Children's books - Author's picture on the back or no?

I have published a couple of picture books traditionally. No picture or author info. was included with either. However, many of the big houses used to put a picture and bio. on the back inside cover. Some houses, like Sterling, (Barnes & Noble) still do. If she is self-publishing, it is really a matter of personal taste. My advice would be to take a look at some of the jackets on picture books in a bookstore and/or library and see what she likes. There is really no right or wrong on this.

Moving to the Writing for Kids room since I think the thread will get more responses from the regs over there.

As a reader, I think I was about nine or ten before I really made the connection that the name on the cover was the name of the actual person who actually wrote the book. Until then, it hadn't really mattered, I pretty much picked books by title or cover. So, I'm thinking that for kindergarten level books, a picture wouldn't add much.

frimble3 said:

As a reader, I think I was about nine or ten before I really made the connection that the name on the cover was the name of the actual person who actually wrote the book. Until then, it hadn't really mattered, I pretty much picked books by title or cover. So, I'm thinking that for kindergarten level books, a picture wouldn't add much.

Click to expand...

Same here. Remembering back, when I was very little, my favorite back covers were the wraparound kind, with bonus adoration if the images taken separately were different than the image as a whole (so maybe there's a fluffy cute critter on the front, and a scary snake-looking image on the back, and then when you look at it as a whole, you realize the "snake" is actually the tail of the cute fluffy animal, that kind of thing).

When I was a bit older, the only author images I remember liking were the ones that looked, to my child-mind, "interesting." The only one I really remember looking at much was Shel Silverstein. Kid-me found his face really intriguing for some reason. (Just googled it, and apparently a lot of people were scared of his picture? What the heck?)

Anyway, I wouldn't put my face on a kid's book simply because my face is fairly boring, and I'd figure, "what kid wants to look at me when they could look at a cool drawing instead?"

I recently learned that when it comes to picture books, there is actually nothing on the back cover. As in, no blurb, no author info, nothing. It's usually a continuation of the front cover, a wrap around. Or more images from the cover on the back. I had no idea, had never noticed, but then when I looked at the picture books I owned I realised generally this was true.

So if your friend wants to do a pic and author blurb, as someone else suggested, they should do it on the INSIDE of the back cover.

I lately learned that when it pertains to image publications, there is in fact absolutely nothing on the back cover. As in, no blurb, no writer info, absolutely nothing. It's normally a continuation of the front cover, a wrap around.

Writer India