AUTHOR PHOTOS WORTH A THOUSAND WORDS? Pt.2

 

 

Exercise your laser beam eyes?

 

Nothing says “buy snake oil” either in print or bottle, than an expression that includes laser beam eyes.

 

This author looks like a button downed English professor forced to read WR121 funnel essays year after year. With that in mind does he have laser beam eyes, or is he asleep with his eye-cammo over his lids.

 

Another stack of C grade papers read in his dreams.

 

Kurt Vonnegut needed those eyes.

 

Excite readers with an action shot?

 

Hemingway had plenty of action shots which included typewriters, guns, animals, and booze. Oh, and the books.

 

Why not use a desk pic? It’s a comfort zone, familiar setting except for the photographer in the room.

 

Wouldn’t a selfie be a better author pic choice? Made an editorial choice, not agree to an editorial choice.

 

Hint: chose your good side if you have one.

 

Camera shy? Go with a personal caricature?

 

The best author personal caricature, or hand gesture for the right audience? Look no further than Johnny Cash, a great writer.

 

 

For personal caricatures, is there anything better than a Cash bird?

 

Only more birds are better.

 

Place your index finger in your ear?

 

Only if you tire of hearing the photographer say, “look natural.”

 

From the expression, I read an attitude of, “just take the picture already, I’m busy.”

 

And she gets one with her finger in her ear because she left too soon? Or because she’s not a man author?

 

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One thing I’ve noticed about author pics is writers aren’t always camera ready. Not to say they would break a camera if they looked into it, but how else to explain this?

 

As a literary tourist I traveled to the Thomas Wolfe museum in Asheville, North Carolina. I left my car unlocked with the trunk open by mistake. Came back an hour later and nothing missing.

 

What was missing were author pictures on the back porch. They had chairs with their names attached, but no pics.

Do they have pictures on the dust covers of their novels? Maybe a personal caricature? A finger in their ear?

 

If you pick up books from Joseph Bathanti, Robert Morgan, Fred Chappel and the others, keep boomerpdx readers informed. What do they look like?