January – Your Future Author Bio

So last year I managed a sum total of 2 blog topics for WriYe (January and December). I am aiming to do a little better this year. I probably won’t write all of them because some of them don’t speak to me, but I have made a note of the ones I think I could write a post on, and I intend to do a post for all of those.

Anyway the topic this week is to “write your future author bio / FAQ page” and I honestly laughed when I read that. Back in the day I had one of those pages, during my first attempt at publication. I got somebody on Fiverr to write it because I found it so awkward. Now I could cheat and just look in the depths of my hard drive and post that one, but I think I will make an honest attempt myself. It’s been… well lets not think how long its been, but a while, and I’m older and maybe want to say different things I don’t know.

“A writer is a world trapped inside a person.” – Victor Hugo. A famous quote and also very descriptive of Sam.

Stories have whirled in Sam’s mind for as long as they can remember. From the moment they learned how to string words together, writing was the medium by which the stories flowed. In recent years Sam has experimented with other creative mediums, for instance trying to teach themselves to draw or building with Lego. However, the written word remains the number one focus, and Sam hopes to write and share many novels over the coming years.

Sam grew up in rural England. They weren’t diagnosed as autistic until they were twenty-eight, which explained a lot, and led to a deeper understanding of themselves. Labels often feel too restrictive but in succinct terms Sam identifies as non-binary aroace. Also they have long battled depression and anxiety, which will likely be an external struggle.

When Sam isn’t immersed in creating stories they like to consume them by reading books, watching TV or playing video games. Recently they picked up the piano and find playing quite soothing. They live alone in the suburbs of a small English town and like it that way.

This was hard. I tried to stick with the standard sort of format. I don’t know why but they always seem to end with who the writer lives with (usually a multitude of pets or a loving spouse). I wanted to put the part about my identity because I write queer fiction and it felt like an important detail to include. I thought about making the link clear like “these themes appear in Sam’s work” but that felt clunky so I just left it implied. The whole thing definitely felt awkward and I would want a lot of feedback/someone to check over my sentence construction, but it’s not a bad beginning. I feel like it covers all the salient points.