Jennifer. J. Chow

Authentic Author Photos

I was meeting a fellow writer friend for lunch, someone I’d only previously interacted with online. When she showed up, she said, “You look exactly like your author photo!,” and she meant it as a compliment.  

This led me to wonder: How accurate should author photos be? I mean, I have friends who hate having their pictures taken. I know people who opt for artistic renderings or wear large hats to cover their faces.

If I pose with my book, then maybe everyone will know I’m the author.

I had a slight dilemma recently since I was going to do two events in Fresno and Visalia. (They happened this past weekend—and everything went so well! We were even on the local news channel.) If you haven’t been to the Central Valley, summer temps go way up. In fact, there was an excessive heat wave when I was there, with a high of 107. So I decided beforehand to get a summer haircut, and at the salon, I was debating how much I wanted to cut off.

Here’s my author photo on the library poster!

Should my new hairstyle match my author photo? What if people didn’t recognize me? Eventual outcome: The stylist only trimmed my hair—and curled it, which I almost never do!   

I’ve also had a friend get confused for an author at an event before! (She doesn’t remotely look like the author in question.) Which begs the question: Do people even look at author photos?

However, I’ve still been thinking about getting a new author photo to better capture my current likeness. It’s been a while, but how often do you need to update your pic? And what if I’m wearing sunglasses, or my hair is up, or the wind is blowing? Would I look way different then?

P.S. As a kid, I never really looked at author images, but I definitely knew the names of my favorite writers!

What are your thoughts on author photos?

31 thoughts on “Authentic Author Photos”

  2. A lot of authors will have their photo doctored so they look younger. All that does is make them look even older if they are at a conference and meet readers (who think, wowza, that must be a really old picture). Look like your photo — the idea is that folks can recognize you from it! Great post.

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  3. I think author photos should look like the author. I guess I pay attention to both the name and the photo on the books I read. I think I would feel disappointed if I met an author at an event and they didn’t look anything like their photo, as if they were trying to hide something. But it is really up to an author to do what they feel comfortable with. You look cute with your hair curled Jennifer. I think it is fun to try a little different hairstyle, even if it is only for one day.

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  4. I definitely think an author’s photos should look like them. There are a couple who I see and think, “Whoa! Never would have thought.”

    I get mine updated every couple of years. The last time, I waited until I was finished growing out my pre-pandemic color so I didn’t have a “mostly gray with a couple inches of brown at the bottom” hairstyle.

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  5. Oh, author’s photos should definitely look like them. I update mine every couple of years. In fact, I feel like I’ve aged past my current photo and need another update. My photographer is moving to France at the end of the summer and I don’t know how I’m going to replace her. (I’ve had photos done by other photographers and they’ve sucked. The last photog had the worst bedside manner ever. She kept scolding me for looking tense. Not the way to make me look un-tense!)

    I don’t think you need to capture every haircut change with new photos, though. If it’s something drastic – long to pixie cut, major color change – then, yes. Time for new pix.

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  6. hestia here.

    I agree, author photos should look like them. I think the deal is, especially if they’ve been writing for a while, they keep their first photo.
    Wait! I didn’t recognize that author because his hair isn’t black anymore, it’s salt and pepper!
    Wait! That author has lost 50 pounds! Where’s the rest of her?

    It should be mandatory they get updated every 5 years. 😂 I know that won’t happen, but it’s a thought.

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  7. The first time I met Edith Maxwell, she said “I thought you’d be a lot taller,” lol. I guess that’s one thing a head-shot can’t tell you.

    I had new author photos taken for my new Orchid Isle mystery series, partly because I wanted to be wearing an aloha shirt, but also because my hair had become even more white in the intervening years….

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  9. The photo should look like how the author normally looks. I wouldn’t think updating more than once every few years is needed unless you like getting your picture taken and want to. Like with your haircut, unless you plan to keep it for a while, I wouldn’t worry about that.

    I get that author’s appearances do change, and I don’t expect a picture every time they cut their hair or if they dye it for fun or something. But if the picture is from 10 years ago, it’s probably time for an update.

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      1. We’ll blame my sleep deprived brain. I get the desire for upgrades. I was thinking more glamor shots or looking decades younger when I said that.

        If I see an author on a panel and they look nothing like their author shot, I’m going to wonder what is going on.

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  10. Jen, I absolutely love your author photo. ❤

    I agree with others that our photos should match reality.

    It’s kind of like online dating.

    When I first dipped my toes into the dating app waters, one of the comments I got most frequently when going on a first date was, “Wow, you actually look like your photo.” I guess catfishing is pretty common. It’s nuts to me that people would think it’s a good idea to start a relationship out on anything less than the 100% truth!

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  11. I prefer authentic author photos. There’s nothing wrong with wanting to look your best in a public photo, but keep it real – and definitely update as time goes by. I’ve met a few authors who I thought were years younger. Show off that gray!

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  12. I had my author photo taken at Bouchercon in Dallas. They had a talented local photograph come and offer the service at a very reasonable price. But that was before Covid. I should have a new photo taken, but it’s expensive and a hassle to find someone. What if they take a bunch of photos and I don’t like any of them??? I WISH Bouchercon would offer the photo thing again! PLease!!!

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  13. Jen, you always look fabulous in ALL of your photos! My current author photo is a big no-no–a selfie! I found someone on Fiverr who adjusted it to the right number of pixels or whatever they are. I took it in downtown Chicago–not one of my usual haunts!–because I loved the beautiful hydrangeas outside of a random office building. But at least the smile is real. (Hydrangeas!) I don’t think I smile normally in any kind of photo session.

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  14. As a reader, I look at the photo of the author the first time I buy a book by that author. Once in a while I do look to see if they have changed the photo, but otherwise I do not look. I love all of your photos, but do agree they need to be updated about every four or five years.

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