Enthusiastically, Dawn

I am one of those people who open a lit journal to the back pages to read first the biographies of all the poets and writers whose work appears in whatever literary collections I am perusing. Why do I do this when it never fails to make me feel completely like shelving my writing pen, and writer’s mug — everyone who writes anything has the special mug, right? I can hear my hubby yelling from the kitchen when getting our morning coffee, “I’m giving you your writer’s mug, right? You said you were writing today.”

But seriously, since I started with my public writing life the most painful exercise and expectation is the bio, of varying length, that one must submit with their work. I literally (ha, seriously) wrote a poem about it too, called “About the Bio” (included here).

Join me as I expound on this a bit? Because at different times, I have played around with this activity-both the writing, reading, creating of, and searching for the ideal bio. At times to my own amusement, and sometimes, such as after my dear daughter’s death, to my detriment. It’s really hard to write a bio…or care about a bio when you are bereft. But today, my dear muse has led me to writing about this (taboo?) subject, mostly because I do not want to write the things I am supposed to be writing. Ahem. That’s another writerly subject for another day!

First off let’s talk about some of the trendy bios that make me actually cringe. You can recognize them from their short, subdued snarkiness. I am not that interested in being trendy or snarky, but Lord knows that hasn’t stopped me from writing some ridiculous stuff that falls into this category. Sadly, the internet never forgets and some of my renditions are out their laid naked publicly for all eternity, or at least for the current reality we live. Hopefully eternity has no internet, I surely will feel better about it then.

I know writers and poets work hard, are rarely paid and often overlooked, so I do understand why they feel the need to write the exhaustive biographies to appear with their featured submissions. I also understand why there is often a limit to those bio requests such as, 50 or 100 word caps. I have a file on my computer for bios. Or my attempt at writing bios. It’s one of my despised writerly chores.

One year when I was submitting a group of poems, and preparing for the dreaded bio writing updates needed, I suddenly felt giddy, and begin coming up with the most – in my opinion – hilariously written and boldly honest bios ever. I still love this one.

Dawn Paoletta likes to write, ignore rules, and confess her transgressions while driving. She believes caffeine enhances her personality, and is self-admittedly, the only living expert on the subject of how to conduct one’s vehicle at a 4-way stop sign.

Of course nothing about my writing credentials or publication history, is in this particular bio but what’s a minimally published writer to do? Also one who hates being phony, and pretentious. I lean more towards being painfully honest. Ask my husband. The look on his face when we are in a group and I go to speak is priceless as he anticipates what his loving wife will say next! For the record, I wholeheartedly believe I am the only living expert on how to navigate a vehicle at a 4-way stop sign.

As one whose writing is often a cathartic endeavor, and prone to truth-telling regardless of the consequences, and sometimes circumstance, I press through and onward with my pen.

The year after I lost my daughter was a conflicted time, my writing was my lifeline. I managed to be accepted for a poem I wrote and submitted for publication, and had to, naturally submit a new updated bio. The day I sat in front of my computer screen, cursor blinking at me, felt surreal…and as always I eventually poured out my heart’s murmurings onto the stark white screen as if in doing so I might be convinced I was still here. I saved these despite the pain seeping through, because I feel in retrospect there is a glimpse of resilience even in the dark days of grief.

Obviously, I did not use these, but I think writing them helped me stay in tune with my voice, despite the pain. Even writing ridiculous bios can sometimes help us find our way through to our raw, honest and hurting feelings. I still believe writing can save, and keep us. For me, it is a lifeline to truth, faith, hope, and my very essence. Even if the writing of them causes me to feel the tinge of insignificance in the lack of long lists of prestigious awards, and publications. Even if I hate trying to fit who I am into fifty words, or one hundred and fifty.

As I remember the many short third-person descriptions over the years since I began this journey, and these observations, I realized the ones I appreciated were the shortest, less self grandiose ones. Not because these writers were lesser quality, less awarded, less anything. What I saw clearly was writers who just seemed to be less focused on sharing their long list of accomplishments and more clear on who they actually are. Substance over success? Soul over superficial accomplishments? I started to see a similarity in the bios I actually liked. The bios I began to want to emulate, regardless of accomplishments over time, were the ones that did not seem to take accomplishments as seriously as the long listers. Many of them did have long lists as I would discover, but they did not need to take every opportunity to list them.

Now on the other hand, I do not want to give the impression I look down on those who have accomplished much in their writing life- as I recognize it is no small task. Regardless of accomplishment or not, I find the the act of listing accomplishments in a bio to feel counterintuitive to who I am at the core of my being. Which is not to say I won’t and don’t l carefully list my accomplishments along with my own unsnarky blurb of a bio as needed. And occasionally, I might even enjoy it.

A Poem

About the Bio 
by Dawn Paoletta

I’ve often longed to squeeze
into 150 words (or less) 

the sum of my being- 
as required

as if it is possible to write an
accurate bio of myself, without hedging
the bets

And what if I begin believing 
the stories I tell about 
myself?

I wonder,

what would happen if short bios
were character revelations
instead of lists of accomplishments?

I wonder if instead of accolades
and awards listed,

I had to inquire of my soul to 
whether it has shrunk or expanded

in its time living in me.

A Spring Bio Challenge

Since Spring is on the horizon, and the hope of all things comes with the season ahead of us and not behind, I want to put out a challenge for us. Let’s tackle writing a new biography. Take the challenge. It does not have to be about your writing life necessarily, but if you want to use it to refresh your artist or writer bio then do so. But go ahead and write your bio- what you want to be remembered for, in 50 words, 150 words, and 300 words. It might be best to work backwards from 300 to 50. And maybe focus on who you are now, in this moment. Try to grab the essence of who you are and how you want show it with your words. Let this be an opportunity redefine or revive the essence of who you are, in God’s eyes. How do you want to allow the Spirit to reinvent you this Spring?

My Bio for Today

I am a disciple of Jesus Christ and friend to all who seek, love, and follow Him; a faithful wife to my best friend for life; currently living with and owned by three impractical but entertaining cats, on the coast of the smallest state in the USA. I am seeking to share words that influence others to discover for themselves the love and faithfulness of the one, true and living God, and find joy in writing, reading, and reflecting on and sharing truth. I have a strong suspicion I am a total nerd, and am completely at peace with that.

I hope this bit of writing today helped you in some small way. If so I do appreciate your sharing (when appropriate- not under compulsion or pressure) with others. If you take the writing your bio challenge, and want to share here, please do! Thank you for reading!

Enthusiastically, Dawn