Sps alumni, amy twiggs, wrote her first book the self publishing school way and can now call herself a best selling author among her many other accomplishments and there are many. For all your promotional needs shannon messenger graduated from the usc school of cinematic arts where she learnedamong other thingsthat she liked watching movies much better than making them. If your book is a contemporary romance novel with a middleaged female protagonist, the personality and content of your author bio will be markedly different from if youre writing about taxdeduction strategies for real estate investors. Instead, concentrate on getting solid writing experience and clips. So this is how to write a bio, and it is to help those writers who are just starting out and anyone having trouble. Shirley hardie jackson december 14, 1916 august 8, 1965 was an american writer, known primarily for her works of horror and mystery. How to write an amazing author bio book marketing for. Apr 22, 2014 while all five of these tips will help you make a better bio, tips 2 and 3 are the best advice for how to write an author bio that sells books. Its nice to have all these different versions, because then you just pull up the appropriate bio and edit as necessary.
When book sales did not go well, i embarked on a sixmonth effort to find a literary agent. The six rules you should use to write a professional bio. Theyd walk off with a copy of the book based on the bio. How to write your first author bio writing forward. If youre afraid the above sentence may describe you, well, dont be too hard on yourself. Your book is riveting, but your author bio is a snooze. This bio page is made in three colors that work together wonderfully white, red and black. We are given five different rule books and told to choose one that suits us. Shes studied art, screenwriting, and film production, but realized her real passion was writing stories for children. One of the things that i think people overlook is that there is a connection between the author and the reader, and the reader doesnt want to feel lied to.
How to write an author bio that sells books ben zackheim. For instance, if the first book in a fiction series gets most of the attention and sales, use your bio to remind readers of the next books in the series. Its common knowledge that literary agents want to see previous publishing credit in your query letters as part of your bio. I prefer the new version, and it also ended up being a third smaller, which is good putting the old and new side by side i much prefer the new one, and it also points to my online presence better now. Be ruthless in editing your bio to include only points that are relevant. Your work has been published or is forthcoming in 4 a. But at the end of that email, youll usually realize they want you to. A short biography downloadable bio and brochuremonica brown, ph. The short story karen krossing wrote poetry and rants as a teen and dreamed of becoming a published writer. Sample book hardcover july 3, 2006 by sample author author, sample editor, illustrator 5. Sell more books with a kickass amazon book page author marketing experts, inc.
Create a compelling author bio with this formula mill city press. Write the bio for the site where it will live, and mention your reading interests. But in the about the author section of your book proposal youve got to overcome your natural inclination to be reticent. May 10, 2016 a time when an author bio was a few lines at the end of a book, photograph optional, and usually read something like. Put a short author bio on the back cover and a longer one at the end of the book. I am currently working on book 2 of the boys club, a coauthored series i share with luna david. Here are some examples of author bios we love so you can get some. Just the other day i was asked how to write a bio by a fellow writer on twitter. An author bio in a query letter for a book proposal would also be no more than 100 words. Your author bio will continue to change as you work on new projects and build your cv. His books have been published in nearly 30 countries, including an. How to write an author bio to accompany your byline. Your author bio will grow naturally and organically.
This article will cover both what you need to include in your author bio and some examples of tight professional bios. I was born and raised in massachusetts, and most of my books are set in boston and new england. About the author examples that youll actually want to read. Your books author bio tells potential readers who you are, and why they should trust you and buy your book. May 22, 2012 10 tips for writing a great author bio guest post lauren clark is a duolit indie ninja and author of two indie books stay tuned and her new release, out today, called dancing naked in dixie which was formatted for paperback and ebooks by your favorite duolit chicks. How to write a terrific author bio rachelle gardner. Aug 15, 2012 theres nothing wrong with putting your most recent book title in your bio. What you include should focus on who you are as a writer, not what youd share in your personal facebook or twitter profile. Quite often, i will find agents who request i send both my query and an author bio and several other things. Creating an author bio should not be your focus if you havent yet written an article. You are a student in a prominent lowresidency mfa program and an aspiring writer. You may find that a single bio is not enough for the same book.
The back cover bio is usually very short because of limited space. Visit amazon author central, click on your book, and add it in the about the author section or if you published a paperback version of your book on createspace, you can enter the bio in the author biography section for your book. Author x was born in wiltshire, and still lives there with her husband and three sons. Apr 23, 2015 the tone of your bio and everything on the back cover should reflect the books contents. Poet of the people henry holt, winner of the americas award for childrens literature and an orbis pictus honor for outstanding nonfiction, and waiting for the biblioburro random house, a christopher award winner. That said, its crucial to get the about the author right.
Pop the champagne cork, and put a party hat on your cat. Book summary and author bio on the back of the book. Courtney lives in the rocky mountains with her husband, a mediumsized dog, and an attack cat. Below are a few examples of back cover copy for fiction. Judith matz, lcsw, is the coauthor of two books on the topics of eating and weight struggles.
How to write the about the author section of your book proposal. Id show the book to people at book fairs and signing events, and theyd flip the book over, read the bio, and laugh. How to write an author bio that will sell childrens books. For nonfiction, establishing yourself as an expert and differentiating your book from the others written about the same topic will help sell your book. Please welcome author nicolas frame with some good advice on writing your first author bio. One of the best modern examples of literary biography, with its artfully chosen detail and narrative arc combining with a close reading of major texts. Once you have written a short, medium and long bio, save each of them on your computer, usb or cloud storage system. Just dont make your bio sound like your book release is the only reason youre on twitter. Writing an author bio examples of professional bios. The 35 best sports books ever written fill the gaps between watching sport with the greatest writing about muhammad ali, brian clough, diego maradona and more by paul wilson and will hersey. With fiction books, you can get away with a single bio for multiple books, but not with nonfiction.
Its how readers get to know you beyond the pages of your book. Most authors find that they have more information than they need. While your books are a great way to introduce yourself, an author bio can set you. Today i have two types of information you might want to add to. Its the media relations tool that tells reporters, producers, bloggers and other media gatekeepers that your personal history gives you the perfect credentials for this novel or that your professional. Jul 07, 2011 your author bio is an important book press kit element because it is pretty much the only tool you have to make the case that you are the best person to write this book and to write it well. For example, when heather hummels work is syndicated by huffington post, her author bio contains a cta to check out her books, creating a. Then we massage it and create a thirdperson long bio, firstperson letter to family and friends, a website bio, social media bio including a short version for twitter speaking bio and media bio. A fake name is one thing, but a false bio, thats starting to move into the lying to your reader area. Build a better author bio for twitter jane friedman.
Reader endorsements are more valuable than the author bio. Learn how to write for magazines and online websites. Back cover copy includes the book summary and author bio. I was given the title and i was also told how it was going to be published and paid for. Childrens book author biographies, author study resources, kids book illustrator interviews, and other teacher resources. So, weve provided the hints, tips and instructions. The third example shows how part of the back cover copy the author bio. May 31, 2012 how to write a bio for new authors first time authors like myself have it a little tougher when it comes to writing a biography. Here is a great blog post from rachelle gardner about how to write a terrific author bio. Then, if author x had written other booksand or won awards, these would also be listed. Back cover copy includes the book summary and author bio once you wow your potential readers with an excellent front cover, the next part of your book thatll hook them is your back cover copy, which is publishing speak for the information that appears on the back cover. The only rule for an author bio, and its more of a guideline, is to make sure you are writing an author bio. We have no idea what book the other team is playing from.
About the author examples that youll actually want to read weve all heard the cliche that writers have big egos so it makes sense that theres a section in every book where youre required to talk about the author meaning yourself. Courtney milan is a new york times and usa today bestselling author of historical romance. Author bio and book my book is titled from sick to bliss to conversations with god. Amy is a twotime rwa golden heart finalist and author of the popular awardwinning young adult urban fantasyparanormal romance series, the hidden saga and the upcoming newport billionaires sweet romance series. However, as this is my first novel and i dont have much writing credentials, writingspecific education, or publication credits, i dont want to write a pathetic bio that points to the fact that i am inexperienced. The author photo is cheeky and suits well with the style. Oct 22, 2015 writing your author bio can be a daunting task, but a wellcrafted 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. But when you include this information on createspace, it. Famous person says, jane doe writes books that you wont be able to put down. How to write a memorable author bio with template reedsy.
How to write a memorable author bio with template reedsy blog. For a powerful bio that gets results, it needs to be customized for the book. If its a serious book, dont joke around too much in your bio. How to write an author bio that will help you sell more books. These examples of long and short author bios, plus tips for writers of magazine articles, book contributions, book proposals, or blog posts, will help you learn how to write your own author bio biography to accompany your byline. Come right out and say all the positive things about yourself and your writing credentials that an agent would say if she were representing you. Its an invigorating feeling, receiving ones first acceptance letter from an editor. Reeves looks simple but has all the useful and interesting information one might look for. The comprehensive guide to treating binge eating disorder, compulsive eating and emotional overeating has been called the new bible on this topic for professionals. Annie jackson wrote a new blog post 5 essential lessons from roswell, new mexico the first three minutes of the original roswell pilot are some of my favorite moments on tv, ever. The third example shows how part of the back cover copy the author bio, in this case can show up on the inside flap of a hard cover book. I wrote numerous query letters, sent numerous emails, made numerous phone calls, and produced only one glimmer of interest from a new york agent who was on a desperate search for chic lit approximately 80,000 words long. May 28, 20 this bio page is made in three colors that work together wonderfully white, red and black.
Discover the best author biographies in best sellers. The bio you write today will look completely different in five years time. How to write a kickass amazon bio to sell more books author. It takes a long time to read a book, but its very easy to make a snap judgment based on a short paragraph, and most people do that. Her book, let me in, is the first book in that series, on sale at amazon. Last time i gave examples of long and short pages that you can use in your book. If you have two or three reader endorsements and a short book description, too little space remains for a long author bio.
As ive advised before, you should dig into the online store that youre selling on. You can include a longer bio when you write your website biography. Consider the following two examples of author bio introductory. You could say, jane doe is the author of the popular book, lightning strikes which started the nonstop thrill ride readers experience in.
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