How to Write a Bomb-Diggity Bio

A bio is an important part of introducing yourself as a writer. First, you should--

I lied. I really have no clue what makes for a neat bio. In truth, I have yet to see one that made any impression on me. If you're looking for a way to get people interested in you, I find that a list of your books and links for where to find you online are ideal. You get right to the guts-- if you liked this, this is what else I've done. If you want to learn more, browse here at leisure.

Nevertheless, a bio is a formality like a résumé. It doesn't always have to be spectacular, but it should be functional. Try to leave out the need to talk about reviews or comparisons. Every time I see 'this book is like GRRM and JRRT and I swear people love me!' it is a red flag that they don't have the confidence to let readers decide its quality and draw their own comparisons.

Even in queries, writers are warned to mark other authors as your influence, not that you are like them. Agents still seem to want to discover your innovative qualities rather than your ego.

(If you want more great tips, agentquery.com can help you with your query and more.)

What can you put in it?

• Name- use the name you're publishing under. If you use several, make sure your bio matches the one you're using. Some pseudonyms you may not even want connected to your real name. I've been in writing groups where people ask 'why'? Personal reasons. I get it. Sometimes you write everything from erotica to children's books and don't want someone mixing it up. Sometimes you're related to a psychopath you don't want knowing what you're up to. Not a big deal, just make sure you keep your bio straight to avoid confusion.
• Where you're from or where you are now- City or birthplace might be personal, but it could score some points in cities that are mentioned. Sometimes you're just curious about people where you live. Try to stick to those two at most. Listing a lot of places can turn people off as pretentious. Definitely use those places if they're relevant to the story the bio is with though. Knowing which of the 50 American States you've visited? Not so much.
• Family- another one to go easy with. Who you live with is a maybe. Kids are usually a good thing to mention, or a pet or two but if you have a big family, then a vague mention of them as your bustling inspiration is well enough. Save some for dedications if you want to spread it out.
• Accreditation or Awards- stick to your education and actual awards. If there's a lot of that, cut it down to the top two of each, preferably the most relevant to the genre your bio is attached to.
• Books- again, if this is a big catalog, stick to the two most recent, although mixing it up with a book and then a series is more interesting. Leave out the short stories unless you've received an award. Remember, a bio is not your résumé. You can use a separate page to list all of your work, but the bio is more like your brief mission statement, not your full autobiography.
• Links- this is where you give the reader the power to be as curious as they want to be. Direct them to your social media, websites and accounts and encourage them to participate in your ideas and work. 

To sum up the bio, I just want to stress to aim for brevity. Don't beg people to think of you in a certain way. Don't insist you're the funniest person your friends have ever met. Stick to facts, maybe a little flair in wording, but let your story speak for your personality and voice. Bios are not meant to be hooks or blurbs. Using them that was can really come off as cheesy and a mark against you. If you can, run yours through a critique group, see if people can help you decide what's too much and too little.

So what would mine be?

Krista Gossett is an author/designer that lives in Cincinnati, OH. She has two degrees in graphic design (AS and BFA). An avid video gamer and crafter, she also juggles raising her two nephews and a bunch of African cichlids (tropical fish) with her work. The Heroes, World and Universe Chronicles are her first fully published epic fantasy series. She is currently writing the second book of the UnQuadrilogy. Find her on: (list of links here)

Some people really try to get clever with the bio, but again, the work does the talking or it doesn't. If someone didn't like it, my snappy, snarky sense of humor isn't going to change their mind. If they do love my work, I'm not bullshitting around when they want to find the facts and explore on their own.

One thing I've realized is that, while I do have control over so much of my story and how it looks, there are just some aspects I have to trust with the reader. I have to allow them to doubt me. I have to give them room to imagine what they want. 

Because there are so many aspects where I choose where to filter and express, even an unconventional sort like me has seen the wisdom in 'rules' I tried to rebel against.

Tomorrow, I think I'll delve into how to resist too much telling in a short story. While I don't completely buy into the 'show, don't tell', I sometimes see (and have personally done it in my own past) where people really try to crunch a big story into a smaller word count-- by slamming into a rapid info-dump. I'm going to attempt to show how you can keep your voice rather than devolve into explaining everything.