I had new headshots taken yesterday by Annaliese Moyer, who is an amazing photographer. She not only makes me look good, she also makes the whole process feel very easy.
The interesting thing is that author photos aren’t the same beast as actor headshots. An actor headshot is supposed to simultaneously show the director your unique features and your versatility. While your personality does enter it, it is largely about who you can play.
An author photo on the other hand is supposed to make you feel a connection to the author as part of the package selling the book. Manipulative? Well, yes that’s what marketing is. Puppetry of the mind. In any case, the idea is that the photo is supposed to make the reader feel that connection because it will make them more likely to think the author has a story worth reading. Make sense?
My problem is that Annaliese took a bunch of photos which all classify as “OMG this is the best photo of me EVER!” Did I mention she is very good?
I’ve gotten it narrowed down to six. I’m curious about which photo you would pick to go on the back of Shades of Milk and Honey. So I have a survey that you can fill out.
Filling out the survey enters you in a drawing to win a signed hardback of Shades of Milk and Honey.
Edited to add: And the photo is…
They are very good!
Yes. It was VERY hard to narrow it down to six of them.
I like them all, but there’s something about a majority of the ones with puppets that feels a bit weird to me. In a couple, it almost looks like you’re working with voodoo dolls. 🙂 The last one is my favorite, though, as you can easily see that you’re working with actual *puppets*, and I feel it’s the one where you’re most surrounded by your true elements. I feel like it’s the one that, as an “outsider”, allows me a glimpse into what your life is like, and I can feel a connection through that.
The very first one almost makes you look like an intrepid reporter for the Daily Bugle. 😀
I liked the middle two, followed by the first two, followed by the last two. I’m disappointed that the survey apparently does not allow outsiders to view the running tally, though I can see how that might make it have greater validity on your end.
Hmm… I liked the puppet ones better as a marketing tool. All would be great in your photo album.
They’re all nice. My favorite is the one you’re wearing the white dress.
I see why you have a problem choosing!
I like the one at the typewriter with the striped shirt, but they are all very good.
White dress, single typewriter. Not even a question. Was sad that the survey columns would only allow one choice per category, because I only had two on the positive side; the others were nice pictures, but not “here’s-the-author” photos, methinks.
See how hard this is?
Most of the ones I wasn’t crazy about, I thought something about your expression made you look slightly anxious or uncertain. I thought your smiles in the picture with the white dress and the picture with the puppetry stuff all around you are both completely relaxed and yourself, which draws the viewer in and creates a sense of connection.
I also had a little bit of the “what’s she doing to that wooden human figure?” reaction kind of like what Nathaniel described. For me it wasn’t that I thought of voodoo, but that I don’t think the picture expresses what the figure is or why you are holding it. The blurb next to the photo could fill in that gap.
In my opinion you look better in 3 – 6. The white shirts bleach you out a bit.
I love the one of you cross-legged on the floor.
Everyone knows you wrote the book, so the typewriter ones seem too on-the-nose, the ones where you’re making sideways glances seem to say, “Really? You’re buying -my- book?”.
The cross-legged one shows a side of you that people might not know about otherwise.
These are wonderful photos! How exciting and fun to have author photos taken :).
My fave’s the one cross-legged on the floor as well. How exciting, Mary!
I do have to ask you, though, why you wouldn’t have chosen clothes that were shades of milk and honey?
Your smile on that second picture could melt butter! 🙂
It’s interesting to see, in comments here and other places, how others see the various photos. For example, the one with the striped shirt was one of my least favorites, but I’ve seen other people make it their top pick.
I think you’ll have a damn fine author photo no matter which one you choose, though if it ends up being one of my top two picks on the survey, it’ll be damn finer. 😀
Nice! I like the first one best.
Decisions, decisions. My favorites were the ones where you are looking right at the viewer. They say, “I’m an approachable person. My book is, too.” The whole puppet-thing didn’t bother me, but the typewriters are more “writer-y.”
I’ll be fascinated to find out which one you choose.
I really liked the side head shot. Very expressive
Yeah, I am leaning towards the two on the top without the puppets. I think people tend to connect to the typewriters more. So:
White dress, single typewriter.