Instagram bio ideas
Instagram bios for writers and authors
For a writer, 150 characters is less than a paragraph, so a good bio sticks to three things: what you write, who it's for and where to read it next. These bios cover novelists, poets, journalists, copywriters and people still on their first draft, with a formula and tips on pen names, links and pinned posts.
Updated 6 October 2026 · 57 bios
Tap a bio to copy it, or Edit it first. Counts are out of Instagram's 150-character limit.
Still drafting · 7
Writing my first novel, one stubborn page at a time ✍️
53/150 charactersQuerying agents 📮 Drafting book two while I wait
48/150 charactersDraft three. The ending finally knows what it's doing
53/150 charactersWord count goals and a lot of tea ☕ Fantasy series in progress
62/150 charactersUnagented, unpublished, writing every morning anyway 🌅
54/150 charactersSharing the messy middle of writing a book 📓
44/150 charactersRevising a murder mystery. Killed off three characters this week 🔍
66/150 characters
Poets · 7
Poems about small kitchens and long distances 🫖
47/150 charactersA short poem every morning, written before the news 🌄
53/150 charactersPoet. Mostly my grandmother's garden and the sea 🌊
50/150 charactersPoems in two languages, feelings in both 🌗
42/150 charactersSpoken word in [city] 🎤 Open mic every second Thursday
54/150 charactersHaiku on the bus, sonnets on Sundays 🚌
38/150 charactersTypewriter poems written to order at weekend markets ⌨️
54/150 characters
Journalists and essayists · 6
Reporter covering housing and local politics in [city] 📰 Views my own
69/150 charactersFreelance journalist 🗞️ Science, food and where they meet Pitches by email
73/150 charactersEssays about moving countries and keeping friendships alive ✈️
61/150 charactersCulture writer. Films, music and arguments about both 🎬
55/150 charactersColumnist. Opinions weekly, regrets occasionally
48/150 charactersStory tips welcome: email button 📩
34/150 characters
Copywriters, editors and ghostwriters · 7
Copywriter for small brands that sound too stiff online ✍️ DM COPY for a quote
77/150 charactersWebsite words, product descriptions and launch emails 📧
55/150 charactersGhostwriter 👻 Your name on the cover, my late nights at the keyboard
68/150 charactersTechnical writer. I turn 40-page manuals into 4-page ones 📘
59/150 charactersEditor and proofreader 🖍️ Commas fixed, voices kept Sample edit: DM EDIT
71/150 charactersFreelance writer for travel and food brands 🌍 Portfolio in the link
67/150 charactersScripts for explainer videos and podcasts 🎙️ DM SCRIPT for rates
63/150 characters
Funny writer bios · 7
I write, I delete, I write again, I go for a walk
49/150 charactersMy search history would worry the police. It's research 🔎
57/150 charactersDeadline in nine days. Currently reorganising my bookshelf 📚
60/150 charactersStarted a novel. Finished a lot of biscuits 🍪
45/150 charactersBe nice to me or end up in a short story
40/150 charactersI know 30 words for “walked” and still use “walked”
51/150 charactersI name villains after drivers who don't indicate 🚗
50/150 characters
With a next step · 8
New book out [month] 📖 Preorder: first link
43/150 charactersFree first chapter 📄 Comment CHAPTER on any post and I'll DM it
63/150 charactersSigned copies with a doodle on the title page ✍️ DM SIGNED
57/150 charactersMonthly letter with writing prompts and cat updates 💌 Sign up below
67/150 charactersJoin the street team for early copies 📚 DM ARC
46/150 charactersWriting coach for first-time novelists 🧭 Free plotting worksheet: comment PLOT
78/150 charactersSchool visits and book events: email button 🏫
45/150 charactersFree headline swipe file ✍️ Comment HEADLINES and I'll send it
61/150 characters
Pen names and blanks · 6
[Pen name] | Author of [title] 📖
32/150 charactersWriting [genre] as [pen name] ✒️
31/150 charactersAuthor of the [series] books 📚 News and extras below
52/150 charactersWords in [publication] and elsewhere 📰
38/150 charactersWriting about [topic] since [year] ✍️
36/150 characters[Genre] author in [city] | Runs on coffee
41/150 characters
Write your own
A bio that works usually has the same few parts. Fill them in for yours, or start from the example.
- What you write
- Who it's for or how it feels
- A detail only you would add
- Where to read it next
Worked example
Cosy fantasy author 🍄 Dragons without the dread Writes in a garden shed with a wood stove Book two preorder: first link
Fill in the blanks
Each part becomes a line of your bio. Nothing you type is uploaded.
Your bio
Your lines show up here as you type.
Tips for your bio
Use the name that's on the cover. If you publish under a pen name, put it in the name field and, ideally, the username, so a reader who finishes your book and searches for you finds the right profile.
Name the genre and a trope or two instead of adjectives. “Slow burn, found family, seaside town” tells a reader more than “gripping and heartfelt”, and tropes are the words many readers search with.
A newsletter link earns its place. Instagram decides who sees each post, but an email goes to every subscriber on release day, which matters when you need readers to know the book is out.
Pin three posts: the book's premise in one line, the cover, and a short clip of you reading a page. New visitors meet the story first and the author second.
Journalists often add “views my own” to separate personal posts from their outlet's coverage. If you take story tips, say how you want them sent, so sources don't have to guess.
For freelance writing, the bio is your first sample. Write it as you would for a client, short and plain, and name the work you do (product pages, launch emails, scripts) instead of calling yourself a wordsmith.
Questions people ask
What should a writer put in an Instagram bio?
What you write, who it's for and where to read it. Add the title of your latest book or a newsletter link if you have one, plus one detail that sounds like you. Still drafting? Say so: plenty of readers enjoy following a book from the first page.
Should I use my real name or my pen name on Instagram?
Use the name on your books. If you publish under a pen name, the account should carry it, or readers won't find you. Authors with more than one pen name sometimes run a single account and list the names in the bio.
Should I say I'm querying in my bio?
That's your call. Many writers post openly about querying, and some agents look at a writer's online presence, so keep it professional: don't name agents or share rejection emails word for word.
What is an ARC, and why do authors mention it?
An ARC is an advance reader copy, an early version of a book sent to reviewers and readers before release so reviews are ready for launch day. Authors mention ARCs in bios and captions to find early readers, sometimes called a street team.
How should a poet write an Instagram bio?
Keep it as spare as the poems: what you write about, how often you post and where to find a collection or a reading. A short line of your own can work as the whole bio, as long as something nearby says you're a poet.
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