1 Tip: Update Your Bio
The reading of the bios. It’s standard practice at most panels and conferences—the dutiful recitation of each participant’s “about blurb” before the main event.
Never mind that the blurbs usually appear in the program, or are quickly found online. What’s more puzzling to me is that still, most bios are simply not written to be read out loud.
We’ve all been there: politely zoning out as normally eloquent moderators wade through lists of awards, degrees, residencies, publications, and other bonafides that rarely add context to the subject at hand. Or perhaps you’ve been the one at the mic, peering at your phone screen as you desperately hope that the run-on sentence will end.
So, here’s my advice for updating your bio this year: Pity the presenter. Imagine someone reading your words on the stage, or on Zoom. Gift them with short sentences, and good grammar. Use each comma as a signal, or a tool. Convey your practice and achievements in clear, accessible prose. Challenge yourself: How can you help the speaker to sound as convincing as possible? And also: Would this text make sense to an audience from outside the art world?
