if(typeof ez_ad_units != 'undefined'){ez_ad_units.push([[300,250],'tckpublishing_com-box-2','ezslot_2',141,'0','0'])};__ez_fad_position('div-gpt-ad-tckpublishing_com-box-2-0'); How to Write a Biography: 8 Steps for a Captivating Story
by Yen Cabag | 10 comments
We’ll just say it: biographies don’t often make the most exciting reads, especially when they’re loaded with fact after fact, and not much insight or narrative.
However, when the writer is passionate and highly knowledgeable about the story they’re telling, a biography can be just as riveting as an action-packed novel.
If you’ve considered writing a biography about the life of someone you admire or whose story interests you, you’ll definitely want to do a thorough job. The steps and information presented below will help ensure that your writing is accurate and well organized.
What Is a Biography?
A biography is an account of a person’s life that includes facts and anecdotes from that person’s experiences. They can be great resources for studying the lives of fascinating figures, both living and dead.
Most biographies are written to tell the stories of famous or highly influential people, such as politicians, celebrities, athletes, and billionaires.
But biographies can also be written about ordinary people who have made an extraordinary impact on others, even if they are not extremely well-known prior to publication.
A biography may come with the label “authorized” if the subject or their family members gave the author permission to write the story. “Unauthorized” biographies are also frequently published, but without the permission or input of the subject, which may leave the authors subject to legal action.
Difference Between a Biography and an Autobiography
A biography is an account of the life of someone other than the author. An autobiography is an account of the author’s own life. However, the definition may be blurry in cases when a ghostwriter helps someone write his autobiography.
A ghostwriter is a writer who helps another person in creating a book. This help may come in the form of collaboration, or the ghostwriter might do all the writing themselves. When a person wants to write their autobiography but is not exactly gifted at writing, they may ask a ghostwriter to help create it.
What Should a Biography Include?
Biographies usually share more intimate information about their subjects, compared to what is generally included in a feature article. The most interesting things typically included in a biography are:
- the subject’s family background and childhood
- stories that illustrate their personality
- their motivations, goals, and achievements
- their key relationships, such as their siblings, spouse, children, best friends, colleagues, mentors, rivals
- their hidden fears or desires
- stories and anecdotes about their experiences, especially those that illustrate the traits you wish to highlight
How Do You Start Writing a Biography?
When you write a biography, you’re exploring the details of a person’s life, including their thought processes and emotions.
This means that you must be able to write with care and tact. You will also be analyzing the events in your subject’s life and explaining why they do certain things to draw connections between those experiences.
The length of a biography can vary greatly. It might be very short, and divulge only the basic facts of a person’s life.
However, for most published works, biographies offer a deeper analysis, including many stories and examples that demonstrate the person’s unique character.
1. Choose your subject.
Ideally, your subject should be someone whose life deeply interests you. Note, however, that this doesn’t mean you have to like the person. Many biographies are written from a critical viewpoint, in which the subject’s flaws and mistakes are analyzed.
Keep in mind that your feelings about the person will affect the way you write, and consequently influence how readers view the work.
If your subject is still living, you should make every effort to interview them (or at least their representatives). When it comes to writing a biography, a you are writing about someone alive or not, the process remains the same, except for the fact that you can still interview a living person.
An important part of choosing your subject is obtaining their permission. You need to ask the person whether or not they agree to let you write their biography.
If they agree, it’s all well and good! If they don’t agree and you proceed anyway, you might be subject to legal action should your subject decide to pursue it.
If the person you choose to write about is dead, you will not need to ask anyone’s permission.
2. Find out the basic facts about your subject’s life.
If the person you are writing about is famous, you will likely be able to find certain details online, such as their birthday, family background, and other basic information. The same holds true even if he is not famous but you know him personally.
Then, you can use news articles or similar sources to help you decide which part of their life interests you the most.
3. Conduct thorough research.
For research, biographers rely on both primary and secondary sources.
- Primary sources : If you are writing about a living person, primary sources might include interviews with that person, their family members, friends, and colleagues, as well as letters, journals, diaries, speeches, newspaper accounts, school records or reports, and other documents.
- Secondary sources : If you write about a famous person, chances are there are already other books written about them. Biographies that another person has written fall under secondary sources, as do reference books and histories that support your information.
Because a good biography will include stories from the subject’s experiences, be sure to collect personal stories and even anecdotes.
These will surely bring greater credibility to your writing, and make your subject more relatable to your readers.
How to Write a Biography
Now that you’ve done your research, it’s time to begin writing the biography, starting with a detailed outline to help you organize your idea and information.
4. Write an outline of your biography.
Once you’ve figured out the direction you want to take with your biography, an outline will help you organize your thoughts and information so you’ll be better prepared to start writing.
Create a bullet point for every main theme that you want to include which may correspond to one chapter. Then write another bullet, indented to the right, for each different sub-topic within the main theme. These will be the different sections inside each chapter.
You have several options for writing your outline:
- Chronological order : Many biographers go for a chronological account of their subject’s life, from the day they were born, through their childhood, school days, career, and so on.
- Specific time periods : Another way of outlining is to group certain time periods around a specific theme. For example, your subject’s difficult childhood may be lumped together into a theme entitled “Early Adversity.”
- Thematic : Other biographers outline their chapters by themes. For example, a theme on your subject’s generous heart may include examples from across his life, while a theme on his intellectual prowess may also portray his academic achievements across many years.
5. Start writing your first draft.
Now that you have all your information collected, start to write your story based on the outline you prepared in step 4. Some writers prefer to write one chapter after another, while others don’t mind jumping around chapters. Experiment and find what works best for you.
When you start to write, don’t worry too much about editing or fact-checking. At this point, just concentrate on crafting the story in an interesting way that will hook your readers.
6. Take a break before proofreading and fact checking your first draft.
You will likely be excited to start editing once you’ve finished your first draft, but you’ll actually be doing yourself a favor by taking a break for at least a few days.
In this way, you’ll be able to return to work with a fresh set of eyes, which will leave you better able to catch errors and see your work from a new perspective.
Once you feel ready, start scanning your work for typos, cut and paste paragraphs you want to transfer, and even eliminate whole passages that don’t seem to play an important role in the story.
This is also the best time to fine-tune and fact check your writing .
7. Get another perspective.
Once you have smoothed out everything you can in your work, now is the time to get someone else’s feedback.
Whether you intend to publish your biography or not, it’s always a good idea to get feedback from someone who is skilled in writing.
Their comments will not only improve your biography, but also provide valuable tips for improving your writing in the future.
8. Send a copy to your subject.
Consider sending a copy of your manuscript to the person whose life you wrote about in your book.
The copy may serve as a thank-you gift, but also, if you intend to publish your work, you will need them to approve, as well as fact check, everything you put into the story.
Publish Your Biography
Congratulations! Now that you’ve finished writing your biography, you should start to work on getting your book published.
Check out our ultimate guide on how to publish a book , which features tips on self-publishing, as well as pitching to traditional or independent publishers.
Did you find this post helpful? Let us know in the comments below!
If you enjoyed this post, then you might also like:
- How to Publish a Book: The Ultimate Guide to Book Publishing in 2020
- 25 Memoir and Autobiography Publishers Currently Accepting Submissions
- 20 Best Presidential Biographies to Read This President’s Day
- The 16 Best Memoirs to Read Right Now
Yen Cabag is the Blog Writer of TCK Publishing. She is also a homeschooling mom, family coach, and speaker for the Charlotte Mason method, an educational philosophy that places great emphasis on classic literature and the masterpieces in art and music. She has also written several books, both fiction and nonfiction. Her passion is to see the next generation of children become lovers of reading and learning in the midst of short attention spans.
10 Comments
This really helped my homework.
This was a very informative article. I’m writing a biography about two slaves who escaped from bondage. It is for children between the ages of 8-12. Would I still use this information?
what is the best way to record interviews from your subject? tape? other technical equipment?
Hi Virginia, it really depends on your preferences. These days there are plenty of recording apps on smart phones that allow you to take high-quality recordings, which you can take easily take anywhere with you or transfer to other devices :)
I have been thinking to write a biography of a living person who recently became popular due to his unusual talent and gift. I found this article to be a very informative and helpful guide. I hope I can get going one of these days. My big hurdle is how I can interview this person as I don’t have my own office to interview him and he is only around for a few months. By” around” I mean he travels all over the country. Thank you very much for your article. I will appreciate any helpful advice.
Hi Divinia, I’m glad you found the article helpful! You could always conduct phone interviews or video calls :) may not be exactly the same as face to face, but it can get you the information and insights you need :)
Thank you for a very inciteful article. I’m in the process of writing a biography of a former country music superstar who lost everything due to anger issues and alcoholism, only to recover and become a follower of Jesus, then start his own church and ministry. My question is, when an author writes a biography about another person, how do they decide how to share the proceeds of the book? Thank you very much for your time and advice.
Hi Hal, thanks for your comment! I’m not an expert on that, but I’m pretty sure there’s no rule that you have to share any of the proceeds if you write a biography about another person. Now, if you were helping that person to ghostwrite their own autobiography, that would be different, but still settled between the two of you.
This article is very useful and well organized. Writing the biography sounds like a fun project to undertake. The late James Baldwin spoke about writers writing something they’ve never written. I’ve published an autobiography and after reading your piece, I feel confident in writing a biography of a person who’s still alive. Thank you for your advice.
Thanks Bobby, we’re so glad you found Yen’s article helpful!
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BrandYourself Blog | ORM and Personal Branding
11 Tips On How To Write A Personal Biography + Examples
We’ve all been there: agonizing over how to write a bio that doesn’t sound too self-promotional or fall flat with modesty.
“What is a biography?” you may ask. A bio is a piece of work that details a person’s life. In addition to basic facts, like education and employment, it is meant to portray their lived experiences as well.
Writing a biography that’s professional and actually sparks interest can be tricky. And optimizing it for greater visibility in search engines can make your job even harder.
In many cases, your personal biography will define your first impression online when you’re Googled by:
- A potential employer or client before an interview.
- Someone at a networking event who wants to learn more about you.
- A potential client or customer looking to get more info before working with you.
And when someone finds your social media profiles, personal website, or company bio page, your bio will be there to greet them.
It can make or break whether someone wants to take the next step and work with you.
So it’s important to make it count.
1. How to write a bio about yourself that checks all the boxes.
When it comes to writing a personal or professional bio, there are a few items that are standard to include. While a bio may not have all of these things, if any of the following apply to you, then they should be included. Use the following bullet points to write out a list of information about you. From there, you can draw info from each line item to start crafting your bio.
- Your current role
- Hometown/Current place of residence
- Work experience
- Education history
- Special skills & attributes
- Professional accomplishments
- Personal accomplishments
- High-level personal goals & aspirations
- High-level professional accomplishments
- Hobbies & pastimes
- Personal passions
- Awards or Accolades
- Press Mentions
- Miscellaneous (What makes you unique!)
Starting with a list ensures you won’t leave anything out.
2. Introduce yourself… like a real person.
This is one of the most important pieces of understanding how to write a personal biography. Always start with your name.
When many people start learning how to write a bio, they skip this important part. People need to know who you are before they learn what you do. Remember that your most important details should go in the very first sentence.
Keep the first sentence short and sweet, either by describing what you do at a high level or going into more detail about your specific role. Aim to describe yourself in a way that’s professional…but also human.
3. Watch your word count.
When you start writing a bio about yourself, determining the length may seem like an afterthought – something that just happens once you stop typing. However, it is something that you need to think about before you start writing – and your ideal word count may shift depending on your primary focus.
From an SEO perspective, the more words you use in your personal bio, the better. If you are filling in the bio section of a profile, find out the word or character limit – that’s how long your bio should be. If you are writing the bio on your personal website, the longer, the better. Plan to write 500 words – minimum. If you have 1,500 to 2,000 words in you, that’s even better.
From a branding perspective, you may have a different take on the length of your bio. Perhaps you would prefer to keep things short and sweet or don’t feel the immediate need for a 1,500-word count. If so, that’s fine too. Cater your personal bio to your goals. Start small. The length suggestion can change based on your situation and ultimate goals.
4. Write your biography in the third person.
This is one of the most common steps that you may struggle with when learning how to write a bio about yourself. While it can feel strange to talk about yourself in the third person at first, there are some very clear benefits from doing so:
From an SEO perspective, writing a bio in the third person allows you to include your full name throughout the bio. This lets search engines know that this lengthy, original, and well-written piece of content is about you . While making it clear that this awesome work is about you is important when it comes to search engine optimization, don’t let speaking in the third person become too much of a good thing.
Never overuse your name when writing a bio or include it in a way that seems unnatural. Instead, use your name when it is appropriate. By dropping your name too frequently, search engines may think that the article looks suspicious/spammy – or isn’t written very well.
5. Write a story, not a list.
When writing a personal bio, it can be easy to fall into the trap of rattling off accomplishments, but that’s what your resume is for. Your bio should go above and beyond your awards and get to the core of who you are and what you’re about.
Now, that may seem like a tall order, but with a bit of planning, you can pull it off. You can understand how to write a bio from a technical standpoint, but looking at it through this lens will help be your guideline going forward. Ask yourself questions like, “Who is your audience?” or, “What are the main takeaways for your reader?” and “What events in your life best illustrate those main points?”. Turn your biography into a story that engages the reader.
Those who have mastered the steps of how to write a bio spend a lot of time doing this. If you approach writing a bio like a story, you’re giving yourself the opportunity to differentiate yourself from others and truly connect with the reader.
6. Edit ruthlessly, analyze with free tools, and update constantly.
Your online bio is the authoritative source for you. That means that it needs to reflect you in the best light possible. This also means that it should be kept as up-to-date as possible. The proper action plan for how to write a bio is never truly finished because of this.
A lengthy, well-written, and regularly updated piece of content is like search engine gold. So when you complete your initial version of the longer personal bio that you will use on your website, know that you’re not finished.
As you gain more experience or perhaps shift your professional focus, include these changes in your bios. And keep asking other people that you trust to take a look at your main bios to edit them. Writing a bio is an ongoing process that you should never ignore for too long.
Read your bio aloud to yourself, use free editing tools like the Hemingway app , Slickwrite , or any other number of free resources that will help you write a great bio about yourself that keeps readers interested.
7. Link to your work.
Regardless of your profession, it’s likely that you have samples of your work that are pertinent to the audience reading about you. In addition to being an introduction to who you are and what you do, let your personal bio act as a marketing tool. In case you need some ideas, see this good real estate marketing teamwork where you can draw ideas. Many people want to learn how to write a bio effectively, but they don’t spend enough time learning how to use it as a promotion.
You can do this by including links to your product, company, or service. Avoid doing this in a heavy-handed way since nobody wants to read a direct sales pitch when they’re trying to learn about a human being. Mention the product, company, or service in a way that helps you tell your own story in a natural way.
These links should enhance and illustrate what you’re already describing yourself. This shouldn’t be a distraction or take anything away from the main thrust of your personal narrative.
If you have a lot of work and accomplishments to choose from, be selective! Highlight work that’s impressive, relevant, tells your story and makes you proud.
If you don’t currently have much to link to within your personal bio, don’t worry.
Start by learning more about personal branding . Make a note in your calendar, planner, or journal that this is something to work on outside of creating your personal bio. But don’t let this fall by the wayside. Set some time aside in the next few weeks to actively work on fixing this.
Whether it’s writing an article on your company’s website, submitting a post to a site that’s related to your industry, or finally getting your passion project’s website live… do it! And once that is live, get the most out of it by linking to it in your bios. Look to other professionals in your field who have a well-developed online presence for inspiration.
8. Don’t forget to share your contact information.
Even if you have a contact page on your site, or perhaps widgets on your website that link to your social media sites, make a point to include the most direct mode of connection at the end of your personal bio. This could be your email address, a link to your contact page, or a link to your LinkedIn account. When it comes down to it, understanding how to write a biography aids you in creating new and valuable connections.
By including this type of information at the end of your bio, you’re not only letting your audience know how you prefer that they get in touch with you but directing them to another hub that lets them learn even more information about you (if you so choose). Give some thought about what you want your audience to do after they have just been introduced to you through your personal bio.
9. Write a bio for all of your different profiles.
As you build your online presence, you will need different versions of your bio. They’ll vary in length depending on where you place them. So to start, don’t feel like you have to fit your entire life story into one bio.
It’s important to have multiple versions of your bio for two main reasons:
- From a Search Engine Optimization (SEO) perspective, unique content helps your profiles and websites rank better in search results. Why? Because search engines like Google want to provide a broad range of information, not content that seems plagiarized (even if you just plagiarized yourself).
- From a branding perspective, it’s helpful to have different versions of your bio at the ready for different platforms. For example, your Twitter bio will be very short due to character limitations, but your LinkedIn bio (called your summary) can be longer.
Both of these reasons fit into the bigger picture of managing your online presence. A lot goes into this process, which is why we put together this comprehensive online reputation management guide .
10. Use an online tool to ensure the bios on all your profiles are well-branded and optimized to rank high in search engines.
Understanding how to write a bio is a lot easier when you have a little help. At BrandYourself, we’ve built reputation management software that walks you through building an impressive online presence.
It includes a useful personal bio analyzer that helps you ensure your bios across all profiles (LinkedIn, Twitter, About.me, your website, etc.) are well-branded and optimized to show up as high as possible on Google. Just submit your profiles and quickly find out which bios need improvement.
If you want to analyze the bios on your own profiles, create a free account now . Just submit your main profiles, then click “optimize” on each one to see a list of ways you can improve them – including enhancing your personal bio.
11. Get help from an expert.
Sometimes you just need a second pair of eyes on your personal bio – or you can have a specialist write it for you. That’s part of the larger reputation management services we provide at BrandYourself.
If you’re interested in working with one of our in-house reputation specialists, we can help. As part of your kickoff strategy session, we’ll help define the most powerful way to talk about yourself, position yourself effectively against others in your industry, and ensure your bios are working for you across all your online profiles and websites. Our reputation specialists understand the ins and outs of how to write a bio that helps you achieve your goals, and it’s one of the first things they go over with you.
To learn more, check out our reputation management services here . Otherwise, don’t hesitate to check out our other blog posts as you continue your journey in building your brand. And if you don’t want to miss out on similar tips and tricks in the future, just scroll up and subscribe.
Personal Biography Examples
1. noah kagan.
Read Noah’s full bio .
This is a good biography example that does a lot of the things we’ve mentioned well. Noah links to his work, writes with a friendly style, and even connects the reader with the people he works with.
The reason why we’re highlighting this bio, though, is that Noah makes it easy to get in touch with him via email. So many biography examples that you might find will include links to social media accounts only, which is fine. However, if you want to build up a fast connection with someone who just found you, email is the way to go.
Not only that, but because he wrote this bio in a fun and conversational style (the little mention about taco gift cards), it actually encourages people to reach out. Noah is great at building connections with people, and this biography example is no exception.
2. Katerina Jeng
Read Katerina’s full bio .
The biography example from Katerina Jeng illustrates how to introduce yourself like a real person while demonstrating professionalism at the same time. Katerina covers her background, useful traits, current work, and hobbies – all while keeping things light and conversational.
The balance in this bio example can be tough to replicate, but it’s worth exploring if it fits your writing style.
Going too casual or stuffy can leave a bad impression professionally and won’t give you the best possible opportunity to stand out. This is a good example of how to write a bio that does both.
3. Barack & Michelle Obama
Read the full bios .
On Barack and Michelle Obama’s page, you can find textbook biography examples that show you how to write your bio in the third person without making it awkward to read. So many people struggle with this, so hopefully, these bio examples will make things easier by seeing it in action.
Both of these bios do a great job of not going overboard and varying the kind of third-person mentions you can include. This makes your biography more natural to read while still ensuring that it has the best chance of being seen when someone looks you up.
4. Darren Rowse
Read Darren’s full bio .
Using ProBlogger as a biography example for our tips is a perfect fit. When you check out the page, you’ll see that Darren wrote this bio to be comprehensive but also lead viewers right into his offerings (very smart).
He is mindful of his word count and makes sure to expand a bit more after he’s done talking about his background by continuing into what he’s working on now. This biography is a perfect example of how not being too brief can help the bio you wrote rank well in search engines while also catching the reader up if it’s their first time hearing of you.
5. Tim Ferriss
Read Tim’s full bio .
Tim is a master at promoting his work, and when he wrote his bio, he took full advantage of the opportunity.
Throughout Tim’s bio, he seamlessly links to his work, credentials, social media accounts, and books he’s written. If you had never heard of him before, he makes it quite easy to get up to speed and find out about his work.
One thing we like about this biography example is that he alternates between lists and paragraphs to help break things up. So many times, people write their bio as an extremely dense and text-heavy monster that ultimately never gets read fully. If you give the reader a break (especially in this age of skimming), more will be consumed in the long run.
6. Pete Kistler
Read Pete’s full bio .
Pete’s bio works in both his personal & professional story. Instead of being just a list of facts, it includes the story of how he was mistaken for a drug dealer in Google — and how it became the turning point in his career that led to BrandYourself .
38 Comments
Thank you for your post. A bio accompanied with a powerful and enticing resume are your two most important sales tools.
When presenting these documents you only have on chance, first impressions count. Your blog goes a long way in creating the correct image with a bio.
Thanks again
This info was very helpful. Is there any info on creating a health bio?
Thanks for the input. One way I was able to create my own personal brand was by using a new website called personavita.com. it was really helpful in bringing all my thoughts ideas and accomplishments together. It builds credibility and others can validate my work. You can also create different Bios based on who you are showing it to. ( Future/existing employers, family, friends etc.) I think it really sets me apart.
Thank you for the tips. Being in the process of publishing my first book I’ve had to generate a bio and despite the fact that I call myself a writer I had a tough time with it. This site has given me a much better feel for the whole thing. Keep an ey on my site for the updated version.
I had the same problem lol I call myself a writer, author but this at first was so freaking difficult to write until I found this web site to break it completly down to like what first grade level for me. lol now it makes so much since. I’m glad we got it. 🙂
I know more much than the bio rules of the kindes of the people
Thank you. These tips are easy to follow and I didn’t know about the 3 bio rule! I really enjoyed the breakdown of the other bio and used that to help me get started writing mine.
Thanks again!
Thanks this was nice and simpe and easy to use.
Thanks! As a novice this was really helpful.
Thanks for posting this tool to the web. Over and over again, I recreate the wheel college course after college course and more recently for my introduction into the civilian arena. I am more confident now that I have this standardized method of writing bios in hand. Army Strong!
@Craig: Thanks, glad you loved it!
@Martin: Absolutely! Your bio is one of the most powerful tools to control first impressions. It’s got to pack a concise and serious punch.
@EASanders: The principles of bio writing apply to all fields. Think about what you’ve done that is noteworthy, and say it in as few words as possible 🙂
@Tim: Good luck with your book, Tim!
@LaKaye: I’m glad both of my bio articles could help. Sometimes it takes inspiration from other people to compellingly talk about ourselves.
@Rose: Thanks for the kind words!
@Martie: We’ve got a bunch of other excellent articles on resumes, cover letters, interviews, etc. if you’re looking to work on your entire career toolkit.
@Sapp: Great! The beauty of your bio is that once you consciously sit down and write it once, then you have a strong foundation that you can tweak for the rest of your life.
– Pete Kistler CEO, Brand-Yourself.com @pete_kistler and @brandyourself
Go get ’em tiger!
Thanks for Guding ….. Wonderful tips..Thanks a lot
hi thanks so much for this wonderful guide. am so grateful.
great article – thanks for the tips! you guys rock!
The tips are so helpful . Thanks
thank you for the tips
great tips it helps me alot….
Thank you for this amazing and helpful tip.
supper is ready yum, come and get your biscuits!
tips are very useful. thank you so much
The best I’ve see yet
thank you so much this will really help me get in to the film fest from cruisinwithkenny
useful tips for me
thanx helped me alot
helpful tips…thanks!
That’s what I looked for . Thanx for that ♡♥
if you want to make a biography you need to know all about you ,family , and friends so you can write a biography
Really good information…especially the getting feedback part. While we may not want to hear it, we NEED it sometimes. Good friends who know what they’re doing can be very valuable in this situation.
So many things I wouldn’t even consider. Thanks for the tips. They are timely, since I am just going through a total rebrand!
You raise a good point, in fact you are ‘fixing’ something right now. You are adding your unique perspective as an ‘innovator’ in the information age that can assist other unlikely writers to get branded and ranked. Maybe it would be a great idea to answer questions in Quora, Yahoo Answers and the like. That can be your links to your ‘works’.
Nice article. thanks for share.
Surely in your many years of experience there are some good/funny/genius problems/solutions or stories you’ve lived or caused. Share them. 🙂
Thanks! TIps #3, #5, and #6 were especially helpful for me. I also find useful this article on how to write a biography so I recommend reading it as well. I also find really helpful suing samples. At least, it’s really helpful for me!
Thank you so much for this great blog. You wrote lot of valuable information about how to write Personal Biography . I like your post. I agree to all of your points that you have mentioned.
For me, the key to this article is section 6. Anymore, I DON’T think the expectation is a list of your accomplishments. I think the people who make the decisions based on biographies are looking for something different, a way to truly distinguish one person from another. A list says one thing about a person–a STORY says something much different. It SHOWS you are creative. A story gives you a lot of flexibility and opportunity to qualify yourself; a list is often reduced to a quantity. Dylan makes an excellent point about ‘sources’ or achievement; in a technician’s role, resolution can be rote, but my experience is solving problems presents lots of opportunities to get creative. David also makes an outstanding point: even if you truly don’t have anything that qualifies as an accomplishment, in this day and age, there are numerous ways to create demonstrable achievement. I believe that’s what the Gig Economy is all about. Dave mentions two specifics; there are dozens more opportunities. This could be an important consideration if you have been stuck for a while in a job that TRULY sucks. I’ve been in those. Then, the story REALLY comes in handy–’cause you don’t have to dwell exclusively on work related stuff. Never hurts to show people you are compassionate, or generous, or kind.
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How To Write A Short Bio (With Templates + Examples)
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What Is a Short Bio?
How to write a short bio, what to include in a short professional bio, short bio examples, short bio templates, tips for writing a short bio, writing a short bio faq.
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Summary. To write a short bio you should first make an initial introduction introducing yourself in the first or first person. Your short bio should include your brand, your accomplishments, and your values and goals. Your short bio should be one to three short paragraphs or four to eight sentences long.
Knowing how to write a concise, informative, and interesting biography about yourself can help throughout various parts of the professional process. You can use your bio to capture the attention of potential employers or clients and convince them to choose to employ or work with you.
In this article, you’ll learn more about what goes into a short bio and how to write one, and you’ll also get to see some short bio templates and examples to help you get an idea of what yours should look like.
Key Takeaways
A short bio serves to introduce you, your achievements, and what you offer professionally to potential employers or clients.
It’s important to keep your bio brief so that readers stay engaged and will remember your main points.
You may need to adjust your bio for different audiences, as your clients may want to know different information than a recruiter would.
Talk about your skills and accomplishments in your bio, but don’t exaggerate them.
A short bio serves as your introduction to the professional world. In terms of finding or expanding on your job, a bio will cover your:
Work history
Achievements
Any other relevant professional information
Think of it as a professional memoir that a hiring manager or consumer can read and understand quickly. It’s usually about one to three paragraphs depending on experience.
There’s an emphasis on being succinct when it comes to writing a professional bio. This is because a bio is supposed to be a preface to attract recruiter attention and incline them to reach out for more information. Many readers will get lost or bored with a lengthy bio.
Using a short bio can be helpful across very different industries, from marketing to accounting, from psychiatry to sales.
You’re probably familiar with providing short bios on social media websites and applications. While the information and skills you include in a professional bio may differ, the general formatting is similar.
There’s a lot of considerations to take into account when writing a short bio, and it can quickly become intimidating. Deciding what information is relevant and how to keep it near 140 characters is no small task.
If you’re having difficulty writing a short bio, follow the outline below to craft an introduction that engages your reader.
Make an initial introduction. You can’t jump right into everything you’ve done and what you want to do in the future before introducing yourself.
Your bio’s first sentence should begin with your full name in the third person or introduce yourself in the first person and continue to briefly outline your most notable skills and accomplishments. It’s a good place to state your current job and employer.
Go deeper with what motivates you. Once you’ve catchily illustrated who you are in your short bio, you can use the second sentence to describe your motivations for your work.
Stating what drives you to do the work you do is essential to employers and customers alike. Whether you work as a physician or fitness consultant , there’s a reason why this is your profession, and you should explain that in your short professional bio.
Describe your accomplishments. Your short bio is for detailing why you’re the ideal candidate to be trusted with handling an employer or consumer’s business. By describing your prior accomplishments, you let them know what you could offer as an employee and how you’ve succeeded in the past.
While you should avoid sounding braggy, the reader is looking for information about what your qualifications are , and your accomplishments generally measure these qualities.
Even though you could probably go on for ages about the details of your accomplishments, save that for an interview . In a short bio, only include the most impressive of your achievements to outline.
Accomplishments relevant to a short bio could include:
Impressive results on a project
Former promotions
Awards received in your field
Certifications received
Include contact information. The purpose of a short bio as either a business or a job seeker is to inspire the reader to reach out. Without contact information, this pursuit becomes futile. Make sure your short bio has some way to contact you at the end.
Relevant contact information may include:
Phone number
Professional networking profile
A short professional bio includes:
Your full name. You can choose to write your bio in the first person (I, me, my) or third person (he, she, they), but either way, you need to include your full name at some point. Branding doesn’t work so well without a brand name (i.e., you!)
Your brand. Of course, if you have an actual brand that you’re trying to market, you should include the brand name as well.
What you do. Summarize what you want the reader to know about what you do in one sentence — tricky, we know.
Your accomplishments. For a short bio, you can stick with just one major accomplishment from your professional life. Or, if you have a string of impressive achievements, try condensing all of them down to one sentence.
Your goals and values. Let the reader know what makes you tick — why do you do what you do and what do you hope to achieve with your work? People are compelled by a story more than anything else, so it’s important to get this part right.
Something personal (optional). If you have a quirky tidbit about yourself you’d like to include, go for it. Just make sure it doesn’t throw off te the tone of the rest of your bio.
Contact info (optional). If your bio is serving as a call-to-action to drum up business or get leads on job opportunities, it makes sense to include your contact information at the end of your bio. It’s not necessary if that information is available elsewhere on the page , though.
Entry-Level Job-Seeker Bio Example
Mitchell Morrison is an upcoming video producer and editor who believes in the art of visual organization. He is a recent graduate from the University of Washington and focused on post-production during his time studying there. He was introduced to the magical world of visual art production by watching his father work on editing commercials growing up and has been working towards his dream of becoming a video editor ever since. During his last year of college, Mitchell participated in a competitive internship with Digital Space Films. He was chosen out of 2,000 applicants based on his academic portfolio and personal statement essay. This internship was an incredible learning experience and resulted in three professional accreditations for music video editing. Mitchell currently lives in Seattle, Washington pursuing freelance opportunities and spending time with his Dog, Pikachu. To get into contact with Mitchell: MitchellMorrisonVideo.com/contact
Working Professional Website Bio Example
Lisa Kennedy is an experienced real estate professional. She knows how important a home is for long-term happiness and has invested her career in putting people in the house they’ve always dreamed of. Lisa was driven to pursue real estate from her passion for helping people during life-altering times, and a keen interest in high-end, luxury homes. She’s been working in the real estate industry for ten years and in that time has assisted over 3,500 people in finding homes. She was educated at the University of Los Angeles with a bachelor’s in business management. She’s worked for some of the most respectable Real Estate companies in Los Angeles and individually under her agency “Kennedy Homes.” Lisa has also been published in Real Estate Quarterly Magazine as the 2017 winner of the “Top Luxury Home Seller” award. Lisa loves the culture of Los Angeles and has been living there with her family of five since she graduated from college. She enjoys spending her free time exploring towns along the West Coast and swimming. If you’d like to get in touch with Lisa: Email: [email protected]
Professional Networking Profile Bio Example
Bianca Jones Marketing Manager Miami, FL The first step towards customer satisfaction is being reached by stellar product marketing, and that’s what I aim to provide. My professional experience as a product marketing manager has allowed me to assist many organizations in improving their sales margins and audience response to emerging products. I’ve brought dedication and positive results to the companies I’ve worked for because I am passionate about product perception, marketing, and business statistics. What drives a product to success interests and inspires me. I specialize in long-term growth strategies and audience outreach. In addition to eight years of experience in professional product marketing, I have also published two books on creating a career as a marketer called “What to Do After Your Bachelor’s” and “A Marketer’s How-To.” If you’re interested in learning more about how to market your business better, or just discuss more, feel free to contact me by email at [email protected]
Your first choice is whether you want your bio to be written in the third person or first person. These short bio templates show both options, and also include different ideas for what to include, and how. Feel free to pick and choose your favorite parts of each of the two.
[Full Name] is a [job title] who [believes/knows] in the power of [what you do]. [He/She/They] began their journey in [field] by [how you got started in the field], and now dreams of [what you hope to accomplish]. [His/Her/Their] biggest accomplishment to date has been [your biggest accomplishment]. [Full Name] lives in [where you live] and participates in [a hobby/interest]. To get in touch with [Full Name], call/email/message me on [how you’d like to be contacted].
I am a [job title] who helps [who you help] [what you help them do]. It’s my belief that [your unique perspective on the field]. In the past [# of years] years, I’ve [major accomplishment #1] through [how you accomplished it]. I have a passion for [your professional passion], but on the side, I also enjoy [personal passion]. Get in touch with me today at [contact info] — I look forward to talking with you about [what you want to talk to your readers about].
You have a firm grasp of the structure of a short bio and what to include. Now, you may need some tips for how to polish your short professional bio and make it stand out from the competition.
Be mindful of length. While you’re probably getting sick of hearing that your bio should be short, it’s good to keep in mind throughout the writing process. It’s easy to go off on a tangent while trying to include everything relevant or rationalize, making your bio too long.
Avoid this impulse. The point of a bio is that it’s limited. You want to intrigue the reader enough to inspire them to seek more information about you or your services.
Tailor your bio to your intended audience. Whether you’re using a short bio to attract a particular customer base or potential employer, tailoring it to fit their wants and needs is crucial. Consider your intended audience base and what they’re looking for in a candidate or service.
Be genuine. Your short bio should be an authentic representation of your traits, experience, and personality. People are repelled by what they interpret as stretching the truth. If you’re being received as disingenuous by the reader, they’ll probably move on.
Proofread. The only way to steer clear of errors in your short bio is by proofreading it. Imagine a hiring manager being completely interested in your bio.
They love what you have to say about yourself and find your prior experience enticing. That is, until they come across a mistake that clearly shows you didn’t do proofread or edit.
Include links to your portfolio, website, or networking profile. One way to circumvent the confining factor of keeping your bio short is by including links to more detailed sources.
This can be in the form of linking your portfolio or website to allow the reader to go deeper into your discussed skills if they please, without taking up more space in your bio.
Implement these links seamlessly into your bio by attaching them to anchor words that describe what clicking will lead them to.
Add some personality. You aren’t the only person who has an impressive list of accomplishments to put on a bio, so you’re going to need to find some additional ways to make an impression.
What should a short bio include?
A short bio should include your name, what you do, and your achievements. You should also include your company or product’s brand, if you have one, and your goals and motivations for doing what you do. This humanizes you and helps you stand out from the rest of the pack.
How long is a short bio?
A short bio is typically one to three paragraphs long. These should be short paragraphs though, as other experts say that between four and eight sentences is the ideal length for a short bio.
What makes a good bio?
A good bio is succinct and memorable. Readers don’t want to spend long reading about your professional and personal life, so go back and cut it down to the important parts multiple times after you draft it. You might be surprised at how little you actually need to include.
What should you avoid putting in a short bio?
You should avoid including anything negative or arrogate. It’s never a good idea to write anything negative about previous jobs or employers. Only include positive things in your professional short bio.
It’s important to include your achievements in a short bio, but there is a fine line between mentioning your achievements and bragging about them. Stick to the facts when talking about your accomplishments.
Fremont University – Building Your Professional Bio
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Sky Ariella is a professional freelance writer, originally from New York. She has been featured on websites and online magazines covering topics in career, travel, and lifestyle. She received her BA in psychology from Hunter College.
Don Pippin is an executive and HR leader for Fortune 50 and 500 companies and startups. In 2008, Don launched area|Talent with a focus on helping clients identify their brand. As a Certified Professional Resume Writer, Certified Digital Career Strategist, and Certified Personal Branding Strategist, Don guides clients through career transitions.
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How to write a biography
How to Write a Biography
Biographies are big business. Whether in book form or Hollywood biopics, the lives of the famous and sometimes not-so-famous fascinate us.
While it’s true that most biographies are about people who are in the public eye, sometimes the subject is less well-known. Mostly though, famous or not, the person who is written about has led a life that is in some way incredible.
While your students will most likely have a basic understanding of what a biography is, it’s worth taking a little time before they put pen to paper to tease out a crystal clear definition of exactly what a biography is.
What Is a Biography?
Simply put, a biography is an account of someone’s life written by someone else . While there is a genre known as fictional biography, for the most part, biographies are, by definition, nonfiction.
Generally speaking, biographies provide an account of the subject’s life from the earliest days of their childhood right up to the present day or their death if the subject is deceased.
The job of a biography is more than just to outline the bare facts of a person’s life.
Rather than just listing the basic details of their upbringing, hobbies, education, work, relationships, and death, a well-written biography should also paint a picture of the subject’s personality and as well as their experience of life.
A COMPLETE UNIT ON TEACHING BIOGRAPHY WRITING IN 2022
Teach your students to write AMAZING BIOGRAPHIES & AUTOBIOGRAPHIES using proven RESEARCH SKILLS and WRITING STRATEGIES covering.
- Understanding the purpose of both forms of biography.
- Exploring the language and perspective of both.
- Prompts and Challenges to engage students in writing a biography.
- Dedicated lessons for both forms of biography.
- Biographical Projects can expand students’ understanding of reading and writing a biography.
- A COMPLETE 82-PAGE UNIT – NO PREPARATION REQUIRED.
What Are the Main Features of a Biography?
Before students begin writing a biography, they’ll need to have a firm grasp of the main features of the genre. A good way to determine how well they understand these essential elements of the genre is by asking them to compile a checklist.
At a minimum, their checklists should contain the items below. Be sure to help them fill in any gaps before moving on to the writing process.
The purpose of a biography is to provide an account of someone’s life
Biography structure.
ORIENTATION (BEGINNING) Open your biography with a strong hook to grab the reader’s attention
SEQUENCING: In most cases, biographies are written in chronological order unless you are a very competent writer consciously trying to break from this trend.
COVER: childhood, upbringing, education, influences, accomplishments, relationships, etc. – everything that helps the reader to understand the person.
CONCLUSION: Wrap your biography up with some details about what the subject is doing now if they are still alive. If they have passed away, make mention of what impact they have made and what their legacy is or will be.
BIOGRAPHY FEATURES
LANGUAGE Use descriptive and figurative language that will paint images inside your audience’s minds as they read. Use time connectives to link events.
PERSPECTIVE Biographies are written from the third person’s perspective.
DETAILS: Give specific details about people, places, events, times, dates, etc. Reflect on how events shaped the subject. You might want to include some relevant photographs with captions. A timeline may also be of use depending upon your subject and what you are trying to convey to your audience.
TENSE Written in the past tense (though ending may shift to the present/future tense)
Tips for Writing a Brilliant Biography
Biography writing tip #1: choose your subject wisely.
There are several points for students to reflect on when deciding on a subject for their biography. Let’s take a look at the most essential points to consider when deciding on the subject for a biography:
Interest: To produce a biography will require sustained writing from the student. That’s why students must choose their subject well. After all, a biography is an account of someone’s entire life to date. Students must ensure they choose a subject that will sustain their interest throughout the research, writing, and editing processes.
Merit: Closely related to the previous point, students must consider whether the subject merits the reader’s interest. Aside from pure labors of love, writing should be undertaken with the reader in mind. While producing a biography demands sustained writing from the author, it also demands sustained reading from the reader.
Therefore, students should ask themselves if their chosen subject has had a life worthy of the reader’s interest and the time they’d need to invest in reading their biography.
Information: Is there enough information available on the subject to fuel the writing of an entire biography? While it might be a tempting idea to write about a great-great-grandfather’s experience in the war. There would be enough interest there to sustain the author’s and the reader’s interest, but do you have enough access to information about their early childhood to do the subject justice in the form of a biography?
Biography Writing Tip #2: R esearch ! Research! Research!
While the chances are good that the student already knows quite a bit about the subject they’ve chosen. Chances are 100% that they’ll still need to undertake considerable research to write their biography.
As with many types of writing , research is an essential part of the planning process that shouldn’t be overlooked. If a student wishes to give as complete an account of their subject’s life as possible, they’ll need to put in the time at the research stage.
An effective way to approach the research process is to:
1. Compile a chronological timeline of the central facts, dates, and events of the subject’s life
2. Compile detailed descriptions of the following personal traits:
- Physical looks
- Character traits
- Values and beliefs
3. Compile some research questions based on different topics to provide a focus for the research:
- Childhood : Where and when were they born? Who were their parents? Who were the other family members? What education did they receive?
- Obstacles: What challenges did they have to overcome? How did these challenges shape them as individuals?
- Legacy: What impact did this person have on the world and/or the people around them?
- Dialogue & Quotes: Dialogue and quotations by and about the subject are a great way to bring color and life to a biography. Students should keep an eagle eye out for the gems that hide amid their sources.
As the student gets deeper into their research, new questions will arise that can further fuel the research process and help to shape the direction the biography will ultimately go in.
Likewise, during the research, themes will often begin to suggest themselves. Exploring these themes is essential to bring depth to biography, but we’ll discuss this later in this article.
Research Skills:
Researching for biography writing is an excellent way for students to hone their research skills in general. Developing good research skills is essential for future academic success. Students will have opportunities to learn how to:
- Gather relevant information
- Evaluate different information sources
- Select suitable information
- Organize information into a text.
Students will have access to print and online information sources, and, in some cases, they may also have access to people who knew or know the subject (e.g. biography of a family member).
These days, much of the research will likely take place online. It’s crucial, therefore, to provide your students with guidance on how to use the internet safely and evaluate online sources for reliability. This is the era of ‘ fake news ’ and misinformation after all!
COMPLETE TEACHING UNIT ON INTERNET RESEARCH SKILLS USING GOOGLE SEARCH
Teach your students ESSENTIAL SKILLS OF THE INFORMATION ERA to become expert DIGITAL RESEARCHERS.
⭐How to correctly ask questions to search engines on all devices.
⭐ How to filter and refine your results to find exactly what you want every time.
⭐ Essential Research and critical thinking skills for students.
⭐ Plagiarism, Citing and acknowledging other people’s work.
⭐ How to query, synthesize and record your findings logically.
BIOGRAPHY WRITING Tip #3: Find Your Themes In Biography Writing
Though predominantly a nonfiction genre, the story still plays a significant role in good biography writing. The skills of characterization and plot structuring are transferable here. And, just like in fiction, exploring themes in a biographical work helps connect the personal to the universal. Of course, these shouldn’t be forced; this will make the work seem contrived, and the reader may lose faith in the truthfulness of the account. A biographer needs to gain and maintain the trust of the reader.
Fortunately, themes shouldn’t need to be forced. A life well-lived is full of meaning, and the themes the student writer is looking for will emerge effortlessly from the actions and events of the subject’s life. It’s just a case of learning how to spot them.
One way to identify the themes in a life is to look for recurring events or situations in a person’s life. These should be apparent from the research completed previously. The students should seek to identify these patterns that emerge in the subject’s life. For example, perhaps they’ve had to overcome various obstacles throughout different periods of their life. In that case, the theme of overcoming adversity is present and has been identified.
Usually, a biography has several themes running throughout, so be sure your students work to identify more than one theme in their subject’s life.
BIOGRAPHY WRITING Tip: #4 Put Something of Yourself into the Writing
While the defining feature of a biography is that it gives an account of a person’s life, students must understand that this is not all a biography does. Relating the facts and details of a subject’s life is not enough. The student biographer should not be afraid to share their thoughts and feelings with the reader throughout their account of their subject’s life.
The student can weave some of their personality into the fabric of the text by providing commentary and opinion as they relate the events of the person’s life and the wider social context at the time. Unlike the detached and objective approach we’d expect to find in a history textbook, in a biography, student-writers should communicate their enthusiasm for their subject in their writing.
This makes for a more intimate experience for the reader, as they get a sense of getting to know the author and the subject they are writing about.
Teaching Resources
Use our resources and tools to improve your student’s writing skills through proven teaching strategies.
BIOGRAPHY WRITING TEACHING IDEAS AND LESSONS
We have put together a sequence of biography-related lessons or teaching ideas that you can follow as you please. They are straightforward enough for most students to follow without further instruction.
BIOGRAPHY LESSON IDEA # 1:
This session aims to give students a broader understanding of what makes a good biography.
Once your students have compiled a comprehensive checklist of the main features of a biography, allow them to use it to assess some biographies from your school library or on the internet using the feature checklist.
When students have assessed a selection of biographies, take some time as a class to discuss them. You can base the discussion around the following prompts:
- Which biographies covered all the criteria from their checklist?
- Which biographies didn’t?
- Which biography was the most readable in terms of structure?
- Which biography do you think was the least well structured? How would you improve this?
Looking at how other writers have interpreted the form will help students internalize the necessary criteria before attempting to produce a biography. Once students have a clear understanding of the main features of the biography, they’re ready to begin work on writing a biography.
When the time does come to put pen to paper, be sure they’re armed with the following top tips to help ensure they’re as well prepared as possible.
BIOGRAPHY LESSON IDEA # 2:
This session aims to guide students through the process of selecting the perfect biography subject.
Instruct students to draw up a shortlist of three potential subjects for the biography they’ll write.
Using the three criteria mentioned in the writing guide (Interest, Merit, and Information), students award each potential subject a mark out of 5 for each of the criteria. In this manner, students can select the most suitable subject for their biography.
BIOGRAPHY LESSON IDEA # 3:
This session aims to get students into the researching phase and then prioritise events and organise them chronologically.
Students begin by making a timeline of their subject’s life, starting with their birth and ending with their death or the present day. If the student has yet to make a final decision on the subject of their biography, a family member will often serve well for this exercise as a practice exercise.
Students should research and gather the key events of the person’s life, covering each period of their life from when they were a baby, through childhood and adolescence, right up to adulthood and old age. They should then organize these onto a timeline. Students can include photographs with captions if they have them.
They can present these to the class when they have finished their timelines.
BIOGRAPHY LESSON IDEA # 4:
Instruct students to look over their timeline, notes, and other research. Challenge them to identify three patterns that repeat throughout the subject’s life and sort all the related events and incidents into specific categories.
Students should then label each category with a single word. This is the thematic concept or the broad general underlying idea. After that, students should write a sentence or two expressing what the subject’s life ‘says’ about that concept.
This is known as the thematic statement . With the thematic concepts and thematic statements identified, the student now has some substantial ideas to explore that will help bring more profound meaning and wider resonance to their biography.
BIOGRAPHY LESSON IDEA # 5:
Instruct students to write a short objective account of an event in their own life. They can write about anyone from their past. It needn’t be more than a couple of paragraphs, but the writing should be strictly factual, focusing only on the objective details of what happened.
Once they have completed this, it’s time to rewrite the paragraph, but they should include some opinion and personal commentary this time.
The student here aims to inject some color and personality into their writing, to transform a detached, factual account into a warm, engaging story.
WRITING CHECKLIST & RUBRIC BUNDLE
To Conclude
By this stage, your students should have an excellent technical overview of a biography’s essential elements.
They should be able to choose their subject in light of how interesting and worthy they are, as well as give consideration to the availability of information out there. They should be able to research effectively and identify emerging themes in their research notes. And finally, they should be able to bring some of their personality and uniqueness into their retelling of the life of another.
Remember that writing a biography is not only a great way to develop a student’s writing skills; it can be used in almost all curriculum areas. For example, to find out more about a historical figure in History, to investigate scientific contributions to Science, or to celebrate a hero from everyday life.
Biography is an excellent genre for students to develop their writing skills and to find inspiration in the lives of others in the world around them.
HOW TO WRITE A BIOGRAPHY TUTORIAL VIDEO
OTHER GREAT ARTICLES RELATED TO BIOGRAPHY WRITING
How to write an Autobiography
How to Write a Historical Recount Text
15 Awesome Recount & Personal Narrative Topics
Personal Narrative Writing Guide
The content for this page has been written by Shane Mac Donnchaidh. A former principal of an international school and English university lecturer with 15 years of teaching and administration experience. Shane’s latest Book, The Complete Guide to Nonfiction Writing , can be found here. Editing and support for this article have been provided by the literacyideas team.
NO PREP REQUIRED A ready-made unit on Biographies awaits you.
How to Write a Biography About Someone Else
Do you want to write a biography about someone else? I have a notebook where I write down project ideas, including the names of people I’d like to interview about their life experiences. Over the last couple years, my list has become pretty long!
With my journalism background, I never have trouble sniffing out an interesting or eccentric personality. Honestly, everybody has some good stories to tell. You just need to practice your interview skills so people will share them.
There are so many interesting people in the world. Pick someone you know who’s led an interesting life and help them preserve and record their stories. It will be fun for you, and incredibly meaningful for the other person.
10 people to write a biography about
If you want to write a biography about someone else, here are 10 suggestions from my interview list:
Your grandma or grandpa. If you’re fortunate enough to still having living grandparents, put them at the top of your biography list! You’ll have so much fun asking them stories about their life and they’ll love spending time with you. Some grandparents need a little convincing to really open up and share their experiences. Others might talk your ear off. Be sure to get them to repeat the stories you grew up hearing. One day you will LOVE having that story in their own words.
An elderly relative. We all have a kooky great aunt or great uncle, or maybe a globe-trotting distant cousin, who has the most amazing and crazy stories. Get in touch with those relatives and start asking them questions. To get the conversation started, ask for details about a specific story you’ve heard. It’s a good way to warm them up and get them interested in sharing more with you.
Someone diagnosed with a memory disorder or memory condition. Recently, I had the pleasure of interviewing a gentleman who had just been diagnosed with Alzheimer’s. His family wanted to preserve his stories while the details and memories were still sharp and clear. Before the interview, I did two things. I emailed questions to Paul and his wife to answer before I arrived. And I asked his grandchildren for a list of stories they liked to hear Grandpa Paul tell. This gave me a great outline for the interview. (You’ll hear more about Paul and his biography next month!)
A World War II veteran. Of the 16 million Americans who served in World War II, less than 100,000 will be alive in 2021. If you know any WWII vets, please, please, please go interview them! These men and women have experienced incredible world events. They have lived through mind-boggling scientific advancements. Their stories need preserved! And while their war memories are just a small part of their life story, it’s often a subject they enjoy talking about. Also, do some advance research about where they served so you can ask the right questions and help trigger more memories. After all, World War II was about 80 years ago! Finally, be sure to ask if they have scrapbooks or memorabilia you could look at with them. This is a great way to help them remember more details.
A first-generation American. Both sides of my family have been in the United States for a long, long time. So I don’t have any relatives who could provide a first-person narrative of what it’s like to be an immigrant. But, it’s on my wish list to interview someone about their decision to immigrate to the United States and start a new life. If your family has living relatives who immigrated to the U.S., start asking questions and define your family’s history! What an awesome gift this will be for future generations to read.
Someone diagnosed with a terminal illness. When my aunt was in the final stages of cancer last year, I tried to interview her. She’d had some pretty wild adventures and lived through challenging times. And I wanted to hear those stories in her sassy voice. But my aunt just couldn’t face doing an end-of-life conversation. She said she wasn’t ready to talk about it. And that’s OK. I made the offer twice and then dropped it. If you know someone with a terminal diagnosis, let them know you’re here to help if they want it.
A recent retiree. A great time to ask someone to reflect on their career and accomplishments is right after they have retired. In addition, a biography book would make an awesome retiree gift! Help them define and celebrate the legacy they are leaving behind and get them excited about the next chapter of their lives.
A stay-at-home mother. Too often equate accomplishments to bullet points on our resumes. This mindset leaves out the millions of women (and now lots of men!) who have devoted their lives to running households and supporting children and spouses. Honor their work by helping them define and articulate the legacy they’re leaving behind. Plus, they probably have hilarious kid stories and loads of life wisdom.
A person of a different race or ethnicity. If you want this biography project to be an educational experience for you, use it as an opportunity to better understand a person of a different race or ethnicity. Let’s face it, the world would be a much better place if we all sought out, listened to and actively tried to understand more people who don’t look like we do.
Someone in a nursing home or veteran’s home. If you want to write a biography about someone else, just visit the program director at a nearby nursing home or veteran’s home (when it’s safe to do so). Ask if there are residents who might like someone to visit with and share their stories. Following the isolation of the pandemic, there will be many lonely people looking for new friends and opportunities to reminiscence. This would be a great opportunity to create mini biography books — simple documents filled with their stories and memories. They could share them with their families, or just have them for themselves.
Start your biography project
Now that you have ideas of who to interview, it’s time to get started! Begin with a list of questions to ask your subject. For some good questions, visit our Resources Page and download the 200+ interview questions. Never written someone’s life story? Don’t worry. I’ve outlined step-by-step instructions for writing a biography . Good luck! Don’t have the time to write a book yourself, let the Circa Legacy team do it for you! We’ll interview you or a loved one and turn it into an amazing Custom Legacy Book .
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- Obituary Writing
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20 of the Best Professional Bio Examples We've Ever Seen [+ Templates]
Published: October 13, 2022
Your professional bio is not only relevant when applying for jobs, seeking new clients, or networking — it also gives the world a brief snapshot of who you are and your professional ideals.
To help you author one that packs a punch, we’ll teach you how to write a professional bio and leverage professional bio templates with the best professional bio examples we’ve ever seen to draw inspiration from. Skip to one of these sections if you know what you're looking for:
What is a professional bio?
Professional bio templates, how to write a professional bio, best professional bio examples, short bio examples, how to write a short bio, tell us a little about yourself below to gain access today:.
A professional bio or biography is a short overview of your experience. Professional bios usually include details about education, employment, achievements, and relevant skills.
Purpose of Professional Bios
A bio tells an audience who you are, and what you've done, and also hints at what you are capable of doing. It can help potential employers, fans, or customers get a sense of your personality and what you stand for.
That may be hard to achieve without a starting point. Below, we've included professional templates to expedite the process of writing a great resume bio.
When it comes to professional bios, keeping your message honest and to the point is best practice. So how do you go about writing one that will effectively market you and your brand?
This is where a professional bio template comes in. By sticking to a predetermined format, all you have to do to begin is fill in the blanks with your most relevant career information. These bio templates will guide you on where you should place your:
- Occupation or Job title
- Passions and goals
- Skill set and expertise
- Work history
- Location
Of course, while there is no one-size-fits-all template for a professional bio, these templates are a quick way to start building out your long or short bio before customizing it to your liking. But before choosing your bio template, there are some key elements to include to make sure yours is effective.
It's important to tailor your professional bio to your goals and the people you want to reach for it to be effective. For example, say you're looking for a job. Your professional bio should give recruiters a peek at your career accomplishments and experience.
But what if you've recently published a book or are applying for a grant? In those situations, you might want to highlight organizations you support or funny anecdotes.
Recent graduates can benefit from a well-written professional bio. It can help you communicate how your life experience makes you a great candidate for the roles you're looking for.
To structure your professional bio so it stays true to these objectives, try out our 80+ downloadable professional bio templates — for both short and long-form bios — to start composing a bio that makes a mark:
Download a free, editable short professional bio template.
Download a free, editable long professional bio template.
What should a professional bio say?
Your professional bio should be as unique as you are. That said, there are a few items you'll want to include to make sure that your readers get the information they're looking for.
Your bio should include important professional roles and achievements. It's also valuable to add passions, personal interests, and how you bring your values to your work. Finally, your bio should give your readers a chance to get to know you. So, it should reflect your personality.
First-Person Bio vs. Third-Person Bio
While first-person bios are quite common, third-person bios can be more effective in formal situations.
Your decision to write your professional bio in the first or third person depends on whether you’d like to leave a more personable or assertive impression. Both approaches can be effective when you tailor them to your goals and the audience you are writing for.
The most important thing is to be clear and concise and tell your story in a way that connects with your reader.
Writing a First-Person Bio
If you want to build a personal brand, writing in the first person can be a great way to connect with your audience. When you write a first-person bio, use "I" or "me" statements to make yourself relatable and approachable.
Here's one way to write a first-person bio: "I’m a freelance writer specializing in small business content. I’ve worked with companies in a variety of industries, from home care services to fine leather goods." By speaking in the first person here, you take a more personable approach to connecting with a client or brand.
When you write a first-person bio you're telling your story directly to your audience. This shows them that you crafted your bio with your personal experience and opinions.
There are a few things to remember that can make your first-person bio great.
Try not to start every sentence with "I."
Showing instead of telling is a great approach.
For example, check out this short professional bio example below. Instead of saying "I love to write." She says "Writer. Bad but enthusiastic dancer." Instead of talking about writing, she creates a vivid picture and shows her sense of humor.
Remember that you know yourself better than anyone else does.
Adding some back story to your bio can help create a context for the roles and successes you're writing about. This bio from Mark Levy is a great example.
Focus on useful details.
These are quick facts about you that can quickly show someone new who you are and what you stand for.
For example, say you're writing a bio for LinkedIn . You might be into playing Animal Crossing for your home right now, but does that hobby say anything about where you want your career to go?
If you want to focus on video games in the future, this could be the perfect addition. But if your interests lie elsewhere, you might want to include a hobby that's more relevant.
Writing a Third-Person Bio
Using third-person will make your bio sound more authoritative and objective. So, if you’re job searching in a formal industry, applying for grants, or trying to get published, you may want to stick to the third person.
For instance, when you write a third-person bio you may start with "Jasmine Montgomery is a Senior Hiring Manager at L’Oreal based in New York. She recruits across several business units to connect with the brightest talent from around the globe." By only using your name and pronouns to speak about yourself here, you are letting your title and skill set speak for themselves.
These bios create distance between the subject of the bio (you) and the reader, through a third person. This person could be anyone, but they usually speak in a tone that emphasizes their expertise. This means that third-person reviews can sometimes feel aloof or overly formal.
Ideally, your third-person bio should sound friendly but polished, like a message from a close colleague at work. Here are a few more tips on how to write a great third-person bio.
Write from the perspective of someone you know and trust.
It can be tough to write about yourself, so try to see yourself from the perspective of your favorite person at work or a mentor you trust. This can help you write from a position of authority without feeling self-conscious.
Show the reader why they should trust your opinion.
A professional bio often reflects a specific industry or niche. With this in mind, your text should include relevant details that people in the industry would know. At the same time, avoid jargon whenever you can.
Remember you're telling a story.
If you want a third-person bio, but you're used to writing in first-person, it may help to write it the way that's most comfortable for you.
Your professional bio is an important piece of writing, so it's natural for you to edit it carefully. In this case, you may want to edit your writing from both points of view and see which works best for your target audience.
Ready? Here's how to write a professional bio, step by step.
- Create an 'About' page for your website or profile.
- Begin writing your bio with your first and last name.
- Mention any associated brand name you might use.
- State your current position and what you do.
- Include at least one professional accomplishment.
- Describe your values and how they inform your career.
- Briefly tell your readers who you are outside of work.
- Consider adding humor or a personal story to add flavor to your professional bio.
If you’re anything like me, you probably don't think about your professional bio until you’re suddenly asked to "send one over via email." You have approximately one afternoon to come up with it so you scramble together a bio that ends up reading like this:
"Rodney Erickson is a content marketing professional at HubSpot, a CRM platform that helps companies attract visitors, convert leads, and close customers. Previously, Rodney worked as a marketing manager for a tech software startup. He graduated with honors from Columbia University with a dual degree in Business Administration and Creative Writing."
To be fair, in certain contexts, your professional bio does need to be more formal like Mr. Erickson's up there, but there are also cases where writing a personable and conversational bio can be a good thing. Whether you choose to go the formal or casual route, you should take the following steps to create a strong resume bio.
1. Create an 'About' page for your website or profile.
Before you can publish your professional bio, you need a living space for it. Here are a few to consider (some of these you might already have in place):
- Facebook Business page
- LinkedIn profile
- Instagram account
- Personal website
- Personal blog
- Industry website
- Industry blog byline
As you'll see in the professional bio examples below, the length and tone of your bio will differ depending on which of the above platforms you choose to be on.
Instagram, for example, allows only 150 characters of bio space, whereas you can write virtually as much as you want on your personal website — or even your Facebook Business page. But once created, this bio should represent who you are in the eyes of your audience.
2. Begin writing your bio with your first and last name.
If your readers don't remember anything else about your bio, make sure they remember your name. For that reason, it's a good idea for your first and last name to be the first two words of your professional bio. Even if your name is printed above this bio (hint: it should), this is a rare moment where it's okay to be redundant.
For example, if I were writing my own bio, I might start it like this:
Lindsay Kolowich
Lindsay Kolowich is a Senior Marketing Manager at HubSpot.
3. Mention any associated brand name you might use.
Will your professional bio represent yourself, or a business you work for? Make sure the brand you want to be associated with is mentioned in your bio. If you're a freelancer, perhaps you have a personal business name or pseudonym you advertise to your clients. Here are a few examples:
- Lindsay Kolowich Marketing
- SEO Lindsay
- Kolowich Consulting
- Content by Kolowich (what do you think ... too cheesy?)
Maybe you founded your own company, and you want its name to be separate from your real name. Don't be afraid to keep it simple: "Lindsay Kolowich is the founder and CEO of Kolowich Consulting."
4. State your current position and what you do.
Whether you're the author of a novel or a mid-level specialist, use the next few lines of your bio to describe what you do in that position. Don't assume your audience will naturally know what your job title entails.
Make your primary responsibilities known to the reader, helping them paint a picture of who you are during the day and what you have to offer the industry.
5. Include at least one professional accomplishment.
Just as a business touts its client successes in the form of case studies, your professional bio should let your own audience know what you've already achieved. What have you done for yourself — as well as for others — that makes you a valuable player in your industry?
6. Describe your values and how they inform your career.
Why do you do what you do? What might make your contribution to the market different from your colleagues?
Better yet, what values do you and your colleagues share that would make your business a worthwhile investment to others? Start to wrap up your professional bio by simply explaining what gets you up in the morning.
7. Briefly tell your readers who you are outside of work.
Transition from describing your values in work to describing who you are outside of work. This may include:
- Your family
- Your hometown
- Sports you play
- Hobbies and interests
- Favorite music and travel destinations
- Side hustles you're working on
People like connecting with other people. The more transparent you are about who you are personally, the more likable you'll be to the people reading about who you are as a professional.
8. Consider adding humor or a personal story to add flavor to your professional bio.
End your professional bio on a good note — or, more specifically, a funny note. Leaving your audience with something quirky or uniquely you can ensure they'll leave your website with a pleasant impression of you.
It's important to follow the steps above when writing your bio, but don't obsess over any one section. Remember, the people reading your bio are suffering from information fatigue. If you don't hook 'em in the first line, you'll lose them quickly.
(P.S. Want to give your professional brand a boost? Take one of HubSpot Academy's free certification courses . In just one weekend, you can add a line to your resume and bio that's coveted by over 60,000 marketers.)
Why Good Bios Are Important for a Professional
Alright, I know what you may be thinking ... So what? It's just a bio. I mean, how many people read professional bios, anyway?
The answer: A lot of people. More importantly, though, there's no way to tell exactly who is reading it — and you always want it to be ready for when the right people come across it. And when they do, you want it to catch their eye. In a good way.
You see, while your resume is only useful for when you're actively applying for specific positions, your professional bio is much more visible. It can live on your LinkedIn profile , your company's website, your guest blog posts, your speaker profiles, your Twitter bio , and many other places.
And, most importantly, it's the tool that you can leverage most when you're networking.
Bottom line? People will read your professional bio. Whether they remember it, and whether it makes them care about you, is a matter of how well you present yourself to your intended audience.
So, what does a top-notch professional bio look like?
Below, we've curated some of the best real professional bio examples we've ever seen on Twitter, Instagram, Facebook, LinkedIn, and the various websites where you might describe yourself.
Check 'em out, and use them as inspiration when crafting your own.
- Chimamanda Ngozi Adichie: Author
- Chima Mmeje: SEO Content Writer
- DJ Nexus: DJ
- Lena Axelsson: Marriage & Family Therapist
- Mark Levy: Branding Firm Founder
- Audra Simpson: Political Anthropologist
- Marie Mikhail: Professional Recruiter
- Wonbo Woo: Executive Producer
- Chris Burkard: Freelance Photographer
- Lisa Quine: Creative Consultant
- Nancy Twine: Hair Care Founder
- Trinity Mouzon: Wellness Brand Founder
- Alberto Perez: Co-Founder of Zumba Fitness
- Ann Handley: Writer and Marketer
- Rebecca Bollwitt: Writer
- Corey Wainwright: Principal Marketing Manager
- Megan Gilmore: Cookbook Author
- Van Jones: Political Commentator, Author, and Lawyer
- Sarah Haskins: Writer
- Bea Dixon: Feminine Care Founder
1. Chimamanda Ngozi Adichie : Author
Bio platform: personal website.
Chimamanda Ngozi Adichie begins her professional bio with an invitation into her world. In just one sentence, she describes the depth and breadth of her body of work as it has been translated into thirty languages and several publications.
Along with her notable writing career, Chimamanda showcases her speaking career which introduces readers to a well-rounded view of who she is as a professional. From there, her bio seamlessly flows into her recent work and a glimpse into how and where she spends her personal time – the United States and Nigeria.
Finally, Chimamanda’s bio ends with a call to action to read a more detailed biography, giving the reader a choice to read the information available about her life and career.
2. Chime Mmeje : SEO Content Writer
Bio platform: linkedin.
A bio with a hook is sure to keep you reading. Chima Mmeje is a freelance SEO copywriter who’s "extremely good at one thing": helping companies rank for their target keywords.
By leading with a strong hook that aligns with her target audience’s marketing needs, she’s able to keep readers engaged.
In the body of her professional bio, Chima briefly lists her process at a high level, giving her potential clients a bird's-eye view of what they can expect when they book her services.
The simple call to action "Drop a message" in her email inbox is a casual invitation to learn more about her services.
3. DJ Nexus : DJ
Bio platform: facebook.
This New England-based DJ has single-handedly captured the Likes of more than 2,000 people in and beyond Boston, MA. And even if you don't listen to the type of music he produces, it's hard not to listen to his compelling Facebook bio.
For instance, consider his tagline, under "About" — " Quiet during the day. QUITE LOUD at night! " DJ Nexus tells you when he works in an awesome way. I got goosebumps just imagining a dance club he might play his music in.
DJ Nexus links his Facebook account to his personal website , where he has the space to tell the full story of his background. Here's a preview, below:
This is a terrific lesson for professional bios: Customers want to learn about you. Consider how you might also lead your Facebook visitors off your Facebook page and onto your personal website to learn more about who you are.
4. Lena Axelsson : Marriage & Family Therapist
Bio platform: industry website.
When it all comes down to it, your professional bio is no different from any other piece of persuasive copy — no matter where it lives. One of the most common mistakes people make is thinking of it as its own beast, separate from other pieces of writing. If you think about it that way, you're far more likely to write something painfully uninteresting.
When you sit down to write your professional bio and you're watching that cursor blinking on the screen, think about how you would introduce a blog post. You don't just dive right into the meat of the thing, now, do you? No. You start with an introduction.
The best bios are often concise (around 200–300 words), so you don't have a lot of room to play around. But a single sentence that tees your reader up and provides context for the accomplishments that follow could make the rest of your bio that much more persuasive.
Take Lena Axelsson's bio, for instance. She's a marriage and family therapist — a job where empathy and compassion are a big part of the job description. That's why she chooses to open her bio with a great introductory sentence: "When human beings experience trauma or severe life stressors, it is not uncommon for their lives to unravel."
Then, she goes into why she's passionate about her job, how she helps her clients, and how she caters her approach to each patient. The necessary educational information is left for the end after the reader has been hooked.
Your bio doesn't have to be super serious, nor does it have to start with a joke. This bio shows how you can capture your reader's attention by being empathetic and showing how that empathy shapes a valuable professional.
5. Mark Levy : Branding Firm Founder
Mark Levy is a small business owner who's taken a more traditional approach to the professional bio on his website — but in a way that takes care to speak to his intended audience.
What we love about his bio is the way he's set it up: On his business' "About" page, he's listed two biographies, which he's labeled "Mark Levy's Biography #1" and "Mark Levy's Biography #2."
Click here to see the full version .
Like Ann, Mark's given his readers two different options. The first biography is a "short version," which includes a combination of bullet points listing his credentials and a few short paragraphs.
The second is the "long version," which is actually even more interesting than the first one. Why? Because it reads like a story — a compelling one, at that. In fact, it gets really funny at parts.
The second sentence of the bio reads: "He was frightened of public school, loved playing baseball and football, ran home to watch ape films on the 4:30 Movie, listened to The Jam and The Buzzcocks, and read magic trick books."
Here's another excerpt from the middle:
Of course, the fantastic copywriting isn't a surprise, given that this guy wrote several books. But the conversational tone and entertaining copy let his quirky personality (and great writing skills) shine.
6. Audra Simpson : Political Anthropologist
With a classic take on the professional bio, Audra Simpson crafts a brief overview of her career in just a couple of paragraphs. The "why" behind her work is emphasized in the first half of her bio before transitioning to the way she carries out that work in practice.
The second half of her bio combines her bodies of work and the awards she’s won for each from the year 2014 to 2020. This subtle timeline gives readers a picture of her experience in the field of political anthropology without listing her resume in detail.
Audra’s professional bio is an example for those of us with several years of experience to communicate, but a strict word limit to write within.
7. Marie Mikhail : Professional Recruiter
Marie Mikhail checks off nearly every box for what makes an excellent bio. A professional recruiter, she expresses her "passion for recruiting" upfront, in the first sentence, while using that sentence to hook her profile visitors into a brief story of her background.
But there are a lot of recruiters out there, and Marie knows that. So, to differentiate herself, she closes the first paragraph of her bio by explaining that she likes "getting people excited about the things [she's] excited about." It's a well-put value proposition that sets her apart from the rest of the HR industry.
Marie Mikhail finishes off her bio by including a smooth mixture of professional skills, such as her Spanish fluency; and personal interests, such as podcasting and Star Wars (she mentions the latter with just the right amount of humor).
8. Wonbo Woo : Executive Producer
Wonbo Woo is the executive producer of WIRED's video content, and he has several impressive credits to his name. What does this mean for his professional bio? He has to prioritize. With this in mind, Wonbo opens his bio with the most eye-catching details first (if the image below is hard to read, click it to see the full copy).
Not only does Wonbo's bio start strong, but he also takes readers on a suspenseful journey through some of his most harrowing assignments — where he was when news broke and how he responded. You can see this quality below.
9. Chris Burkard : Freelance Photographer
If you're writing your bio but having trouble figuring out how to showcase your accomplishments without boasting, photographer Burkard's LinkedIn bio is a great example for inspiration.
Written in third-person, his bio tells a fluid story, starting with his ultimate mission — "capture stories that inspire humans to consider their relationship with nature" — before diving into more tangible accolades (giving a TED talk, publishing books, etc.).
Best of all, rather than using his bio as an opportunity to brag, he instead ties his talents into how he hopes to help others , writing, "Through social media, Chris strives to share his vision … and inspire [his followers] to explore for themselves."
I wouldn't necessarily be inclined to follow Chris if his bio had simply read "I post beautiful images" … but inspire me to travel? Now that's something I can get behind.
Lastly, he ends on a humble, sweet note, writing "He is happiest with his wife Breanne raising their two sons". Don't be afraid to inject some personal information into your bio — it could help you seem more approachable as a result.
10. Lisa Quine : Creative Consultant
Bio platform: portfolio website.
Although a picture is worth 1,000 words, a portfolio is quite different from a professional bio. While this might present a challenge for creative professionals who specialize in visual art to tell their stories, Lisa Quine quantifies her creativity to give her professional bio balance.
Throughout her bio, you’ll notice the number of murals she’s completed and a brief timeline of her career thus far which helps paint the picture of who she is as a professional.
Lisa’s bio checks the box on nearly all of our recommendations for a great bio. She begins with her full name, her location, and what she does best. From there, she gets creative by appropriately mentioning the brands she’s worked with and highlighting some of her favorite projects. With a third-person approach to the writing, this bio invites the reader behind a metaphorical door to meet Lisa as a professional, traveler, learner, wife, and mother.
11. Nancy Twine : Hair Care Founder
Bio platform: company website.
As Founder and CEO of Briogeo — a popular natural hair care line that's received rave reviews in publications such as Allure and InStyle — there are undoubtedly plenty of accolades Twine could boast about.
But she chooses to start her bio from a humbler place, stating: "Nancy Twine is no newcomer to the beauty-sphere — in fact, she made her first foray into the world of natural product formulation at the ripe age of five."
The rest of her bio similarly focuses on Twine's strengths as someone who's able to take hair care "back to basics". The bio focuses on why Twine made the decision she did to start her company, and what ultimately drives her.
Similarly, you might consider using your personal bio as an opportunity to highlight your bigger purpose or vision. As Twine demonstrates, sometimes it's best to keep it simple and let your message resonate with the right audience.
12. Trinity Mouzon : Wellness Brand Founder
I gravitated towards Mouzon's bio from the first sentence: "I'm obsessed with leveling the playing field." Mouzon effectively grips the reader's attention with this introduction and then dives into some of her impressive accomplishments — including a brand that's now sold at Urban Outfitters and Target.
The language used throughout Mouzon's bio is authentic, real, and honest. Consider, for instance, the beginning of the second paragraph, where she admits, "While building a brand may have looked effortless from the outside, starting a business at age 23 with no resources or funding quickly forced me to realize that early-stage entrepreneurship was anything but transparent."
Ultimately, this bio doesn't just focus on Mouzon's (impressive) background — it also highlights how she can help her readers start and scale their businesses.
By focusing on the reader, Mouzon effectively demonstrates the real power of a good bio: the power to convert newcomers into leads and customers.
13. Alberto "Beto" Perez : Co-Founder of Zumba Fitness
As an avid Zumba fan, I was excited to include this one in the list. Perez styles his LinkedIn bio as a short story, starting with his background as a hard-working teen who held three jobs by age 14.
His bio tells the fun and fascinating origin story of Zumba, in which Perez, an aerobics teacher in Florida at the time, forgot his music for class and used a Latin music cassette tape instead ... "And it was an instant hit!"
His bio continues, "Shortly after he was connected to Alberto Periman and Alberto Aghion and Zumba was officially created ... what started as a dream now has 15 million people in more than 200,000 locations in 186 countries who take Zumba classes every week."
What I like best about this bio is Perez's decision to use the space to tell the story of his business, rather than list out his accomplishments. It provides a more real and colorful introduction to Perez and immediately makes him feel both relatable and inspirational.
Learn how to write your professional bio with more free tips, templates, and inspiring examples.
Let's dive into a few examples of short professional bios next.
14. Ann Handley : Writer and Marketer
If you're a marketer, you've likely heard of Ann Handley. Her list of credentials is lengthy, and if she wanted to, she could go on and on and on about her accomplishments.
But when people list out all their accomplishments in their bios, they risk sounding a little egotistical. Sure, you might impress a handful of people with all those laurels, but many people who read your bio will end up feeling either intimidated or annoyed. Think about it: Is that how you want the majority of your readers to feel when they read your bio?
To minimize the egoism that comes with talking about yourself, think about how you can list out your accomplishments without sounding like you're bragging. Ann does this really well, choosing a tone in her bio that's more approachable.
Best of all, Ann chooses to focus on her readers' challenges and motivations, rather than her own. For instance, she writes, "Ann Handley writes and speaks about how businesses can escape marketing mediocrity to achieve tangible results. >And she will inspire you to do work you're proud of. "
Follow the link and you'll be led to a page dedicated to a fuller bio, which she's divided into two parts: a "short version" (literally a bulleted list of key facts) and a "long version," which includes traditional paragraphs. There's something in there for everyone.
15. Rebecca Bollwitt : Writer
Bio platform: instagram.
Instagram is a notoriously difficult platform on which to write a good bio. Similar to Twitter, you simply don't have room for a professional bio that includes everything about you. And because Instagram is primarily a mobile app, many viewers are reading about you passively on their mobile devices.
Instagram's limited bio space requires you to highlight just your most important qualities, and blogging icon Rebecca Bollwitt does so in her own Instagram bio in an excellent way.
Rebecca's brand name is Miss604 and cleverly uses emojis in her Instagram bio to tell visitors exactly what makes her a valuable content creator. Take a look at the screenshot below:
Starting with a trophy emoji, Miss604 says she's an award-winning blogger. I haven't even looked at her pictures yet and the introduction of her bio has already sucked me in.
The rest of her bio follows suit, breaking up the text with an appropriate emoji and a perfect collection of nouns to tell me who she is as a person. She even links out to her husband's Instagram account after the heart emoji (an adorable addition) and assures her followers that all of her pictures are authentically hers.
Take a lesson from Miss604, and show your personal side. Just because you're branding yourself as a professional doesn't mean you have to take your human being hat off. Often your most personal attributes make for the best professional bio content.
16. Corey Wainwright : Principal Marketing Manager
Bio platform: blog byline.
Corey Wainwright is a Principal Marketing Manager here at HubSpot. She's written content for HubSpot's Marketing Blog for years, and her blog author bio has caught my eye since before I ever started working for HubSpot. (Back then, it started with, "Corey just took a cool vacation.")
What I love most about Corey's bio is that it's a great example of how to deliver information about yourself without taking things too seriously. And in this context, that's totally appropriate.
Despite having several impressive accomplishments under her belt, she simply doesn't like displaying them publicly. So, she prefers making her author bio a little more "light."
Her bio (pictured below) reads, "Corey is a Bruce Springsteen fan who does content marketing, in that order."
It helps that authors' social media accounts are located right below our names and above our pictures. For folks who really do want a list of Corey's credentials, they can click the LinkedIn button to go to her LinkedIn page. (You can read this blog post to learn how to create social media buttons and add them to your website.)
17. Megan Gilmore : Cookbook Author
Bio platform: instagram.
Megan Gilmore is a best-selling cookbook author, and she often posts healthy recipes on her Instagram page to inspire followers' to realize that you don't have to sacrifice taste for the sake of health.
Plus, Gilmore includes a CTA link within her Instagram bio that leads followers to free, ready-to-use recipes. You might be thinking — Why would she do that, since it discourages people from buying her book? But that couldn't be further from the truth.
By giving her followers the chance to try out her recipes, she's slowly turning leads into customers. After I tried a few of her Instagram recipes and loved them, I decided to go ahead and buy her book, knowing I'd like more of what she had to offer.
18. Van Jones : Political Commentator, Author, and Lawyer
Bio platform: twitter.
Someone who’s known for a variety of talents and skills may find it difficult to capture who they are in a professional bio. When limited to just over 100 characters on Twitter, the feat is nearly impossible. But Van Jones effortlessly explains who he is and why it matters to everyone who visits his Twitter profile.
He starts his professional bio with a token of personalization and prioritization of his values. By mentioning that he is a dad first, we recognize what’s important to him in his long list of successes.
As we’ve seen in other bios, sharing who we are outside of work makes us more personable and should find its way into your bio, if possible. Van leaves plenty of room to share a variety of professional experiences in his bio including CEO of REFORM and his 2020 Emmy award.
What’s great about Van’s Twitter bio is his ability to link valuable offerings to his readers. He invites us to check out his latest book and has his website reformalliance.com linked at the top.
19. Sarah Haskins : Writer
When in doubt, a few words go a long way.
Consider, for instance, the funny and impactful bio of Sarah Haskins on her Twitter page, which reads: "writer. bad but enthusiastic dancer."
What more do you need to know?
She doesn't take her bio too seriously and uses the space to highlight one serious accomplishment/skill (writer) and one not-so-impressive skill (bad dancer), to demonstrate her sense of humor and realness.
Particularly for a social media account that already restricts word count, consider how you might showcase your uniqueness in just a few words.
20. Bea Dixon : Feminine Care Founder
Bea Dixon, Founder, and CEO of The Honey Pot Company, efficiently uses her space on her Instagram profile to highlight who she is as a well-rounded human — not just a businesswoman.
For instance, while she highlights her Girl boss attitude with a tiara emoji, she equally calls attention to her fashion interests (Free People), her pets Boss and Sadie, and her love for ramen noodles.
Consider how you might also highlight your interests, hobbies, or passions outside of the 9-to-5. If people are reading your bio, they're interested in getting to know the full you.
- Introduce yourself.
- State what you do.
- Add key skills or areas of expertise.
- Include a personal mission statement
- Celebrate your wins.
- Provide your contact information.
- Show them your personality.
If you're posting a bio on a social media account or sending a quick blurb to a client, you want to keep it short and sweet while showcasing your accomplishments.
To get you started, here are the best practices for writing your short professional bio:
Your introduction is your first impression, so always begin by telling people who you are. You may start with a greeting like, "Hello, my name is" or "Hi! Let me first introduce myself …" when sending your bio as a message.
If you’re writing a bio for an online platform, simply stating your name at the beginning works as well, like the way freelancing entrepreneur Alex Fasulo presents themselves in the first person on their website:
2. State what you do.
Give people an idea of what you do day-to-day, as well as where you work. Your job title is how the people put you into context and consider whether your profession relates to your audience’s industry. So detail the most relevant work you're involved in your short bio like CEO, professor, and author, Angela Duckworth , specifies on her LinkedIn:
Even if you are a freelancer with a broad focus, you can keep it general yet clearly specify the type of contract work you do. If your specialty is writing, your title could be "Freelance Writer," or if it's Help Desk or Information Technology you may state yourself as a "Freelance IT Specialist."
3. Add key skills or areas of expertise.
Especially, if you're sending a bio to a client or potential employer, make sure to highlight the skills that they will find valuable. For instance, if you’re expertise is in social media marketing and content creation like Ivanka Dekoning , make sure you list these skills concisely:
Here Dekoning showcases their experience so potential connections immediately see if they have what they're looking for— and you can show this too.
4. Include a personal mission statement .
What do you hope to achieve through your work? Why do you do what you do? Answering these questions can help give your bio’s mission statement some direction, similar to how Farmer Bea makes their goal to help bees clear to all of their Twitter connections:
5. Celebrate your wins.
Your short bio can be a proud showcase of your accomplishments, so add 1 to 2 personal successes you’ve achieved through your skills or mission. For instance, if you’ve received acclaim from industry leaders in your scope like Art Critic Jerry Saltz , your wins may list as something like:
6. Provide your contact information.
People who visit your profile or receive your message will already know your social media account. But to take business off the app, include your email address, website, or any other professional profiles you’d like them to know about. Political Commentator and Sports Correspondent, Angela Rye , shows a great example of this in her short professional bio on Instagram:
7. Show them your personality.
Don’t be afraid to add a little bit of personal charisma to your short professional bio — because professional doesn’t have to mean plain. Your personality may be best portrayed through:
A joke: "Some mistakes are too much fun to only make once. At least that’s what I learned when I created…"
A mention of a hobby: "I’ll be honest: for me, tennis is life— Go Nadal!"
A fun fact: "Every year I watch 100 new films! I’m a cinephile and love every movie genre."
A few emojis related to your interests: "🎶🤖🎾🎬🎭"
Whichever way you choose to get personal, give people a glimpse into who you are as an individual.
When writing a short bio it can be tempting to try and pack in as much relevant information about yourself as possible — but this isn’t the most effective approach. Instead, focus on including the details that you and your audience care about most and leave out the fluff.
Create Your Own Professional Bio
Prim and proper, relaxed, or studded with accomplishments, your bio is a reflection of your best professional self. Your professional bio will often precede your physical presence. Before people meet you for the first time, they’ll probably read your bio.
Whether you’re creating an about page for your website or social media profile, one thing’s for sure, you’ll want to put your best foot forward with a top-notch professional bio.
Editor's Note: This post was originally published in November 2019 and has been updated for accuracy and comprehensiveness.
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Create a compelling professional narrative for your summary, bio, or introduction.
How to Write an Online Bio
Which three words would you use to explain your personality to a stranger?
If you could only think of “human with face,” or “professional needs job,” you’ve come to the right place. Learning how to write a bio is not easy; defining yourself in a few words even less so. But never fear—you can do it! Taking a few minutes to think about what you’re about isn’t just a great writing exercise, it’s a clarifying moment of personal development. Here are a few ways you can get started on your professional, website, LinkedIn, or short bio.
Here’s a tip: Want to make sure your writing shines? Grammarly can check your spelling and save you from grammar and punctuation mistakes. It even proofreads your text, so your work is extra polished wherever you write.
Give your writing extra polish Grammarly helps you communicate confidently Write with Grammarly
How to write a short bio
When most people think of online bios, they probably can readily name a few common short bio examples first. Twitter, Instagram, Facebook, and Pinterest all have space for a short description of who you are and what you do. And you should make the most of the 1-2 lines you’re afforded here. Keep your social media bios short, sweet, and only filled with the most important things a stranger should know about you, such as:
- Your current role
- Your ultimate goal
- Your biggest achievement
How to write a professional bio
Professional sites like LinkedIn , AngelList, or a speaker bio on an event site all have space for a bio or summary section. For each of these, you’ll probably want to write a mid-length description of both your current role, professional aspirations, and biggest achievements. Professional bios allow you to go into a bit more detail than short social media bios, especially on LinkedIn. It’s generally a good idea to include:
- Your current role or professional tagline
- Your company or personal brand
- Your goals and aspirations
- Your 2-3 most impressive and relevant achievements
- One quirky fact about you (if it’s appropriate to the site)
What to include in a bio at work
Writing a bio for your company’s website, HR system, or Slack instance? Be sure to give your coworkers a sense of both your professional expertise—and your personality!
You should include anything you’d include in a professional bio in a bio for your company, but don’t be afraid to personalize it with a few personal details. Have a hobby you love? A favorite book? A professional hero you look up to? Add them to give your coworkers a sense of who you are before they work with you.
What to include in a bio on your website
The “About” section of any personal website can be a slog. A drain. A hassle. You’ve already created a whole website about yourself, so it can be difficult to muster the strength to write that final description of who you are and what you’re about.
But never fear! Your website bio doesn’t need to be complicated, it just needs context on who you are and what you’ve done. This is an open, larger space, so you have room to list a few accomplishments and give context on why they’re important. You can also add a short paragraph about who you are outside of your nine-to-five. For this type of bio, you may also want to include a contact form or email, to help prospective clients, employers, or collaborators get in touch. If you do, be sure to include a clear call-to-action for your reader to contact you.
A bio template to use and customize
Even after you understand different types of bios, it can be difficult to get started. The words may not be flowing, you might not fully understand how your professional bio will be used, or you might just be stuck. Never fear! Here’s a bio recipe you can use across most sites.
- Your first and last name: Start by writing your name. That wasn’t so hard!
- Your company or brand: If you have a consulting firm, a brand you use for your side hustle, or a company you currently work at, list that next.
- Your current function: What do you do for work? You can either list your current title or a short, descriptive phrase about your role here.
- Your north star: People reading your bio will also want to get a sense of who you are. Listing your overall goal, values, or a statement that describes your ethos will help them get to know you, even in short bios.
- Your top three accomplishments: Especially in professional bios, you’ll need a few accomplishments to show off what you’ve done in your career. Choose the top two or three large milestones from your career (no more), and put them next.
- Your cute closer (optional): This may not be necessary in a shorter bio for Twitter or Instagram. But for a website or similarly professional bio, you may want to add a sentence describing who you are outside of work.
- Your contact info (optional): Depending on the site, you may also want to include an email, contact form, or another easy way for readers to reach you. List this information at the end of your bio.
4 quick tips on writing a bio
Even with all of this information on how to write a bio, it might still be difficult to write about yourself. Even for the most confident person, self-promotion can be exhausting. But never fear! There are a few ways you can keep your “about me” writing on point—without pulling your hair out.
Tip #1: Don’t overthink it
Bios are usually formulaic—and that’s OK! For most professional bios, LinkedIn summaries, and speaker bios at events, you won’t need to stray from the norm too much to stand out. Even adding an adjective that shows your personality or an unusual accomplishment can make your bio different from the crowd. You don’t need to create the next Between The World And Me to write a killer bio.
Tip #2: Remember your worth
Writing a bio on a site like Twitter, Instagram , or LinkedIn can be daunting because there are already so many fantastic bios (and people!) out there. But don’t fall prey to bio comparison. Your story is only yours to tell, and it has value. Focus on staying authentic to your truth, and don’t worry about others’.
Tip #3: When in doubt, borrow
Bios can be repetitive, sometimes even tedious. So if you find a structure you like and think sounds unique, borrow it! You should never copy a person’s bio—after all, it’s their story, not yours—but you can mimic the structure if you’re feeling stuck.
Tip #4: Get writing help
You’re not alone in your quest to create a bio that stands out. Grammarly is here to help you choose powerful adjectives , clean up hedging language , and make your bio stand out.
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- Education and Communications
How to Write a Biography
Last Updated: December 4, 2022 Approved
This article was co-authored by Stephanie Wong Ken, MFA . Stephanie Wong Ken is a writer based in Canada. Stephanie's writing has appeared in Joyland, Catapult, Pithead Chapel, Cosmonaut's Avenue, and other publications. She holds an MFA in Fiction and Creative Writing from Portland State University. wikiHow marks an article as reader-approved once it receives enough positive feedback. This article has 12 testimonials from our readers, earning it our reader-approved status. This article has been viewed 1,780,783 times.
Writing a biography can be a fun challenge, where you are sharing the story of someone’s life with readers. You may need to write a biography for a class or decide to write one as a personal project. Once you have identified the subject of the biography, do your research so you know as much about them as possible. Then, dive into the writing of the biography and revising it until it is at its finest.
Researching Your Subject
- If the subject does not give you permission to write the biography, you may want to choose a different subject. If you decide to publish the biography without the subject’s permission, you may be susceptible to legal action by the subject.
- If the subject is no longer alive, you obviously do not need to ask permission to write about them.
- You may create research questions to help focus your research of the subject, such as, What do I find interesting about the subject? Why is this subject important to readers? What can I say that is new about the subject? What would I like to learn more about?
- For in person interviews, record them with a tape recorder or a voice recorder on your computer or phone.
- You may need to interview the subject and others several times to get the material you need.
- You may also want to visit areas where the subject made a major decision or breakthrough in their life. Being physically in the area can give you a sense of how the subject might have felt and help you write their experiences more effectively.
- When researching the time period ask yourself: What were the social norms of that time? What was going on economically and politically? How did the social and political climate affect the subject?
- You may also include historical events or moments that affected the subject on the timeline. For example, maybe there was a conflict or civil war that happened during the person’s life that affected their life.
Writing the Biography
- You may end up focusing on particular areas of the person’s life. If you do this, work through a particular period in the person’s life chronologically.
- For example, you may have a thesis statement about focusing on how the person impacted the civil rights movement in America in the 1970s. You can then make sure all your content relates back to this thesis.
- Flashbacks should feel as detailed and real as present day scenes. Use your research notes and interviews with the subject to get a good sense of their past for the flashbacks.
- For example, you may jump from the person’s death in the present to a flashback to their favorite childhood memory.
- For example, you may focus on the person’s accomplishments in the civil rights movement. You may write a whole section about their contributions and participation in major civil rights marches in their hometown.
- For example, you may notice that the person’s life is patterned with moments of adversity, where the person worked hard and fought against larger forces. You can then use the theme of overcoming adversity in the biography.
- For example, you may note how you see parallels in the person’s life during the civil rights movement with your own interests in social justice. You may also commend the person for their hard work and positive impact on society.
Polishing the Biography
- Revise the biography based on feedback from others. Do not be afraid to cut or edit down the biography to suit the needs of your readers.
- Having a biography riddled with spelling, grammar, and punctuation errors can turn off your readers and result in a poor grade if you are handing in the text for a class.
- If the biography is for a class, use MLA, APA, or Chicago Style citations based on the preferences of your instructor.
Biography Help
Community Q&A
Video . By using this service, some information may be shared with YouTube.
- Be careful when publishing private or embarrassing information, especially if the person is not a celebrity. You may violate their "Right of Privacy" or equivalent. ⧼thumbs_response⧽ Helpful 30 Not Helpful 5
- Have the sources to back up your statements about the subject's life. Untruthful written statements can lead to litigation. If it is your opinion, be clear that it is such and not fact (although you can support your opinion with facts). ⧼thumbs_response⧽ Helpful 15 Not Helpful 15
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- ↑ http://grammar.yourdictionary.com/writing/how-to-write-a-biography.html
- ↑ http://teacher.scholastic.com/scholasticnews/indepth/peopleinthenews/activities/index.asp?article=research
- ↑ https://www.writersdigest.com/writing-articles/3-tips-for-writing-successful-flashbacks
About This Article
Before you write a biography, gather as much information about the subject that you can from sources like newspaper articles, interviews, photos, existing biographies, and anything else you can find. Write the story of that person’s life, including as much supporting detail as you can, including information about the place and time where the person lived. Focus on major events and milestones in their life, including historical events, marriage, children, and events which would shape their path later in life. For tips from our reviewer on proofreading the biography and citing your sources, keep reading! Did this summary help you? Yes No
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- Sep 3, 2020
How to Write a Professional Bio, With Examples and Templates
This post last updated on September 3, 2022.
Which three words would you use to describe yourself? Most of us have been asked this question, and many of us have fumbled through it awkwardly.
Coming up with a personal description can be daunting. But there are times when it’s essential - whether we’re updating our LinkedIn profiles, blogging for Medium or creating a business website of our own.
In this post, we’ll go over how to write a bio, step by step. To help guide you, we’ve also included a handy template, along with some professional bio examples for your inspiration. With these resources, you’ll find that writing a bio is much easier than you might think.
What is a bio?
Before you learn how to write a bio, you should have a clear understanding of what it is and why you need it.
In the world of literature, a personal biography can span the length of an entire novel, like Nelson Mandela’s Long Walk to Freedom or Malala Yousafzai’s I Am Malala . In the online world, however, a bio is a short paragraph in which you introduce yourself. Typically, people place bios on the About Us page of their professional website, as well as on their social media pages and other networking platforms.
Depending on your audience and goals, your bio can highlight your personal interests, your professional achievements or a mix of both. Here are some of the elements a bio might include:
Job title or workplace
University degree and other qualifications
Hometown or city of residence
Personal or professional goals
Mission statement and values
Skills and expertise
Interests and hobbies
The goal of writing a bio is to provide people with a snapshot of who you are. This is important for a variety of reasons, whether it’s drawing people toward your personal website or promoting your blog, attracting clients and business partners to your brand, or highlighting your achievements for job interviews.
How to write a short bio
The most effective online bios are both professional and concise. Here’s how to write a short professional bio that suits your website or brand:
Introduce yourself
State your company or brand name
Explain your professional role
Include professional achievements
Discuss your passions and values
Mention your personal interests
01. Introduce yourself
Begin your bio by stating your first and last name. If you’re writing in the third person, these should be the first two words of the paragraph. This makes your name easy for your audience to identify and remember.
02. State your company or brand name
Think about whether you want your bio to represent yourself on a personal level, or whether you’d like it to come across as more professional. If you have a personal brand or business - for example, a blog, freelance business or eCommerce site - be sure to mention your brand name at the beginning of your bio. Don’t be afraid if the name sounds simple or redundant. It’s perfectly fine, for instance, to say Mary Smith is the founder and CEO of Smith Digital.
Likewise, feel free to mention the name of another company or brand that you work for if you’d like to associate it with your professional accomplishments - e.g., Mary Smith is a consultant at Google and the founder and CEO of Smith Digital.
03. Explain your professional role
Next, briefly explain your current position. This is relevant whether you’re the founder of a company, a high-level specialist or a beginner in your field, and it can be similar to the description you have on your resume. Your website visitors won’t necessarily know what your job involves, so elaborating on your primary responsibilities helps paint a picture of who you are and what you have to offer.
04. Include professional achievements
In addition to explaining what your job entails, highlight milestones that make you stand out. Even if you haven’t won an award or gained external recognition, you can discuss ways in which you’ve contributed to your professional role and touch on new ideas or approaches that you bring to the table.
05. Discuss your passions and values
Once you describe what you do and how you contribute to your role, you’ll need to explain the why . This is one of the most important elements to focus on as you consider how to write a bio.
Think about the values and passions underlying your work, as well as your professional philosophy. What gets you up in the morning? What’s the driving force behind what you do?
You can also think of this part of your professional bio as a kind of mission statement. Perhaps your mission is to serve others, contribute to society, grow your expertise or learn new skills. Whatever your reasons, expanding upon these ideas can help your audience get a better understanding of what truly matters to you.
06. Mention your personal interests
The most effective short bios will not only focus on your professional experience, but will also touch on what you like to do in your spare time. Consider mentioning:
Your family
Your hometown
Your hobbies
Side projects you’re working on
Transitioning to a more casual discussion of who you are outside of work is a great way to conclude your bio. This will present you as a more well-rounded person while making you relatable for your audience.
Professional bio template
As you go through the steps on how to write a bio, this handy template will help you get started:
Sentence 1: [Name] is a [job title] who [job description].
E.g., Lisa Green is an English teacher who teaches beginning to advanced literature courses for 10th and 11th grade students at Bloomfield High School.
Sentence 2: [Name] believes that [why you do the work you do].
E.g., Lisa believes that written and analytical skills are not only a fundamental part of academic excellence, but are also the building blocks of critical thinking in high school and beyond.
Sentence 3: [Name/pronoun] has [mention your achievements].
E.g., In addition to managing the English curriculum for the school, she runs an after school program where she works one-on-one with students.
Sentence 4: [Name/pronoun] is a [mention any relevant awards, training or honors].
E.g., She has also been nominated Teacher of the Year for two consecutive years.
Sentence 5: [Name/pronoun] holds a [insert degree] in [field of study] from [university].
E.g., Lisa holds a BA in Creative Writing and a Master’s Degree in Teaching from the University of Michigan.
Once you’ve filled in this template, put it all together into a single paragraph to create an initial framework for your professional biography. Note that you can shorten or expand upon this bio according to your unique needs.
![A professional bio template graphic that says [name] is a [job title] who [job description]. [Name] has [Academic Qualifications] from [University]...](https://static.wixstatic.com/media/c7b0f0_b662e4ec234b4890ad91d369cf1c5edc~mv2.png/v1/fill/w_46,h_28,al_c,q_85,usm_0.66_1.00_0.01,blur_2,enc_auto/c7b0f0_b662e4ec234b4890ad91d369cf1c5edc~mv2.png "how to write biography about someone")
How to write a bio, even better
As you write your bio using the professional template above, make sure to keep the following tips in mind:
Keep it concise: Your bio should be sufficiently explanatory, but it should also be short and to the point. A good rule of thumb is to keep each element of your bio - from your job description to your mission statement and hobbies - to about 1-2 sentences. That way, you’ll end up with a brief paragraph that holds your readers’ attention without rambling on.
Consider your audience: The voice and tone you choose for your biography largely depends on your audience and personal goals. If you’re looking for a job and are writing primarily for recruiters, you’ll want to use a serious, professional tone. On the other hand, if you’re creating an Instagram bio , consider using more casual, conversational language that reflects your personality.
Add humor: Relatedly, consider adding humor when appropriate. This is especially valuable if you’ve founded your own business or created your own website , as it can give you a distinct brand identity while helping your audience build a stronger sense of connection with your brand.
Link to your website: When writing a bio for a platform other than your own website - a social media page, another company page, or a guest blog or publication - remember to include a link to your website. This will help you promote your website while highlighting your professionalism and authority.
Adapt for different platforms: You’ll most likely need to adapt the length and writing style of your biography to suit different platforms. For example, you may place a longer bio on your website’s About page and a shorter one on your LinkedIn page. In these cases, use the same main principles for writing a bio while scaling down the most important elements.
By following these tips, you can create a powerful bio that helps you stand out in your field and allows your audience to get to know you better.
How to write a bio in four sentences or less
Really need to create a super short bio? We'd suggest following some of the tips above, just condensing them into less word for a short bio that still makes impact.
But if we really had to choose we'd say focus on - you, your professional role and company. That condenses everything that matters for bio into three sentences. Humor, creativity and uniqueness still all matter just use less words to convey them.
Professional bio examples
Now that you know the basics of writing a professional bio, here are some short bio examples to inspire you. You can use these examples as additional templates for guidance as you craft your own personal biography.
Like the creators of these examples, you can place your bio on your personal or professional website and, later, revise the structure for other online platforms.
01. Bristol Guitar Making School
Of all the professional bio examples, Alex Bishop’s content exudes passion. Strategically placing the bio on the About page of his small business website , he highlights his skills and explains why he finds his work meaningful. In particular, we love his description of why he chose to pursue guitar making:
“My passion as a guitar maker comes from a life-long obsession with making things. From a young age I have always tried to manipulate objects and materials in order to create something entirely different. I find that working with wood is a way for me to connect with nature. The simple act of shaping wood to make something functional or beautiful brings me endless satisfaction.”
He also lists his accomplishments and awards, adding credibility to his business and building trust among prospective clients.
02. Pei Jung Ho
Artist Pei Jung Ho’s brief professional description on her graphic design website is an effective example of a short bio. She concisely highlights her skills and experience, holding the readers’ attention while sticking to the essential details. Notably, she shows why her approach is unique and how it’s rooted in her cultural heritage, helping her stand out from other artists in the field. As she explains:
“Having been an art student for 12 years, I constantly explore various disciplines to broaden my own artistic pursuits, integrating a fine art background with design studies and illustration. My current areas of interest and exploration are my Taiwanese culture, human-centered design, and branding. I begin projects by thoroughly researching and then developing my ideas through creative thinking.”
03. Amanda Shields Interiors
Amanda Shields provides us with another effective bio example on her interior design website. Importantly, she spices up her bio by explaining how home decor aligns with her personal life and why it’s so close to her heart as a mother and entrepreneur:
"After working as a product designer for numerous retailers over the years, and after I had my first child, I decided to take the plunge and start my own home staging business…. Coincidentally, a month later I discovered I was pregnant with my second child. I loved the new challenges I faced as a new entrepreneur and mom and it didn't take long for me to discover that this was my calling…. I felt the need to expand my business and launch Amanda Shields Interiors as its own entity to focus specifically on residential interiors and design."
By placing this content on her website’s About page, she provides potential clients with insights into her expertise and professional experience. She expands upon the choices she made along her career path, strategically making note of her achievements and acquired skills along the way.
Creating a bio for your website
As we’ve noted in the examples above, one of the most strategic places to put your bio is on your website. Whether the goal of your site is to start and promote your business , showcase your design portfolio or display your resume, including a bio gives your audience a glimpse into the person behind your content. It can also kickstart your professional growth . Show the world what you do, how you do it, and why it matters, and people will be drawn to your passion and inspired by your experience.
Rebecca Strehlow
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A biography is a written account of the series of events that make up a person's life. Some of those events are going to be pretty boring, so you'll need to try to make your account as interesting as possible!
Every student will write a biography at some point, but the level of detail and sophistication will differ. A fourth grade biography will be much different from a middle school-level biography or a high school or college-level biography.
However, each biography will include the basic details. The first information you should gather in your research will include biographical details and facts. You must use a trustworthy resource to ensure that your information is accurate.
Using research note cards , collect the following data, carefully recording the source for each piece of information:
Including Basic Details
- Date and place of birth and death
- Family information
- Lifetime accomplishments
- Major events of life
- Effects/impact on society, historical significance
While this information is necessary to your project, these dry facts, on their own, don't really make a very good biography. Once you've found these basics, you'll want to dig a little deeper.
You choose a certain person because you think he or she is interesting, so you certainly don't want to burden your paper with an inventory of boring facts. Your goal is to impress your reader!
Start off with great first sentence . It's a good idea to begin with a really interesting statement, a little-known fact, or really intriguing event.
You should avoid starting out with a standard but boring line like:
"Meriwether Lewis was born in Virginia in 1774."
Instead, try starting with something like this:
"Late one afternoon in October, 1809, Meriwether Lewis arrived at a small log cabin nestled deep in the Tennessee Mountains. By sunrise on the following day, he was dead, having suffered gunshot wounds to the head and chest.
You'll have to make sure your beginning is motivating, but it should also be relevant. The next sentence or two should lead into your thesis statement , or main message of your biography.
"It was a tragic end to a life that had so deeply affected the course of history in the United States. Meriwether Lewis, a driven and often tormented soul, led an expedition of discovery that expanded a young nation's economic potential, increased its scientific understanding, and enhanced its worldwide reputation."
Now that you've created an impressive beginning , you'll want to continue the flow. Find more intriguing details about the man and his work, and weave them into the composition.
Examples of Interesting Details:
- Some people believed that Lewis and Clark would encounter elephants in the western wilderness, having misunderstood the wooly mammoth bones discovered in the United States.
- The expedition resulted in the discovery and description of 122 new animal species and subspecies.
- Lewis was a hypochondriac.
- His death is still an unsolved mystery, although it was ruled a suicide.
You can find interesting facts by consulting diverse sources.
Fill the body of your biography with material that gives insight into your subject's personality. For instance, in a biography about Meriwether Lewis, you would ask what traits or events motivated him to embark on such a monumental exercise.
Questions to Consider in Your Biography:
- Was there something in your subject's childhood that shaped his/her personality?
- Was there a personality trait that drove him/her to succeed or impeded his progress?
- What adjectives would you use to describe him/her?
- What were some turning points in this life?
- What was his/her impact on history?
Be sure to use transitional phrases and words to link your paragraphs and make your composition paragraphs flow . It is normal for good writers to re-arrange their sentences to create a better paper.
The final paragraph will summarize your main points and re-assert your main claim about your subject. It should point out your main points, re-name the person you're writing about, but it should not repeat specific examples.
As always, proofread your paper and check for errors. Create a bibliography and title page according to your teacher's instructions. Consult a style guide for proper documentation.
Watch Now: How To Start Writing An Autobiography
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8 Steps to Writing a Great Biography
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8 STEPS TO WRITING A GREAT BIOGRAPHY
People are naturally curious beings. And they love to read about the lives of others, and what makes them tick. It is for that very reason that biographies remain a very popular genre of nonfiction.
But what is it that makes the difference between a mediocre biography and a truly good one?
What is a biography?
Before we dive too far into what makes a good biography, let’s first take a look at exactly what a biography is.
By definition, a biography is simply an account of someone’s life, written by someone else. Pretty easy, right?
Not so fast. Anyone can write a story about someone else’s life. But not just anyone can make it a story worth reading.
To start with the basics, any good biography should contain the following key elements:
- A third-person account of the person’s life
- Descriptions of the person’s life or significant events in their life
- Factual (and not fabricated) information
- Inclusion of historical information about the time period
- Personal information that describes who the person is at the core, and why they are who they are
How to write a good biography
Now that we’ve established what a biography is, let’s discuss the eight steps to writing a great biography.
Step 1: Ask permission.
While it is technically true that anyone can write a biography about anyone else, if the subject is still living, it is always best to seek permission.
For starters, unless your information comes entirely from factual sources in the public domain, such as newspaper articles or other reputable books, you could face defamation and privacy lawsuits if the subject of the book feels that their privacy has been violated.
Even without the threat of lawsuits, though, it always helps to have input from the book’s subject. After all, they are the best experts on themselves!
In the case of subjects who are deceased, you do not have to seek permission, as the right to sue for defamation or invasion of privacy stops at the grave.
Be conscientious about what you write, though, as some states extend the right of privacy to family members of the deceased.
Besides, just as it’s helpful to get input from the subject themself, it can also be helpful to ask family for their support and input.
Regardless of who you are writing the biography about, be sure to research the laws in your state and, when in doubt, consult a lawyer.
Step 2: Collect the basic facts.
Before you can get started with writing your biography, you must first collect basic information about your subject. This should include things such as:
- Date of birth
- Place of birth
- Names of parents
- Names of siblings
- Cultural background
- Organizational or political involvement
Once you have all of the relevant basic information about your subject, you will know what areas you need to research further.
Step 3: Do research.
One of the most important steps to writing a good biography is to conduct quality research.
If possible, if the subject is still living, take the time to thoroughly interview your subject . Ask them questions about their childhood, significant events in their life, their career, and what they most value in life.
Once you have gotten a good feel for who your subject is and what makes them tick, solicit interviews from their relatives and friends.
While the first-person account is incredibly important, it’s also valuable to hear from people who know the subject and can speak about how the subject has influenced their lives.
Another great way to find information on your subject is to look into primary sources such as emails or letters they wrote, diary entries, and even social media accounts.
And if you’ve exhausted all of your primary sources, looking into secondary sources, such as newspaper articles written about them, can prove to be very helpful as well.
Step 4: Nail down your theme.
You’ve conducted your research and gathered all of the important information about your subject. The next big step is to nail down a theme for your biography.
The theme is the reoccurring idea or message that you want to get across to your readers.
For a biography, this could be anything from the important lessons that your subject learned throughout their time as the CEO of a company, or their transformation from rags to riches.
Nailing down the theme you wish to convey with your biography is a must, as it helps provide direction and a goal for your writing.
Step 5: Identify what makes the subject special or unique.
Everybody has something that makes them special and unique. And if you are going to the trouble to write a biography about a person, this is probably especially true.
What kind of impact did they have on the lives of others? What kind of impact did they have on their community?
Don’t be afraid to include your own personal thoughts about what made your subject noteworthy. After all, biographies are not meant to be just a list of facts.
Step 6: Identify major “chapters” of the subject’s life.
Now that you have established what makes your subject special or unique, it’s time to figure out the contributing circumstances that helped shape who they are.
Did they lose a parent at an early age? Did they fight in a major war?
It’s no secret that who we are is a direct result of what we have lived through. As German philosopher Friedrich Nietzsche so eloquently put it, “That which does not kill us makes us stronger.”
So, find out where your subject’s strength came from. Research both personal events in their life and world events they lived though, and see how they were affected by those experiences.
Step 7: Make a chronological outline or timeline of the subject’s life.
Once you have determined exactly what you want to write about, it’s time to pinpoint what the true storylines for your biography are.
All of the facts about a person are part of their story. But not all facts are worth diving into and telling in depth.
Think about what kinds of things your readers will want to know.
What were the high points in your subject’s life? What were the low points?
What were the situations that presented a challenge that had to be overcome?
Keep in mind that even when the book you are writing is factual, your audience is still going to expect to be entertained. So, find those major moments that shaped your subject’s life, and then use them to form an outline for your biography.
Once you have done that, the outline can be used as the map that guides your writing.
Step 8: Start writing.
Now comes the fun part!
Actually, when it comes to biographies, the whole process can be a lot of fun. But putting all of your research and interviews together to write the story is especially rewarding.
As you start writing, here are a few things to keep in mind.
- Keep your audience engaged. Paint a picture of who this person is (or was) and what makes them tick.
- Try to include the “why” as much as possible. Facts are good, but facts can be boring. People want to know what motivated someone’s actions.
- Provide background context. If the person you are writing about grew up in East Berlin during the Cold War, explain the political (and geographical) ramifications of that.
- Be selective with what you include. Chances are, you have enough material to write several books about this person. But there is such a thing as too much. Think about the information you are including, and whether or not the reader will really find value in it. While it’s definitely impressive if you know what your subject had for breakfast on their 14 th birthday, unless it’s a critical part of the storyline, that’s probably best left on the cutting block.
Finally, don’t be afraid to ask for help. If you get to the point where the writing feels like too much to handle on your own, consider hiring a ghostwriter . A professional ghostwriter can help you get past those hurdles and take your biography to the finish line.
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How Kids Can Learn to Write a Biography
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Sean Blackburn is a fact-checker and researcher with experience in sociology and field research.
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Writing the Biography
- Making It Interesting
Adding Final Touches
Publishing the biography.
Many gifted kids love reading biographies, but there's no reason they can't write one of their own! If your child is one of those who loves biographies and also loves writing , then encourage them to write their own biography. Sometimes a child has a good idea of who they'd like to write about and sometimes they don't. Getting ideas on who to write about and gathering information on that person and the time in which they lived would be the first steps to writing a biography.
Once your child has gathered all the information they need, they need to come up with an "angle." This is what makes one biography substantially different from other biographies. Coming up with an angle just means figuring out the main idea of the biography or the point the biography will make about the person.
A good way to think about the angle or main idea is that it is one sentence that expresses the writer's opinion of the person. It is what the writer wants everyone to know or think about that person.
It is really like a thesis statement. For example, a child might want everyone to know that his grandfather was an honest, hard-working person who, in spite of many hardships made a good life for himself and his family.
That main idea can help your child stay focused on the details to include in the biography. After all, a lifetime is full of many, many events; they can't all be included. Which ones should be included? The ones that help illustrate the main idea! If the main idea is to show a person was hard-working, readers don't need to know all the details about the person's various pets — unless that person worked hard to take care of those pets!
Once your child knows the message they'd like to convey with their biography, they can write a short and simple outline that lists the events and details they want to write about. It doesn't have to be long or complicated or very formal. Even a list of events they'd like to write about will work quite nicely.
Making the Biography Interesting
What makes a biography interesting? We'd like to think that the story itself is enough to make the biography interesting, and that's sometimes true when we're writing a biography about a family member to be read by other family members. But how can your child make his biography interesting to others?
One way is to use specific words when possible rather than general words. For example, "car" is a general word, but "Mercedes" is specific. "Walk" is also a rather general word, but "shuffle" is more specific.
Encouraging your child to use more specific words will not only make the biography more interesting to read, but it will also help them expand their vocabulary.
Of course, it's not always necessary to use specific terms. Sometimes adjectives and adverbs can use used. For example, your child might write , "the old and rusted cars" or "walked slowly." The idea behind all this detail is to help a reader see and feel what the writer sees and feels.
The Read, Write, Think Web site has a great exercise sheet to help kids be more descriptive in their writing. But be sure to let them know that less can sometimes be more! In other words, tell them not to overdo it!
Once your child is done with his biography, there are some final touches they can add. Pictures are great additions to a biography. Family pictures can be collected from other people in the family, but how do you get pictures of famous people? The best way is to look for photos that are in the public domain . That just means that no one owns the copyright to the photos anymore, so anyone can use them.
Another final touch is to find a great quotation to start with, one that will get a reader "hooked." This can be something the subject of the biography (i.e. a grandparent) frequently said, or it could be a quotation from a famous author that reflects what your child wants to say about his subject.
Publishing can mean something as simple as printing out copies of the biography on a printer or getting it published as a book. It's actually easier to get it published than you might think. Bookemon.com is a wonderful place to go to get a book published. There are lots of "templates" to pick from and lots of biographies that you can take a look at. Books created there can be shared with everyone and anyone!
By Carol Bainbridge Carol Bainbridge has provided advice to parents of gifted children for decades, and was a member of the Indiana Association for the Gifted.
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How to Write a Biography
- DESCRIPTION how to write a biography
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Whether you're hoping to become a published author, need to write a biography essay, or have a professional bio to complete, writing a biography requires care and tact. In a biography , you're telling the story of someone's most prized possession, their life. Follow a few simple steps and use tips for writing biographies to learn how to write a biography.
What Is a Biography?
Before you can write a biography, you have to understand exactly what a biography is. A biography is an “account of a person’s life written by another.” In the world of online bios, you could write your own biography.
Everything you write in a biography must be presented accurately while being interesting and engaging. What is it about your subject's life that will strike a chord or educate people?
Step 1: Choose a Subject
The first step in writing a biography is choosing your subject. Is that subject living or dead? For the most part, the process will be the same either way. You'll want to examine major life events, relationships, and the person’s influence on society.
When choosing a subject, there are several important questions to ask yourself.
- Is the person's life interesting enough to warrant a biography?
- Did they make an impact or meaningful decisions that will encourage others?
- Will their life connect with an audience?
- Is the subject already famous or a lesser-known person who should be brought to the forefront?
Writing About Celebrities
Celebrities and famous figures are universally viewed as interesting and will have a wider audience.If you choose to write about a famous person, make sure your biography stands out in some way from all the others.
Writing About an Unknown Person
If you know an ordinary person with an extraordinary story that could strike a chord with people, don't be afraid to write about it. Just be sure to narrowly focus the biography on those striking components that will connect with the readers. Someone unknown will be a tougher sell because you have to convince people to care about this unknown entity.
Writing About a Person Who Is Dead
When writing about someone who's already passed, you won't have access to their voice and will never know their feelings on your work. You can work with their family and former colleagues or use personal writings like journals to help you get an intimate view of your subject’s life.
Writing a Personal or Professional Bio
Unlike all other biographies, you are the author of your own personal or professional bio . In literary terms, this is considered an autobiography, but in the modern world the word “bio,” which is short for “biography,” is used. You can use the same steps for writing a biography to write an online bio.
Step 2: Gain Permission From the Subject
Once you've chosen your subject, you'll likely need their permission. If the person is deceased, you can ask their living family members for permission. This isn't always a prerequisite. Plenty of "unauthorized" biographies have been written about celebrities based on information available in the public domain . However, a biography is usually far more compelling if the subject is willing to talk to you.
If you don't get permission and you still wish to publish, you'll have to make sure you don't print anything untrue that could be viewed as slander or libel . If you hurt someone's reputation through your unauthorized biography, you could be setting yourself up for a lawsuit.
Step 3: Research the Life of Your Subject
As you conduct your research, the ultimate primary source is the subject. But, whether they're living or dead, that may not always be an option.
Using Primary Sources
Thankfully, there are other primary sources besides the subject of your biography. They include the subject's personal writings, those with firsthand information about the subject, original historical or legal documents, statistical records, and audio or video recordings. A piece of writing created during the time of an important event, such as a news article, may also be considered a primary source.
Using Secondary Sources
Secondary sources will be helpful to your research too, if you choose wisely. A secondary source is something created by someone who didn't know the subject directly or didn't witness an event with their own eyes.
A secondary source was created at a later time, based on primary or secondary sources, such as a review, analysis, or documentary. When using these sources, be sure to look into the writer's credibility to see whether they can be trusted.
Step 4: Choose a Biography Format
Since a biography is a non-fictional account of a person's life, starting at the beginning will probably set the rest of the story up nicely. That said, your audience may not want the details of your subject's happy-yet-uneventful childhood when a heroic or evil deed is on the horizon. So, the manner in which you organize your ideas should be determined before you really dig in.
The key to organizing a biography is to tell a story that always comes back to a theme. Is it about a person's resilience? Is it about their sense of adventure and exploration? Once you've decided that, the order in which you choose to lay out the details is entirely up to you. So, trust your instincts. Beyond that, keep to the narrative you'd like readers to pick up on.
Types of Biographies
You can find biographies written as children’s books, magazine stories, or novels. An abbreviated biography is called a biographical sketch .
Here are some ways to format your biography, aside from chronological order.
- By topic - Focus on the topics that affected the person's life. Detail each major event one by one.
- By theme - A thematic biography uses an overarching point of view or a characteristic of the subject to tie all life events back to a central theme.
- Through interviews - Talk to your subject, if you can. Ask people close to the subject what they thought of the subject, the people around the subject, and key events. Relay the story through these first-person accounts.
- In media res - In media res is a literary term meaning "in the middle of things". Stories written in media res do not lead up to the main event but begin in the middle of the tale and work backwards to hit on crucial elements, only to then resume a forward-moving account.
Step 5: Outline Their Story
Before you've gathered all your intel, you need to decide what you're going to do with it. Generally, it's best to start with an outline so you know what details are going to be included in the biography . Determine the main point, or thesis, then outline how each section or chapter tells a part of the story to support that thesis.
Do you want to cover a person's entire life, or focus on one significant aspect of their story? A timeline of their life will help you paint a picture and decide what to highlight. This will also help you decide if you want to present your biography in chronological order, by major life events, or in some other fashion.
Step 6: Write a First Draft
Now you know what information you need to fill in the details. Remember to present your subject accurately and tell a compelling story. Include relevant details, stick to that theme you're trying to convey, and draw your reader in with intrigue and motivating elements.
Have fun writing. If you're invested in the story you want to share through the chronology of someone else's life, that will translate well. Your readers will absorb your enthusiasm and give credence to your subject. You're about to take on a project that can shape the hearts and minds of others. So make sure you enjoy the ride.
Step 7: Edit Your Work
As you edit, make sure you've stuck to the outline you selected, whether that's chronological, event-based, or in media res. Tie every major element back to the theme and teach your readers something, whether that's the power of resilience, the impact of an adventurous heart, or the need for goodness in the world.
When you’re happy with the biography, get a second opinion from your subject or other primary sources you used. Be thoughtful about making any suggested changes.
Biography Examples
Researching other biographies is an excellent way to draw inspiration for your own biography. YourDictionary features a Biographies channel where you can view a variety of biographies for famous figures from actor Bruce Willis to Filipino revolutionary Melchora Aquino .
Homework Center: How to Write a Biography
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Biographies are how we learn information about another human being's life. Whether you want to start writing a biography about a famous person, historical figure, or an influential family member, it's important to know all the elements that make a biography worth both writing and reading.
When you write a biography, you're exploring the details of a person's life, including their thought processes and emotions. This means that you must be able to write with care and tact. You will also be analyzing the events in your subject's life and explaining why they do certain things to draw connections between those experiences.
Here are some steps you can follow to help you write a successful short bio: 1. Choose a voice The first step in writing a short bio is deciding on a voice. For our purposes, choosing a voice involves deciding whether you are writing in the first or third person.
Picking a subject is the first step in writing a biography. You can pick an already famous person or a relatively unknown person with a great life story. If you already have a few in mind, you can start by asking yourself some questions such as; What has the subject accomplished that makes them a good subject? Have they had an impact on society?
Plan to write 500 words - minimum. If you have 1,500 to 2,000 words in you, that's even better. From a branding perspective, you may have a different take on the length of your bio. Perhaps you would prefer to keep things short and sweet or don't feel the immediate need for a 1,500-word count. If so, that's fine too.
To write a short bio you should first make an initial introduction introducing yourself in the first or first person. Your short bio should include your brand, your accomplishments, and your values and goals. Your short bio should be one to three short paragraphs or four to eight sentences long.
The purpose of a biography is to provide an account of someone's life BIOGRAPHY STRUCTURE ORIENTATION (BEGINNING) Open your biography with a strong hook to grab the reader's attention SEQUENCING: In most cases, biographies are written in chronological order unless you are a very competent writer consciously trying to break from this trend.
Start your biography project Now that you have ideas of who to interview, it's time to get started! Begin with a list of questions to ask your subject. For some good questions, visit our Resources Page and download the 200+ interview questions. Never written someone's life story? Don't worry.
How to Write a Professional Bio Create an 'About' page for your website or profile. Begin writing your bio with your first and last name. Mention any associated brand name you might use. State your current position and what you do. Include at least one professional accomplishment. Describe your values and how they inform your career.
Your bio should be written in first or third person—whether you refer to yourself as "I" (first person) or by your name (third person). Professional and formal bios are often written in third person, while personal and informal bios are usually written in first person.
It's generally a good idea to include: Your name Your current role or professional tagline Your company or personal brand Your goals and aspirations Your 2-3 most impressive and relevant achievements One quirky fact about you (if it's appropriate to the site) What to include in a bio at work
Writing the Biography 1 Go for a chronological structure. Start chronologically from the subject's birth to their death or later life. Use the timeline of the person's life to structure the biography. Start with birth and childhood. Then, go into young adulthood and adulthood. If the person is still alive, include information on their later life.
For a short biography, maybe a paragraph or two long, the following details should be captured: A person's date and place of birth, at times with the date and place of death as may be applicable The person's major achievements in life Their educational background and notable awards Work facts of a person and their contribution to that field if any
Mention your personal interests. 01. Introduce yourself. Begin your bio by stating your first and last name. If you're writing in the third person, these should be the first two words of the paragraph. This makes your name easy for your audience to identify and remember. 02. State your company or brand name.
It should point out your main points, re-name the person you're writing about, but it should not repeat specific examples. As always, proofread your paper and check for errors. Create a bibliography and title page according to your teacher's instructions. Consult a style guide for proper documentation. Cite this Article
Step 3: Do research. One of the most important steps to writing a good biography is to conduct quality research. If possible, if the subject is still living, take the time to thoroughly interview your subject. Ask them questions about their childhood, significant events in their life, their career, and what they most value in life.
Writing the Biography. Once your child has gathered all the information they need, they need to come up with an "angle." This is what makes one biography substantially different from other biographies. Coming up with an angle just means figuring out the main idea of the biography or the point the biography will make about the person.
Autobiography Definition, Examples, and Writing Guide. Written by MasterClass. Last updated: Aug 26, 2022 • 6 min read. As a firsthand account of the author's own life, an autobiography offers readers an unmatched level of intimacy. Learn how to write your first autobiography with examples from MasterClass instructors.
Wondering how to write a biography? We've constructed a simple step-by-step process for writing biographies. Use our tips & tricks to help you get started! ... When writing about someone who's already passed, you won't have access to their voice and will never know their feelings on your work. You can work with their family and former ...
To write a biography you should: Select a person you are interested in. Find out the basic facts of the person's life. Start with the encyclopedia and almanac. Think about what else you would like to know about the person, and what parts of the life you want to write most about. Some questions you might want to think about include:
You can follow these steps to write a biography: 1. Research your subject The first step to writing a great biography is to spend time conducting extensive research on the person you're writing about, their career, their family and other information about them. You can find information about your subject by: Interviewing the subject or their family