HelloOoOo everybody!
Today I am teaching you how to write an author bio. Technically you can write whatever author bio you want, but the idea is to write something that won't make readers instantly hate you. That's not the best marketing tactic.
For some reason, authors loathe the idea of writing an author bio. They see it as some insurmountable task. That's bullshit. It's really not that big of a deal. In fact, most author bios are less than five sentences long. You can write five sentences about yourself, right? I know you can do it.
Now for the sake of clarity, when I talk about author bios, I'm talking about the bio that's featured on the inside flap of your hardback book, or inside your paperback or ebook. This is the bio we're discussing. You might also feature it on your Amazon author profile, your Goodreads profile, or your website. That works too. But the idea is we're talking about the bio that goes inside your book.
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Number 1: Read, Read, Read
The first and most obvious step is to read bios featured in other authors' books. Did you do this step? Didn't think so. The obvious steps are the ones most people skip because common sense ain't common. Fortunately, I did this step for you. I read a shit-ton of author bios and I found a pretty consistent trend among them.
Number 2: Notice the Format
Most professional authors are writing their bio in the same or similar format, so I'm gonna break that format down for you to make it as easy as possible. I will also be providing examples from my current author bio just to be straightforward.
The first point to understand is something that we already covered. Most author bios are short. Of the countless bios I read, only one of them was long. And let me tell you, it was a major turnoff. The author looked like a pompous dickbag and that's not the vibe you wanna give off. Most of the author bios were around four sentences. Generally, they were somewhere in the three to six-sentence range. You are not providing a literal biography. You are just providing a handful of factoids that are relevant to your writing career.
Number 3: Factoids and Accolades
So, let's get to those factoids. The first one or two sentences usually include your most prestigious writing accolades, as well as the genre you write. Sometimes the genre isn't included, but it's usually a good idea to let readers know what you're writing. For example, in my author bio, I let readers know that I am a dark fantasy romance writer, as well as I'm writing craft author. Simple!
Now we go on to accolades, which is the most important part of the intro. Are you a number-one Amazon bestseller? Have you made any other bestseller lists like the New York Times list or the USA Today list? Have you won any writing awards? Are you a leader or creator of any writing or literary groups or platforms? The accolades that I list in my author bio are that I am a number one Amazon bestseller, I am an award-winning author, and I also have a YouTube channel dedicated to writing that has hundreds of thousands of followers. All of this is relevant because all of it revolves around my writing.
Number 4: “But What if I’m New?”
Now, it's possible that you're new enough to your writing journey that you don't have any accolades. That's completely valid. This is a place that literally every writer is in at some point. If you don't have any accolades, a good alternative is to instead list what I refer to as your writing specialty. What makes your writing special and unique to you? Think of this as an opportunity to sell yourself. Maybe you're known for witty banter that makes readers laugh and swoon at the same time. Maybe you're known for heart-stopping fight scenes that keep readers on the edge of their seats. These are all powerful statements that are just as exciting as being a bestseller. Either way, the idea is to sell yourself right from the start.
Number 5: Stick the Landing
Now that you've advertised yourself, it's time to move on to the last few sentences of your bio, which is where you get personal. This is the part of the bio where you prove that you are an actual, relatable human being. The end of the author bio usually includes two to three factoids about the author.
The first factoid is usually the author's location. This freaks a lot of authors out because we don't want a bunch of strangers knowing where we live. Keep in mind location can be general, I'm not telling you to list your actual address. You don't even need to list the city you live in. Some authors say they live in France, which is a whole ass country. I've seen authors say they live in Appalachia, which covers thirteen of the United States. The location I list in my bio is the San Francisco Bay Area, which covers 101 towns and cities. All that to say, don't fear the location; unless you’re a dumbass about it, no one's gonna find you.
The second factoid is to list something relatable about you. Please, for the love of God, do not list that you're a voracious reader. All authors are voracious readers. That's kind of a prerequisite of the gig. It's kinda like saying your special interest is writing. No shit. That's why we're here. If you can, list a factoid that is somehow relevant to your work and your audience. For example, I've seen a romcom author say that in their free time, they enjoy binging Bridgerton while scarfing up ice cream. The tone is funny which is relatable to their genre, and the content is relatable to their audience.
The last factoid is to list your family and pets. Because everyone's got family, whether they like it or not. It's important to note that a lot of authors skip over the relatable factoid and go straight to family and pets because family and pets in themselves are relatable. You are certainly welcome to do that, that's what I did. But basically, this is where you say that you're married with three fuck trophies, or you're living your best life with your cat. I said that I enjoy spending my free time with my partner, and our teeny-tiny dog. It's that easy. Seriously. You really can't find this part up.
. . . Well, I guess you can because stupidity tends to show itself in very creative ways.
So that's all I've got for you today!
Writing an author bio really isn't that bad. It's just five sentences that state very specific facts about you. I have every confidence you can get it done, because if you can't, how the hell did you write an entire book?
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