Create an Author Bio That Captivates Your Audience
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A bio is a critical part of any author website, and every site should have one. Whether you are trying to reach readers, the media, or potential clients, people want to know who you are. Here are several tips for creating a bio that generates results:
- Consider a traditional bio (focusing on your professional and publishing credentials) if you want to emphasize your credentials. Most nonfiction authors fall into this category.
- Consider a narrative bio if you want to tell a story through your bio. The narrative approach works particularly well for authors of fiction or creative nonfiction.
- Focus your bio on your audience and the action you want them to take. If your goal is to sell books on financial planning (as well as fill your seminar seats and get hired for speaking engagements), your bio needs to reflect your expert qualifications as a financial planner. If you’re trying to encourage potential readers to buy your mystery novel, create a bio that piques the interest of a mystery fan.
- Create both long and short versions of your bio to suit different needs.
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Patrice-Anne Rutledge is a bestselling author of 26 books translated into 11 languages who has been featured on CNN, Inc., CareerBuilder, AOL, Global Business and dozens of other publications around the world. She is an online book promotion expert who holds the designation of Certified eMarketer (CeM).
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Very helpful. I liked the concept of creating both long and short versions of a bio - in my case, one for my personal bio (which I’ve already got on my site), and the short one focussing in-depth on my novels.
Strangely enough, havinger just released my autobiography I’ll Do It Myself, it is the author bio for my online media room where I’m really stuck. I’ll keep your tips in mind as I tackle this task today.
What if you lack credentials? In my case, I’m a pastor of a small church, former private school teacher, and (before that) former mid-level to low-level project manager, lobbyist, etc. in the nonprofit world. It’s hard to make it all sound “snazzy.”