Give it your name, what you do and the facts of your career in note form, and say where the bio is going. Hemmingway writes a short bio: who you are in the first sentence, then the two or three things that matter to the people reading it. You check it, adjust it, and send it on yourself.
Every line comes from your notes. It will not award you a title, a client or a qualification you did not list. That matters, because a bio gets copied into programmes and websites where you cannot easily correct it.
What makes it work
- Say where it will be printed. A conference programme wants what you know about the topic. A company page wants what you do for clients. A byline wants one line.
- Choose, do not list. Three facts a reader can remember do more than ten they skim.
- One human detail, at the end. It gives people something to open a conversation with.
An example
Asked for a third person bio of about 60 words for a conference programme, for Dr Amara Okafor, a structural engineer at a firm that designs timber buildings, with 15 years in practice, the design of a six-storey timber school in Leeds, one day a week teaching at a university, chartered since 2014, and the detail that she restores old bicycles, a bio along these lines is what to expect:
Dr Amara Okafor is a structural engineer at a firm that designs timber buildings. In 15 years in practice she has led the design of a six-storey timber school in Leeds. She has been chartered since 2014 and teaches at a university one day a week. Away from work she restores old bicycles.
Three lengths
A single line goes under an article or on a social profile. Around 60 words suits a programme or a speaker page. Two short paragraphs suit a company website. Write the middle one first, then ask in the chat for the other two, so all three agree.
For a LinkedIn About section use the LinkedIn summary generator, and for a social profile the Instagram bio generator. The guide on how to write a bio covers writing one by hand.
Common questions
Is the professional bio generator free?
Yes. Hemmingway has a free trial with no card needed, and this tool opens it with your answers filled in. You sign up once, and the bio is written in the chat.
Should a professional bio be in first or third person?
Third person if someone else will publish it, such as an event, an employer or a magazine. First person on your own website or profile, where "I" sounds more natural than talking about yourself by name. The tool writes third person unless you ask otherwise.
How long should a short bio be?
Between one sentence and about 100 words, depending on where it goes. If the organiser gave you a word limit, put it in the form and the bio is written to it.
Will it sound like AI?
It is built not to. Hemmingway-1, the model behind it, came first on sounding like a person in our own blind test, Human-Likeness. Check the draft for any phrase you would be embarrassed to hear read out before your talk.