Biographers International Organization

Thank you so much, Will, for that incredibly generous introduction, and for all the thought and effort you’ve put into this.  And many thanks to Jamie, and David, and Adam, for making me blush for the last twenty minutes. Since David is now finishing his biography of Eleanor Roosevelt, everyone who knows him knows that he rarely comes out of his writing cave for ANYTHING at this stage of the game, so I’m so happy… Read More »

By John A. Farrell Did liberal scholarship, degrading the principle of truth with postmodern theory, pave the way for Donald Trump’s duplicity? Biographer Nigel Hamilton, a former BIO president, proposed as much in a biting address that launched “Different Lives,” a three-day conference on biography at the University of Groningen in The Netherlands, in late September. “The White House was won . . . by a real estate developer committed to a platform of misogyny,… Read More »

By James McGrath Morris So you land a terrific two-hour interview in the course of researching your next biography. What now? If you want to obtain a full transcript of your interview, the Internet will link you to two providers that I have found to be well suited for our line of work. In the past, most transcription services were designed for legal use and were costly because of the demand among clients for precision.… Read More »

BIO is accepting applications for the Hazel Rowley Prize. The prize rewards a first-time biographer with: funding (the $2,000 award); a careful reading from an established agent; one year’s membership in BIO (along with registration to the annual Biographers International Organization Conference); and publicity for the author and project through the BIO website, The Biographer’s Craft newsletter, etc. The prize is a way for BIO To advance its mission and extend its reach to talented… Read More »

BIO is accepting applications for the Robert and Ina Caro Research/Travel Fellowship. BIO members with a work in progress can apply to receive funding for research trips to archives or to important settings in their subject’s lives. The fellowship is restricted to supporting works of biography and not works of history, autobiography, or memoir. The application deadline is February 1, 2019. In the spring of 2019, BIO will award either one $5,000 or two… Read More »

A new biography of one of New Zealand’s best-known rugby players has been published. Murdoch: The All Black Who Never Returned, by Ron Palenski, New Zealand’s best sportswriter, outlines and reviews one of the most controversial episodes in New Zealand sport. Keith Murdoch was on the All Blacks (New Zealand’s national rugby team) in the early 1970s. After one victory in Wales, Murdoch got into a brawl with a hotel security guard. Over the… Read More »