Ransom Riggs
How Important Is An Author Photo?
by Ransom Riggs - August 19, 2010 - 12:14 PM

The reason I ask is because I have to decide whether or not I want one on a book I have coming out next year (my first novel — trust me, I’ll be pestering all of you to buy it when we’re closer to the pub date), and I’m on the fence. There are people like my mother-in-law to consider, who says she flips to look at the author photo all the time while reading a book, just to keep steady in her mind the image of the person responsible for the words on the page. It becomes a little totem she can consult and think “hey, good job!” if she’s enjoying it or “you suck at writing!” if she’s not.

My hesitation is this: the book is a dark YA fantasy, and it seems like very few of these authors include photos in their books. Do we have any fantasy nerds in the house? Why do you think JK Rowling and Suzanne Collins and Philip Pullman tend not to include author photos? My theory is that they feel like real-world photos of some paunchy middle-aged person would pull their young adult readers out of the fantasy they’ve worked so hard to create. But I’m not certain. Then again, there’s Neil Gaiman, who not only includes author photos, but tends to make them as atmospheric and strange as the books he writes (like this one, from The Graveyard Book):

What’s the best author photo you’ve seen? What’s the weirdest? What’s the worst?

« Previous Post   -   Next Post »
Click here to get a Risk-Free issue of mental_floss magazine
Comments (48)

  1. One story that I heard is the Rowling used her initals on the books is that the publisher was afraid boys wouldn’t be as likely to buy a fantasy book written by a woman. So that might be why she didn’t include a picture.

    Not that that sheds any light on your question. Personally, I don’t pay any attention to author pictures.

    posted by Tini on 8-19-2010 at 12:20 pm

  2. Great article but really should have been saved for tomorrow (8-20-2010) to mark H.P. Lovecraft’s birthday!

    posted by gwendy on 8-19-2010 at 12:20 pm

  3. I read a lot of fantasy books when I was kid, and I’m glad most of them didn’t include a photo. Now that I’m an adult, I read mostly history books and I appreciate when the author includes a photo. It depends on the genre, like you stated earlier. If your book is fantasy, don’t put your photo on it. However, for those people who really want to see what you look like, you should include a photo of yourself on your website. Don’t you have another website other than Mental Floss that you keep? If not, now that you’re an author and a blogger, you should consider starting one. And put your photo on it.

    posted by Red Bunny on 8-19-2010 at 12:26 pm

  4. YA Ransom (pref dark) would be a compromise.

    posted by anomdebus on 8-19-2010 at 12:26 pm

  5. I like the photos that Clive Cussler does for his books, partly because they change from novel to novel.

    Since Cussler is, among other things, a collector of classic automobiles, when he created “Dirk Pitt” (the protagonist/recurring character in most of his novels) he made that trait a part of Pitt also. Secondly, he usually manages to work a rare, classic or unusual pre-WWII automobile into the plot of the novel. Then, when Cussler has his photo taken for the novel’s dustjacket, he is usually pictured with that same model of car — from his own collection, of course — prominently featured.

    Thus, not only do we get to see what our author looks like, we also get an illustration of the automobile from the novel.

    -”BB”-

    posted by Bicycle Bill on 8-19-2010 at 12:27 pm

  6. I love Lemony Snicket’s (sp?) photos–they show the person but still maintain that mystery around him.

    posted by CPete on 8-19-2010 at 12:28 pm

  7. Ha! My wife and I were just laughing at a bunch of author photos that seem exactly the same. Apparently, if you write suspense/mystery novels and you’re a dood, you need to be wearing jeans and a black or brown leather jacket and your face needs to be lit just so with a little shadow creeping in behind you.

    Can’t wait to read this book! Oh, and while I was in Pittsburgh earlier this week, I saw your Sherlock book on the Mystery shelves at Barnes & Noble!

    posted by David K. Israel on 8-19-2010 at 12:32 pm

  8. I work in a library and there are some really bad older ones … I’m sure that most authors would love to see their old work destroyed and re-issued with updated photos! Among the worst: Erich Segal … early Nora Roberts … anyone still publishing today that originally began writing in the late 80s.

    Oh, and Shel Silverstein is one scary looking dude!

    posted by Kevin on 8-19-2010 at 12:43 pm

  9. I guess I’m eating my own words. I just found your website. Photo and all. Congrats on the new book. My vote is to not put a photo on the dust jacket.

    posted by Red Bunny on 8-19-2010 at 12:52 pm

  10. Agreed. The picture of Shel Silverstein on the back of The Giving Tree scares the dickens out of me. I was going to buy that book for my niece, but I thought that picture was too terrifying.

    posted by Mark on 8-19-2010 at 12:52 pm

  11. I just finished “the Religion” by Tom Willock, and his picture almost made me not want to even start the book! How frightening. The first Amazon review even includes a warning about looking at the back flap.

    The novel itself is pretty good, though it made me squirm a bit to think about the author in the picture while reading the more salacious bits.

    posted by Julie on 8-19-2010 at 1:06 pm

  12. My wife works for a self publisher. We also laugh at some of the poor quality photos people submit for their author photo. Really a cell phone snapshot?… I mean they are paying at least a couple grand to get their book published… put some effort into it!

    posted by marty on 8-19-2010 at 1:11 pm

  13. In most cases, I think a photo is a bad idea. It usually does not add anything to the book, and in some cases it takes away, because a reader makes assumptions about the author by the way they look. However, I do remember the author photo from Bloom County Babylon, as it had the Berke Breathed sitting along side a road with his basset hound. His basset hound had a pair of sunglasses askew and there was a penguin crossing sign with an outline of Opus.

    posted by James H on 8-19-2010 at 1:12 pm

  14. S.M. Stirling’s picture is classic. His books are such drek, just absolute horrible writing. As you read them, you get this picture in your head of a tubby, bespectacled, long-haired Wiccan douchebag who consciously wears only black t-shirts and probably is really into Warhammer. Then you look at the back flap and…hey! That’s EXACTLY what you thought he’d look like!

    posted by Ryan on 8-19-2010 at 1:20 pm

  15. If you’re going to put a photo on your jacket, do a glamour picture!

    posted by graham on 8-19-2010 at 1:35 pm

  16. I know: I’ll get a laser portrait!

    http://www.laserportraits.net

    posted by Ransom Riggs on 8-19-2010 at 1:39 pm

  17. The author photo is basically a marketing tactic. If you have ones that are strange or unique or have recurring themes, that’s something that sticks in people’s minds and will possibly induce them to buy your books in the future. Also (I went to grad school for publishing and was told this in a class): If you’re attractive, it’s always a good idea to include a picture, as TV shows and the like may be more inclined to contact you for an interview.

    posted by Meg on 8-19-2010 at 1:40 pm

  18. I like Christopher Moore’s photos on the back of his books. The ones I’ve seen have all been different, such as one where he’s half buried in a ball pit (like the ones for kids)… They show he doesn’t take himself too seriously which made me like his books all the better.

    posted by ab on 8-19-2010 at 1:44 pm

  19. Next time anyone’s in a bookstore, especially a big box, I have to recommend checking out Danielle Steel’s author photos. Each book’s is different and hilarious in its ridiculous extravagance.

    posted by Nate on 8-19-2010 at 1:45 pm

  20. I am a fan of women’s romances, and I have to say its always sorta depressing when the person writing is someone incredibly unappealing… I vote no pictures.

    posted by Sarah on 8-19-2010 at 2:09 pm

  21. I don’t think the author’s picture is necessary. However, the front cover is incredibly important. When I am browsing at B&N I will only pick up books to look at if the front cover grabs my interest.

    Make sure you pick out a good one!

    posted by ashley.paige on 8-19-2010 at 2:24 pm

  22. Neil Gaiman maybe the execption to the rule when it comes to author photo’s because he’s super cool. His buddy Terry Pretchet puts his photo on his adult books but not his YA books, and I’ve never seen a picture of Charles DiLint or Jane Yolan. I think that unless you are super cool leave off the picture.

    posted by Steph on 8-19-2010 at 2:34 pm

  23. Walt Whitman was so concerned with his portrait in the frontispiece to Leaves of Grass that he had two made. The second is nearly identical to the first, but includes some generous shading in the crotch region of his pants. (Who knew that Whitman invented airbrushing?!)

    posted by Shawn on 8-19-2010 at 2:46 pm

  24. I ususally like to see authors’ photos but a basic headshot tells you nothing about the person. A shot exuding some energy with an interesting background relevant to the book is much better. You want your picture to be as related to the book as the cover is, especially with a YA. The photo should reflect the same atmosphere as the book – eerie for horror, fun (not silly) for comedy, dramatic for mystery/suspense, etc. Unless you have access to some serious stone gargoyles to pose next to, a photo for a dark fantasy may not be your best bet. What you’re wearing should also reflect the book and the target group. No necktie for YA books! Or plaid shirts.

    posted by Jori on 8-19-2010 at 2:49 pm

  25. Hands down Shel Silverstein on the back of “The Giving Tree.”

    No one else is even close.

    posted by Chris Nance on 8-19-2010 at 3:02 pm

  26. Personally.. I’ve always liked photos of any book I’ve read. And I mostly read fantasy. Sure, it’s not needed, but I find it makes me either appreciate the work more, or understand that author better? I guess I’m not sure how to explain it, but I always appreciated it.. as if the auther cared enough to show us who they were.

    Though the not putting it on the book but putting it on the website is also a great idea. I think that’s a nice compromise.

    posted by Dazee on 8-19-2010 at 3:11 pm

  27. …and here I thought I was crazy! I, too, constantly check the author’s photo particularly when reading a memoir. Reading “Talking to Girls about Duran Duran” and I keep flipping back everytime the author describes himself at a certain age just to see how he grew up.

    posted by Zane on 8-19-2010 at 3:22 pm

  28. I like photos of the authors! Like your mother-in-law, I like to know what the person who is responsible for the words I’m reading looks like. I am never disappointed by the way they look–people are just people, after all–and sometimes I do find them to look exactly like I imagined them to…

    oh, and slightly unrelated–the first time I watched LOTR, I was amazed because Kate Blanchett looked exactly like the picture I had of Galadriel in my mind.

    posted by Heather on 8-19-2010 at 3:26 pm

  29. I don’t need or care if there’s an author picture, but I do enjoy a good about the author. I like to know where the author has lived to see if that was why they set their story in that city. I think the about the author page tells more than the picture.

    posted by k on 8-19-2010 at 3:30 pm

  30. Spider Robinson’s author picture looks exactly as I envisioned him.

    posted by G on 8-19-2010 at 3:39 pm

  31. Picture? Nope. Cool jacket cover? Maybe. Catchy title? YES!

    posted by Hyacinth on 8-19-2010 at 3:40 pm

  32. Go large, Riggs. Full tux, 007-style. Because people no longer judge a book by it’s cover, just the author’s photo.

    posted by Chellis on 8-19-2010 at 4:05 pm

  33. I vote no picture, unless it’s really cool and matches the mood of the book.

    posted by hockeyzombie on 8-19-2010 at 4:06 pm

  34. Dude, your book is partly about photography and you yourself are a photographer. :) I suggest that you either find an old photograph of someone else and use that (which would be thematically appropriate in the extreme), or stage a really good photo of yourself and then age it up in Photoshop. Either one is a win. Also, you don’t look particularly old, so don’t worry about that bit.

    Normally I’d say forget it, but given the nature of the book, I think a photo (and an aged, theme-appropriate one at that) is a must. Maybe you can put on a smoking jacket and find some bookish place to be photographed. +5 points if you’re puffing a pipe.

    posted by Chris Higgins on 8-19-2010 at 4:50 pm

  35. I’m totally with CPete on this one. Lemony Snicket.

    posted by sm on 8-19-2010 at 5:01 pm

  36. if you want your pic to appeal to the younger set, i suggest going vampire. nothings hotter than vampires (or colder or something). or maybe rock shutter shades and skinny jeans. or hold an ipad in it. yeah, kids love that stuff… seriously though, i probably wouldn’t put a picture in, unless as higgins suggests, it ties in with your book’s theme. congrats!

    posted by tiffany on 8-19-2010 at 6:32 pm

  37. on a side note, i read a Morris Gleitzman (australian kids/youth author) when i was younger and he had a photo on the back, and on the side of the picture was the note “photo – neil gleitzman”. i was puzzled for years as to why they’d put a photo of (presumably) the authors brother on the book!!

    posted by johnson on 8-19-2010 at 6:46 pm

  38. Another vote for Snicket. Photographed from behind, usually at a distance…

    For a few years, I could dress in my normal style for Halloween and just say I was going as Snicket.

    posted by Kevin on 8-19-2010 at 7:03 pm

  39. I say photo for adults books and no photo for young adults.

    But if in doubt, go for no photo.

    posted by Jessie Mac on 8-19-2010 at 8:16 pm

  40. I vote for the photo.

    My reasoning: Philip Pullman is responsible for my favorite book series of all time while Tad Williams (a SF/Fantasy writer who does adult and some YA work) is responsible for my second favorite. If I could have lunch with either of the two, though, I’d pick Tad Williams. In part because he puts bald, mild-aged mug everywhere.
    His “About the Author” and dedications are always very personal. He blogs frequently and seems aware that he has loyal readership. This visibility he maintains has certainly equaled more patronage from me.

    You’ve written a book aimed at the Facebook generation, haven’t you? The more personal, the better!

    posted by Lynnie on 8-19-2010 at 8:31 pm

  41. I’m not sure if you ever read any Harlan Ellison, but he always had the best author photos. The first that comes to mine was the one that took up the entire back cover of Alone Against Tomorrow. Unfortunately, the only photo I could find of it was on ebay.

    http://www.downtownbooksonline.com/images/Bob2/031309%20(5).jpg

    posted by Ruby on 8-19-2010 at 9:38 pm

  42. I bought the first Eragon novel because I thought the author was cute (in my defense I was 14 at the time) before upon reading realizing he couldn’t write worth crap…

    Some of my fav authors (Neil Gaiman included) have very cool authors’ photos, though. Christopher Moore’s are consistently amusing.

    If you have a photo or can acquire one that artistically/aesthetically makes sense with the concept of your book, go for it, I say. If the picture would just be generic, don’t bother. Find an art student or something to take the picture, not a normal portrait photographer.

    posted by Katarina Navane on 8-20-2010 at 12:46 am

  43. Speaking of Lovecraft, there’s always the classic photo of him with a tentacle wrapping around his arm.

    posted by Jon on 8-20-2010 at 3:17 am

  44. If you want a laugh, go to your local library and check out the Danielle Steel section. You have to find the hardcovers – no reprints. They’re AMAZING. She hit the 80′s hard (posing outdoors in a floorlength, quilted black and white polkadotted floorlength gown with neon pink lining).

    My favorite is the one in which she is posing on a sofa…right underneath a lifesize portrait of herself posing on a sofa.

    posted by Elly Vortex on 8-20-2010 at 11:21 am

  45. someone else in the comments said if you’re attractive then use an author picture. If you think you’re attractive enough then go for it. mostly i think people will pick up your book based on the cover. i know i do it and as an illustration major i can only hope that people will continue to do so when i am a professional illustrator.

    posted by Pho on 8-20-2010 at 1:36 pm

  46. I’d do a full cenetrfold like Amy Sedaris did in I Like You. Sprinkles, icing and all.

    posted by jerriblank on 8-20-2010 at 7:41 pm

  47. Another vote for Shel Silverstein. We scared some kids at the bookstore the other day with a copy of The Giving Tree.

    posted by Broberg on 8-20-2010 at 10:26 pm

  48. Interesting article. If you google “author photo”, it’s amazing how many articles are about what to do/not to do for author photos. And some of them are truly terrible pictures. Can it really be that hard to at least get a picture where you look normal? At least just stand there. Not touching your chin or working at your cluttered desk. And there’s no need to look pensive.

    One of the more amusing links I found: http://aemayer.com/blog/2011/07/authorphotocontest/

    posted by Adam on 7-14-2011 at 2:58 pm

Comment

commenting policy