Biographers International Organization

By James McGrath Morris Art critic Deborah Solomon has won plaudits from readers and critics alike for her recently published American Mirror: The Life and Art of Norman Rockwell, the first complete look at the iconic artist. The first is one faced primarily by biographers writing about artists, as well as musicians, composers, singers, and others whose work cannot easily be explained in words. Try as hard as one might want, a verbal description… Read More »

The 2014 spring list of forthcoming biographies is not as robust as that of previous spring seasons. Yet there are plenty of works that will attract attention and readers. As usual, BIO is posting a complete list of the works on its website and, as in the past, the list will be continually updated as we learn about forthcoming books that we may have missed. Here, however, are some from the list bound to attract… Read More »

BIO members Megan Marshall and Linda Leavell will present “Making Modernism: A Conversation Between Biographers” at the BIO conference on May 17. As a prelude to that, Marshal interviwed Leavell about her new book and a recent honor. Megan Marshall: Congratulations on your nomination for the National Book Critics Circle Award in biography for Holding On Upside Down: The Life and Work of Marianne Moore. I’ve noticed that your book is the only… Read More »

March Marjorie Harris Carr: Defender of Florida’s Environment by Peggy Macdonald (University Press of Florida) Suffer and Grow Strong: The Life of Ella Gertrude Clanton Thomas, 1834–1907 by Carolyn Newton Curry (Mercer University Press) Stephen Ward: Scapegoat by Douglas Thompson (John Blake) Rachel Carson and Her Sisters: Extraordinary Women Who Have Shaped America’s Environment by Robert K. Musil (Rutgers University Press) Leaving Home: The Remarkable Life of Peter Jacyk by John Lawrence Reynolds (Figure 1… Read More »

Stacy Schiff is the winner of the fifth annual BIO Award. BIO bestows this honor on a colleague who has made a major contribution to the advancement of the art and craft of biography. The award has previously been given to Jean Strouse, Robert Caro, Arnold Rampersad, and Ron Chernow. Schiff will receive the honor during the 2014 Compleat Biographer Conference on May 17 at the University of Massachusetts Boston, where she will deliver the… Read More »

By Will Swift How did a liberal Massachusetts Democrat come to write a book on the Nixon marriage, and how in the world could he sell that book through social media? As a psychotherapist who likes healing historical reputations, I wondered when I started my new book Pat and Dick: The Nixons, an Intimate Portrait of a Marriage if the Nixons’ partnership was as dreadful as commonly portrayed or whether its image was tarnished because… Read More »

The following Master Classes will be offered Sunday morning May 18th at the University of Massachusetts Boston during the Compleat Biographer annual conference. Promoting Your Biography: Hiring a Publicist or Going it Alone Carl Rollyson, instructor A do-it-yourself workshop conducted by an experienced biographer, for all of us who can’t afford to pay for others to promote our work. We will explore the usefulness of Facebook, Twitter, blogs, other social media, and other sources… Read More »

Registration for the fifth annual Compleat Biographer conference opens this month. All BIO members will be notified by email when the registration site is open for business. Active BIO members will also receive information on using their member’s discount as well as how to obtain the early-bird registration rate. The 2014 conference will be held May 16 to 18 at the University of Massachusetts Boston, the site of the first conference and the founding of… Read More »