UK Amazon Kindle Forum discussion
Agony Aunt
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What should be in an author's bio - and what shouldn't?
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Anna wrote: "But, I often look at people's profiles here on Goodreads and I enjoy finding out about the person behind the posts. "I'd better apologise now then, before you read mine.
Alicia wrote: "Ah, traditional publishing!"I suppose I'll have to add 'try to pretend to be interesting in author bios' to that long list of things I have to do.
When I have the time to add it to the list.
Thanks to all who contributed (conspired) to the Author Bio.I have something I'm going to go put up on GR (https://www.goodreads.com/author/show...), on Amazon, and on prideschildren.wordpress.com.
I appreciate all the feedback, and have taken it all into account in some way.
Tim wrote: "I first used the blurb my publisher wrote on the cover of my memoir. Over time I have tried to amend it to appear more relevant to my novels, but I have to admit, my bio does seem a bit long. Howev..."Don't worry about being overlong! Those who like long will read the whole thing and want more.
Those who don't like long will STOP READING. Readers are smart enough to know what they like. Put the important stuff you want them to know in the first paragraphs; newspapers used to do this so you could cut off the end without losing the good part - if there wasn't room.
Readers are smart. It's only writers who read who will write and tell you your bio is too long - because they don't do things the way you do.
I keep having people tell me I'm doing it wrong - when I didn't ask!
Here, I asked - and got a lot of good advice and feedback. Ditto on my blog (liebjabberings.wordpress.com).
Unless you insist on sending 1000 words when asked for 200 (in which case you deserve however it gets chopped off), your space is your own. Both Amazon and Goodreads allow very long bios, so long that many people put all kinds of other stuff in the space, after the bio.
If you have a publisher, you had that experience of someone else writing your bio. How did you like it?
Tim wrote: "I'm so sorry you didn't get to be an astronaut. ..."Me, too, but I got to apply, go through the selection week in Houston, and at least try to fulfill that ambition. It got me through the bad parts of the PhD, knowing that if I quit, they would never consider me.
And getting the PhD has turned out to be important for many things, including that I got to work at Princeton for 10 years, at the best place to do plasma physics in the US. Maybe it hurt more when I lost the ability to do physics due to illness, but I won't have the regret that I didn't get what I wanted to do.
And it makes colorful bio now that I'm at the part of my life where I had planned to write anyway (though not what I write!).
It's not 'for the best,' but life is never perfect - and I've had my chances and done the work when it was up to me, and who can ask for more?
I'll check out your bio.
I'm impressed! You've certainly had a colorful and fascinating life.I like your bio - thank your girlfriend at the time for pushing you. She was right.
OH NO!!!I have moved away from haunting the morning thread and stumbled onto this one. Read all the posts and then looked at my own Amazon author bio. Oh dear. Right! Wee bit of work to do there . . . Here it is - it's okay to laugh! and would appreciate pointers on how to fix.
I was born in Scotland but have lived in the Channel Island of Jersey for most of my life. An avid reader, I've been writing for some time but decided to get serious a few years back.
My first novel, Blood In The Sand, was published in 2015. I'm currently working on a second book featuring DCI Jack Le Claire.
I work in finance and love what I do but adore the escapism of writing, of crafting stories and characters and putting them into and, hopefully, getting them out of, peril.
I live with my husband and three cats in a home overlooking the sea.
I don't know if this will be helpful, but I checked out several 'how to' web sites when I revised my bio and the result was the following notes from the one that made the most sense to me. Unfortunately, I didn't take a note of its name! But anyway:Show credibility for the the specific thing you're writing in terms of experience, education, and/or passion.
Demonstrate your humanity, but use the 'one quirk only' rule. (Kath's author bio is a great example of this, I thought.)
Communicate a Clear Message which is a one sentence description of your book that answers the question, 'what do you write?'
In answering this:
Describe your genre.
Pinpoint and describe the reader experience as powerfully and succinctly as possible (which means you need to define your readership and what they desire when they read the type of book you write - well, I had a go!)
Other notes I made to help with the Clear Message were:
'What do I get when I read my favourite novelist?' eg 'delicious escape', 'a thrilling ride'.
What do I want to do for my readers?
What is my intended action upon my readers?
So your Clear message begins, 'I write...' (or 'She writes...')
I found it has to be a really tight piece of writing to express all of the above in one sentence, and well, as I say, I tried!
So from this, it just appears to me that you have to maybe be a bit more descriptive of Blood in the Sand - which is well-crafted and entertaining, after all - and turn the description into a sort of potted reader hook!
Thank you, Elizabeth - wherever you found this, it is packed with stuff I'm going to have to absorb.Then I may make some changes.
I don't think I have all these pieces yet.
I'm not sure what 'Blood in the Sand' is, but creating a one-sentence description is an on-going process for every book, and Pride's Children can always use another going-over.
Refining all the text that goes on the author and book page is a good place to put time and effort, and it is often what people will see in the last stages of making a decision whether to read.
Much appreciated.
My basic consideration is the old adage - TLDR - too long, didn't read. You can have too much.
Kath wrote: "My basic consideration is the old adage - TLDR - too long, didn't read. You can have too much."People can stop reading when they get bored, but I agree, because if they haven't pushed the Buy button, and you're boring them with the bio, they may decide not to get the book. Subtle, but 'she can't shut up' is not a good recommendation for the author.
I think if you want to say more you can give a link to your website. However, it's well known that the more clicks people have to do, the more of them fall by the wayside. I honestly don't think many people read an author bio at the point of choosing a book. They may do when they've read it and want to know who writes this stuff!
I've just come across this thread, it's so interesting! I have to say that in the past, I've not been overly concerned about reading an author's bio, unless it has been a particularly good book. Whoops, I haven't filled in my bio here on GR yet, that's next on the list.I am here under my pen name, as my book is partly autobiographical and is deeply personal. There has been the need therefore to be very careful to be truthful, but also to remove any identifiers. How do any of you who are pseudonymous writers feel about a bio?
Jen wrote: "How do any of you who are pseudonymous writers feel about a bio? "And author photo?
Do you bother, pick something mysterious, or ...?
Alicia wrote: "Jen wrote: "How do any of you who are pseudonymous writers feel about a bio? "And author photo?
Do you bother, pick something mysterious, or ...?"
I did think of ways round a photo that wouldn't identify me, such as with dark glasses and temporarily dyeing my hair a different colour. I decided in the end to use the rainbow image on here, FB and Twitter.
Jen wrote: "I've just come across this thread, it's so interesting! I have to say that in the past, I've not been overly concerned about reading an author's bio, unless it has been a particularly good book. Wh..."I decided to go for a pen name as I work in finance and meet a lot of new prospects and people in general. People google you these days and I didn't want them seeing murder and mayhem when they should be reading about the day job. So I used a pen name.
Of course, the second it was published I told EVERYONE about the book (not prospects or day job clients, though) so now the author photo is me, the biog is my background etc. The only thing that's different is the name!
I did think about wearing a wig and really heavy make-up in the author photo but my husband's laughter stopped me.
Thanks, Jen and Kelly.I think in the olden days it would have been fun to pretend to be someone else, especially if you went to book signings and conventions, but I rarely leave the house, so that's out.
What I HAVE noticed is that a lot of things that were a big deal before I did them - publishing, promoting, author bio, telling people... - turned out to be very dull after I did them. Few people noticed or cared that I spent 15 years writing a novel.
Bit of a letdown, but you get over it, and realize there are benefits to easing in to authordom.
And I've gone back to writing - will check things once a day, then once a week, then... - and shake my head at what happens when you market or promote, attract (how?) someone who should never have read your kind of book, and they leave a negative review.
Everyone gets those: I now have a 1*, a 2*, and a 3* - in addition to the good ones. I know you're not supposed to do or say anything, but it still confuses me.
A lot to learn there.
Thanks Alicia and Kelly. Yes, all the marketing stuff has been a steep learning curve for me, and difficult to do pseudonymously!I agree Alicia, reviews can be confusing; I've read a few duds that have 5*, and very good books that have some low ratings. Everyone's tastes differ I guess.
Kath wrote: "I think if you want to say more you can give a link to your website. However, it's well known that the more clicks people have to do, the more of them fall by the wayside. I honestly don't think m..."
yes, something catchy and get them interested. They can read the three volume autobiography on the website :-)
Jim wrote: "Brief, concise references to formal education, career achievements/awards and basic personal information that may be easily verified humanizes and presents a vague idea of what kind of person the a..."Hi Jim,
I have just commented on this in your blog.
Jim wrote: "Your work speaks for itself. Don't interrupt!" True, but you have to get them to read a bit of your work!
The catchy bits in the various locations provided to you - Author Page, cover, website, bio, book description, reviews (if you're lucky), even subtitle - are there to get someone to take that tiny taste.
Marie wrote: "I think you should include awards and nominations for writing :) I would like to see that an author sings in a choir and other things that add dimension to them as a person. A lot of people include..."I wrote mine in first person, but when it came back from the editor, it was changed to third person. Frankly I'd rather not include one. I tend to write for a hobby, and I feel embarrassed about including one. But, was told to include it. I can't imagine many people bother reading it, and I would feel bad, if it made them think I was taking myself too seriously.
I would rather just put.
Hi, I'm Mike. I enjoyed writing this. Hope you enjoy reading it.
I do tend to read an Author Bio, if I really like their books, and read more than one. Otherwise I don't bother. But I do like that they include them so I have the choice.
Michael wrote: "I would rather just put.Hi, I'm Mike. I enjoyed writing this. Hope you enjoy reading it."
That's a great bio Mike - I wish I had thought of that one first. We live in the celeb culture age though, where everyone feels duty-bound to reveal something. Many of my old books don't have a bio unless they're academic, and that concentrates on the author's academic achievements.
I wish I had used it. :). I can, at least, relax in the knowledge that most people won't read it. The few that do, will appreciate that I have experienced a few of the things I write about, so will, hopefully, forgive my indulgence in including it.
You have to claim your writing - you are the producer. Are you ashamed of it? No.
As a true Brit, I hate 'selling' myself. Fortunately, I believe the author bio is for people who have already read what you have written. I don't think anyone reads the bio of a writer before buying a book. Therefore, I found the best thing to do was to be true to myself and make my bio a little bit truthful and a little bit silly.
Don't boast and don't do stuff about your sex life. Funny is good but only if it is actually funny.My bio is rubbish because if people knew what an eejit I really am they would probably avoid my books like the plague...
Darren wrote: "As a true Brit, I hate 'selling' myself. Fortunately, I believe the author bio is for people who have already read what you have written. I don't think anyone reads the bio of a writer before buyin..."You're right about when most people read a bio: when something has satisfied, and they're wondering what other books the author has, and notice the bio on the Amazon Author Page.
Every once in a great while I ask myself if I can trust the author of a book before I buy it. More often than that, I wish I had done so before buying - because the writer obviously doesn't have the credentials (from reading the bio) to write the book.
I am aiming for serious writing - and don't do silly very well unless with people who know me; it comes across as pompous if you hit it without warning.
Some people are outgoing, extroverted, and confident enough to be silly. Unfortunately, I'm not one of those.
Jane wrote: "Don't boast and don't do stuff about your sex life. Funny is good but only if it is actually funny.My bio is rubbish because if people knew what an eejit I really am they would probably avoid my ..."
I went to Colleen McCullough's bio - she was an amazing woman who turned to writing after a significant contribution to science and medicine. The Thorn Birds hit a nerve.
When she died, the press talked about her weight, instead of her many accomplishments. Imagine if her bio were also silly.
Alicia. It sounds slightly as if I may have irritated you. Sorry. Wasn't my intention. What I'm trying to say in a roundabout (and maybe a bit too facile) way is that I think there is no such thing as a correct bio. Some will be serious and thought provoking, some will be genuinely funny, and most will be mediocre in the extreme.
And a bio that feels right to you today may change as you write more or your life changes.
I keep mine brief. The books I've written and my occupation.
My author bio begins:Jan Hurst-Nicholson has been reliably informed that website biographies are usually written in the third person, giving them the air of being penned by an authoritative third party (allowing the author carte blanche to embellish without the restraints of false modesty)
Jan Hurst-Nicholson lives in sunny South Africa where she is personal chef to an elderly picky cat, and doorman to a dog that is forever on the wrong side of a door. The dog sits beside her as she works. The cat sleeps on the work.
Her articles, humorous articles and short stories have appeared in South African and overseas magazines and these were compiled into a book: "Something to Read on the Plane - a bit of light literature, short stories & other fun stuff," and "I Made These Up (short stories for the fireside)"
(it continues to list my books and awards.)
After reading a book that I really enjoyed, that also had some steamy sex scenes (but not erotica) I was excited to be invited to a talk by the author. She turned out to be a small, rather shy lady. While listening to her discuss the book I couldn't help imagining her tapping away on her typewriter (it was that long ago) writing the sex scenes. After that I decided I wouldn't read an author bio or look at an author pic in case it influenced me while I was reading the story, and possibly took me out of the story. Now I wait until I've finished a book before looking at a bio (if I'm interested enough) :).
If you have your books on www.AuthorsDen.com you can look at the stats and see how many clicks there have been on your author bio. I've been a (not very active) member for a few years and have had 687 clicks on my bio, so readers do read them.
Jane wrote: "Alicia. It sounds slightly as if I may have irritated you. Sorry. Wasn't my intention. What I'm trying to say in a roundabout (and maybe a bit too facile) way is that I think there is no such thi..."
Sorry - no, you didn't irritate me! I just didn't see your reply until today.
The reason there is no correct bio is that we are writers - and there is no correct writing either.
But there is feeling shy or overwhelmed by the process - and thus telling people who are interested enough to look nothing about yourself.
Also, if you have made a good comment, as you did, I don't feel I have to follow up or endorse it - someone has to shut up first, and it is my honour/honor to do it sometimes (I talk too much).
Jan wrote: "After reading a book that I really enjoyed, that also had some steamy sex scenes (but not erotica) I was excited to be invited to a talk by the author. She turned out to be a small, rather shy lady..."Ah, yes - but what if you read the bio after the book - and then the author writes another book? The cheek!
You can't win. Really you can't. So do what you like, but don't be afraid to do it.
Jan wrote: "My author bio begins:Jan Hurst-Nicholson has been reliably informed that website biographies are usually written in the third person, giving them the air of being penned by an authoritative third..."
Grasping bull firmly by the horns, and proceeding...
Good method. It's actually quite witty.
I think its super difficult to write a bio - as with all writings, you can't really appeal to everyone. Someone suggested its more like a dating site, and I have never been very good at those either unfortunately!My approach was to write sincerely about myself and why I write, and try to make it interesting and creative - not for others, but for myself. This way I can relate to it, its personal and inspiring to me should I ever read it. I guess it doesn't matter if no one else reads it, just like no one used to read my dating profiles back in the day! :)
Saqib wrote: "I think its super difficult to write a bio - as with all writings, you can't really appeal to everyone. Someone suggested its more like a dating site, and I have never been very good at those eithe..."I'm re-thinking the bio - mine sounds like a resume, not a writer's bio, and stuffy. Sigh.
Thing is, all that stuff is relevant to who I am and what and how I write - possibly not immediately obviously, though.
Maybe too much for the Amazon page - but okay for a back corner of my own blog.
I'll check yours out.
I'm sorry your dating site usage didn't work out - never tried one of those. By the time they had them, I was married with three children. It's been 41 years, so we must have done something right.
Ah, traditional publishing!
I'm more of a writer than a reader, so I don't really count, but I do read bios now, because of various things like being curious about Colleen McCullough (The Thorn Birds) and Nevil Shute (On The Beach), whose books inspired me long before I knew there were real people behind those names.
Since getting ready for publishing, I've read a great many bios, and looked at covers and author pages galore, to see where I might plausibly sidle up.
Writers, it turns out, have long complained about their publishers' choices of covers. To the detriment of sales, some of those covers. And head-scratching if not rage at the publisher who puts a blue-eyed blonde (because they sell) on the cover of a book about a brown-eyed, dark-skinned heroine.
I may not be perfect at it, but at least I take these things into account.