of humor.

I do think it helps to have some personal information in an author bio, but don’t share anything about your personal life that you don’t feel 100% comfortable putting out there.

12 Great Author Bio Examples | woman typing on laptop

But first, let’s talk about:

How Long Should an Author Bio Be?

Short author bios are very versatile. In my day job in publishing, when I ask authors for bios, I ask for 100 words or less . This ensures some consistency on our publisher website and in our “About the Author” pages, plus the shorter length also forces a person to make some smart decisions and keeps them from rambling. This means the bio will probably make a better impression. I think it’s a great length for the inside of a book.

If you’re writing an “About Me” on your blog or website, however, it may be quite a bit longer! It can become more of an introductory blog post…and it can serve other purposes as well (as you’ll see in a couple of the examples below.)

I’ll note the word count on all of the examples below so you get a feel for length!

Author Bio Examples

1. an unpublished middle grade author bio.

This first one is a Twitter bio, and I should note here that the author, Liz Hanson, has rewritten her name on Twitter to “Liz Hanson is querying her MG novel in verse.” This is so smart: if she participates in Twitter pitch events or if an agent looks her up on Twitter, she looks serious about her writing career.

Her short Twitter bio continues that same impression.

Inspired by young minds and wise words. ELD teacher, mother, MG writer. Member of SCBWI. (15 words)

SCBWI is the Society of Children’s Book Writers and Illustrators, and being part of a professional organization suggests that you’re taking the time to learn all about a writing career and the industry.

2. A Bestselling Fantasy Author Bio

Emily R. King shares her favorite snack and her interest in wildlife (I think?) in her bio.

Emily R. King is the author of the Hundredth Queen series, as well as Before the Broken Star, Into the Hourglass, and Everafter Song in the Evermore Chronicles. Born in Canada and raised in the United States, she is a shark advocate, a consumer of gummy bears, and an islander at heart, but her greatest interests are her children and their three cats. (63 words)

3. A Bio From an Author Who Writes In More Than One Genre

Multiple pen names aren’t unusual for authors, and Patricia Sargaent has three of them because she writes in different genres. I work with her as Olivia Matthews (cozy mystery), and I didn’t realize for quite a while that I had enjoyed one of her books that she published as Regina Hart!

This can be tricky to wrangle in a website presence. Patricia has one author bio to cover all of them. Notice that the bio is doing much more than just introducing her: it’s also inviting you to follow her on social media, hire her as a speaker or teacher, and sign up for her newsletter. Many authors use the “about me” section on their website to do this, and it’s smart.

Patricia Sargeant is the national best-selling, award-winning author of more than 20 novels. Her work has been featured in national publications such as Publishers Weekly, USA Today, Kirkus Reviews, Suspense Magazine, Mystery Scene Magazine, Library Journal and RT Book Reviews. She’s also been interviewed on podcasts including Destination Mystery with Laura Brennan, Conversations LIVE! with Cyrus Webb, Read You Later with Lasheera Lee and Katara’s Café with Katara Johnson.

Patricia has been a keynote speaker and presenter at various events. She’s conducted numerous writing craft workshops for writers groups and book conferences, and offers online fiction writing courses. Visit her The Write Spot website for details. To contact Patricia about attending your event, email her at [email protected].

Patricia loves to hear from readers. You can email her at [email protected] Other ways to stay in touch with Patricia: Enewsletter Facebook Twitter YouTube channel: BooksByPatricia

Click here to watch her author brand video. (151 words)

4. A Self-Published Romance Author Bio

Lucy Score is an exceptionally successful self-published romance author. Her bio on her website focuses on her personal background and her development as a writer.

Lucy grew up in rural Pennsylvania with a lot of time on her hands and a big imagination. She was the oldest of three in a literary household. Dinners were often spent in silence while family members had their noses buried in books. A passion for writing took hold at five when she taught her brother to write his name on the bathroom door.

She started writing (on paper) in the second grade, first about pilgrims on the Mayflower and over the years graduated to essays, articles, blogs, and finally books.

Before becoming a full-time writer, Lucy pretended to be a normal adult by holding down jobs that included event planner, bartender, newspaper lackey, and yoga instructor.

Lucy and Mr. Lucy, enjoy spending time with their ten nieces and nephews and are determined to learn to sail so they can live on a sailboat in the Caribbean someday. (148 words)

5. A Bio of an Unpublished Author Who Also Offers Other Services

Joanne Machin does other things besides write, and that’s true of a lot of writers. (Lots of them are also visual artists, for instance!) You can definitely combine the two in a bio for a website. Here’s how Joanne handled it in her sassy, fun, but informational author bio.

Joanne Machin is an author of flirty, nerdy, feminist contemporary adult #ownvoices romance. She also runs her own business as a freelance editor and virtual assistant for other business owners. In her free time, she likes to find new coffee shops and restaurants, obsess over stationery and all things planner-related, read, practice hot yoga, and play video games. Joanne Machin resides in the Pacific Northwest with her husband, Thomas, and their Welsh terrier, Oliver. She received her Bachelor’s degree in English Language and Literature from the University of Washington . (89 words)

6. A Bestselling Young Adult Author Bio

Adam Silvera’s bio is short and focuses on his publications, but he throws in something at the end to make you smile.

Adam Silvera is the #1 New York Times bestselling author of THEY BOTH DIE AT THE END, MORE HAPPY THAN NOT, HISTORY IS ALL YOU LEFT ME, INFINITY SON and INFINITY REAPER. He has also co-written WHAT IF IT’S US and HERE’S TO US with Becky Albertalli. He was born and raised in the Bronx and now lives in Los Angeles. He is tall for no reason. (67 words)

7. A Bestselling Children’s Author Bio

Adam Wallace writes this short bio in the first person, which is unusual and feels more friendly—as if he’s personally introducing himself to you. Again, there’s a bit of humor, and the bio also explains what he hopes to do for his readers. Authors of books for adults can do this, too! I personally think that if you’ve hit the NYT and the USA Today , saying you’re also an Amazon bestselling author is a bit beside the point, but it’s no big deal!

I am a New York Times , Amazon and USA Today bestselling author who loves writing stories that make children laugh and get excited about reading and drawing and writing. I also love taking naps and listening to music. Not at the same time. (43 words)

8. A Bestselling Romance Author Bio

H elen Hoang has a really endearing “about the author.” Notice that she also uses the bio to establish that she brought personal experience to the writing of her breakout mega-bestseller, The Kiss Quotient , which features a heroine on the autism spectrum.

Helen Hoang is that shy person who never talks. Until she does. And the worst things fly out of her mouth. She read her first romance novel in eighth grade and has been addicted ever since. In 2016, she was diagnosed with Autism Spectrum Disorder in line with what was previously known as Asperger’s Syndrome. Her journey inspired THE KISS QUOTIENT. She currently lives in San Diego, California with her husband, two kids, and pet fish. (76 words)

9. Social Media Author Bio With One-Word Sentences.

Delaney Williams packs a whole lot of information into a short Twitter bio using one-word sentences. She also conveys a certain attitude by adding “a mother****ing Unicorn” after her name. I’m actually not sure what SUP stands for, but I think this is a really effective approach for a social media site.

Author. Advocate. Artist. BLM. Pan. Wife. Mom. SUP. Kiowa. Story collector. Book lover. Tattoo fiend. Feminist hippie, ME/MS, cancer survivor, she/they. (21 words)

10. A Self-Published Author Bio That Uses Bullet Points

Christopher Lentz ‘s bio on his website is very long, which is fine, because it’s his website! What’s the point of having a website or blog if you don’t get to write whatever you want there?

What I find interesting is his use of bullet points in a bio. I hadn’t seen anyone else do this, and I’m stealing the idea from him, so credit where credit is due. I also love the opening sentence!

A man who writes romances, a self-starter who self-publishes and a dreamer who thinks growing old should take longer.

Christopher Lentz is the acclaimed author of Opening Doors (biography, 2019), My Friend Marilyn (historica l fiction, 2018) and The Blossom Trilogy (historical romance). His books are about hope, second chances and outcasts overcoming obstacles. But most of all, they’re about how love changes everything. Lentz made his mark as a corporate-marketing executive before becoming a full-time storyteller.

When asked to offer a dozen things people should know about him, Lentz says he:

Is an author who gave Marilyn Monroe a second chance
Kissed the love of his life atop the Eiffel Tower
Lives in a haunted Victorian house
Earned a paycheck dressing up as Winnie the Pooh at Disneyland
Stands in awe of lightening, thunder and his wife’s from-scratch chocolate cake
Was born on the 6th of July, but he’s a firecracker just the same
Loves a book that reads like a movie
Climbed the Great Wall of China…yes, climbed, one does not just walk on it
Snorkeled the Great Barrier Reef
Firmly believes it isn’t hoarding if your stuff’s cool
Survived acupuncture, cupping (which is nothing like spooning) and a spinal tap
Discovered that life’s second chapter is the sweetest

He resides in Southern California with his high-school-sweetheart wife and family. To learn more, please visit www.blossomtrilogy.com. (227 words)

11. An Unpublished YA Fantasy Writer Bio

Mia K Rose has another example with bullet points! She notes her pronouns, Myers-Briggs type, and zodiac sign under “Classifications,” which I think is fun, even if you believe in neither! (Personally, I kind of get into both.)

Mia K Rose is a statistics and data analyst who lives in Gold Coast and, though the job may be analytical, loves the realms of fantasy. She is a member of SCBWI, QWC and Brisbane Writer’s Festival. Mia has a degree in Masters of Letters (Creative Writing) from CQUniversity.

Classifications:

She/Her (54 words)

Do you struggle with writing an author bio? Do you have questions about it? Share your thoughts in the comments section!

And if you’d like to share your own author bio in the comments section and link to your author page on Amazon or your website, go for it. Thanks so much for reading, and happy writing!

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Home / Book Publishing / How to Write an Author Bio [With Examples and Templates]

How to Write an Author Bio [With Examples and Templates]

To write a great author bio, you need to know your target audience, cater to your genre, brag (but not too much), keep it brief, and call the reader to action.

When you’re self-publishing on Amazon , you need to put some serious thought into the author bio on your Amazon book page. Don’t haphazardly throw together some sentences and hit the publish button.

The author bio isn’t your most important tool. (The most essential tools are the book reviews , book cover , and synopsis/blurb .) But the author bio is another critical tool that you shouldn’t leave out.

Can I just leave my author bio out? No, you cannot just leave out your author bio, even if you wrote a short story or novella. It looks unprofessional, scares away potential readers, foregoes an opportunity to connect with your target audience, and leads to fewer book sales.

Plus, writing a good author bio doesn’t take that long.

If you’re not Grisham, or Godin, or Ferriss, or Fleming, very few people will buy a novel by you purely based on name recognition. So put a little work into your bio, and you won’t regret it.

Note: The Author Bio is just one of many parts of a book. I have a whole series of posts on the subject, and I highly recommend you check those out as well!

What is an author bio?
Examples of phenomenal author bios
Tips on making a persuasive, engaging author bio
How to add the bio to your book page
An author bio template checklist

What should an author's bio include?
Is an author bio actually important?
What’s your book about?
Who are you writing for?
4 Writing Tips For Creating an Author Bio:
Step 3: Add the Bio to Your Book Page
Podcast Episode: The Perfect Picture For Your Author Bio
6 Examples of Phenomenal Author Bios
Can you hire a freelancer to write your author bio?
How to Write a Bio for Your Author Website
Author Bio Template
Where does your author bio go?
How often should you update your “About the Author” page?

For clarification, on Amazon, there are 2 kinds of bio:

The generic bio on your “ Author Page ”
Separate bios for each of your books

The advice in this post is aimed at your bio on your individual book pages, although much of it will still be relevant to your main Author Page.

Why Should You Trust Me?

I've actually been writing and formatting books for a long time. Over 10 years so far, and counting.

But that's not the real reason, because there are plenty of authors who have lots of experience, but know next to nothing about the different parts of a book, or book formatting in general.

The real reason you should trust me is because I actually created my own formatting software that solved all my problems. I called it Atticus.

But this isn't meant to be a sales pitch. I just want to make sure it's clear that I know what I'm talking about. The amount of research that went into not only formatting my own books, but also creating a formatting software is huge.

I researched everything, which led me to learn all about every. single. part. of. a. book. And there were a lot more than I realized.

And of course, that includes the Author Bio.

So if all that makes sense, hopefully you'll come along with me as show you everything I've learned.

Also called “About the Author,” an author bio is:

A paragraph about you as a writer
Your credentials
Your interests
A call to action
Other relevant information you want to share with your target audience

An author biography is your chance to connect with readers beyond just a byline.

Everyone needs a stellar front cover design, an attention-grabbing book title , and a sophisticated keyword strategy . But those book marketing musts simply draw users to see your book’s product page.

A good author bio (and book reviews and book description ) compels them to actually buy the book.

The author bio establishes you as the kind of writer whom your target market ought to read. It’s where you forge a connection with potential readers and get them to trust you. Readers should want to know what you have to say based on your author bio.

If you take the author bio seriously and get it right, you’ll sell more books.

You should include your name, relevant accomplishments, and a call to action in your author’s bio. Aim for a bio of 60-90 words in length.

If your book is humorous, inject humor. If your book is melodramatic, add a little melodrama. Tailor your bio to your genre, target audience, and the individual book it’s for.

If possible, include links to your website or social media , so people can find out more about you.

Include a picture when possible. This picture should be a professional headshot of you smiling or looking serious, depending on your genre. Do not skimp on the headshot. An unprofessional author headshot screams low-quality content.

Yes, a good author bio is actually important because:

It builds credibility
It affirms whether what you have to say is worth reading
It tells your target audience that you have written a book for them
Readers may relate to your personal story
You will sell more books

“No one reads the author bio,” I hear you say. But you’re wrong. While not everyone cares about the author’s bio, some care a lot.

First of all, unless you’re a household name, you must build credibility with the reader. If a reader doesn’t think you’re credible, they will read your book with a cynical eye and judge every mistake they find. Or worse, they won’t buy your book in the first place.

Second of all, more than ever, consumers are buying books from writers they want to support. If someone learns more about and relates to the author, they are much more likely to buy.

Increase Your Book Marketing

See the Publisher Rocket effect, when you use the right keywords and categories to help get your book seen more on Amazon.

How to Write a Powerful Author Bio for Your Book

Here are 3 steps to write an awesome author bio (About the Author) and upload it onto Amazon:

Figure out your genre and target audience
Write the bio
Add the bio to your book page

How do you write a bio for a first-time author? First-time authors might not be able to include any literary accomplishments, like other best-selling books and prestigious awards. But first-time writers can include relevant expertise that pertains to your book. Also, any author can inject personality and a call to action, no matter if this is their first book.

Step 1 : Figure Out Your Genre and Target Audience

Answer these 2 crucial questions to understand your genre and target audience:

Your author bio needs to compliment the genre and subject matter of your book. Bios irrelevant to the book confuse potential readers.

While this may seem like obvious advice, a lot of irrelevant content finds its way into many author bios. Consider:

If your nightmare-inducing horror novel contains a perky and cheerful author description about your love for puppies and former career as a glassblower, you forfeit an opportunity to connect readers with your writing.
If your middle-grade comedy has an author bio that reads like a middle school textbook , your audience may be confused whether you’re able to write comedy.
If your book is a contemporary romance novel with a middle-aged female protagonist, your author bio’s personality and content should relate to the right target audience.
If you’re writing about tax-deduction strategies for real estate investors, your bio should present your expertise — why anyone should listen to you on the subject.
If your book is a spiritual guide to personal growth, some life-affirming positivity will improve your bio.

You need to think about your target reader. Hopefully, you had a type of reader in mind when writing the book . You always need to know who would want to buy and read your book.

Figure out your target reader, then write your author bio for that person.

For non-fiction authors, your ideal reader probably wants to read your credentials, your life experience, and what qualifies you to speak on a particular topic.

For fiction writers, your ideal reader may be looking for a unique, exciting personality to come out through the bio. You may briefly include credibility-building credentials, such as if you earned an MFA in Creative Writing.

In many cases, creating an “avatar” of your customer — with a name, location, and personality — is a valuable way to both develop your author bio and strategically target your book marketing efforts. Check out this guide on how to create a customer avatar.

Don’t add information “just in case” a different kind of reader might appreciate it. You end up with a behemoth of a bio that no one reads because it’s too daunting and unfocused.

Step 2 : Write the Bio

Now you need to write the actual words of the bio. Stick to this checklist on how to write an author bio:

Begin with a punchy, impactful first sentence.
Introduce your area of expertise or your unique personality, depending on the genre.
Build credibility without overly bragging.
Add a personal touch, such as a relatable profession or quirky hobby.
Finish on a call to action (check out the new book, follow you on social media, etc.).

While you’re writing, always ask yourself, “Is this relevant to my reader?”

Most readers won’t care where you were born (unless it’s a book about where you live), what high school you went to, or that you always wanted to become a full-time writer.

This isn’t to say that your bio should be impersonal. On the contrary! This is your opportunity to make readers feel like they know you. Your personality and/or expertise should make them want to read what you wrote.

Write in the third person. “About the author” demands the third person. While it may feel a bit weird to write “he” or “she” rather than “I” in the first person, there’s one significant benefit: Your relevant accomplishments and accolades will sound far less boastful.
Don’t brag too much . Don't go overboard showing off because everyone knows you wrote it. Even if the author bio is in the third person, state your achievements, but don’t become a braggart. Sprinkle in a bit of humility and modesty as well.
Keep your author bio short. The faster they can read about you, the faster they can buy your book. Aim for 60-90 words and don’t go above 150. It takes effort and practice to distill everything into such a short space. Once you’ve nailed it, you can fit a great deal of personality and information into those 60-90 words.
Use the bio like a business card . Give readers a way to interact with you by adding your website or social media info. At the very least, they’ll be able to find out more about you and explore your other works. Adding this info at the end is the most common call to action in author bios.

Step 3 : Add the Bio to Your Book Page

You can add your author bio to your Amazon book page by visiting Amazon Author Central , select your book, and add it in the “About the Author” section.

You can add the “About the Author” page into your back matter for a physical book. On most word processors like Scrivener or Vellum, you should be able to generate the author bio into your print-ready file.

But one really annoying bit about adding an author bio to most books is that you have to copy and paste it for every book. This gets cumbersome when you have ten books and need to make one tiny change in each of them.

Unfortunately, most programs like Vellum and Scrivener do not have a way to do “templates” where you update a single Author Bio page, and it gets updated across all your books.

But Atticus can.

In Atticus you can save as a template and then reuse that template wherever you want. And the best part is, if you change the template, it will change it for all your books. Check it out!

Here are some real-life author bios from Amazon or on a back cover that combine most or all of the tips above:

Forgotten Legacy : Robin Perini, the Publisher’s Weekly and internationally bestselling author of Forgotten Secrets, is devoted to giving her readers fast-paced, high-stakes adventures with a love story sure to melt their hearts. A RITA Award finalist and winner of the prestigious Romance Writers of America Golden Heart Award in 2011, she is also a nationally acclaimed writing instructor. By day, she’s an analyst for an advanced technology corporation, but in honor of her mother, Robin has become a passionate advocate for those who battle Alzheimer’s disease. She loves to hear from readers. Visit her website at www.robinperini.com.

[Length: 97 words]

D a mn Delicious Meal Prep: 115 Easy Recipes for Low-Calories, High-Energy Living : Chungah Rhee is the founder, recipe developer, and photographer of Damn Delicious. What began as a grad school hobby is now a top food blog, with millions of readers coming to her site for easy weeknight recipes and simplified gourmet meals. She lives and continues to cook non-stop in Los Angeles, with her corgi, Butters. Her first cookbook was published in 2016 by Oxmoor House. Visit her at damndelicious.net.

[Length: 70 words]

Long Range Shooting Handbook: Complete Beginner's Guide to Long Range Shooting : “Ryan Cleckner served as a special operations sniper team leader with the U.S. Army's elite 1st Ranger Bn. on multiple combat deployments. He is a graduate of the premier Special Operations Target Interdiction Course (SOTIC), among other military training courses, and has taught snipers and police sharpshooters from around the world. Ryan has a series of online instructional videos known for their ability to explain complex topics in a simple and digestible way. Ryan is currently a firearms industry professional and an attorney.”

[Length: 83 words]

Diary of a Farting Creeper: Why Does the Creeper Fart When He Should Explode? (Volume 1) : Who is Wimpy Fart? Wimpy Fart loves Minecraft and writes awesome Minecraft books for YOU because you are the best Minecraft fans in the world. You can email Wimpy Fart to tell him about your favorite Minecraft books, or to talk about really loud farts. [email protected] Oh – Wimpy Fart reads all your awesome Amazon reviews and likes to know what you want to read about in Minecraft books!

[Length: 68 words]

Joanna Penn writes non-fiction books for authors and is an award-nominated, New York Times and USA Today bestselling thriller author as J.F. Penn. She’s a podcaster and an award-winning creative entrepreneur. Her site, TheCreativePenn.com has been voted in the Top 100 sites for writers by Writer's Digest.

[Length: 49 words]

John Scalzi writes books, which, considering where you’re reading this, makes perfect sense. He’s best known for writing science fiction, including the New York Times bestseller Redshirts, which won the Hugo Award for Best Novel. He also writes non-fiction, on subjects ranging from personal finance to astronomy to film, was the Creative Consultant for the Stargate: Universe television series. He enjoys pie, as should all right thinking people. You can get to his blog by typing the word “Whatever” into Google. No, seriously, try it.

[Length: 85 words]

If you're looking for author bio perfection, Scalzi’s is as close as you're gonna find. His bio lends himself credibility, demonstrates his personality, and has one of the most unique calls to action you'll ever read. How many of you actually googled “whatever” just now?

Yes, you can hire a freelance writer or a ghostwriter to write your author bio to make sure it’s as amazing as it should be. Their creative writing know-how can produce a bio worthy of a good read and help you better connect with your audience if you’re having a hard time with the bio.

Hopefully, because you’re a writer, you’re able to follow the steps in this article to create your own bio. But in many cases, writing about yourself is more challenging than writing any other prose. (No shame, I promise!)

To write an author bio for your website, follow these 8 tips and tricks:

Determine what your book’s about, and tailor your bio to compliment the style and tone.
Determine your target audience, and tailor your bio to attract those specific readers.
Begin your bio with a punchy first sentence.
Build credibility by demonstrating your accomplishments, but don’t brag too much.
Add links to relevant interviews (on NPR or PBS, for example), news articles (ever been featured in The Wall Street Journal ?), and Amazon sales pages.
Finish with a call to action — perhaps a link to your sales page.
Make sure your word count is 60-90 words.
When you review it, take out all irrelevant words. Will your target audience care about each word? If not, take that word out.

On an author’s website , you can go into more detail, list more important works or achievements, and link to other pages on your website to find more info.

Also, an author website bio lends itself more to the first-person than a book page bio. Feel free to use first person or third person, as long as you stick to one or the other.

There's no one-size-fits-all approach, but the following checklist provides a structure you can use as an author bio template:

Add a personal touch, such as a hobby or favorite TV show.
Finish on a call to action (check out the new book, follow on social media, etc.).

If you browse bestselling author bios, you'll notice they tend to follow this sequence.

The content and tone you include in your author bio will depend on several factors:

Content and tone of your book
Genre (or multiple genres)
Previous works
Previous achievements
Personal preference
Medium (eBook only, literary magazine, etc.)

In a print book, your author bio should go in the back matter of your book or on the dust jacket sleeve.

You should also place an author bio on your website that goes into a little more detail than the bio in your book.

For an eBook on Amazon, your author bio goes below the suggested books. Here are the headings that appear before the “About the Author” section:

You should update your “About the Author” page or individual author bios any time something significant changes in your life or career, especially honors and awards or when your next book comes out.

Publish a new book? Update all your old bios.

Win an award? Update all your old bios.

Featured on a famous talk show? You may want to update all your old bios.

Going through a divorce or other major family issues? If you mention your spouse or now-estranged children in your bio, you may want to change that. (I know that’s dark, but it happens and is worth considering.)

Earn a prestigious honor or academic position? You know what you should do.

I’ll show you mine…

In summary, the steps in this post take you through everything you need when writing your own author bio. Refer to them when you start writing – and you’ll have an engaging author bio that should easily sell more books.

My own author bio is listed just below for reference (and ridicule, if you like).

I don't have to tell you, I'm pretty much a techy goofball. Hopefully, my bio does a great job of conveying just that. Using humor and an upbeat tone, I want to let Kindlepreneur readers know exactly who I am as a content writer in 34 words.

Special thanks to John Scalzi for inspiring me to write this specific type of bio.

Dave Chesson

When I’m not sipping tea with princesses or lightsaber dueling with little Jedi, I’m a book marketing nut. Having consulted multiple publishing companies and NYT best-selling authors, I created Kindlepreneur to help authors sell more books. I’ve even been called “The Kindlepreneur” by Amazon publicly, and I’m here to help you with your author journey.

Amazon advantage vs amazon seller central: sell your own print books, book idea validation mastery: is your book idea a bestseller, the 3 best courses on selling books direct to readers, sell more books on amazon, amazon kindle rankings e-book.

Learn how to rank your Kindle book #1 on Amazon with our collection of time-tested tips and tricks.

67 thoughts on “ How to Write an Author Bio [With Examples and Templates] ”

After one year locked at home because of COVID-19, I decided to have as much fun as I had when teaching at school. That’s how “A Modern Superhero” was born. I enjoy good food, that’s why I need to do some exercise. By the way, run to my social media for some free perks.

Should I or should I not say what my day job is? Yes it has and no it hasn’t to do with my books. As I am an architect, I have well-structured novels! Lol. But is that boring? As I am not a van driver or pizza delivery girl, why would it interest anyone. I don’t know what’s boring anymore. Please help! Thanks.

Depending on your niche or subject, not sure. I’ll guess that you’re writing some sort of fiction. If that is the case, a mention of something that is important to you is fine, but don’t drag it on and focus on it. If you’ve used levity in your writing, then you can say something like “Architect by day, crime novelist by night.”

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10 Great Author Bio Examples and Tips to Write One for Yourself

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A great author bio is essential for any published writer. It’s how a reader gets to know the person behind the pages of a book, and done well, it can help you grow your fan base and sell more books. If you’re a new author and unsure where to begin with your author bio, this article is here to help.

Table of Contents

What is An Author Bio?

An author bio is a few short paragraphs that introduce you to your readers. It doesn’t need to only focus on your professional writing career; the best bios throw in a personal touch too. You can mention your home life, your hobbies, or include a couple of interesting facts about yourself. It’s all about engaging your readers with relevant and interesting information that helps you stand out from the crowd.

In this article, I’ll show you ten great examples of top-notch author bios from bestselling writers, and I’ll also provide you with some actionable tips to help you write your own.

10 Examples of Great Author Bios

1. farrah rochon.

USA Today bestselling author Farrah Rochon hails from a small town just west of New Orleans. She has garnered much acclaim for her Crescent City-set Holmes Brothers series and her Moments in Maplesville small town series. Farrah is a two-time finalist for the prestigious RITA Award from the Romance Writers of America and has been nominated for an RT BOOKReviews Reviewers Choice Award. In 2015, she received the Emma Award for Author of the Year. When she is not writing in her favorite coffee shop, Farrah spends most of her time reading, cooking, traveling the world, visiting Walt Disney World, and catching her favorite Broadway shows. An admitted sports fanatic, she feeds her addiction to football by watching New Orleans Saints games on Sunday afternoons. Keep in touch with Farrah via the web: Website: https://www.farrahrochon.com/ Facebook: http://www.facebook.com/farrahrochonauthor Twitter: http://www.twitter.com/FarrahRochon

2. Michael Siemsen

Michael Siemsen grew up in Venice, California, the second son of a Vietnam veteran turned policeman. Initially focusing on performing arts, Michael attended the prestigious Alexander Hamilton Academy in Los Angeles. After serving in the U.S. Army as a tracked vehicle operator, he returned to civilian life and began writing short stories and screenplays, and directing short films and music videos. Moving to Northern California in the late 90s, Michael met his future wife, Ana. The two now live near the San Joaquin River Delta with their equally adventurous children, as well as “the dogs,” “that cat,” and a fish or two. A USA Today and Amazon Bestselling Author, Michael has released six novels selling over 200,000 copies, as well as audiobooks , short stories contributed to anthologies, and has won several awards, including the “Sundance of Books,” the Next Generation Indie Book Awards. Michael’s latest release is RETURN, book three in his popular Matt Turner series.

3. Glynnis Campbell

Glynnis Campbell is a USA Today bestselling author of over two dozen swashbuckling action-adventure historical romances, mostly set in Scotland, and a charter member of The Jewels of Historical Romance — 12 internationally beloved authors. She’s the wife of a rock star and the mother of two young adults, but she’s also been a ballerina, a typographer, a film composer, a piano player, a singer in an all-girl rock band, and a voice in those violent video games you won’t let your kids play. Doing her best writing on cruise ships, in Scottish castles, on her husband’s tour bus, and at home in her sunny southern California garden, Glynnis loves to play medieval matchmaker… transporting readers to a place where the bold heroes have endearing flaws, the women are stronger than they look, the land is lush and untamed, and chivalry is alive and well! Want a FREE BOOK? Sign up for her newsletter at https://www.glynnis.net

4. Courtney Milan

Courtney Milan’s books have received starred reviews in Publishers Weekly, Library Journal, and Booklist. She is a New York Times and a USA Today bestseller and a RITA® winner. Courtney lives in the Rocky Mountains with her husband, an exceptionally perfect dog, and an attack cat. Before she started writing historical romance, Courtney got a graduate degree in theoretical physical chemistry from UC Berkeley. After that, just to shake things up, she went to law school at the University of Michigan and graduated summa cum laude. Then she did a handful of clerkships with some really important people who are way too dignified to be named here. She was a law professor for a while. She now writes full-time. If you want to know when Courtney’s next book will come out, please visit her website at http://www.courtneymilan.com , where you can sign up to receive an email when she has her next release.

5. Kwame Alexander

Kwame Alexander is a poet, an educator, and the New York Times bestselling author of twenty-nine books, including Rebound, the follow-up to his Newbery Medal–winning novel, The Crossover. Kwame writes for children of all ages. His other picture books include Undefeated, Animal Ark, and Out of Wonder. A regular contributor to NPR’s Morning Edition, Kwame is the recipient of several awards, including the Coretta Scott King Author Honor, the Lee Bennett Hopkins Poetry Award, three NAACP Image Award nominations, and the 2018 inaugural Conroy Legacy Award. He believes that poetry can change the world, and he uses it to inspire and empower young people through his writing workshop, the Write Thing. Kwame is also the host and producer of the literary variety/talk show Bookish. You can visit him at www.kwamealexander.com .

6. Tiffany D. Jackson

Tiffany D. Jackson is the NYT Bestselling author of YA novels including the Coretta Scott King — John Steptoe New Talent Award-winning Monday’s Not Coming, the NAACP Image Award-nominated Allegedly, Let Me Hear A Rhyme, GROWN, and her forthcoming 2021 titles BLACKOUT, WHITE SMOKE, and SANTA IN THE CITY. She received her bachelor of arts in film from Howard University, her master of arts in media studies from the New School, and has over a decade in TV/Film experience. The Brooklyn native is a lover of naps, cookie dough, and beaches, currently residing in the borough she loves, most likely multitasking. Tiffany grew up in Brooklyn Heights but also count places like Fort Greene, Far Rockaway, East New York, and Kingston, Jamaica as her home. She attended Hendrick Hudson High School in Montrose, NY, she received her bachelor of arts in film from Howard University, and her master of arts in media studies from the New School University. She has over a decade of experience in the television industry, working for various networks and media companies including National Geographic (focused on documentaries such as Lockdown, a prison subculture series) Roc Nation, BET, FUSE, BBC AMERICA, and EPIX. From managing live events, concerts, festival showcases such as BET AWARDS and SXSW Music Show Case, to TV series, specials, and pilots such as FUSE: TOP 20 Countdown, Trending 10, The Hustle: After Party Live and in-studio concert series to producing hip-hop documentaries and artist promotional spots. In 2009, she wrote and directed the short horror film, The Field Trip, receiving praise in the film festival circuit. WANT TO KNOW MORE? GO HERE →

7. J.T. Ellison

J.T. Ellison began her career as a presidential appointee in the White House, where a nuclear physicist taught her how to obsess over travel itineraries and make a seriously good pot of Earl Grey, spawning both her love of loose leaf and a desire for control of her own destiny. Jaded by the political climate in D.C., she made her way back to her first love, creative writing. More than 20 novels later, she is an award-winning New York Times and USA Today bestselling author with thrillers published in 27 countries and 15 languages. She is also the Emmy Award-winning cohost of A Word on Words, a literary interview television show. She lives in Nashville with her husband and two small gray minions, known as cats in some cultures. She thinks they’re furry aliens. Visit www.jtellison.com or @thrillerchick for more. ***Psst, J.T. here. Want a FREE ebook ? Visit www.jtellison.com/subscribe and sign up for my newsletter. Along with your free ebook, you’ll get my latest news and updates, insider exclusives, plus awesome recipes and book recommendations. It’s a lot of fun! Happy reading, y’all.

8. Vanessa Riley

Vanessa Riley writes Historical Fiction and Historical Romance (Georgian, Regency, & Victorian) featuring hidden histories, dazzling multi-culture communities, and strong sisterhoods. She promises to pull heart strings, offer a few laughs, and share tidbits of tantalizing history. This Southern, Irish, Trini girl holds a doctorate in mechanical engineering and a MS in industrial engineering and engineering management from Stanford University. She also earned a BS and MS in mechanical engineering from Penn State University. Yet, her love of history and lattes have overwhelmed her passion for math, leading to the publication of over 20+ titles. She loves writing on her southern porch with proper caffeine. Vanessa has a very diverse background. She has been a radio anchorwoman and church announcer. She is a member of Romance Writers of America and President-Elect of The Beau Monde, a specialty RWA Chapter. She is also a member of Georgia Romance Writers, NINC, and Historical Novel Society. She is on the Board of Directors of Christian Book Lovers Retreat where readers escape for a weekend of fun, faith and connection to the author community. Her latest release, A Duke, The Lady, and A Baby is an Amazon Best of the Month Selection and a Publishers Weekly Summer Reads 2020 Editors’ Pick. A Duke, The Lady, and A Baby has been reviewed by Entertainment Weekly, NPR, Library Journal, and the New York Times and received a starred review in Publishers Weekly. She’s currently working on Island Queen for William Morrow, a novel centering on Dorothy Kirwan Thomas, a formerly enslaved person who becomes one of the wealthiest women in the Caribbean. Vanessa loves cooking her Trinidadian grandma’s cake recipes and collecting Irish crochet lace and writing on her southern porch with proper caffeination. Sarah Younger of the Nancy Yost Literary Agency represents Vanessa.

9. Rick Mofina

USA Today bestselling author Rick Mofina is a former journalist who has interviewed murderers on death row, flown over L.A. with the LAPD and patrolled with the Royal Canadian Mounted Police near the Arctic. He’s also reported from the Caribbean, Africa and Kuwait’s border with Iraq. His books have been published in nearly 30 countries, including an illegal translation produced in Iran. His work has been praised by James Patterson, Dean Koontz, Michael Connelly, Lee Child, Tess Gerritsen, Jeffery Deaver, Sandra Brown, James Rollins, Brad Thor, Nick Stone, David Morrell, Allison Brennan, Heather Graham, Linwood Barclay, Peter Robinson, Håkan Nesser and Kay Hooper. The Crime Writers of Canada, The International Thriller Writers, and The Private Eye Writers of America have listed his titles among the best in crime fiction. As a two-time winner of Canada’s Arthur Ellis Award, a four-time Thriller Award finalist and a two-time Shamus Award finalist, the Library Journal calls him, “One of the best thriller writers in the business.”

10. April White

April White has been a film producer, private investigator, bouncer, teacher and screenwriter. She has climbed in the Himalayas, lived on a gold mine in the Yukon, and survived a shipwreck. She and her husband live in Southern California with their two sons, dog, various chickens, and a lifetime collection of books. Facebook is a solid source of distraction for her, and therefore, her Facebook page, April White Books, is usually the first place to find news, teasers, quotes, and excerpts from her books. She also has a secret reader group on Facebook, called “Kick-Ass Heroines.” If you’d like to get in on some of those conversations, you can request an add here: Kick-Ass Heroines. Sometimes that news links to Twitter, but she hasn’t mastered the art of the pithy tweet, and therefore often avoids the medium for fear of sounding boring. Goodreads is another place to find her lurking around the stacks and spying on her friends’ reading habits. Become her Goodreads friend so she can see what you’re reading, too. Marking Time was the 2016 Library Journal Indie e-book winner for Young Adult books, and was chosen by Library Journal for national inclusion on both the fantasy and young adult SELF-e Library Select lists on Biblioboard, The whole series is also available for libraries nationwide through Overdrive, and April is very happy to participate in any library (or bookish) events to which she’s invited.

7 Tips for Writing Your Own Author Bio

Your author bio might only be a few short paragraphs in length, but every word counts. This is your opportunity to make a great first impression with your readership, so it’s important to take some time penning your bio in order to put your best foot forward.

Here are 7 important tips to consider when writing your author bio.

1. Write in the Third Person

Even though you are writing these words about yourself, never use the words like “I” or “my.” Instead, write from the third person point of view, referencing yourself by your first or second name.

2. Keep it Short

Your bio is about quality, not quantity. Keep it to under 300 words, and make sure that every sentence adds value. It might be tempting to list out all of your achievements but stick to the big stuff that will make the most impact. You can always include a section on your website where readers can view your full list of accolades, but they don’t need to be featured on the back of your new book under your author bio.

3. Know Your Audience

Get to know your readers so you can understand how best to speak to them in your author bio. A great way to do this is to hang out with your readers on Twitter or other social media platforms. Interacting with your readership builds a mutual bond and gives you much more insight into who they are and what makes them tick.

A good rule of thumb to engage your readers is to stick to the same writing style you use in your published work to talk to your audience in your author bio.

I’d also advise that you assemble a small group of readers who are willing to read your draft and provide feedback and ideas on how to improve it. And consider asking those closest to you to check whether they think it’s a good representation of who you are and what you’re all about.

4. Include Career Highlights

Note the word “highlights”; this is not the place to list every college course you ever completed and every short story you’ve ever published (see Tip #2) but be sure to include the most prominent relevant parts of your background in writing.

Higher education diplomas beyond college level are worth including, and of course, list a short selection of your previously published works if you have any.

If your work has been nominated for an award, but it didn’t quite make the cut, it could still be worth including. The “…. Award-nominated author…” has a great ring to it; it almost doesn’t matter that you didn’t win!

5. Let Your Personality Shine Through

This is your author bio, so your personality should shine through in every sentence. This really helps to create a rapport with your readership and give them a better picture of the person behind the words on the page. Done well, this can help you create a loyal fan base and a dedicated readership.

You can show your personality in your author bio by getting creative with how you present your information. You might want to tell your life story in an inventive way, linking events to each other to create a picture of who you are and how you got here. You can make it fun (see author J.T. Ellison’s example in the list above) and add a well-placed joke in there too.

6. Include Some Personal Information

A great way to connect with your audience is to show them that you’re not all business; you have a personal life with family, friends, pets, passions, and hobbies too. Readers want to know the human being behind the pages of the book, and this is a great opportunity to give them a little taster of who you really are.

Most authors choose to include where they live and where they grew up, plus a little bit about their family life too.

You might also want to include a major life event that has shaped who you are today.

Just remember to keep it relevant. If you write self-help books about quitting smoking, then a little bit about your struggle with addiction might be the perfect addition to your bio. But if your genre is historical fiction, then it’s best to leave this out.

7. Create a Basic Verison that can be Tweaked

Your author bio will primarily contain the same information wherever you use it, be it on the insert of your latest book, on your website, or promotional material for an upcoming book tour. But you can also tweak it a little to suit the situation and the audience.

These tips are designed to help you write a basic author bio, but you can spice it up or remove elements to create a more serious tone depending on the application.

I hope these examples and tips help you to write your own engaging author bio to share wherever you promote your work. Remember to keep it short and to the point, and add a little flair and personality so that your readers can get to know the person behind the pen.

Author Bios: What They Include and Why to Write One

An author bio is a short paragraph that shares information about you, such as your education, your experience, and your personal life. Author bios are usually placed next to a professional photo or headshot of the author to further help humanize you, the writer.

While there’s no set word count on a bio, you’ll want to keep things short — think a paragraph or two.

The goal of an author bio is to provide a brief background about you, the author, and to show why you were qualified to write your book or article in order.

Essentially, an engaging author bio gives you credibility with your readers and allows you to connect with potential readers so you can encourage them to read more of your work.

For example, when you describe your past education, work experience, and skills in your author bio, you’re proving that you know what you’re talking about and that you are an expert in your field.

Another benefit of a well-written, short bio is that it humanizes you. Your bio should add personality and communicate to your readers who you are as a person.

For example, your author bio may include a sentence about how many books you’ve written in the past. Then, you may add another sentence about why you began writing in the first place.

Finally, you might share a bit about your family, passions outside of writing, and any formal education, awards, or certifications you’ve achieved in your writing career, like once being named a New York Times Bestselling Author.

You don’t have to be a master of creative writing to craft a well-written bio. The goal of your author bio should simply be to convince readers that you’re more than just an author or some faceless person who wrote an online article — you’re a person.

Who Needs an Author Bio?

The short answer: Every writer!

You might think author bios are only for authors — people who write novels or nonfiction books.

Whether you’ve written ten books or this is your first novel or piece of written work, you should at least have a generic bio that explains to your prospective readers a little more about who you are.

But the truth is, you don’t have to be a bestselling author to have a well-written author bio. Almost everyone who wants to publish their writing will need an author bio at some point.

This is true if you write blog posts, poetry, science fiction, short stories, thought leadership articles, or just about anything else.

There are only a couple of exceptions to this rule. The first is ghostwriting . As the name suggests, ghostwriters are anonymous writers who don’t get credit for their work.

A ghostwriter writes a work for the author. The author’s name is the only one on the cover of the book even though they didn’t actually write it.

If you are a ghostwriter, you won’t get your own author bio.

Second, some writers may want to remain anonymous, using a pen name or no name at all.

You might choose to use a pseudonym if you don’t want your boss at your day job to know about your writing, if you’re writing something controversial, or if your name is common and there are other authors out there with the same name.

If you use a pen name, you may or may not have an author bio. That choice is up to you.

When To Write Your Author Bio

You should write your author bio after you write the meat of your book. It can take a long time to write a book — months or even years.

The information that you’ll put in your author bio (such as your career details or where you live) could change during that time.

So don’t write your author bio too soon.

This is something you can leave until the end of the process of publishing a book.

However, if you’re feeling stuck with your book and you need to focus on something else, this could also be a good time to write your author bio.

It can be more inspiration and helpful to flex your writing muscles with something different.

Then you can jump back into your book or another writing project with a fresh perspective.

How to Write an Author Bio

Many people hate talking about themselves and find author bios difficult to write. Sometimes we also struggle with bios because they’re so short.

Often, the shorter something is, the harder we think it is to write. For instance, how long did it take you to write your book title ?

Because of this, some authors outsource the writing of their bio to a freelance writer or work with a creative consultant so they can focus on their book sales and complete the publishing process.

However, self-publishing authors and those who prefer to control the writing process don’t necessarily need a freelance writer to whip up a killer author bio.

If you know the general formula for how to use your best writing and craft a full bio, creating your own bio isn’t as daunting of a task as you may think. Take a look at these tips to help you write a good author bio.

Write in the Third Person

Typically, author bios are written in the third person, not the first person, point of view. You want your bio to sound like someone else wrote it about you.

Don’t use “I” — just use your name and last name. For example, instead of saying:

“I’m an author and I live in Chicago, Illinois.”

“John Doe is an author who lives in Chicago, Illinois.”

Writing your author bio in the third person sounds more professional and authoritative to most readers.

Third-person can sometimes run the risk of sounding impersonal, but you can avoid this by adding a brief detail about your life experience at the end.

Explain Your Credentials

What qualifies you to write this book or article?

Your author bio is the place to explain. Whether you have special skills, work experience, or professional certifications, here is where you’ll include them.

Don’t talk about what you would like to do in the future; this is a waste of space and doesn’t help establish credibility. Instead, talk about what you already have done.

If your educational experience is relevant to the subject matter you’re writing on, mention your degree(s) in your bio.

If you don’t have any degrees or the degrees are in a completely different field, don’t add them — save that space for something else.

You should also mention any recognition you’ve received. What awards have you won? Have you been recognized for your fiction writing anywhere?

Sharing your writing accomplishments lets your target audience know they can trust your writing skills. Adding things like if you are a Wall Street Journal or New York Times Bestseller, have won any national magazine awards, or even achieved your bachelor’s degree in some form of writing field are all great accomplishments to list in your bio.

Here’s an example of the first sentence in an author bio that explains the author’s credibility to help you understand how to write your own credibility into your bio.

“John Doe has a master’s degree in history and 15 years of experience working as an archivist. His first book, A History of Modern Japan , won a prestigious reader’s choice award.”

List Your Other Work

In addition to your work history, awards, and credentials, list a few other well-known works you’ve written

Think of this as in-book marketing or free space to share more ways for the readers to find your work.

Someone may even read your author bio and realize they’ve already read your other work, creating a feeling of trust.

If your author bio is being published online, you can include hyperlinks to your author website or to any online stores where people can publish your other books.

If you don’t have any other work to include, that’s okay. Skip this part and focus more on other parts of your bio, such as your education or any relevant experience.

On the flip side, if you have a lot of other work, don’t list everything you’ve ever published — stick to just a few of the ones that are most impressive, most relevant, or most recent.

Get Personal

When written correctly, your author bio has the potential to help you connect to readers on a deeper level.

Don’t stop with a dry list of your degrees or past positions — add some personal details to help your readers get to know you.

For example, where do you live? Do you have a spouse, children, or a pet? What hobbies do you enjoy when you aren’t working or writing?

These are simple details, but sharing a glimpse into your life experience goes a long way in helping readers remember that you’re human, too. This could sound something like this:

“John Doe lives in Chicago, Illinois with his wife and three children. He enjoys playing tennis and going on bike rides with his dog.”

Don’t mention any topics that could be divisive. Stick to hobbies that are pure fun — nothing that involves controversial topics or reflects your political views (that is, unless you’re a politician writing a political book).

Keep It Short

Your author bio needs to be short. People have already spent a good chunk of their time reading your book or your article.

They aren’t going to read a long author bio, too. The shorter your author’s bio, the higher the chance that people will actually read it.

The ideal length for an author bio is around 50-100 words. This is about 3-5 sentences.

Consider dedicating one sentence to your education and experience, another sentence to your other published work, and the final sentence to your personal life.

Be Willing to Tweak

Your author bio will change over time. As you continue publishing new writing and advancing your career, you’ll have more published works, on-the-job experience, and awards to add to your bio.

That said, make sure you aren’t married to the final version of your author bio — be willing to tweak it in the future as needed.

Your author bio also might need to sound a little different for different platforms. Many publishers and websites have guidelines for how long an author bio should be and what it should include.

Even if you’re free to write whatever you wish, you may want to highlight certain parts of your experience or overlook others.

For instance, maybe John Doe felt his experience working as an archivist in London wasn’t important enough to include in his main author bio. But for a publication that circulates in the United Kingdom, it would be the perfect detail to add in.

At the end of the day, your goal is to come up with an author bio that you can use as a template.

Save this general author bio and use it to work off of any time you have a new piece of writing published. In the future, you won’t have to start from scratch — you can simply use this predefined template and add or subtract information as necessary.

Your base author bio might sound something like this:

“John Doe has a master’s degree in history and 15 years of experience working as an archivist in London. His first book, A History of Modern Japan , won a prestigious reader’s choice award. John currently lives in Chicago, Illinois with his wife and three children, where enjoys playing tennis and going on bike rides with his dog.”

Examples of Engaging Author Bios

Here are a few different examples of author bios found on Amazon:

Brian Tracy

Helps individuals and businesses achieve goals through his expertise gained from consulting for over 1,000 companies and addressing millions of people globally. With 30 years of experience in various fields, he is a bestselling author with over 70 books translated into many languages.

Brian delivers talks on personal and professional development, leadership, sales, and success psychology to corporate and public audiences, driving immediate and lasting changes. His background includes successful careers in sales, marketing, real estate, and consulting, with extensive international experience.

Jack Canfield

America’s #1 Success Coach, is the co-creator of the Chicken Soup for the Soul® series, which includes forty New York Times bestsellers, and coauthor with Gay Hendricks of You’ve GOT to Read This Book!

An internationally renowned corporate trainer, Jack has trained and certified over 4,100 people to teach the Success Principles in 115 countries. He is also a podcast host, keynote speaker, and popular radio and TV talk show guest. He lives in Santa Barbara, California.

Tony Robbins

An international entrepreneur, #1 New York Times bestselling author, and philanthropist. Worth magazine recognized Robbins as one of the top 100 most influential people in global finance for two consecutive years.

Accenture honored Robbins as one of the “Top 50 Business Intellectuals in the World.” Robbins is a leader called upon by leaders: He’s consulted and coached some of the world’s greatest athletes, entertainers, Fortune 500 CEOs, and four US presidents.

Author of the best-selling See You at the Top is an internationally renowned speaker and authority on high-level performance. His I CAN course is taught in more than 3,000 schools, and hundreds of companies and businesses utilize his tapes, books, and videos to train their employees effectively.

He has taught his biblically-based principles for becoming a more effective persuader and person to sales organizations, church groups, schools, and businesses. He has addressed thousands more through numerous television and radio appearances and his films. His Sunday school class held at first Baptist church, Dallas, is broadcast each Sunday morning, via satellite.

Grant Cardone

Owns and operates seven privately held companies, and a private equity real estate firm, Cardone Capital, with a multifamily portfolio of assets worth over $5 Billion. He is one of the Top Crowdfunders in the world, raising over $880 million in equity via social media. He is featured on Season 2 of Discovery Channel’s Undercover Billionaire, where he takes on the challenge of building a million-dollar business in 90 days.

Grant is also a New York Times bestselling author of 11 business books, including The 10X Rule, which led to Cardone establishing the 10X Global Movement and the 10X Growth Conference, now the largest business and entrepreneur conference in the world. Cardone uses his massive 15 million plus following to give back via his Grant Cardone Foundation, a non-profit organization dedicated to mentoring underprivileged and troubled youth in financial literacy.

Write Your Author Bio Today

It turns out that learning how to write an author bio isn’t so hard after all. By following these simple tips, you can craft a bio that’s short, snappy, and helps you connect with your readers.

And if you’re still stuck, consider using an author bio template or some of the examples listed in this blog to inspire you on how to write your own author bio.

However, it goes without saying that before you can write an author bio, you need to have written a book or other piece of writing.

If you’re still in the main writing phase or have simply thought about writing and haven’t acted on it yet, my Book Writing Template can help. My system shows you how to map out your story and then piece it all together to write the best book that you can. Click here to download the template and start writing your book today.

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About Brian Tracy — Brian is recognized as the top sales training and personal success authority in the world today. He has authored more than 60 books and has produced more than 500 audio and video learning programs on sales, management, business success and personal development, including worldwide bestseller The Psychology of Achievement. Brian's goal is to help you achieve your personal and business goals faster and easier than you ever imagined. You can follow him on Twitter , Facebook , Pinterest , Linkedin and Youtube .

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Table of Contents

Why Your Author Bio Is So Important

How To Write Your Author Bio

Template for author bio info.

Author Bio Examples
Your Bio Grows as You Grow

How To Write An About The Author (With Examples)

Don’t Have Time Right Now?

Unless you’re a household name author (Steven King, JK Rowling, Malcolm Gladwell), most people buying your book won’t know who you are.

So how will they learn about you?

And why is this even important?

That’s what this blog post will explain: how to properly write it, and why your author bio matters.

Why Your About The Author Is So Important

Even though very few authors think about it, and even fewer publishing guides talk about it, the “Author Bio” section impacts sales, reputation, book marketing and social media.

“Author reputation” is consistently cited as one of the main factors that influence a book buying decision. If you’re seen as an authority on your book topic, readers will buy your book and read it. One of the best ways to be seen as an authority is to have a great Author Bio.

For business the short bio can sometimes be more important than what’s actually in the book—the sad but true reality is that more people will read your author bio than your actual book.

It takes a long time to read a book, but it’s very easy to make a snap judgment based on a short paragraph, and most people do that.

This is doubly true for media and social media. Most people in media work very hard under tight deadlines and don’t have time to read long books or even pitch emails. But a good author bio cuts right to the point by saying: this is an important person I need to pay attention to.

Writing about yourself is a task that many even full time writers shy away from. Don’t make this mistake. A few simple steps can get an effective bio that will impress interested readers and help sell your book:

Step 1. Mention your credentials on your book subject:

It’s important to establish your credentials in your book’s topic area.

For example, if you’re writing a diet book, mention things like professional degrees, nutrition training or accomplishments, places you’ve worked, awards you’ve won, etc. Any credential that clearly signals your authority and credibility in your space works.

If you struggle with what to say about yourself, remember the idea is to make it clear why the reader should listen to you. What credential do you have–if any–that signals seriousness to the reader?

For some types of books and authors, this is harder to do. If there’s no clear way to signal direct authority or credentials—for example, you wrote a thriller or a romance novel—then don’t make up things or try to “invent” authority. Focus on the other parts of the author bio.

Step 2. Include achievements that build credibility or are interesting to the reader (without going overboard)

You’ll also want to include things you’ve accomplished in your life, especially if you don’t have direct credentials and authority in the book subject matter. This will help your audience understand why they should spend their time and money reading what you’ve got to say.

If you have something about you or your life that is unusual, even if it’s not totally relevant, you should still consider putting it in your bio.

For example, if you were a Rhodes Scholar, or you started a major national organization, or won a national championship in ping-pong—whatever. The point is to show the reader that you have done things that matter, even if they don’t matter to the book.

If you’re lacking on credentials or exciting things, you can always put in your passions and interests. Anything that you enjoy doing, writing about or consider a hobby, especially if they are relevant to the book topic.

That being said, do NOT ramble on and on about things that reader doesn’t care about. Put yourself in your readers shoes, and ask yourself, “Does this fact really matter to anyone but me?”

Step 3. Mention any books you’ve written, and your website (but don’t oversell them)

If you’ve written other books, especially on that subject, make sure to mention them. If you’re a bestselling author (New York Times, Wall Street Journal, USA Today or even Amazon) or won awards, even better.

If you’ve won multiple accolades and listing them all is becoming tedious, aim for brevity instead. Simply writing “John Smith is an award winning author whose works include …..” is more than enough to show your readers you know what you’re doing.

If you have an author website , an author page ( on Amazon or another 3rd party site) or anything else that helps promote your brand then you should make sure you include it at the bottom of your bio (assuming this meets your goals).

Again, you don’t want to brag here so just be humble and simply put something like “Find out more about John at www.johnsmithwriter.com”. It should be simple and have a clear call to action.

Step 4. Drop some relevant names, if they’re appropriate (without being crass)

Yes, name dropping can put off readers if it’s done wrong. But there’s a right way to do it.

For example, if you are relatively unknown, you can say something like, “The woman that Seth Godin called “the most important writer of our time” reveals to you the secrets of…” This way you are trading on Seth Godin’s reputation, and establishing your credentials at the same time (assuming he said this).

Also, if you’ve worked for or with very well-known people, name dropping is not seen as bad; it’s seen as an effective signal to the reader of your importance and ability. What matters is that there is a reason that you are using someone else’s name that makes sense, and is not just a gratuitous name drop.

Step 5. Keep short and interesting (without leaving anything important out)

While your readers are interested in finding out more about you, they don’t want to get bored, or listen to arrogant bragging about how great you are. If your bio is too long, or too full of overstated accomplishments and awards, it will turn your readers off and actually make you look less credible.

Typically, if you keep your word count around 100 words you’re ok. Anything longer than that means you’ve gone on too long about your accomplishments, your personal life or both. Cut it down to the most important things.

Step 6. Always Write in Third Person, Never First Person

Third person is “She is.” First person is “I am.” This is a small thing, but if you write in first person, it is a major sign of first-time amateurism.

This is a template to write your author bio. I’m not saying it’s the very best way to write an author bio, in fact, many of the best examples below do NOT fit this template. But, many people asked for an easy to follow template, and this is what we use with our authors.

First sentence: “[Author] is [statement to establish credibility on this subject and / or authorship of previous books]”
Second sentence(s): Statement(s) further establishing credibility or qualifications of author to write the book.
Third sentence (optional): Historical “before that” information that is at least tangentially relevant to the book, or very compelling in another way.
Fourth sentence: Endorsement of author’s credibility by others, awards, or some other social proof, if available.
Fifth sentence: Tidbit of personal information or insight into life experience.
Sixth sentence: Link to website or other resource (if relevant).

Here is how that looks in practice:

Will Leach is the founder of TriggerPoint Design, a leading behavior research and design consultancy specializing in using behavior economics and decision design to drive consumer decision making. He is a behavior design instructor at the Cox School of Business at Southern Methodist University and has more than twenty years of behavior insights experience working with Fortune 50 companies to solve their most important behavior challenges. Will is the only two-time winner of the EXPLOR Award for his work in behavior design and is known as America’s foremost authority in applying behavior science to marketing. Will lives in Dallas with his wife and family.

If You Can’t Write About Yourself, Have Friends Help You

People, especially writers, have a hard time writing about themselves. Often, the Author Bio is the most difficult part of the marketing process for an author to write effectively.

If you are unsure about whether your author bio seems either incomplete, or too arrogant, run it by a few friends for feedback.

For example, when I was doing my first bio, I made all the mistakes I outlined above. I eventually had to have my friend Nils Parker write my bio for me. It’s always easier for your friends to praise you and see the amazing things you do.

If you don’t have writer friends, then hire a freelance writer to help you. It won’t cost much, but their creative writing know how will pay big dividends for you.

Examples of Author Bios

I’m going to show you a lot of different bios. Some are the best author bios I’ve read, whereas some feel like they were written by cheap self-publishing companies. The point is to give you an idea of how many different authors did them, so you can find your own author bio writing style:

Example 1 – High Status And Short: Lynn Vincent

This bio is the perfect “less is more” for an author with a lot of credentials. When you have done what Lynn has done, you can just say it quickly and succinctly.

Lynn Vincent is the New York Times best-selling writer of Heaven Is for Real and Same Kind of Different As Me. The author or coauthor of ten books, Lynn has sold 12 million copies since 2006. She worked for eleven years as a writer and editor at the national news biweekly WORLD magazine and is a U.S. Navy veteran.

Example 2 – High Status But Undersells: Michael Lewis

Contrast this to Michael Lewis, who is a very well known author, but still leaves quite a bit out of his bio that would help many readers understand who he is and why they should care (even Michael Lewis is not famous enough to assume people know him).

Michael Lewis, the author of Boomerang, Liar’s Poker, The New New Thing, Moneyball, The Blind Side, Panic, Home Game and The Big Short, among other works, lives in Berkeley, California, with his wife, Tabitha Soren, and their three children.

Example 3 – Bad Amanda Ripley

Many authors have different bios on different books (because they leave the bio writing to their publisher, which is a huge mistake). You can see the difference in the author Amanda Ripley.

Her bad bio is strangely both boring and overselling:

Amanda Ripley is a literary journalist whose stories on human behavior and public policy have appeared in Time, The Atlantic, and Slate and helped Time win two National Magazine Awards. To discuss her work, she has appeared on ABC, NBC, CNN, FOX News, and NPR. Ripley’s first book, The Unthinkable, was published in fifteen countries and turned into a PBS documentary.

Example 4 – Good Amanda Ripley

Contrast that to this good bio, where she comes off as much more of an authority—mainly because her other books are mentioned, as were her awards.

Amanda Ripley is an investigative journalist for Time, The Atlantic and other magazines. She is the author, most recently, of THE SMARTEST KIDS IN THE WORLD—and How They Got That Way. Her first book, THE UNTHINKABLE: Who Survives When Disaster Strikes–and Why, was published in 15 countries and turned into a PBS documentary. Her work has helped Time win two National Magazine Awards.

Example 5 – Bad Doctor Bio: Dr. David Perlmutter

This is a long, uninterrupted string of hard to process things. Dr. Perlmutter is very qualified, but mentions everything (including medical school awards) which detracts from the overall effect.

David Perlmutter, MD, FACN, ABIHM is a Board-Certified Neurologist and Fellow of the American College of Nutrition who received his M.D. degree from the University of Miami School of Medicine where he won the research award. Dr. Perlmutter is a frequent lecturer at symposia sponsored by such medical institutions as Columbia University, the University of Arizona, Scripps Institute, and Harvard University. He has contributed extensively to the world medical literature with publications appearing in The Journal of Neurosurgery, The Southern Medical Journal, Journal of Applied Nutrition, and Archives of Neurology. He is the author of: The Better Brain Book and the #1 New York Times Bestseller, Grain Brain. He is recognized internationally as a leader in the field of nutritional influences in neurological disorders. Dr. Perlmutter has been interviewed on many nationally syndicated radio and television programs including 20/20, Larry King Live, CNN, Fox News, Fox and Friends, The Today Show, Oprah, Dr. Oz, and The CBS Early Show. In 2002 Dr. Perlmutter was the recipient of the Linus Pauling Award for his innovative approaches to neurological disorders and in addition was awarded the Denham Harmon Award for his pioneering work in the application of free radical science to clinical medicine. He is the recipient of the 2006 National Nutritional Foods Association Clinician of the Year Award. Dr. Perlmutter serves as Medical Advisor for The Dr. Oz Show.

Example 6 – Good Doctor Bio: Dr. Benjamin Carson

Contrast this to Dr. Carson, who focuses only on the credentials and status signifiers that the reader would care about and understand, like his specialties and companies he works for.

Dr. Benjamin Carson is a Professor of Neurosurgery, Plastic Surgery, Oncology, and Pediatrics, and the Director of Pediatric Neurosurgery at Johns Hopkins Medical Institutions. He is also the author of four bestselling books—Gifted Hands, Think Big, The Big Picture, and Take the Risk. He serves on the boards of the Kellogg Company, Costco, and the Academy of Achievement, among others, and is an Emeritus Fellow of the Yale Corporation.

He and his wife, Candy, co-founded the Carson Scholars Fund (www.carsonscholars.org), a 501(c)3 established to counteract America’s crisis in education by identifying and rewarding academic role models in the fourth through eleventh grades, regardless of race, creed, religion and socio-economic status, who also demonstrate humanitarian qualities. There are over 4800 scholars in forty-five states. Ben and Candy are the parents of three grown sons and reside in Baltimore County, Maryland.

Example 7 – Good Balance: Tim Ferriss

Tim does lean aggressively into the idea of listing all the cool things he’s done and noteworthy outlets that have talked about him, but still makes his bio interesting and relevant to the reader of his books:

Timothy Ferriss is a serial entrepreneur, #1 New York Times best- selling author, and angel investor/advisor (Facebook, Twitter, Evernote, Uber, and 20+ more). Best known for his rapid-learning techniques, Tim’s books — The 4-Hour Workweek, The 4-Hour Body, and The 4-Hour Chef — have been published in 30+ languages. The 4-Hour Workweek has spent seven years on The New York Times bestseller list.

Tim has been featured by more than 100 media outlets including The New York Times, The Economist, TIME, Forbes, Fortune, Outside, NBC, CBS, ABC, Fox and CNN. He has guest lectured in entrepreneurship at Princeton University since 2003. His popular blog www.fourhourblog. com has 1M+ monthly readers, and his Twitter account @tferriss was selected by Mashable as one of only five “Must-Follow” accounts for entrepreneurs. Tim’s primetime TV show, The Tim Ferriss Experiment (www.upwave.com/tfx), teaches rapid-learning techniques for helping viewers to produce seemingly superhuman results in minimum time.

Example 8 – Out of Balance (Confusing & Overselling): Cheryl Strayed

Cheryl is similar to Tim, but runs several unrelated things together in a confusing way, and mentions things that no reader would ever care about (e.g., the director of a movie based on her book). This same bio could be 25% shorter and much stronger.

Cheryl Strayed is the author of #1 New York Times bestseller WILD, the New York Times bestseller TINY BEAUTIFUL THINGS, and the novel TORCH. WILD was chosen by Oprah Winfrey as her first selection for Oprah’s Book Club 2.0. WILD won a Barnes & Noble Discover Award, an Indie Choice Award, an Oregon Book Award, a Pacific Northwest Booksellers Award, and a Midwest Booksellers Choice Award among others. The movie adaptation of WILD will be released by Fox Searchlight in December 2014. The film is directed by Jean-Marc Vallée and stars Reese Witherspoon, with a screenplay by Nick Hornby. Strayed’s writing has appeared in THE BEST AMERICAN ESSAYS, the New York Times Magazine, the Washington Post Magazine, Vogue, Salon, The Missouri Review, The Sun, Tin House, The Rumpus–where she wrote the popular “Dear Sugar” advice column–and elsewhere. Strayed was the guest editor of BEST AMERICAN ESSAYS 2013 and has contributed to many anthologies. Her books have been translated into more than thirty languages around the world. She holds an MFA in fiction writing from Syracuse University and a bachelor’s degree from the University of Minnesota. She lives in Portland, Oregon with her husband and their two children.

Remember: Your Bio Grows as You Grow

Treat your author’s bio as a living document. Just because you’ve written it once, doesn’t mean it’s finished. As you grow and change as a writer so should your bio, and the best part is that it’s easy to change a byline.

Also, remember that if you are writing for different genres or different topics that some of your accomplishments and past works will be more relevant to your readers than others. It’s a good idea to tweak your author bio for the next book you release.

Getting your author bio right is an important task. In fact, this small section is usually the ONLY source of information potential readers have about you (except maybe Google), and that’s why it is one of the most important pieces of marketing material you write for your book.

Take it seriously, get it right, and it will help you sell books.

The Scribe Crew

How to Write a Biography: A 7-Step Guide [+Template]

From time to time, nonfiction authors become so captivated by a particular figure from either the present or the past, that they feel compelled to write an entire book about their life. Whether casting them as heroes or villains, there is an interesting quality in their humanity that compels these authors to revisit their life paths and write their story.

However, portraying someone’s life on paper in a comprehensive and engaging way requires solid preparation. If you’re looking to write a biography yourself, in this post we’ll share a step-by-step blueprint that you can follow.

How to write a biography:

1. Seek permission when possible

2. research your subject thoroughly, 3. do interviews and visit locations, 4. organize your findings, 5. identify a central thesis, 6. write it using narrative elements, 7. get feedback and polish the text.

FREE RESOURCE

Biography Outline Template

Craft a satisfying story arc for your biography with our free template.

While you technically don’t need permission to write about public figures (or deceased ones), that doesn't guarantee their legal team won't pursue legal action against you. Author Kitty Kelley was sued by Frank Sinatra before she even started to write His Way , a biography that paints Ol Blue Eyes in a controversial light. (Kelley ended up winning the lawsuit, however).

Whenever feasible, advise the subject’s representatives of your intentions. If all goes according to plan, you’ll get a green light to proceed, or potentially an offer to collaborate. It's a matter of common sense; if someone were to write a book about you, you would likely want to know about it well prior to publication. So, make a sincere effort to reach out to their PR staff to negotiate an agreement or at least a mutual understanding of the scope of your project.

At the same time, make sure that you still retain editorial control over the project, and not end up writing a puff piece that treats its protagonist like a saint or hero. No biography can ever be entirely objective, but you should always strive for a portrayal that closely aligns with facts and reality.

If you can’t get an answer from your subject, or you’re asked not to proceed forward, you can still accept the potential repercussions and write an unauthorized biography . The “rebellious act” of publishing without consent indeed makes for great marketing, though it’ll likely bring more headaches with it too.

✋ Please note that, like other nonfiction books, if you intend to release your biography with a publishing house , you can put together a book proposal to send to them before you even write the book. If they like it enough, they might pay you an advance to write it.

Book Proposal Template

Craft a professional pitch for your nonfiction book with our handy template.

Once you’ve settled (or not) the permission part, it’s time to dive deep into your character’s story.

Deep and thorough research skills are the cornerstone of every biographer worth their salt. To paint a vivid and accurate portrait of someone's life, you’ll have to gather qualitative information from a wide range of reliable sources.

Start with the information already available, from books on your subject to archival documents, then collect new ones firsthand by interviewing people or traveling to locations.

Browse the web and library archives

Illustration of a biographer going into research mode.

Put your researcher hat on and start consuming any piece on your subject you can find, from their Wikipedia page to news articles, interviews, TV and radio appearances, YouTube videos, podcasts, books, magazines, and any other media outlets they may have been featured in.

Establish a system to orderly collect the information you find 一 even seemingly insignificant details can prove valuable during the writing process, so be sure to save them.

Depending on their era, you may find most of the information readily available online, or you may need to search through university libraries for older references.

For his landmark biography of Alexander Hamilton, Ron Chernow spent untold hours at Columbia University’s library , reading through the Hamilton family papers, visiting the New York Historical Society, as well as interviewing the archivist of the New York Stock Exchange, and so on. The research process took years, but it certainly paid off. Chernow discovered that Hamilton created the first five securities originally traded on Wall Street. This finding, among others, revealed his significant contributions to shaping the current American financial and political systems, a legacy previously often overshadowed by other founding fathers. Today Alexander Hamilton is one of the best-selling biographies of all time, and it has become a cultural phenomenon with its own dedicated musical.

Besides reading documents about your subject, research can help you understand the world that your subject lived in.

Try to understand their time and social environment

Many biographies show how their protagonists have had a profound impact on society through their philosophical, artistic, or scientific contributions. But at the same time, it’s worth it as a biographer to make an effort to understand how their societal and historical context influenced their life’s path and work.

An interesting example is Stephen Greenblatt’s Will in the World . Finding himself limited by a lack of verified detail surrounding William Shakespeare's personal life, Greenblatt, instead, employs literary interpretation and imaginative reenactments to transport readers back to the Elizabethan era. The result is a vivid (though speculative) depiction of the playwright's life, enriching our understanding of his world.

Painting of William Shakespeare in colors

Many readers enjoy biographies that transport them to a time and place, so exploring a historical period through the lens of a character can be entertaining in its own right. The Diary of Samuel Pepys became a classic not because people were enthralled by his life as an administrator, but rather from his meticulous and vivid documentation of everyday existence during the Restoration period.

Once you’ve gotten your hands on as many secondary sources as you can find, you’ll want to go hunting for stories first-hand from people who are (or were) close to your subject.

With all the material you’ve been through, by now you should already have a pretty good picture of your protagonist. But you’ll surely have some curiosities and missing dots in their character arc to figure out, which you can only get by interviewing primary sources.

Interview friends and associates

This part is more relevant if your subject is contemporary, and you can actually meet up or call with relatives, friends, colleagues, business partners, neighbors, or any other person related to them.

In writing the popular biography of Steve Jobs, Walter Isaacson interviewed more than one hundred people, including Jobs’s family, colleagues, former college mates, business rivals, and the man himself.

🔍 Read other biographies to get a sense of what makes a great one. Check out our list of the 30 best biographies of all time , or take our 30-second quiz below for tips on which one you should read next.

Which biography should you read next?

Discover the perfect biography for you. Takes 30 seconds!

When you conduct your interviews, make sure to record them with high quality audio you can revisit later. Then use tools like Otter.ai or Descript to transcribe them 一 it’ll save you countless hours.

You can approach the interview with a specific set of questions, or follow your curiosity blindly, trying to uncover revealing stories and anecdotes about your subject. Whatever your method, author and biography editor Tom Bromley suggests that every interviewer arrives prepared, "Show that you’ve done your work. This will help to put the interviewee at ease, and get their best answers.”

Bromley also places emphasis on the order in which you conduct interviews. “You may want to interview different members of the family or friends first, to get their perspective on something, and then go directly to the main interviewee. You'll be able to use that knowledge to ask sharper, more specific questions.”

Finally, consider how much time you have with each interviewee. If you only have a 30-minute phone call with an important person, make it count by asking directly the most pressing questions you have. And, if you find a reliable source who is also particularly willing to help, conduct several interviews and ask them, if appropriate, to write a foreword as part of the book’s front matter .

Sometimes an important part of the process is packing your bags, getting on a plane, and personally visiting significant places in your character’s journey.

Visit significant places in their life

A place, whether that’s a city, a rural house, or a bodhi tree, can carry a particular energy that you can only truly experience by being there. In putting the pieces together about someone’s life, it may be useful to go visit where they grew up, or where other significant events of their lives happened. It will be easier to imagine what they experienced, and better tell their story.

In researching The Lost City of Z , author David Grann embarked on a trek through the Amazon, retracing the steps of British explorer Percy Fawcett. This led Grann to develop new theories about the circumstances surrounding the explorer's disappearance.

Still from the movie The Lost City of Z in which the explorer is surrounded by an Amazon native tribe

Hopefully, you won’t have to deal with jaguars and anacondas to better understand your subject’s environment, but try to walk into their shoes as much as possible.

Once you’ve researched your character enough, it’s time to put together all the puzzle pieces you collected so far.

Take the bulk of notes, media, and other documents you’ve collected, and start to give them some order and structure. A simple way to do this is by creating a timeline.

Create a chronological timeline

It helps to organize your notes chronologically 一 from childhood to the senior years, line up the most significant events of your subject’s life, including dates, places, names and other relevant bits.

You should be able to divide their life into distinct periods, each with their unique events and significance. Based on that, you can start drafting an outline of the narrative you want to create.

Draft a story outline

Since a biography entails writing about a person’s entire life, it will have a beginning, a middle, and an end. You can pick where you want to end the story, depending on how consequential the last years of your subject were. But the nature of the work will give you a starting character arc to work with.

To outline the story then, you could turn to the popular Three-Act Structure , which divides the narrative in three main parts. In a nutshell, you’ll want to make sure to have the following:

Act 1. Setup : Introduce the protagonist's background and the turning points that set them on a path to achieve a goal.
Act 2. Confrontation : Describe the challenges they encounter, both internal and external, and how they rise to them. Then..
Act 3. Resolution : Reach a climactic point in their story in which they succeed (or fail), showing how they (and the world around them) have changed as a result.

Only one question remains before you begin writing: what will be the main focus of your biography?

Think about why you’re so drawn to your subject to dedicate years of your life to recounting their own. What aspect of their life do you want to highlight? Is it their evil nature, artistic genius, or visionary mindset? And what evidence have you got to back that up? Find a central thesis or focus to weave as the main thread throughout your narrative.

Cover of Hitler and Stalin by Alan Bullock

Or find a unique angle

If you don’t have a particular theme to explore, finding a distinct angle on your subject’s story can also help you distinguish your work from other biographies or existing works on the same subject.

Plenty of biographies have been published about The Beatles 一 many of which have different focuses and approaches:

Philip Norman's Shout is sometimes regarded as leaning more towards a pro-Lennon and anti-McCartney stance, offering insights into the band's inner dynamics.
Ian McDonald's Revolution in the Head closely examines their music track by track, shifting the focus back to McCartney as a primary creative force.
Craig Brown's One Two Three Four aims to capture their story through anecdotes, fan letters, diary entries, and interviews.
Mark Lewisohn's monumental three-volume biography, Tune In , stands as a testament to over a decade of meticulous research, chronicling every intricate detail of the Beatles' journey.

Finally, consider that biographies are often more than recounting the life of a person. Similar to how Dickens’ Great Expectations is not solely about a boy named Pip (but an examination and critique of Britain’s fickle, unforgiving class system), a biography should strive to illuminate a broader truth — be it social, political, or human — beyond the immediate subject of the book.

Once you’ve identified your main focus or angle, it’s time to write a great story.

Illustration of a writer mixing storytelling ingredients

While biographies are often highly informative, they do not have to be dry and purely expository in nature . You can play with storytelling elements to make it an engaging read.

You could do that by thoroughly detailing the setting of the story , depicting the people involved in the story as fully-fledged characters , or using rising action and building to a climax when describing a particularly significant milestone of the subject’s life.

One common way to make a biography interesting to read is starting on a strong foot…

Hook the reader from the start

Just because you're honoring your character's whole life doesn't mean you have to begin when they said their first word. Starting from the middle or end of their life can be more captivating as it introduces conflicts and stakes that shaped their journey.

When he wrote about Christopher McCandless in Into the Wild , author Jon Krakauer didn’t open his subject’s childhood and abusive family environment. Instead, the book begins with McCandless hitchhiking his way into the wilderness, and subsequently being discovered dead in an abandoned bus. By starting in medias res , Krakauer hooks the reader’s interest, before tracing back the causes and motivations that led McCandless to die alone in that bus in the first place.

Chris McCandless self-portrait in front of the now iconic bus

You can bend the timeline to improve the reader’s reading experience throughout the rest of the story too…

Play with flashback

While biographies tend to follow a chronological narrative, you can use flashbacks to tell brief stories or anecdotes when appropriate. For example, if you were telling the story of footballer Lionel Messi, before the climax of winning the World Cup with Argentina, you could recall when he was just 13 years old, giving an interview to a local newspaper, expressing his lifelong dream of playing for the national team.

Used sparsely and intentionally, flashbacks can add more context to the story and keep the narrative interesting. Just like including dialogue does…

Reimagine conversations

Recreating conversations that your subject had with people around them is another effective way to color the story. Dialogue helps the reader imagine the story like a movie, providing a deeper sensory experience.

One thing is trying to articulate the root of Steve Jobs’ obsession with product design, another would be to quote his father , teaching him how to build a fence when he was young: “You've got to make the back of the fence just as good looking as the front of the fence. Even though nobody will see it, you will know. And that will show that you're dedicated to making something perfect.”

Unlike memoirs and autobiographies, in which the author tells the story from their personal viewpoint and enjoys greater freedom to recall conversations, biographies require a commitment to facts. So, when recreating dialogue, try to quote directly from reliable sources like personal diaries, emails, and text messages. You could also use your interview scripts as an alternative to dialogue. As Tom Bromley suggests, “If you talk with a good amount of people, you can try to tell the story from their perspective, interweaving different segments and quoting the interviewees directly.”

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How to Write Believable Dialogue

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These are just some of the story elements you can use to make your biography more compelling. Once you’ve finished your manuscript, it’s a good idea to ask for feedback.

If you’re going to self-publish your biography, you’ll have to polish it to professional standards. After leaving your work to rest for a while, look at it with fresh eyes and self-edit your manuscript eliminating passive voice, filler words, and redundant adverbs.

Illustration of an editor reviewing a manuscript

Then, have a professional editor give you a general assessment. They’ll look at the structure and shape of your manuscript and tell you which parts need to be expanded on or cut. As someone who edited and commissioned several biographies, Tom Bromley points out that a professional “will look at the sources used and assess whether they back up the points made, or if more are needed. They would also look for context, and whether or not more background information is needed for the reader to understand the story fully. And they might check your facts, too.”

In addition to structural editing, you may want to have someone copy-edit and proofread your work.

MEET EDITORS

Polish your book with expert help

Importantly, make sure to include a bibliography with a list of all the interviews, documents, and sources used in the writing process. You’ll have to compile it according to a manual of style, but you can easily create one by using tools like EasyBib . Once the text is nicely polished and typeset in your writing software , you can prepare for the publication process.

In conclusion, by mixing storytelling elements with diligent research, you’ll be able to breathe life into a powerful biography that immerses readers in another individual’s life experience. Whether that’ll spark inspiration or controversy, remember you could have an important role in shaping their legacy 一 and that’s something not to take lightly.

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First Time Author Bio Writing Examples and Guidelines

by Gatekeeper Press | Jul 17, 2020 | Blog , Writing

how to write an author bio with no experience

You have sailed through your first manuscript, nailing each benchmark of the self-publishing formatting process while writing a truly captivating story. Suddenly, though, you hit stop when you arrive at that last step: writing your author bio.

Facing this final step in the writing process can leave a first-time author shuddering as they wonder, “How do I write an author bio with no experience in writing?”

Penning an unpublished author bio is not as difficult as it might initially appear. After all, an author has to start somewhere! Think about it—all great authors had to write their first book at some point, meaning they were faced with the same problem of how to write an author bio with no experience.

These great writers undoubtedly struggled to solve the dilemma, too, but managed to push through and establish amazing literary careers—as will you.

First Time Publishing? Here’s What to Include in Your Author Bio

Think of your author bio as an opportunity to connect with your readers, versus a staid resume outlining your professional accomplishments.

The author bio should cultivate a sense of relationship with prospective readers; to entice them just enough to buy your book. Even as a first-time author, you can craft an interesting synopsis, including who you are, what you write, and why someone should read your book.

When grappling with the challenge of writing your first author bio, it helps to know that there is a general format to follow. These guidelines can assist you in assembling the important aspects of your first author bio, providing the kinds of information about you that the reader will enjoy knowing.

Author bio guidelines include:

1. Keep it brief.

Instead of attempting to list every facet of your career or all your hobbies, it is always best to keep the bio under 300 words.

2. Use a third-person voice.

Author bios come across as more professional when using the third person point of view, versus the first person.

3. Start with a one-liner.

Write an interesting opening line that incorporates your name, your profession (generally relevant for non-fiction titles), and the title of your book.

4. Sell yourself.

An author’s bio is akin to an elevator pitch, an interesting summary of your life, and how it relates to the book you wrote. Everything mentioned should be relevant to the book’s theme. For example, if you are a pediatric psychotherapist by trade and have decided to write a non-fiction book about parenting, that connection will increase your credibility.

5. List achievements sparingly.

Noting your college alma mater and degree is fine, but resist the temptation to list every career achievement ever accomplished, as doing so may come across as somewhat boastful and unnecessary.

6. Include some personal tidbits.

Adding a few personal hobbies or interests helps the reader feel a sense of familiarity with the author. Be selective and include those interests that further complement the theme of the book or that target your reader persona.

7. Use a professional photo.

Include a high-quality photo that does not have a distracting background. An unprofessional headshot will appear amateurish.

The primary difference between a first-time author’s bio and a seasoned professional’s is that the latter will be able to include other titles he or she has written in their bio. In addition, a career writer can include in the bio their “best-seller” status and any awards they have won, if these accomplishments were achieved.

4 First Time Author Bio Examples that Rock

Figuring out exactly how to write an author bio with no former experience may feel like a daunting task. Sure, you can locate bio templates online, but templates only provide the framework. It is up to you to pen something catchy and engaging that shines the most flattering light on your background, sans prior authorship. Here are some first-time author bio examples to hopefully inspire you:

1. Hannah Lee, author of Bloom Where You’re Planted

Hannah Lee was born and raised outside the city of Charleston, in the beautiful mountain state of West Virginia. Hannah considers her faith and family to be most important to her. If she isn’t spending time with her friends and family, you can almost always find her around her sweet yellow Labrador retriever, Tupelo. Bloom Where You’re Planted is Hannah’s first children’s book.

Note: Hannah Lee paints a picture of a person who values her loved ones in her short, succinct bio. This gives the reader a comforting sense that the writer is compassionate, which is an attractive trait in a children’s book author.

2. Dan DalMonte, author of The Realm of Possibility

Dan DalMonte was born in 1984 in San Francisco, California. Growing up, he was fascinated with baseball, and this interest led to some early exposure to reading since he was drawn to stories related to baseball. Later, Mr. DalMonte, who now teaches philosophy at the college level, developed a passion for ideas. In The Realm of Possibility, Dan explores the issue of how past events are unchangeable by introducing an ability to manipulate past events. The Realm of Possibility is Mr. DalMonte’s first book.

Note: Dan DalMonte describes the trajectory of his background that culminates in his passion for ideas. He piques the curiosity of the reader as to how exactly one can manipulate past events.

3. Victoria Lee, author of The Fever King

Victoria Lee grew up in Durham, North Carolina, where she spent twelve ascetic years as a vegetarian before discovering spicy chicken wings are, in fact, a delicacy. She’s been a state finalist competitive pianist, a hitchhiker, a pizza connoisseur, an EMT, an ex-pat in China and Sweden, and a science doctoral student. She’s also a bit of a snob about fancy whiskey. Victoria writes early in the morning, then spends the rest of the day trying to impress her Border collie puppy and make her experiments work.

Note: Victoria Lee conjures up an eclectic, even eccentric image through the diverse collection of endeavors she has experienced in her young life and delivers these with humor. Quirky is what you might expect from an author of a dystopian novel, which inspires the reader to go check out her book.

4. Bruce Clarke, author of Death by Grand Jury

Bruce Clarke practiced criminal law as a defense attorney in Washington, D.C., as a partner in the firm Clarke & Graae and as a staff attorney with the Public Defender Service (PDS) for the District of Columbia. He later worked at the Federal Judicial Center, where he served as Director of its Education Division. While on sabbatical from the law, Clarke studied script analysis in New York with Stella Adler and began writing plays. His plays Bluesman and Fifteen Rounds with Jackson Pollock have been produced in D.C. and regionally. He is the recipient of a playwrighting grant from the D. C. Commission on the Arts and Humanities, a playwrighting residency at the Edward Albee Foundation, and the Larry Neal Award for Dramatic writing.

Note: Bruce Clarke lays the foundation for his book by describing his vast experience in the field of law. Readers of his bio will quickly grasp by his background that he has the inside scoop, allowing him to create some intriguing short stories centering on Washington D.C.

Ready to Make Your Name Known?

Even the above author bio examples for first-time authors may not be enough to help you create your eloquent bio. Worry not, when you sign up for one of our editing packages, the editorial team at Gatekeeper Press will review your bio, and help you to create a captivating author bio. Contact us today!

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How to Write a Biography: 10 Step Guide + Book Template

POSTED ON Nov 14, 2023

Written by Nicole Ahlering

So you’d like to know how to write a biography. We can help with that! In this guide, we show you how to get from the initial book idea to publishing your book , and we throw in a free template to help you on your way.

Let’s jump right in.

This guide teaches you how to write a biography in the following steps:

Get Our 6″ x 9″ Pre-Formatted Book Template for Word or Mac

We will send you a Book Template for US Trade (standard paperback size).

Step 1: Read other biographies

Austin Kleon, Author of Steal Like an Artist , says “the writer tries to master words. All of these pursuits involve the study of those who have come before and the effort to build upon their work in some way.”

In other words, to be a great writer, you need to read the best biographies written by other excellent authors!

In this case, it would behoove you to read several biographies – whether historical or celebrity biographies is up to you and your sub-genre.

A good author to start with? Walter Isaacson . He’s written highly acclaimed biographies on everyone from Abraham Lincoln and Steve Jobs to Leonardo Da Vinci and Elon Musk.

Step 2: Identify your subject

Next, it’s time to choose who you’d like to write about – if you don’t already have someone in mind.

The most important factor will be, of course, your interest in the person you’re planning to write about. You’ll spend months (or even years) deep-diving into this person’s history, so you want to choose someone who you’re unlikely to tire of.

Here are a few other factors to consider:

How impactful has your potential subject’s life been? In other words, will people care to learn more about this person?
How readily available is information about your potential subject? Biographies require extensive research, so it’s critical to choose someone who has enough information out there to dig into! Consider whether your subject has done interviews, written journals, has family or a partner willing to speak with you, and more.
Are there already books written about your potential subject? Just because there’s an existing biography about the person you’re interested in doesn’t (necessarily) mean you can’t write another one. But if there are two or three biographies, you may want to reconsider. If you do choose to write about someone who has already been well-documented, be mindful about approaching the topic with a new angle or perspective. For instance, there are several biographies about George Washington, but author Alexis Coe wrote one about how Washington isn’t “quite the man we remember.” This brilliant iteration has over 12,000 ratings on Goodreads .
Is there a market demand for a book about your potential subject? If you’d like to publish your book, you need to be mindful of whether folks will want to read it. Do some research to determine if readers will be receptive to a book about the person you’re interested in.

Related: Is a Biography a Primary Source?

Step 3: Get permission to write about your subject

We’ll start by stating the obvious. It’s a good idea to get permission to write about your subject, even if you’re not legally required to. For one thing, it’s just good manners. Plus, you’re much more likely to get unfettered access to the information and sources you need to write your book.

But do you have to get permission? It depends.

In some cases, if your subject is considered a “public figure,” permission may not be required. The definition of a public figure varies depending on your jurisdiction, so you should always consult a lawyer before writing a biography.

If you do decide to proceed without permission, be mindful of how your book will be received and any legal issues that may arise.

Related : Difference Between A Memoir and Biography

Step 4: Create an outline

It’s critical to outline your biography before you begin writing it. Among other things, it helps ensure you cover every topic you’d like to and get the book in the correct chronological order. It also helps you identify themes that emerge as you organize your ideas.

Need help creating your outline? Learn how to do it (and take advantage of free templates!) in our guide to outlining a book .

Step 5: Select a working title (using a title generator)

Now is the fun part! It’s time to create a working title for your book. A working title is just what it sounds like: it’s a title that works – for now.

Of course, it’s helpful to have something to call the book as you’re working on it. And it encourages you to think about the message you’d like your book to convey. When your biography is complete, you can always do a little more research on how to write book titles for your specific sub-genre and update your working title accordingly.

Or, you can decide you still love your initial title and publish your book with that one!

We’ve made it easy for you to develop a working title – or multiple – using our book title generator .

Don't like it?

Step 6: Write a rough draft

Okay, now it’s time to start writing your rough draft. Don’t be intimidated; just focus on getting something down on the page. As experts on all things writing and self-publishing, we’ve got a rough draft writing guide to help you get through this phase of writing a biography.

Remember to be as balanced and objective as possible.

Make good use of your primary and secondary sources, and double-check all of your facts. You’ve got this!

Step 7: Self-edit

There are several different types of editing that we recommend each manuscript undergo. But before you give your rough draft to anyone else to review, you should edit it yourself.

The first step to self-editing?

Take a break! It’s essential to give your mind some time to recuperate before you go over your work. And never self-edit as you go!

After you’ve completed your break, here are a few things to consider as you edit:

Grammar. This one is self-explanatory and usually the easiest. You can use an AI editor to make a first pass and quickly catch obvious spelling errors. Depending on prompts and your experience with the tool, you can also use AI to catch some grammar and syntax issues as well.
Content and structure . This is the time to make sure the bones of your piece are good. Make sure your content flows logically (and in chronological order), no important pieces of information are missing, and there isn’t redundant or unhelpful information.
Clarity and consistency. Keep an eye out for any confusing copy and ensure your tone is uniform throughout the book.
Try reading your draft aloud. You’d be surprised at how many errors, shifts in tone, or other things you’d like to change that you don’t notice while reading in your head. Go ahead and do a read-through of your draft out loud.

Step 8: Work with an editor

Once you’ve created the best draft you can, it’s time to hire an editor. As we mentioned, there are multiple types of book editing, so you’ll need to choose the one(s) that are best for you and your project.

For instance, you can work with a developmental editor who helps with big-picture stuff. Think book structure, organization, and overall storytelling. Or you might work with a line editor who focuses on grammar, spelling, punctuation, and the like.

There are also specialized copy editors, content editors, fact-checkers, and more.

It’s in your best interest to do a substantial amount of research before choosing an editor since they’ll have a large impact on your book. Many editors are open to doing a paid trial so you can see their work before you sign them on for the entire book.

Step 9: Hire a book cover designer + get an ISBN

Once you’ve worked with your editor(s) to finalize your book, it’s time to get your book ready to go out into the world. Your first step is to hire a book cover designer to create a cover that grabs readers’ attention (pssst: did you know that all SelfPublishing authors get done-for-you professional book design? Ask us about it !).

Then, you’ll need to get an ISBN number for your book – or an International Standard Book Number. It’s a unique way to identify your book and is critical for ordering, inventory tracking, and more.

Bear in mind that each rendition of your book – regardless of when you publish them – will need their own ISBN numbers. So if you initially publish as a softcover and hardcover book and then decide to publish an ebook with the same exact content, you'll need 3 total ISBN numbers.

To get an ISBN, head to ISBN.org and follow the steps they provide. Or reference our guide right here for step-by-step instructions (complete with photos) on how to get an ISBN number for self-published books.

Step 10: Create a launch plan

Now is the most exciting part. It’s time to get your book out into the world! You’ll need to map out your plan, schedule events , finalize your pricing strategy, and more.

We have an entire guide to launching a book to help you figure it out.

Get your free book template!

Learning how to write a biography can be challenging, but when you have a clear plan and guidance, the process is much easier. We've helped thousands of aspiring authors just like you write and self-publish their own books. We know what works – and how to become a successfully published author faster.

Take the first step today and down the book template below!

And, if you need additional help writing your biography, remember that we’re standing by to help. Just schedule a book consultation and one of our team members will help answer any of your questions about the writing process.

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25 Eye-Catching Author Bio Examples

Ranking high on the list of Things Authors Hate To Write, biographies are something that can make even the most seasoned writer pull their hair out. Why do we hate writing them so much? Probably because it involves writing about ourselves. We write stories about other people, so having to turn the spotlight on ourselves can be daunting at best and downright cringe-inducing at worse.

However, a solid author bio is actually an important marketing tool. It can impact sales, your reputation, and help you grow a fanbase. The more fans you have, it follows the more sales you'll see. If you're a nonfiction writer, your bio is particularly important as it establishes your authority/expertise to write about the topic in your book and also your credibility with readers.

Check out these 25 authors who absolutely nailed their authors bios, and don't be scared to take notes! If you want additional inspiration, you can always use HubSpot's AI Content Writer to generate an author bio example or two. I'm sure you won't be disappointed.

In no particular order:

Courtney Milan's Author Bio
Sarah J. Maas' Author Bio
Michael Siemsen's Author Bio
Jonathan Maberry's Author Bio
Glynnis Campbell's Author Bio
Kwame Alexander's Author Bio
Nora Roberts' Author Bio
Alyssa Cole's Author Bio
Colleen Hoover's Author Bio
Gillian Flynn's Author Bio
David Baldacci's Author Bio
Adam Silvera's Author Bio
Mia Sosa's Author Bio
April White's Author Bio
Rick Mofina's Author Bio
Chuck Wendig's Author Bio
Skye Warren's Author Bio
J. T. Ellison's Author Bio
Karin Slaughter's Author Bio
Julia Quinn's Author Bio
Craig Martelle's Author Bio
Vanessa Riley's Author Bio
Aiden Thomas' Author Bio
Tiffany D. Jackson's Author Bio
Angie Fox's Author Bio

So, what makes a great author bio, and how can you write one?

Write in the third person

There's a reason this is called an author biography and not an author autobiography . Though you are the person who is more than likely writing your bio, you want it to sound as though someone else wrote it—someone who's objective and not biased toward you. Of course, being that you're the author, that sounds totally weird, since you more than likely are biased toward yourself. Still, establishing a third-person perspective when writing about yourself automatically establishes objectivity and professionalism, and inspires trust on the part of the reader.

Be mindful of tone

This is an important one, and what tone you use depends on the kind of writing you do. If you're a fiction author, you can usually get away with a more casual tone. Other subgenres lend themselves well to a bit of humor, too—generally lighthearted romance, chicklit, women's fiction, romantic comedies are good subgenres where humor tends to be well received. However, gauge this based on your writing and your understanding of your audience, or the type of audience you'd like to have. Conversely, if you're writing more serious fiction like literary fiction, hard sci-fi, epic fantasy or historical, then you might want to go easy on the humor and instead focus more on your expertise. Though it's fiction, readers might like to know that you have a Master's degree in Military History, or perhaps you've got a medical or science background that helped you write your biopunk novel. The same rules apply to nonfiction as well—humor or a light tone can be leveraged depending on the subject matter. If you're writing a lighthearted, uplifting personal development book, readers may appreciate your sense of humor. On the other hand, if you're writing a book about personal finance or navigating mental health issues, then perhaps you might focus on a more neutral tone and highlight your credentials instead.

Speaking of… discuss your credentials

The success of all books, whether they're nonfiction or fiction, rely on the credibility of the author. This credibility leaves the reader with a sense of trust, knowing that whatever they're reading was written by someone who could be called a subject matter expert. When readers trust you, they're more apt to tell the world about your book. And they're also apt to purchase your next one.

Credentials can look differently depending on the author and the kind of book being written, but they do need to align with the writing somehow. For instance, if you're a mechanic by education and experience, you're probably not the best person to write a nutrition book, unless you have those credentials. If you're a lawyer, you probably want to steer clear writing a book about medicine—unless you have those credentials as well. People want to read the work of someone who knows what they're talking about, so making it clear that you are indeed that subject matter expert immediately puts a reader's mind at ease.

You might be wondering how credentials work if you're a fiction writer. While it's certainly true that signaling authority in a field as a fiction writer is indeed more difficult—for instance, you don't have to be a scientist by education or profession to write a hard biopunk novel—subject matter expertise or at least thorough research can be indicated with a bibliography of sources, if you consulted actual medical journals or papers or textbooks on which to base your novel. If you write political thrillers, maybe your credentials come from the time you spent working for a three-letter agency, or maybe you write police procedurals because you were once a cop. You also don't need to have lived the life you're writing about. You don't need to have a law enforcement background to write an FBI series, and you don't need to have worked as a CIA asset in order to write an awesome spy thriller. But the authority you should have is a clear understanding of how storytelling mechanics function. Your writing should be top-notch and thoroughly edited—this is what establishes your authority as a professional writer, and when it comes to fiction, oftentimes that's enough.

Include your achievements

Did you graduate college with a degree in Creative Writing? Mention that. Did you attend graduate school and obtain an MFA? Have you won awards, scholarships, or fellowships for your writing? Readers need to know. Have you been published before? List those journals, magazines, anthologies, and/or individual publications.

This point correlates directly to the previous one about credentials, because they indicate to the reader that, essentially, you know what you're doing, and they're in the hands of an expert writer who is going to tell them an amazing story.

Say you don't have many—or any—achievements like the ones mentioned. That's okay, too! This could be a good place to list your relevant interests and hobbies. For instance, if you've written a political thriller, maybe you have a well-documented interest in politics, the American government, and conspiracies. Maybe in between novels, you spend your time reading tons of books about the subject. Maybe your serial killer novel is inspired by your interest in true crime, and for the writing of the book you read as many serial killer biographies you could get your hands on and conducted hundreds of hours of research. This, too, shows the reader why your book will be written as expertly as possible.

Mention your backlist

The author bio is a great place to mention your other books, if you have them. Perhaps the book the reader's holding is part of a series—do they know that there are more books? Point them in the direction of relevant work. You could briefly mention other works you have that are totally different than the one they're reading. For example, if they just completed your serial killer novel, they may or may not be interested in your contemporary romance. A safe way to introduce readers to your other work is to direct them to your website, but keep in mind you're not selling them on this, only pointing it out.

Keep it short

While you might be able to write about yourself for pages and pages, the truth is most readers only want to read about a couple of paragraphs about you, just enough to get to know, learn why you wrote the novel if that's applicable, and where they can keep up with your work. Unless you have a huge resume related to writing—you've got TV shows and movies and merch related to your books—you'll probably want to keep it short and sweet. The challenge is to weave in as much relevant information about yourself in as few words as possible, in order to entice the reader to stick with you but not overwhelm with information they simply won't care about. But, hey, we are writers, after all!

Hopefully taking a peek at these varied author bios that each feature something we touched on in this article will get your creative juices flowing—about yourself! Don't be daunted by thought of writing about yourself. This is your opportunity to show the world what an excellent writer you are, and why they definitely need to get into your book. Happy writing!

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What Is Biography? Definition, Usage, and Literary Examples

Biography definition.

A biography (BYE-og-ruh-fee) is a written account of one person’s life authored by another person. A biography includes all pertinent details from the subject’s life, typically arranged in a chronological order. The word biography stems from the Latin biographia , which succinctly explains the word’s definition: bios = “life” + graphia = “write.”

Since the advent of the written word, historical writings have offered information about real people, but it wasn’t until the 18th century that biographies evolved into a separate literary genre. Autobiographies and memoirs fall under the broader biography genre, but they are distinct literary forms due to one key factor: the subjects themselves write these works. Biographies are popular source materials for documentaries, television shows, and motion pictures.

The History of Biographies

The biography form has its roots in Ancient Rome and Greece. In 44 BCE, Roman writer Cornelius Nepos published Excellentium Imperatorum Vitae ( Lives of the Generals ), one of the earliest recorded biographies. In 80 CE, Greek writer Plutarch released Parallel Lives , a sweeping work consisting of 48 biographies of famous men. In 121 CE, Roman historian Suetonius wrote De vita Caesarum ( On the Lives of the Caesars ), a series of 12 biographies detailing the lives of Julius Caesar and the first 11 emperors of the Roman Empire. These were among the most widely read biographies of their time, and at least portions of them have survived intact over the millennia.

During the Middle Ages, the Roman Catholic Church had a notable influence on biographies. Historical, political, and cultural biographies fell out of favor. Biographies of religious figures—including saints, popes, and church founders—replaced them. One notable exception was Italian painter/architect Giorgio Vasari’s 1550 biography, The Lives of the Most Excellent Painters, Sculptors, and Architects , which was immensely popular. In fact, it is one of the first examples of a bestselling book.

Still, it wasn’t until the 18th century that authors began to abandon multiple subjects in a single work and instead focus their research and writing on one subject. Scholars consider James Boswell’s 1791 The Life of Samuel Johnson to be the first modern biography. From here, biographies were established as a distinct literary genre, separate from more general historical writing.

As understanding of psychology and sociology grew in the 19th and early 20th centuries, biographies further evolved, offering up even more comprehensive pictures of their subjects. Authors who played major roles in this contemporary approach to biographing include Lytton Strachey, Gamaliel Bradford, and Robert Graves.

Types of Biographies

While all biographical works chronicle the lives of real people, writers can present the information in several different ways.

Popular biographies are life histories written for a general readership. The Immortal Life of Henrietta Lacks by Rebecca Skloot and Into the Wild by Jon Krakauer are two popular examples.
Critical biographies discuss the relationship between the subject’s life and the work they produced or were involved in; for example, The Billionaire Who Wasn’t: How Chuck Feeney Secretly Made and Gave Away a Fortune by Conor O’Clery and Unpresidented: A Biography of Donald Trump by Martha Brockenbrough.
Historical biographies put greater understanding on how the subject’s life and contributions affected or were affected by the times in which they lived; see John Adams by David McCullough and Catherine the Great by Peter K. Massie.
Literary biographies concentrate almost exclusively on writers and artists, blending a conventional narrative of the historical facts of the subject’s life with an exploration of how these facts impacted their creative output. Some examples include Savage Beauty: The Life of Edna St. Vincent Millay by Nancy Milford and Jackson Pollock: An American Saga by Gregory White Smith and Steven Naifeh.
Reference biographies are more scholarly writings, usually written by multiple authors and covering multiple lives around a single topic. They verify facts, provide background details, and contribute supplemental information resources, like bibliographies, glossaries, and historical documents; for example, Black Americans in Congress, 1870-2007 and the Dictionary of Canadian Biography .
Fictional biographies, or biographical novels, like The Other Boleyn Girl by Philippa Gregory, incorporate creative license into the retelling of a real person’s story by taking on the structure and freedoms of a novel. The term can also describe novels in which authors give an abundance of background information on their characters, to the extent that the novel reads more like a biography than fiction. An example of this is George R.R. Martin’s Fire and Blood , a novel detailing the history of a royal family from his popular A Song of Ice and Fire

Biographies and Filmed Entertainment

Movie makers and television creators frequently produce biographical stories, either as dramatized productions based on real people or as nonfiction accounts.

Documentary

This genre is a nonfictional movie or television show that uses historical records to tell the story of a subject. The subject might be a one person or a group of people, or it might be a certain topic or theme. To present a biography in a visually compelling way, documentaries utilize archival footage, recreations, and interviews with subjects, scholars, experts, and others associated with the subject.

Famous film documentaries include Grey Gardens, a biography of two of Jacqueline Kennedy’s once-wealthy cousins, who, at the time of filming, lived in squalor in a condemned mansion in the Hamptons; and I Am Not Your Negro , a biography of the life and legacy of pioneering American author James Baldwin.

Television documentary series tell one story over the course of several episodes, like The Jinx : The Life and Deaths of Robert Durst , a biography of the real estate heir and alleged serial killer that focused on his suspected crimes. There are many nonfiction television shows that use a documentary format, but subjects typically change from one episode to the next, such as A&E’s Biography and PBS’s POV .

These films are biographical motion pictures, written by screenwriters and performed by actors. They often employ a certain amount of creative liberty in their interpretation of a real life. This is largely done to maintain a feasible runtime; capturing all of the pivotal moments of a subject’s life in a 90- or 120-minute movie is all but impossible. So, filmmakers might choose to add, eliminate, or combine key events and characters, or they may focus primarily on one or only a few aspects of the subject’s life. Some popular examples: Coal Miner’s Daughter , a biography of country music legend Loretta Lynn; Malcom X , a biopic centered on the civil rights leader of the same name; and The King’s Speech , a dramatization of Prince Albert’s efforts to overcome a stutter and ascend the English throne.

Semi-fictionalized account

This approach takes a real-life event and interprets or expands it in ways that stray beyond what actually happened. This is done for entertainment and to build the story so it fits the filmmaker’s vision or evolves into a longer form, such as a multi-season television show. These accounts sometimes come with the disclaimer that they are “inspired by true events.” Examples of semi-fictionalized accounts are the TV series Orange Is the New Black , Masters of Sex , and Mozart of the Jungle —each of which stem from at least one biographical element, but showrunners expounded upon to provide many seasons of entertainment.

The Functions of Biography

Biographies inform readers about the life of a notable person. They are a way to introduce readers to the work’s subject—the historical details, the subject’s motivations and psychological underpinnings, and their environment and the impact they had, both in the short and long term.

Because the author is somewhat removed from their subject, they can offer a more omniscient, third-person narrative account. This vantage point allows the author to put certain events into a larger context; compare and contrast events, people, and behaviors predominant in the subject’s life; and delve into psychological and sociological themes of which the subject may not have been aware.

Also, a writer structures a biography to make the life of the subject interesting and readable. Most biographers want to entertain as well as inform, so they typically use a traditional plot structure—an introduction, conflict , rising of tension, a climax, a resolution, and an ending—to give the life story a narrative shape. While the ebb and flow of life is a normal day-to-day rhythm, it doesn’t necessarily make for entertaining reading. The job of the writer, then, becomes one of shaping the life to fit the elements of a good plot.

Writers Known for Biographies

Many modern writers have dedicated much of their careers to biographies, such as:

Kitty Kelley, author of Jackie Oh! An Intimate Biography; His Way: The Unauthorized Biography of Frank Sinatra ; and The Family: The Real Story of the Bush Dynasty
Antonia Fraser, author of Mary Queen of Scots ; Cromwell; Our Chief of Men ; and The Gunpowder Plot: Terror and Faith in 1605
David McCullough, author of The Path Between the Seas; Truman ; and John Adams
Andrew Morton, author of Diana: Her True Story in Her Own Words; Madonna ; and Tom Cruise: An Unauthorized Biography
Alison Weir, author of The Six Wives of Henry VIII; Eleanor of Aquitaine: By the Wrath of God; Queen of England ; and Katherine Swynford: The Story of John of Gaunt and His Scandalous Duchess

Examples of Biographies

1. James Boswell, The Life of Samuel Johnson

The biography that ushered in the modern era of true-life writing, The Life of Samuel Johnson covered the entirety of its subject’s life, from his birth to his status as England’s preeminent writer to his death. Boswell was a personal acquaintance of Johnson, so he was able to draw on voluminous amounts of personal conversations the two shared.

What also sets this biography apart is, because Boswell was a contemporary of Johnson, readers see Johnson in the context of his own time. He wasn’t some fabled figure that a biographer was writing about centuries later; he was someone to whom the author had access, and Boswell could see the real-world influence his subject had on life in the here and now.

2. Sylvia Nasar, A Beautiful Mind

Nasar’s 1998 Pulitzer Prize-nominated biography of mathematician John Nash introduced legions of readers to Nash’s remarkable life and genius. The book opens with Nash’s childhood and follows him through his education, career, personal life, and struggles with schizophrenia. It ends with his acceptance of the 1994 Nobel Prize for Economics. In addition to a Pulitzer nomination, A Beautiful Mind won the National Book Critics Circle Award for Biography, was a New York Times bestseller, and provided the basis for the Academy Award-winning 2001 film of the same name.

3. Catherine Clinton, Harriet Tubman: The Road to Freedom

Clinton’s biography of the abolitionist icon is a large-scale epic that chronicles Tubman’s singular life. It starts at her birth in the 1820s as the slave Araminta Ross, continuing through her journey to freedom; her pivotal role in the Underground Railroad; her Moses-like persona; and her death in 1913.

Because Tubman could not read or write, she left behind no letters, diaries, or other personal papers in her own hand and voice. Clinton reconstructed Tubman’s history entirely through other source material, and historians often cite this work as the quintessential biography of Tubman’s life.

4. Megan Mayhew Bergman, Almost Famous Women

Almost Famous Women is not a biography in the strictest sense of the word; it is a fictional interpretation of real-life women. Each short story revolves around a woman from history with close ties to fame, such as movie star Marlene Dietrich, Standard Oil heiress Marion “Joe” Carstairs, aviatrix Beryl Markham, Oscar Wilde’s niece Dolly, and Lord Byron’s daughter Allegra. Mayhew Bergman imagines these colorful women in equally colorful episodes that put them in a new light—a light that perhaps offers them the honor and homage that history denied them.

Further Resources on Biography

Newsweek compiled their picks for the 75 Best Biographies of All Time .

The Open Education Database has a list of 75 Biographies to Read Before You Die .

Goodreads put together a list of readers’ best biography selections .

If you’re looking to write biographies, Infoplease has instructions for writing shorter pieces, while The Writer has practical advice for writing manuscript-length bios.

Ranker collected a comprehensive list of famous biographers .

Related Terms

Autobiography
Short Story

15 Great Writer Bio Examples for Your Next “About the Author”

Need to write an “about the author,” or change up the writer bio you’re using? Here are 15 great about the author examples from authors who have promoted with us. Be creative and have fun!

Writer bio examples that focus on what they write, with some personal information:

Barbara lohr.

Barbara Lohr writes heartwarming, sweet romance with a flair for fun. In her novels, feisty women take on hunky heroes and life’s issues. Family often figures in her stories. Her series include Windy City Romance, set in Oak Park, a Chicago suburb. The Kirkpatrick family take readers on journeys of the heart to Savannah, Italy and Guatemala. Her Man from Yesterday series is set in Gull Harbor, a charming Lake Michigan beach town where lovers discover that the second time around might just be the best. Dark chocolate is her favorite food group and she makes a mean popover. When she’s not writing, she loves to bike, kayak, or golf. Barbara lives in the South with her husband and a cat that claims he was Heathcliff in a former life. For more information on the author and her work, please see www.BarbaraLohrAuthor.com or www.Facebook.com/barbaralohrauthor.

Alisa Woods

Alisa Woods is a bestselling author of sexy paranormal romances about complicated men and the strong women who love them. Her stories teem with shifters, witches, dragons, and angels—magick thrills her stories on every page, but romance is the heart that drives them. Alisa firmly believes that love triumphs over all.

Get a free story: https://smarturl.it/AlisaNewsletter

Alisa’s website: www.AlisaWoodsAuthor.com

Madison Kent

Madison Kent developed her passion for writing as a young girl in the city of Chicago at the library near Humboldt Park where all dreams came alive. She believed the written word could unlock doors as well as the imagination and unite our spirit through our visions.

Madison Kent is a published poet and mystery novelist whose books include Stalking Jack, The Harrison, The Mystery at Belle Magnolia, Some Saints Prey, Silver Bells Slaying, A Smidgeon of Ghosts, and Devil on Deck, Sweet Murder, and the ninth Smoked in Ybor. She is currently working on the tenth in the series.

All books feature the aggressive but flawed female sleuth, Madeline Donovan.

Please visit the Madison Kent website to read excerpts and view book trailers.

Website and trailers: www.madisonkentbooks.com

Writer bio examples that focus mostly on the personal information:

Teyla branton.

Internationally bestselling author Teyla Branton grew up avidly reading science fiction and fantasy and watching Star Trek reruns with her large family. They lived on a little farm where she loved to visit the solitary cow and collect (and juggle) the eggs, usually making it back to the house with most of them intact. On that same farm she once owned thirty-three gerbils and eighteen cats, not a good mix, as it turns out. Teyla always had her nose in a book and daydreamed about someday creating her own worlds. She is now married, mostly grown up, and has seven kids, so life at her house can be very interesting (and loud), but writing keeps her sane. Grabbing any snatch of free time from her hectic life, she escapes to her office to write. She loves traveling, martial arts, shooting, and belly dancing. Teyla writes urban fantasy ( Unbounded series), paranormal romance ( Imprints series), and science fiction ( Colony Six series). She also writes contemporary romance ( Lily’s House and Finding Home series) and romantic suspense under the name Rachel Branton. For a free ebook and to hear about new releases, please visit https://www.TeylaRachelBranton.com.

Emma St. Clair

Hey! I’m Emma , the USA Today bestselling author of over fifteen sweet romance novels.

I’ve been crafting stories since I was old enough to hold a pencil. Though I write in the clean and wholesome romance genre, I like heroines sassy and their struggles to be real. You’ll find happy endings, yes, but a lot of mess along the way—and maybe some laughs. Just like real life.

Confession: I didn’t start out as a romantic. In fact, I might have rolled my eyes at happy endings.

Somewhere between watching Hallmark Christmas movies and finally reading Pride and Prejudice, something shifted. I’m writing romance, but on my own terms. Readers will always get their happy ending, but also sassy heroines and snappy dialogue. No cheese.

When I’m not writing, I am helping my husband wrangle our five children and Great Dane. (If only we could teach the dog to watch the kids…) We live in Katy, Texas and yes, the stars at night are big and bright.

You can find many of all my books on Amazon and the Sandover Beach series on multiple retailers like Apple and Kobo and Nook.

Margaret Watson

I’ve made up stories in my head for as long as I can remember—I put myself to sleep at night when I was young by rewriting the plots and endings of books I’d read. I assumed this was normal and everyone else did it, too, until I began getting weird looks when I talked about it. Finally, when I was twelve, I figured it out and decided I’d be a writer when I grew up.

I got sidetracked by my love of animals and the need for a “real” job, so I became a veterinarian instead. Twenty-five years ago, when I realized I was making up stories about my clients and their pets, I decided to try putting them down on paper.

The result? After writing thirty books for Harlequin and selling millions of copies of them, I’m now writing The Donovan Family series, romantic suspense novels about a family of Chicago cops.

I consider myself the luckiest person in the world to be involved in two careers that I love. But more important than either career is my family—my husband and my three daughters. We live in a Chicago suburb with a menagerie of pets.

A native New Englander, Tom Turner dropped out of college and ran a Vermont bar. Limping back a few years later to get his sheepskin, he went on to become an advertising copywriter, first in Boston, then New York. After 10 years of post-Mad Men life, he made both a career and geography change and ended up in Palm Beach, renovating houses and collecting raw materials for his novels. He now lives on Skidaway Island, outside of Savannah, where he’s writing books about passion and murder among his neighbors.

R.V. Bowman

R.V. Bowman spends her days wrangling middle-school students while secretly trying to instill a love of language without any of them realizing it. By night, she picks up her pen (okay, it’s really a keyboard, but pen has a nicer ring, don’t you think?) and writes fantastical adventures full of magic and heart.

Although her major was in English and journalism, R.V. Bowman decided that she preferred the imaginative to the realistic. Her love of books began as a child when she would pester anyone within earshot to read her a story. Once she learned to read on her own, her grandmother fed her reading addiction by supplying her with classics such as Stuart Little, The Black Stallion, and The Hobbit for every birthday and Christmas.

R.V. Bowman lives in Northwest Ohio with her husband, two sons, and a very hairy dog named Kipper.

Amelia Addler

Amelia Addler writes always sweet, always swoon-worthy romance and women’s fiction stories and believes that everyone deserves their own happily ever after. Her soulmate is a man who once spent five weeks driving her to work at 4AM after her car broke down (and he didn’t complain, not even once). She is lucky enough to be married to that man and they live in Pittsburgh with their little yellow mutt.

Visit her website at AmeliaAddler.com.

Krista Wagner

Krista Wagner is a product of the 70’s who loves all things 80’s. A lover of suspense and young adult realistic fiction, Krista finds herself meeting new intriguing characters all of the time in her own fictional worlds. When she’s not writing novels, you can find her watching suspenseful movies, playing 80’s video games, reading the best book in the world, The Bible, and spending time with her incredibly entertaining family.

Krista is the author of several titles including the YA Small Town Secrets Novel standalone series and the MG/YA Magical Forest series as well as her psychological thriller Shrouded Memory.

“Dealing with danger and handing out hope” Krista Wagner, author of mysteries, thrills, and all that is real

Find out more about Krista here: kristawagner.wixsite.com/author/bio Follow her on Facebook: facebook.com/kristawagnerofficial/ Twitter:twitter.com/IntentBook04 Goodreads:https://www.goodreads.com/author/show/8509957.Krista_Wagner

Writer bio examples that reveal something neat, followed by personal information:

Chelsea thomas.

Everyone loves a secret.

So here’s a good one . . .

. . . Chelsea Thomas is technically two people, married writing team Chelsea and Matthew Thomas.

Matt and Chelsea write cozy mysteries set on an apple orchard in upstate New York. They also write television and film. As screenwriters, they have worked with several studios, including Nickelodeon, SONY, and CBS.

Chelsea and Matt are graduates of Duke University and they are members of the Writers Guild of America. And they’re USA Today Bestselling authors.

Chelsea enjoys spending time with animals and practicing yoga. Matt loves playing music. They both enjoy spending time near the water.

Join the Chelsea Thomas Reader Club: www.chelseathomasauthor.com

Writer bio examples that take more of a humorous slant:

Holly cortelyou.

Holly Cortelyou is a romance author who pens sweet and spicy small town, contemporary romances that just might have a hint of mystery or a dollop of magic.

On any given day Holly can be found sipping coffee and surfing Facebook for gossip on royals, college football (Go Ducks!), knitting, and ghosts!

After trying on many hats as a meeting planner, political scientist, long haul trucker, and financial services specialist, she’s finally found the perfect fit as a romance writer!

Holly’s living her own Happily Ever After with an uber-handy and sexily broad-shouldered husband, a sweet silver lab and a fluffball kitty in sun-kissed Southern Oregon.

She has hazel eyes and a goofy sense of humor . . . all the rest is subject to change without notice.

Please come chat over on . . . www.HollyCortelyou.com. www.facebook.com/HollyCortelyouAuthor www.instagram.com/HollyCortelyou

Whitney Dineen

Whitney Dineen is a rock star in her own head. While delusional about her singing abilities, there’s been a plethora of validation that she’s a fairly decent author (AMAZING!!!). After many writing awards and selling nearly a kabillion books (math may not be her forte, either), she’s decided to just let the voices in her head say whatever they want (sorry, Mom). She also won a fourth-place ribbon in a fifth-grade swim meet in backstroke. So, there’s that.

Whitney loves to play with her kids (a.k.a. dazzle them with her amazing flossing abilities), bake stuff, eat stuff, and write books for people who “get” her. She thinks french fries are the perfect food and Mrs. Roper is her spirit animal.

Gold Medal winner at the International Readers’ Favorite Awards, 2017.

Silver medal winner at the International Readers’ Favorite Awards, 2015, 2016, 2019.

Finalist RONE Awards, 2016, 2018, 2019.

Finalist at the IRFA 2016, 2017.

Finalist at the Book Excellence Awards, 2017

Finalist Top Shelf Indie Book Awards, 2017

Baileigh Higgins

South African writer and coffee addict Baileigh Higgins lives in the Free State with hubby and best friend Brendan and loves nothing more than lazing on the couch with pizza and a bad horror movie. Her unhealthy obsession with the end of the world has led to numerous books on the subject and a secret bunker only she knows the location of. Visit her website at www.baileighhiggins.com for more information on her upcoming projects, new releases, and giveaways. Sign up for her Newsletter and get your Free Ebook, Tales from the Apocalypse, today.

Kyle Robert Shultz

Kyle Robert Shultz developed the power of creating zany, fantastical worlds in his early teens, when he was bitten by a radioactive book. He is the author of multiple series set in the Afterverse, a parallel universe where myths, fairy tales, and classic stories are real events and part of history. He lives in self-imposed exile in the southern Idaho desert, far enough away from humanity to protect innocent lives should he lose control of his awesome fictional powers and rip a hole in the space-time continuum or something.

Kyle is a Christian who believes in writing high-quality stories free from agendas, politics, and objectionable content. His stories are clean, but not remotely safe. In reading them, you assume all risks—Kyle cannot be held responsible for any damage wrought upon your emotional well-being or cardiovascular health by unforeseen plot twists.

Have you read any great about the author examples or writer bios recently? We’d love to hear in the comments below!

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Writing about Family in Your Fiction

So you have an eccentric uncle or a family secret that is just too good NOT to write about. After all, you know them best, and you won’t have to spend time making up the juicy details. But should you write about family and other loved ones in your fiction? Or should you steer clear?

questions to ask an editor before hiring

8 Questions You Should Ask Before Hiring a Book Editor

All authors need a good book editor to look over their novels. To make sure you’ve found the right editor, try asking the editor these 8 questions!

How to Use Promo Stacking to Sell More Books

Promo stacking is the strategy of booking multiple promotions for one book in a limited time period, with the goal selling more books even after the promotion ends. If you’re thinking of promo stacking, here are some tips to help you out.

Hi, thanks for sharing fantastic examples: about the author. This is what I was looking for. As I’m an author in the making. My debut upcoming poetry book ‘Reborn’ is coming soon on Amazon and Flipkart. I’m sharing some lines: Know your desire and light that fire Know your desire, And light that fire.

Who are you? You are to recognise. What is your worth? You are to improvise. Death is not just physical, There is death of soul. Your soul dies the day, When you forget your goal. Then, you pay like a liar. Naresh Kumar Saroay© from upcoming book ‘Reborn’ [email protected]

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How to Write a Biography

Biographies are big business. Whether in book form or Hollywood biopics, the lives of the famous and sometimes not-so-famous fascinate us.

While it’s true that most biographies are about people who are in the public eye, sometimes the subject is less well-known. Primarily, though, famous or not, the person who is written about has led an incredible life.

In this article, we will explain biography writing in detail for teachers and students so they can create their own.

While your students will most likely have a basic understanding of a biography, it’s worth taking a little time before they put pen to paper to tease out a crystal-clear definition of one.

What Is a Biography?

how to write a biography | how to start an autobiography | How to Write a Biography | literacyideas.com

A biography is an account of someone’s life written by someone else . While there is a genre known as a fictional biography, for the most part, biographies are, by definition, nonfiction.

Generally speaking, biographies provide an account of the subject’s life from the earliest days of childhood to the present day or, if the subject is deceased, their death.

The job of a biography is more than just to outline the bare facts of a person’s life.

Rather than just listing the basic details of their upbringing, hobbies, education, work, relationships, and death, a well-written biography should also paint a picture of the subject’s personality and experience of life.

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Full Biographies

Teaching unit.

Teach your students everything they need to know about writing an AUTOBIOGRAPHY and a BIOGRAPHY.

⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐ ( 26 reviews )

Features of a Biography

Before students begin writing a biography, they’ll need to have a firm grasp of the main features of a Biography. An excellent way to determine how well they understand these essential elements is to ask them to compile a checklist like the one-blow

Their checklists should contain the items below at a minimum. Be sure to help them fill in any gaps before moving on to the writing process.

The purpose of a biography is to provide an account of someone’s life.

Biography structure.

ORIENTATION (BEGINNING) Open your biography with a strong hook to grab the reader’s attention

SEQUENCING: In most cases, biographies are written in chronological order unless you are a very competent writer consciously trying to break from this trend.

COVER: childhood, upbringing, education, influences, accomplishments, relationships, etc. – everything that helps the reader to understand the person.

CONCLUSION: Wrap your biography up with some details about what the subject is doing now if they are still alive. If they have passed away, make mention of what impact they have made and what their legacy is or will be.

BIOGRAPHY FEATURES

LANGUAGE Use descriptive and figurative language that will paint images inside your audience’s minds as they read. Use time connectives to link events.

PERSPECTIVE Biographies are written from the third person’s perspective.

DETAILS: Give specific details about people, places, events, times, dates, etc. Reflect on how events shaped the subject. You might want to include some relevant photographs with captions. A timeline may also be of use depending upon your subject and what you are trying to convey to your audience.

TENSE Written in the past tense (though ending may shift to the present/future tense)

THE PROCESS OF WRITING A BIOGRAPHY

Like any form of writing, you will find it simple if you have a plan and follow it through. These steps will ensure you cover the essential bases of writing a biography essay.

Firstly, select a subject that inspires you. Someone whose life story resonates with you and whose contribution to society intrigues you. The next step is to conduct thorough research. Engage in extensive reading, explore various sources, watch documentaries, and glean all available information to provide a comprehensive account of the person’s life.

Creating an outline is essential to organize your thoughts and information. The outline should include the person’s early life, education, career, achievements, and any other significant events or contributions. It serves as a map for the writing process, ensuring that all vital information is included.

Your biography should have an engaging introduction that captivates the reader’s attention and provides background information on the person you’re writing about. It should include a thesis statement summarising the biography’s main points.

Writing a biography in chronological order is crucial . You should begin with the person’s early life and move through their career and achievements. This approach clarifies how the person’s life unfolded and how they accomplished their goals.

A biography should be written in a narrative style , capturing the essence of the person’s life through vivid descriptions, anecdotes, and quotes. Avoid dry, factual writing and focus on creating a compelling narrative that engages the reader.

Adding personal insights and opinions can enhance the biography’s overall impact, providing a unique perspective on the person’s achievements, legacy, and impact on society.

Editing and proofreading are vital elements of the writing process. Thoroughly reviewing your biography ensures that the writing is clear, concise, and error-free. You can even request feedback from someone else to ensure that it is engaging and well-written.

Finally, including a bibliography at the end of your biography is essential. It gives credit to the sources that were used during research, such as books, articles, interviews, and websites.

Tips for Writing a Brilliant Biography

Biography writing tip #1: choose your subject wisely.

There are several points for students to reflect on when deciding on a subject for their biography. Let’s take a look at the most essential points to consider when deciding on the subject for a biography:

Interest: To produce a biography will require sustained writing from the student. That’s why students must choose their subject well. After all, a biography is an account of someone’s entire life to date. Students must ensure they choose a subject that will sustain their interest throughout the research, writing, and editing processes.

Merit: Closely related to the previous point, students must consider whether the subject merits the reader’s interest. Aside from pure labors of love, writing should be undertaken with the reader in mind. While producing a biography demands sustained writing from the author, it also demands sustained reading from the reader.

Therefore, students should ask themselves if their chosen subject has had a life worthy of the reader’s interest and the time they’d need to invest in reading their biography.

Information: Is there enough information available on the subject to fuel the writing of an entire biography? While it might be a tempting idea to write about a great-great-grandfather’s experience in the war. There would be enough interest there to sustain the author’s and the reader’s interest, but do you have enough access to information about their early childhood to do the subject justice in the form of a biography?

Biography Writing Tip #2: R esearch ! Research! Research!

While the chances are good that the student already knows quite a bit about the subject they’ve chosen. Chances are 100% that they’ll still need to undertake considerable research to write their biography.

As with many types of writing , research is an essential part of the planning process that shouldn’t be overlooked. If students wish to give as complete an account of their subject’s life as possible, they’ll need to put in the time at the research stage.

An effective way to approach the research process is to:

1. Compile a chronological timeline of the central facts, dates, and events of the subject’s life

2. Compile detailed descriptions of the following personal traits:

Physical looks
Character traits
Values and beliefs

3. Compile some research questions based on different topics to provide a focus for the research:

Childhood : Where and when were they born? Who were their parents? Who were the other family members? What education did they receive?
Obstacles: What challenges did they have to overcome? How did these challenges shape them as individuals?
Legacy: What impact did this person have on the world and/or the people around them?
Dialogue & Quotes: Dialogue and quotations by and about the subject are a great way to bring color and life to a biography. Students should keep an eagle eye out for the gems that hide amid their sources.

As the student gets deeper into their research, new questions will arise that can further fuel the research process and help to shape the direction the biography will ultimately go in.

Likewise, during the research, themes will often begin to suggest themselves. Exploring these themes is essential to bring depth to biography, but we’ll discuss this later in this article.

Research Skills:

Researching for biography writing is an excellent way for students to hone their research skills in general. Developing good research skills is essential for future academic success. Students will have opportunities to learn how to:

Gather relevant information
Evaluate different information sources
Select suitable information
Organize information into a text.

Students will have access to print and online information sources, and, in some cases, they may also have access to people who knew or know the subject (e.g. biography of a family member).

These days, much of the research will likely take place online. It’s crucial, therefore, to provide your students with guidance on how to use the internet safely and evaluate online sources for reliability. This is the era of ‘ fake news ’ and misinformation after all!

COMPLETE TEACHING UNIT ON INTERNET RESEARCH SKILLS USING GOOGLE SEARCH

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Teach your students ESSENTIAL SKILLS OF THE INFORMATION ERA to become expert DIGITAL RESEARCHERS.

⭐How to correctly ask questions to search engines on all devices.

⭐ How to filter and refine your results to find exactly what you want every time.

⭐ Essential Research and critical thinking skills for students.

⭐ Plagiarism, Citing and acknowledging other people’s work.

⭐ How to query, synthesize and record your findings logically.

BIOGRAPHY WRITING Tip #3: Find Your Themes In Biography Writing

Though predominantly a nonfiction genre, the story still plays a significant role in good biography writing. The skills of characterization and plot structuring are transferable here. And, just like in fiction, exploring themes in a biographical work helps connect the personal to the universal. Of course, these shouldn’t be forced; this will make the work seem contrived, and the reader may lose faith in the truthfulness of the account. A biographer needs to gain and maintain the trust of the reader.

Fortunately, themes shouldn’t need to be forced. A life well-lived is full of meaning, and the themes the student writer is looking for will emerge effortlessly from the actions and events of the subject’s life. It’s just a case of learning how to spot them.

One way to identify the themes in a life is to look for recurring events or situations in a person’s life. These should be apparent from the research completed previously. The students should seek to identify these patterns that emerge in the subject’s life. For example, perhaps they’ve had to overcome various obstacles throughout different periods of their life. In that case, the theme of overcoming adversity is present and has been identified.

Usually, a biography has several themes running throughout, so be sure your students work to identify more than one theme in their subject’s life.

BIOGRAPHY WRITING Tip: #4 Put Something of Yourself into the Writing

While the defining feature of a biography is that it gives an account of a person’s life, students must understand that this is not all a biography does. Relating the facts and details of a subject’s life is not enough. The student biographer should not be afraid to share their thoughts and feelings with the reader throughout their account of their subject’s life.

The student can weave some of their personality into the fabric of the text by providing commentary and opinion as they relate the events of the person’s life and the wider social context at the time. Unlike the detached and objective approach we’d expect to find in a history textbook, in a biography, student-writers should communicate their enthusiasm for their subject in their writing.

This makes for a more intimate experience for the reader, as they get a sense of getting to know the author and the subject they are writing about.

Biography Examples For Students

Year 5 Example
Year 7 Example
Year 9 Example

“The Rock ‘n’ Roll King: Elvis Presley”

Elvis Aaron Presley, born on January 8, 1935, was an amazing singer and actor known as the “King of Rock ‘n’ Roll.” Even though he’s been dead for nearly 50 years, I can’t help but be fascinated by his incredible life!

Elvis grew up in Tupelo, Mississippi, in a tiny house with his parents and twin brother. His family didn’t have much money, but they shared a love for music. Little did they know Elvis would become a music legend!

When he was only 11 years old, Elvis got his first guitar. He taught himself to play and loved singing gospel songs. As he got older, he started combining different music styles like country, blues, and gospel to create a whole new sound – that’s Rock ‘n’ Roll!

In 1954, at the age of 19, Elvis recorded his first song, “That’s All Right.” People couldn’t believe how unique and exciting his music was. His famous hip-swinging dance moves also made him a sensation!

Elvis didn’t just rock the music scene; he also starred in movies like “Love Me Tender” and “Jailhouse Rock.” But fame came with challenges. Despite facing ups and downs, Elvis kept spreading happiness through his music.

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Tragically, Elvis passed away in 1977, but his music and charisma live on. Even today, people worldwide still enjoy his songs like “Hound Dog” and “Can’t Help Falling in Love.” Elvis Presley’s legacy as the King of Rock ‘n’ Roll will live forever.

Long Live the King: I wish I’d seen him.

Elvis Presley, the Rock ‘n’ Roll legend born on January 8, 1935, is a captivating figure that even a modern-day teen like me can’t help but admire. As I delve into his life, I wish I could have experienced the magic of his live performances.

Growing up in Tupelo, Mississippi, Elvis faced challenges but found solace in music. At 11, he got his first guitar, a symbol of his journey into the world of sound. His fusion of gospel, country, and blues into Rock ‘n’ Roll became a cultural phenomenon.

The thought of being in the audience during his early performances, especially when he recorded “That’s All Right” at 19, sends shivers down my spine. Imagining the crowd’s uproar and feeling the revolutionary energy of that moment is a dream I wish I could have lived.

Elvis wasn’t just a musical prodigy; he was a dynamic performer. His dance moves, the embodiment of rebellion, and his roles in films like “Love Me Tender” and “Jailhouse Rock” made him a true icon.

After watching him on YouTube, I can’t help but feel a little sad that I’ll never witness the King’s live performances. The idea of swaying to “Hound Dog” or being enchanted by “Can’t Help Falling in Love” in person is a missed opportunity. Elvis may have left us in 1977, but he was the king of rock n’ roll. Long live the King!

Elvis Presley: A Teen’s Take on the Rock ‘n’ Roll Icon”

Elvis Presley, born January 8, 1935, was a revolutionary force in the music world, earning his title as the “King of Rock ‘n’ Roll.” Exploring his life, even as a 16-year-old today, I’m captivated by the impact he made.

Hailing from Tupelo, Mississippi, Elvis grew up in humble beginnings, surrounded by the love of his parents and twin brother. It’s inspiring to think that, despite financial challenges, this young man would redefine the music scene.

At 11, Elvis got his first guitar, sparking a self-taught journey into music. His early gospel influences evolved into a unique fusion of country, blues, and gospel, creating the electrifying genre of Rock ‘n’ Roll. In 1954, at only 19, he recorded “That’s All Right,” marking the birth of a musical legend.

Elvis wasn’t just a musical innovator; he was a cultural phenomenon. His rebellious dance moves and magnetic stage presence challenged the norms. He transitioned seamlessly into acting, starring in iconic films like “Love Me Tender” and “Jailhouse Rock.”

how to write a biography | Elvis Presley promoting Jailhouse Rock | How to Write a Biography | literacyideas.com

However, fame came at a cost, and Elvis faced personal struggles. Despite the challenges, his music continued to resonate. Even now, classics like “Hound Dog” and “Can’t Help Falling in Love” transcend generations.

Elvis Presley’s impact on music and culture is undeniable. He was known for his unique voice, charismatic persona, and electrifying performances. He sold over one billion records worldwide, making him one of the best-selling solo artists in history. He received numerous awards throughout his career, including three Grammy Awards and the Grammy Lifetime Achievement Award.

Elvis’s influence can still be seen in today’s music. Many contemporary artists, such as Bruno Mars, Lady Gaga, and Justin Timberlake, have cited Elvis as an inspiration. His music continues to be featured in movies, TV shows, and commercials.

Elvis left us in 1977, but his legacy lives on. I appreciate his breaking barriers and fearlessly embracing his artistic vision. Elvis Presley’s impact on music and culture is timeless, a testament to the enduring power of his artistry. His music has inspired generations and will continue to do so for many years to come.

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Teaching Resources

Use our resources and tools to improve your student’s writing skills through proven teaching strategies.

BIOGRAPHY WRITING TEACHING IDEAS AND LESSONS

We have compiled a sequence of biography-related lessons or teaching ideas that you can follow as you please. They are straightforward enough for most students to follow without further instruction.

BIOGRAPHY LESSON IDEA # 1:

This session aims to give students a broader understanding of what makes a good biography.

Once your students have compiled a comprehensive checklist of the main features of a biography, allow them to use it to assess some biographies from your school library or on the internet using the feature checklist.

When students have assessed a selection of biographies, take some time as a class to discuss them. You can base the discussion around the following prompts:

Which biographies covered all the criteria from their checklist?
Which biographies didn’t?
Which biography was the most readable in terms of structure?
Which biography do you think was the least well-structured? How would you improve this?

Looking at how other writers have interpreted the form will help students internalize the necessary criteria before attempting to produce a biography. Once students have a clear understanding of the main features of the biography, they’re ready to begin work on writing a biography.

When the time does come to put pen to paper, be sure they’re armed with the following top tips to help ensure they’re as well prepared as possible.

BIOGRAPHY LESSON IDEA # 2:

This session aims to guide students through the process of selecting the perfect biography subject.

Instruct students to draw up a shortlist of three potential subjects for the biography they’ll write.

Using the three criteria mentioned in the writing guide (Interest, Merit, and Information), students award each potential subject a mark out of 5 for each of the criteria. In this manner, students can select the most suitable subject for their biography.

BIOGRAPHY LESSON IDEA # 3:

This session aims to get students into the researching phase, then prioritise and organise events chronologically.

Students begin by making a timeline of their subject’s life, starting with their birth and ending with their death or the present day. If the student has yet to make a final decision on the subject of their biography, a family member will often serve well for this exercise as a practice exercise.

Students should research and gather the key events of the person’s life, covering each period of their life from when they were a baby, through childhood and adolescence, right up to adulthood and old age. They should then organize these onto a timeline. Students can include photographs with captions if they have them.

They can present these to the class when they have finished their timelines.

BIOGRAPHY LESSON IDEA # 4:

Instruct students to look over their timeline, notes, and other research. Challenge them to identify three patterns that repeat throughout the subject’s life and sort all the related events and incidents into specific categories.

Students should then label each category with a single word. This is the thematic concept or the broad general underlying idea. After that, students should write a sentence or two expressing what the subject’s life ‘says’ about that concept.

This is known as the thematic statement . With the thematic concepts and thematic statements identified, the student now has some substantial ideas to explore that will help bring more profound meaning and wider resonance to their biography.

BIOGRAPHY LESSON IDEA # 5:

Instruct students to write a short objective account of an event in their own life. They can write about anyone from their past. It needn’t be more than a couple of paragraphs, but the writing should be strictly factual, focusing only on the objective details of what happened.

Once they have completed this, it’s time to rewrite the paragraph, but they should include some opinion and personal commentary this time.

The student here aims to inject some color and personality into their writing, to transform a detached, factual account into a warm, engaging story.

A COMPLETE UNIT ON TEACHING BIOGRAPHIES

how to write a biography | biography and autobiography writing unit 1 | How to Write a Biography | literacyideas.com

Teach your students to write AMAZING BIOGRAPHIES & AUTOBIOGRAPHIES using proven RESEARCH SKILLS and WRITING STRATEGIES .

Understand the purpose of both forms of biography.
Explore the language and perspective of both.
Prompts and Challenges to engage students in writing a biography.
Dedicated lessons for both forms of biography.
Biographical Projects can expand students’ understanding of reading and writing a biography.
A COMPLETE 82-PAGE UNIT – NO PREPARATION REQUIRED.

FREE Biography Writing Graphic Organizer

Use this valuable tool in the research and writing phases to keep your students on track and engaged.

WRITING CHECKLIST & RUBRIC BUNDLE

⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐ (92 Reviews)

To Conclude

By this stage, your students should have an excellent technical overview of a biography’s essential elements.

They should be able to choose their subject in light of how interesting and worthy they are, as well as give consideration to the availability of information out there. They should be able to research effectively and identify emerging themes in their research notes. And finally, they should be able to bring some of their personality and uniqueness into their retelling of the life of another.

Remember that writing a biography is not only a great way to develop a student’s writing skills; it can be used in almost all curriculum areas. For example, to find out more about a historical figure in History, to investigate scientific contributions to Science, or to celebrate a hero from everyday life.

Biography is an excellent genre for students to develop their writing skills and to find inspiration in the lives of others in the world around them.

HOW TO WRITE A BIOGRAPHY TUTORIAL VIDEO

how to write a biography | YOUTUBE 1280 x 720 11 | How to Write a Biography | literacyideas.com

How to write an Autobiography

How to Write a Historical Recount Text

15 Awesome Recount & Personal Narrative Topics

Personal Narrative Writing Guide

Published In: Brief

How to Write a Biography (Examples & Templates)

A biography is a written account of a person’s life that details their life in chronological order. Another person usually writes this detailed account, and it contains reports of their childhood, career, major life events, relationships, and social impact. It also details their relationships with their family, children, and life accomplishments.

The best way to find out more about a popular figure is through reading their biographies, so you need to make sure you get the correct information. Before writing a biography, you need to do a lot of research and interviews to represent a person’s life accurately.

Types of Biography

A biography is the story of someone’s life as written by another writer. Most biographies of popular figures are written years, or even decades, after their deaths. Authors write biographies of popular figures due to either a lack of information on the subject or personal interest.

A biography aims to share a person’s story or highlight a part of their life.

There are different types of biographies, depending on the story. Some biographies are written true to the story, while some are written as fictional works. Biographies can give you true understanding of a person on an internal as well as external level along with a lot of life lessons.

Autobiography

An autobiography is different from a biography because it is written by the subject of the story, themselves. The author writes in the first-person narrative, and it flows step-by-step like a story of their life. Autobiographies contain personal accounts of the subject’s life, along with their perspectives and opinions on events in their life.

How To Write a Biography

Pick a subject.

Picking a subject is the first step in writing a biography. You can pick an already famous person or a relatively unknown person with a great life story. If you already have a few in mind, you can start by asking yourself some questions such as;

What has the subject accomplished that makes them a good subject?
Have they had an impact on society?
Is the subject a celebrity or a well-known personality?
Will the biography appeal to a wide audience?

Get Permission

When you pick a subject, the next thing to do is to get permission from them or their family or rights owners. Although, with some historical figures, there may not be any need for permission. Getting permission from your subject makes it easier for you to get stories to put into your book. You can get the chance to obtain additional personal stories and anecdotes that will make your book more interesting by doing so as well.

Do The Research

Research is the most important part of a biography’s process as the entire content of the book is dependent on it. Irrespective of what you know about the subject, you need to carry out as much research as possible to get the story’s facts precisely.

Biography research comes from various sources, depending on the book’s subject. Firsthand reports from family, friends, or personal accounts from the subjects are primary sources. They are usually the most accurate and reliable, and they are crucial for a biography. Secondary sources come from other sources like magazines or documentaries.

Pick a Format

Biographies come in various formats, with each of them having their pros and cons. A typical biography will start at the beginning, usually with the birth and childhood of the subject. Yet, if the biography’s theme involves a different event in their life, the author may want to explore the flashback option or one with concurrent events from different times.

Usually, biographies have a theme or a general life lesson at the center. The author’s role is to tell the subject’s story leading up to the major event.

Which-ever format you choose should place the theme at the center, with the other events detailing the journey.

Create a Timeline Of The Story

Since a biography takes place in chronological order, there needs to be a timeline of the events in the right order. The timeline should contain the key events in the subject’s life, in the order the author plans on revealing them. A great way to declutter the story and keep it interesting is to use flashbacks . This way, the author can introduce past events and explain later events excluding the element of monotony.

Add In Your Thoughts

The good thing about biographies is that you don’t have to stick to the hard facts only. As the author, you can share your opinions and emotions in writing. The author has the freedom to do this by commenting on a significant action by the subject in a manner that describes why they feel the subject may have done what they did.

The author can also include commentary on events depicted in the biography – how it was influenced society or its impact on the lives around them. Recounting these events through a different perspective can make the biography more relatable and interesting to read.

FAQ’s

Why is a biography template important.

A biography template has an outline that makes the writing easier for the author. Biography templates usually contain a sample timeline, format, and questions that provide more information about the subject. With a great biography template, you can cut your writing time in half and spend less time coming up with an outline.

How are biographies better in comparison to autobiographies

Since a different person writes biographies, they tend to be more objective and somewhat accurate than autobiographies. An autobiography tells things from the author’s perspective, so their views and perspective cloud it. Thus, a biography will likely tell a more factual story.

These are the important steps you need to take to help you write a great biography. Now, to make things easier for you, we have a free customizable autobiography and biography template that you can use to start your first book. Get the template and start writing today

What are some of the most important elements to keep in consideration while writing a biography?

Any author looking to write a biography must consider the factors below. They aren’t the only important factors, but a biography isn’t complete without them. • Date and place of their birth • Academic background • Professional expertise • Death, if deceased • Facts and anecdotes about the person • Main accomplishments • Detailed accounts of their child and adult life

Biographies tell the untold stories of some incredibly relevant people in the world. But biographies are not always strictly accurate. So, every biographer needs to follow the necessary steps to provide a biography with all the requirements.

Definition of Biography

A biography is the non- fiction , written history or account of a person’s life. Biographies are intended to give an objective portrayal of a person, written in the third person. Biographers collect information from the subject (if he/she is available), acquaintances of the subject, or in researching other sources such as reference material, experts, records, diaries, interviews, etc. Most biographers intend to present the life story of a person and establish the context of their story for the reader, whether in terms of history and/or the present day. In turn, the reader can be reasonably assured that the information presented about the biographical subject is as true and authentic as possible.

Biographies can be written about a person at any time, no matter if they are living or dead. However, there are limitations to biography as a literary device. Even if the subject is involved in the biographical process, the biographer is restricted in terms of access to the subject’s thoughts or feelings.

Biographical works typically include details of significant events that shape the life of the subject as well as information about their childhood, education, career, and relationships. Occasionally, a biography is made into another form of art such as a film or dramatic production. The musical production of “Hamilton” is an excellent example of a biographical work that has been turned into one of the most popular musical productions in Broadway history.

Common Examples of Biographical Subjects

Most people assume that the subject of a biography must be a person who is famous in some way. However, that’s not always the case. In general, biographical subjects tend to be interesting people who have pioneered something in their field of expertise or done something extraordinary for humanity. In addition, biographical subjects can be people who have experienced something unusual or heartbreaking, committed terrible acts, or who are especially gifted and/or talented.

As a literary device, biography is important because it allows readers to learn about someone’s story and history. This can be enlightening, inspiring, and meaningful in creating connections. Here are some common examples of biographical subjects:

political leaders
entrepreneurs
historical figures
serial killers
notorious people
political activists
adventurers/explorers
religious leaders
military leaders
cultural figures

Famous Examples of Biographical Works

The readership for biography tends to be those who enjoy learning about a certain person’s life or overall field related to the person. In addition, some readers enjoy the literary form of biography independent of the subject. Some biographical works become well-known due to either the person’s story or the way the work is written, gaining a readership of people who may not otherwise choose to read biography or are unfamiliar with its form.

Here are some famous examples of biographical works that are familiar to many readers outside of biography fans:

Alexander Hamilton (Ron Chernow)
Prairie Fires: The American Dreams of Laura Ingalls Wilder (Caroline Fraser)
Steve Jobs (Walter Isaacson)
Churchill: A Life (Martin Gilbert)
The Professor and the Madman: A Tale of Murder, Insanity, and the Making of the Oxford English Dictionary (Simon Winchester)
A Beautiful Mind (Sylvia Nasar)
The Black Rose (Tananarive Due)
John Adams (David McCullough)
Into the Wild ( Jon Krakauer )
John Brown (W.E.B. Du Bois)
Frida: A Biography of Frida Kahlo (Hayden Herrera)
The Immortal Life of Henrietta Lacks (Rebecca Skloot)
Team of Rivals: The Political Genius of Abraham Lincoln (Doris Kearns Goodwin)
Shirley Jackson : A Rather Haunted Life ( Ruth Franklin)
the stranger in the Woods: The Extraordinary Story of the Last True Hermit (Michael Finkel)

Difference Between Biography, Autobiography, and Memoir

Biography, autobiography , and memoir are the three main forms used to tell the story of a person’s life. Though there are similarities between these forms, they have distinct differences in terms of the writing, style , and purpose.

A biography is an informational narrative and account of the life history of an individual person, written by someone who is not the subject of the biography. An autobiography is the story of an individual’s life, written by that individual. In general, an autobiography is presented chronologically with a focus on key events in the person’s life. Since the writer is the subject of an autobiography, it’s written in the first person and considered more subjective than objective, like a biography. In addition, autobiographies are often written late in the person’s life to present their life experiences, challenges, achievements, viewpoints, etc., across time.

Memoir refers to a written collection of a person’s significant memories, written by that person. Memoir doesn’t generally include biographical information or chronological events unless it’s relevant to the story being presented. The purpose of memoir is reflection and an intention to share a meaningful story as a means of creating an emotional connection with the reader. Memoirs are often presented in a narrative style that is both entertaining and thought-provoking.

Examples of Biography in Literature

An important subset of biography is literary biography. A literary biography applies biographical study and form to the lives of artists and writers. This poses some complications for writers of literary biographies in that they must balance the representation of the biographical subject, the artist or writer, as well as aspects of the subject’s literary works. This balance can be difficult to achieve in terms of judicious interpretation of biographical elements within an author’s literary work and consideration of the separate spheres of the artist and their art.

Literary biographies of artists and writers are among some of the most interesting biographical works. These biographies can also be very influential for readers, not only in terms of understanding the artist or writer’s personal story but the context of their work or literature as well. Here are some examples of well-known literary biographies:

Example 1: Savage Beauty: The Life of Edna St. Vincent Millay (Nancy Milford)

One of the first things Vincent explained to Norma was that there was a certain freedom of language in the Village that mustn’t shock her. It wasn’t vulgar. ‘So we sat darning socks on Waverly Place and practiced the use of profanity as we stitched. Needle in, . Needle out, piss. Needle in, . Needle out, c. Until we were easy with the words.’

This passage reflects the way in which Milford is able to characterize St. Vincent Millay as a person interacting with her sister. Even avid readers of a writer’s work are often unaware of the artist’s private and personal natures, separate from their literature and art. Milford reflects the balance required on the part of a literary biographer of telling the writer’s life story without undermining or interfering with the meaning and understanding of the literature produced by the writer. Though biographical information can provide some influence and context for a writer’s literary subjects, style, and choices , there is a distinction between the fictional world created by a writer and the writer’s “real” world. However, a literary biographer can illuminate the writer’s story so that the reader of both the biography and the biographical subject’s literature finds greater meaning and significance.

Example 2: The Invisible Woman: The Story of Nelly Ternan and Charles Dickens (Claire Tomalin)

The season of domestic goodwill and festivity must have posed a problem to all good Victorian family men with more than one family to take care of, particularly when there were two lots of children to receive the demonstrations of paternal love.

Tomalin’s literary biography of Charles Dickens reveals the writer’s extramarital relationship with a woman named Nelly Ternan. Tomalin presents the complications that resulted for Dickens from this relationship in terms of his personal and family life as well as his professional writing and literary work. Revealing information such as an extramarital relationship can influence the way a reader may feel about the subject as a person, and in the case of literary biography it can influence the way readers feel about the subject’s literature as well. Artists and writers who are beloved , such as Charles Dickens, are often idealized by their devoted readers and society itself. However, as Tomalin’s biography of Dickens indicates, artists and writers are complicated and as subject to human failings as anyone else.

Example 3: Virginia Woolf (Hermione Lee)

‘A self that goes on changing is a self that goes on living’: so too with the biography of that self. And just as lives don’t stay still, so life-writing can’t be fixed and finalised. Our ideas are shifting about what can be said, our knowledge of human character is changing. The biographer has to pioneer, going ‘ahead of the rest of us, like the miner’s canary, testing the atmosphere , detecting falsity, unreality, and the presence of obsolete conventions’. So, ‘There are some stories which have to be retold by each generation’. She is talking about the story of Shelley, but she could be talking about her own life-story.

In this passage, Lee is able to demonstrate what her biographical subject, Virginia Woolf, felt about biography and a person telling their own or another person’s story. Literary biographies of well-known writers can be especially difficult to navigate in that both the author and biographical subject are writers, but completely separate and different people. As referenced in this passage by Lee, Woolf was aware of the subtleties and fluidity present in a person’s life which can be difficult to judiciously and effectively relay to a reader on the part of a biographer. In addition, Woolf offers insight into the fact that biographers must make choices in terms of what information is presented to the reader and the context in which it is offered, making them a “miner’s canary” as to how history will view and remember the biographical subject.

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Biography of X: A Novel Hardcover – March 21, 2023

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Named one of the Ten Best Books of 2023 by Time (#1) , Vulture, and Publishers Weekly , and one of the Best Books of 2023 by T he New York Times , the New Yorker, NPR, the Los Angeles Times , Vanity Fair , Esquire, the Chicago Tribune , Kirkus , Lit Hub , and Amazon . National Bestseller. Winner of the 2023 Brooklyn Library Prize, a finalist for the Dylan Thomas Prize and the Lambda Literary Award, and longlisted for the PEN/Faulkner Award. A New York Times Book Review Editors’ Choice. “A major novel, and a notably audacious one.” ―Dwight Garner, The New York Times From one of our fiercest stylists, a roaring epic chronicling the life, times, and secrets of a notorious artist. When X―an iconoclastic artist, writer, and polarizing shape-shifter―falls dead in her office, her widow, CM, wild with grief and refusing everyone’s good advice, hurls herself into writing a biography of the woman she deified. Though X was recognized as a crucial creative force of her era, she kept a tight grip on her life story. Not even CM knows where X was born, and in her quest to find out, she opens a Pandora’s box of secrets, betrayals, and destruction. All the while, she immerses herself in the history of the Southern Territory, a fascist theocracy that split from the rest of the country after World War II, and which finally, in the present day, is being forced into an uneasy reunification. A masterfully constructed literary adventure complete with original images assembled by X’s widow, Biography of X follows CM as she traces X’s peripatetic trajectory over decades, from Europe to the ruins of America’s divided territories, and through her collaborations and feuds with everyone from Bowie and Waits to Sontag and Acker. At last, when she finally understands the scope of X’s defining artistic project, CM realizes her wife’s deceptions were far crueler than she imagined. Pulsing with suspense and intellect while blending nonfiction and fiction, Biography of X is a roaring epic that plumbs the depths of grief, art, and love. In her most ambitious novel yet, Catherine Lacey pushes her craft to its highest level, introducing us to an unforgettable character who, in her tantalizing mystery, shows us the fallibility of the stories we craft for ourselves.

Print length 416 pages
Language English
Publisher Farrar, Straus and Giroux
Publication date March 21, 2023
Dimensions 6.31 x 1.31 x 9.38 inches
ISBN-10 037460617X
ISBN-13 978-0374606176
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Editorial Reviews

Amazon.com review.

"This is a major novel, and a notably audacious one. Lacey is pulling from a deep reservoir. Beneath the counterfactuals, and the glamour and squalor of Manhattan nightlife, and the mythologies bought and sold, she’s telling a love story of a broken sort. C.M. is flinging rope between her present and past. This book is about facing, and accepting, the things you didn’t want to know." ―Dwight Garner, The New York Times "Lacey imposes a truly outstanding narrative authority on her pseudo-biography . . . the audacity of this book . . . seems likely to bring her to a much wider audience. If this does mark Ms. Lacey’s deserved elevation to mainstream attention, she has accomplished it without diluting the vital qualities of confusion, yearning and mystery." ―Sam Sacks, The Wall Street Journal "[A] staggering achievement . . . [a] masterpiece about the slippery nature of art, identity, and truth." ―Adrienne Westenfeld, Esquire "Brilliant, astonishing . . . The book is a marvelous centrifuge, in which political and cultural histories of the American 20th century collapse." ―Chris Kraus, The Washington Post "Genre-quaking . . . A true magnum opus . . . [X is] an unstable new element in the periodic table of literature." ―Hillary Kelly, The Atlantic "In its boldness of premise and execution, Biography of X goes above and beyond, under the river and through the woods. It flaunts world-building skills that the writers of HBO’s “Game of Thrones” wish they’d had . . . Lacey is one of the most fearless novelists writing today." ―Jessica Ferri, Los Angeles Times "Haunting, genre-bending . . . It’s like looking at a family photograph in which something truly extraordinary – an avalanche or alien invasion – is taking place in the background . . . A lovingly made facsimile of a nonfiction book, Biography of X resembles a Tlönian artefact from a parallel reality. Though it may not change the world, it will leave the reader altered." ―Marcel Theroux, The Guardian "Lacey has done such a brilliant job of making X impossible to envision, impossible to feel or grasp . . . There is an ambition in The Biography of X that’s thrilling not least because it shows how endless, how elastic and expansive―at a time when so much storytelling feels constricted, tight and close on a single consciousness―fiction can be." ―Lynn Steger Strong, The New Republic "A Scheherazade-like sequence of stories. Most of these stories are about the charismatic X's life and fabrications; all of them are arresting in their originality; and, the final story that CM is led to, housed in a storage facility, is devastating . . . Just when you think you have a handle on Biography of X , it escapes the stack of assumptions where you thought you'd put it, like a profile or an obituary you'd started reading in yesterday's tossed-out paper." ―Maureen Corrigan, NPR's Fresh Air "Lacey’s fifth book bursts with urbane vitality. The author convinces us by the sheer inventiveness of her artifice . . . Biography of X is the author’s most ambitious and enjoyable novel yet, filled with the subversive humour and verve only hinted at in her previous books . . . Catherine Lacey is clear-eyed about human dependency and self-delusion." ―Jude Cook, TLS "a towering work that comments on, among things, art-world ridiculousness, the elasticity of identity, culture divides in the United States, and the fool’s errand of compressing a life into narrative . . . Beyond the book-as-book exercise, Lacy’s inventiveness when describing X’s various attention-grabbing exhibitions, and the genius visual annotations, Biography of X consistently stuns on a sentence-to-sentence basis. This is a wise, wise work." ― Rich Juzwiak, Jezebel " Lacey artfully blends historical anecdotes―X is seen penning songs for David Bowie and attending openings with Richard Serra―into her fictional universe, making uncomfortable connections between X’s fragile world and our own." ― The New Yorker "Bold and exhilarated, figuring itself out as it moves forward, an act of raucous creativity." ― Jackie Thomas-Kennedy, Minneapolis StarTribune "Brimming with negative capability, intrigue, and erudition, Biography of X is at once a tense, tongue-in-cheek cautionary tale for the United States and a robustly supported argument for the idea that biographical knowledge alters the reading of an artwork." ―Jenny Wu, Los Angeles Review of Books "Lacey is brilliant. As in her earlier fiction, she is thinking deeply about what we give up to other people when we love them . . . in Biography of X, she has reached a new level of understanding." ―Emma Alpern, Vulture " Biography of X is criminally good, building on [Lacey's] previous five books’ fascination with the mutability of self with kaleidoscopic depth and astonishing propulsion . . . What is most spectacular is Lacey’s sleight of hand, inviting us to become engrossed in the unknowability of others, while gently reminding us that we, too, are unknowable―even and especially to ourselves." ―Ayden LeRoux, BOMB "Sweeping, ambitious . . . too expansive to simply be called a novel . . . The book is a provocative project―one that mirrors and refracts our own cultural obsession with celebrity and our nation’s broken politics." ―Sammy Loren, Document "One of the most inventive works I’ve read in a long time, Catherine Lacey’s latest novel is a must-read for fans of ambitious, genre-bending literary fiction." ―David Vogel, Buzzfeed "Breathtaking in its scope and rigor, this unforgettable novel pushes contemporary fiction to dizzying heights. A triumph." ― Kirkus (starred review) "An audacious novel of art and ideas . . . The author also perfectly marries her [character's] history with her study of a shape-shifting artist, with X refashioning herself both to escape her ultraconservative homeland and to build a vehicle for her creative expression. This is brilliant." ― Publishers Weekly (starred review) "A dazzling literary chimera, at once an epic and chilling alternate history of the United States and an intimate portrait of a woman coming apart at the seams." ― BookPage (starred review) "A tour-de-force in literary and artistic realms, this engrossing story of breakaway artist X will challenge readers on many levels." ― Library Journal (starred review) "Lacey's tale is a lovely meditation on not only the mysteries of grief and love but also the equally mysterious ways of the creative process." ― Booklist "Sly, brilliant, philosophically acute, bitingly funny, and a pure joy to spend hours with . . . Suffice it to say that it feels fairly rare for a novel to be hugely intelligent and moving and fun in equal measure, but with Biography of X , Catherine Lacey somehow―magically―makes the nearly impossible look easy." ―Lauren Groff, author of Matrix "I'm not sure I know another novel that manages to be so many books at once: a biography revealing masks beneath masks and faces beneath faces, a quest narrative unsure of what it's seeking, an impossibly ambitious parable about art and the enigma of others, an alternate history of America that serves as an X-ray of our own fractured country. Biography of X is a profound novel about love and what it can license, about the toll―and maybe the con―of genius. Only Catherine Lacey could have written it." ― Garth Greenwell, author of Cleanness and What Belongs to You " Biography of X is the most ambitious book I’ve ever read from a writer of my own generation. Epic world-building revealed through intimate emotion and dangerously honed sentences; a story that mixes fact and fiction to create a new register of truth, a register that belongs entirely to Catherine Lacey. I'm awed." ―Torrey Peters, author of Detransition, Baby " Biography of X is a triumphant high-wire act: all the breadth of a 19th century classic with the propulsiveness of a psychological thriller. I stayed up too late, wishing to uncover X's secrets alongside the narrator." ― Sara Nović , author of True Biz

About the Author

Product details.

Publisher ‏ : ‎ Farrar, Straus and Giroux (March 21, 2023)
Language ‏ : ‎ English
Hardcover ‏ : ‎ 416 pages
ISBN-10 ‏ : ‎ 037460617X
ISBN-13 ‏ : ‎ 978-0374606176
Item Weight ‏ : ‎ 1.34 pounds
Dimensions ‏ : ‎ 6.31 x 1.31 x 9.38 inches
#5,567 in Literary Fiction (Books)
#5,819 in American Literature (Books)

About the author

Catherine lacey.

Catherine Lacey is the author of five books— Biography of X, Nobody Is Ever Missing, The Answers, Pew, and the story collection Certain American States. Her honors include a Whiting Award, a Guggenheim fellowship, and the NYPL Young Lions Fiction Award.

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Picture Book Biography
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Popular Biography Books: 100 Biographies & Memoirs To Read: How To Write A Biography in 2021
Writer Bio Example Who Book, Bestselling Author, Writer, Language, Professional
30 An Example Of An Autobiography
How To Write A Life Story About Yourself

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Write Your First Author Bio: 25 Examples, 3 Templates + Checklist
3 Short Author Bio Examples. Let's dive into some more personalized and engaging short author bio examples that show these templates in action. 1. The Newbie Author. Sarah, The History Buff Turned Novelist. Bio: "Sarah is a fresh face in the world of historical fiction. With a degree in Ancient History, she's turned her lifelong obsession ...
Writing Your Author Bio? Here Are 20 Great Examples. (Plus a Checklist!)
J.T. keeps to just the essential ingredients of a professional author bio: accolades, genres, experience, and a bit of what she's up to today for a personal touch. 20. James S.A. Corey. James S.A. Corey is the pen name for a collaboration between Daniel Abraham and Ty Franck.
11 Good Author Bio Examples
8. A Bestselling Romance Author Bio. H elen Hoang has a really endearing "about the author.". Notice that she also uses the bio to establish that she brought personal experience to the writing of her breakout mega-bestseller, The Kiss Quotient, which features a heroine on the autism spectrum.
How to Write an Author Bio [With Examples and Templates]
You should include your name, relevant accomplishments, and a call to action in your author's bio. Aim for a bio of 60-90 words in length. If your book is humorous, inject humor. If your book is melodramatic, add a little melodrama. Tailor your bio to your genre, target audience, and the individual book it's for.
How to Write a Killer Author Bio (With Template)
A good author bio is efficient beyond just the first line, as book launch specialist Joel Pitney suggests: "People don't want to read long bios! Keep it under 300 words. Only include relevant materials and be as succinct as possible. If you've won a lot of awards, for example, only include the most impressive ones.
8 Great Author Bio Examples, Analyzed [+ How to Write Yours]
Since there isn't a single right way to write a great author bio, I've collected 8 case studies that showcase the range you can work within. 1. Ruth Ozeki. "Ruth Ozeki is a novelist, filmmaker and Zen Buddhist priest. She is the author of three novels: My Year of Meats, All Over Creation and A Tale for the Time Being, which was shortlisted ...
10 Great Author Bio Examples and Tips to Write One for Yourself
10 Examples of Great Author Bios. 1. Farrah Rochon. USA Today bestselling author Farrah Rochon hails from a small town just west of New Orleans. She has garnered much acclaim for her Crescent City-set Holmes Brothers series and her Moments in Maplesville small town series.
How to Write an Author Bio (Examples Included)
Don't use "I" — just use your name and last name. For example, instead of saying: "I'm an author and I live in Chicago, Illinois.". Say this: "John Doe is an author who lives in Chicago, Illinois.". Writing your author bio in the third person sounds more professional and authoritative to most readers.
How to Write an "About the Author" Bio + 8 Standout Examples
Example 8 - Out of Balance (Confusing & Overselling): Cheryl Strayed. Cheryl is similar to Tim, but runs several unrelated things together in a confusing way, and mentions things that no reader would ever care about (e.g., the director of a movie based on her book). This same bio could be 25% shorter and much stronger.
How to Write a Biography: A 7-Step Guide [+Template]
Facebook. These are just some of the story elements you can use to make your biography more compelling. Once you've finished your manuscript, it's a good idea to ask for feedback. 7. Get feedback and polish the text. If you're going to self-publish your biography, you'll have to polish it to professional standards.
How to Write an Author Bio Examples & Tips to SELL
Here's how to format an author bio wrapped up: Use third-person POV when writing it. Keep it under 300 words. Add relevant/recent achievements. Minimize the number of sentences within those 300 words. And remember: an author bio longer than 300 words or so will take up too much space and become an oversell.
First Time Author Bio Writing Examples and Guidelines
1. Keep it brief. Instead of attempting to list every facet of your career or all your hobbies, it is always best to keep the bio under 300 words. 2. Use a third-person voice. Author bios come across as more professional when using the third person point of view, versus the first person. 3. Start with a one-liner.
How to Write a Biography: 10 Step Guide + Book Template
Step 1: Read other biographies. Step 2: Identify your subject. Step 3: Get permission to write about your subject. Step 4: Create an outline. Step 5: Select a working title (using a title generator) Step 6: Write a rough draft. Step 7: Self-edit. Step 8: Work with an editor.
How to Write a Biography: 8 Steps for a Captivating Story
However, for most published works, biographies offer a deeper analysis, including many stories and examples that demonstrate the person's unique character. 1. Choose your subject. Ideally, your subject should be someone whose life deeply interests you. Note, however, that this doesn't mean you have to like the person.
The 30 Best Biographies of All Time
12. The Lost City of Z: A Tale of Deadly Obsession in the Amazon by David Grann. Another mysterious explorer takes center stage in this gripping 2009 biography. Grann tells the story of Percy Fawcett, the archaeologist who vanished in the Amazon along with his son in 1925, supposedly in search of an ancient lost city.
25 Eye-Catching Author Bio Examples
In no particular order: Courtney Milan's Author Bio. Sarah J. Maas' Author Bio. Michael Siemsen's Author Bio. Jonathan Maberry's Author Bio. Glynnis Campbell's Author Bio. Kwame Alexander's Author Bio. Nora Roberts' Author Bio. Alyssa Cole's Author Bio.
Biography in Literature: Definition & Examples
Examples of Biographies. 1. James Boswell, The Life of Samuel Johnson The biography that ushered in the modern era of true-life writing, The Life of Samuel Johnson covered the entirety of its subject's life, from his birth to his status as England's preeminent writer to his death.Boswell was a personal acquaintance of Johnson, so he was able to draw on voluminous amounts of personal ...
15 Great Writer Bio Examples for Your "About the Author"
Barbara Lohr. Barbara Lohr writes heartwarming, sweet romance with a flair for fun. In her novels, feisty women take on hunky heroes and life's issues. Family often figures in her stories. Her series include Windy City Romance, set in Oak Park, a Chicago suburb. The Kirkpatrick family take readers on journeys of the heart to Savannah, Italy ...
How to Write a Biography: 6 Tips for Writing Biographical Texts
See why leading organizations rely on MasterClass for learning & development. Biographies are how we learn information about another human being's life. Whether you want to start writing a biography about a famous person, historical figure, or an influential family member, it's important to know all the elements that make a biography worth ...
How to Write a Biography
A biography is an account of someone's life written by someone else.While there is a genre known as a fictional biography, for the most part, biographies are, by definition, nonfiction. Generally speaking, biographies provide an account of the subject's life from the earliest days of childhood to the present day or, if the subject is deceased, their death.
How to Write a Biography in 8 Steps (The Non-Boring Way!)
Examples include Steve Jobs, Serena Williams, and Michael Jordan. Quest for Knowledge: These biographies focus on the curiosity that led to significant contributions to our world. Examples include Albert Einstein, Marie Curie, and Charles Darwin. Personal Transformation: These biographies explore a change in beliefs, values, or priorities ...
How to Write a Biography (Examples & Templates)
A biography is the story of someone's life as written by another writer. Most biographies of popular figures are written years, or even decades, after their deaths. Authors write biographies of popular figures due to either a lack of information on the subject or personal interest. A biography aims to share a person's story or highlight a ...
Biography
A biography is the non- fiction, written history or account of a person's life. Biographies are intended to give an objective portrayal of a person, written in the third person. Biographers collect information from the subject (if he/she is available), acquaintances of the subject, or in researching other sources such as reference material ...
Biography of X: A Novel: Lacey, Catherine: 9780374606176: Amazon.com: Books
Biography of X is a profound novel about love and what it can license, about the toll―and maybe the con―of genius. Only Catherine Lacey could have written it." ― Garth Greenwell, author of Cleanness and What Belongs to You " Biography of X is the most ambitious book I've ever read from a writer of my own generation. Epic world-building ...
The Road Not Taken by Robert Frost
By Robert Frost. Two roads diverged in a yellow wood, And sorry I could not travel both. And be one traveler, long I stood. And looked down one as far as I could. To where it bent in the undergrowth; Then took the other, as just as fair, And having perhaps the better claim, Because it was grassy and wanted wear;
A Reference Manual for Data Privacy Laws and Cyber Frameworks
As the world is becoming more digital and intertwined together, the Cybersecurity Threat Landscape has no doubt become a daunting one for sure. For example, old style Threat Variants of the past, especially that of Phishing, has now become much more sophisticated and covert in nature. A lot of this has been brought on by the explosion of Ransomware, when it exploded during the COVID-19 ...

Writing Your Author Bio? Here Are 20 Great Examples. (Plus a Checklist!)

Download a printable checklist!

1. Ramona Emerson

2. Courtney Milan

3. Adam Silvera

4. Farrah Rochon

5. Angie Fox

6. Tiffany D. Jackson

7. Kwame Alexander

8. Glynnis Campbell

9. Laurelin Paige

10. Mia Sosa

11. Aiden Thomas

12. Wayne Stinnett

13. June Hur

14. Claire Delacroix

15. Vanessa Riley

16. April White

17. Julia Quinn

18. Rick Mofina

19. J.T. Ellison

20. James S.A. Corey

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How Long Should an Author Bio Be?

Author Bio Examples

2. A Bestselling Fantasy Author Bio

3. A Bio From an Author Who Writes In More Than One Genre

4. A Self-Published Romance Author Bio

5. A Bio of an Unpublished Author Who Also Offers Other Services

6. A Bestselling Young Adult Author Bio

7. A Bestselling Children’s Author Bio

8. A Bestselling Romance Author Bio

9. Social Media Author Bio With One-Word Sentences.

10. A Self-Published Author Bio That Uses Bullet Points

11. An Unpublished YA Fantasy Writer Bio

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How to Write an Author Bio [With Examples and Templates]

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Step 1 : Figure Out Your Genre and Target Audience

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Step 3 : Add the Bio to Your Book Page

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10 Great Author Bio Examples and Tips to Write One for Yourself

What is An Author Bio?

10 Examples of Great Author Bios

2. Michael Siemsen

3. Glynnis Campbell

4. Courtney Milan

5. Kwame Alexander

6. Tiffany D. Jackson

7. J.T. Ellison

8. Vanessa Riley

9. Rick Mofina

10. April White

7 Tips for Writing Your Own Author Bio

1. Write in the Third Person

2. Keep it Short

3. Know Your Audience

4. Include Career Highlights

5. Let Your Personality Shine Through

6. Include Some Personal Information

7. Create a Basic Verison that can be Tweaked

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Author Bios: What They Include and Why to Write One

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When To Write Your Author Bio