Author photo vote

I’m going with three and then two.

I think #3 is the best of the three. #2 is cute, though.

One. Three is cute, but you might regret it in like, 30 years, when your friends will be like “remember when you were twentysomething and you put that little photo of yourself with the pigtails?” because by then we’ll all be jetsons. I think it doesn’t take you seriously enough, and you should take you as seriously as the first photo. Right? For posterity’s sake.

yours truly,
June Jestson

June Jetson Johnson is right. Go for one. If you were putting together a personal ad, I might recommend three, but one makes you look both intellectual and friendly without compromising either. Number three (which I see is winning as of this writing) plays up the cuteness factor too much. And let’s face it–as a woman who writes about sex, you’re already facing several hurdles to being taken seriously by the press and the readers. I think that using three would just reinforce them.

The second one has your nice cleavage showing, and it would be a shame to deprive your readers of that.

I went with #2. It’s definitely the most…professor-ish looking. In a good way.

If you’re looking back in thirty years time then regardless of which photo you go with, you’ll probably be aghast at how weird the fashions of the time period were, but simultaneously wishing that you still looked as good as you did 30 years ago.

Personally, I like #3 because it’s different and it shows a bit of personality. So many author’s photos seem to be very generic; as if they’re too timid to do anything else, lest it comes back to haunt them.

It is playing up the cute aspect a little, but so what? Why is that a bad thing? Isn’t the message from that that it’s perfectly possible to be both cute and smart and generally fabulous all at the same time?

#1 for sure. The other two are cute, but 2 says “forget the book, look at my cleavage,” and #3 would be better for an ad… as it has some action to it.

I voted for #1 because it emphasized your face. I didn’t like the pigtails, for the reasons everyone before me mentioned.

Three.

I think that one is the best for an author portrait. Three would be great for a personal ad or a promo piece, because pigtails = handlebars = fun, but one says attractive + serious.

I feel slightly guilty for voting for pigtails, but I think they’ll sell the most copy. So it’s a bit “cute” — it’s not like you have a pacifier in your mouth. Piggies! Piggies! Piggies!!!! Turn them on and entice them and sell them with the pic, then convert them to viewing you as an intellectual with your words. Or maybe a do-over with the pigtails that includes more cleavage/breastage so everyone can see you’re fully-developed / not a child.

I know. I’m such an opinionated little perv.

IMO:

1) is pretty
2) is pretty with a bit of the “girls”
3) shows more character

None are “wrong.”

If you can do it over, then I say you should do a mix of 2 & 3. You have a beautiful body, a sexy, intelligent face and the pigtails give the whole shebang a playful, spicy verve. Nothin’ wrong with working all your angles — or in your case, curves — to make your book SING, bebeh!

In My Opinion, number two most accurately reflects the persona that you have presented through this blog.

Warmly,
g

Had to go with the pigtails. You rock those glasses and pigtails like nobody’s business.

Plus that picture=you are fun=this book will be fun to read. Yes intellectual books are important to read but fun books sell.

The most important book I ever read? People’s History of the United States. The book I read over and over? Harry Potter because it’s so fun.

I voted for 3 as well. I just really liked the quality of your pigtails. I have straight hair and curly haired pigtails are something I envy. I also like your arm positioning.

I like #3, even if its “cute”.

The photographer in me would have a couple critiques of all the images – I don’t know about the white background, considering the rest of the picture is so dark. The parts of the images beneath your face is way underexposed to the point where your hair and clothes are merging – I don’t know if there was enough captured to go back and bring this area up in Photoshop.

I voted for the pigtails, too, and I’ll tell you why, from a photographer-who-does-book-jacket shots as a gig sometimes.

Usually, the shots publishers seem to love and want to use again and again are the most non-standard in terms of personality (rather than composition: they prefer that to be pretty standard). Same goes, IME, with authors. There’s also often something kind of obvious about when we/other authors are making what my friend Ariel calls “author face.”

So, #3 to me was a standout, quirky, and sans author-face.

Pigtails, baby.

#3!

I chose the pigtails but can you use some photoshop to lose the spots on the chin apart from that you ook great.

Your breasts are stunning in #2. Really stunning.

But for the jacket I love three. It has so much of your personality wrapped up in it.

Happy belated Thanksgiving.

Number three definitely.. I wear my hair like that alot, although in braids… my family is not sure of it.. but I find it whimsical

The Art Director of $pread Magazine votes for #3. And I cheated and voted twice. BWAH HA HA HA

Even though I’m generally against pigtails worn by adult women, I think you really carry them off. In fact, I’m rethinking my no-pigtails position because of that photo! Your expression is also great in that pic. So my vote is for #3.

I voted for #3 (pigtails) because it looks the most like *you,* the real you when you’re thinking and talking. The other two you look a little too much like you’re willing to listen. The other looks like you’ve got something to say. (And yeah, that’s subjective isn’t it. Doesn’t mean it’s not true.)

Take care,

figleaf

p.s. also wow, congratulations are in order all around, Dacia!

3 is the best picture of you but I agree about the pigtails being youngish, so I would say a head version of two, or even better, the picture in your blog banner.