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I responded to another thread earlier today. In it, the OP asked why we wrote. One of my objectives is to be as anonymous as I can. I am not fan of fame/celebrity (if my projects do well). My projects may never be successful.

I have some questions....

1. As readers of novels, would you be offended if a successful author: a) does not provide a press photo of himself (in the book, on a website, other) in any of his books; b) adds very little (of substantive value) to the "about author" section of any of his books; and c) does not participate in community events designed to get to know authors (such as conventions)?

2. What would you think of an author who declined every interview request (big and small)?

3. What is a minimum you would expect a successful author/creator (of children's entertainment) to be known, publicly?
 

lizmonster

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I am not fan of fame/celebrity (if my projects do well).

You're in luck. Most writers - even really, really financially successful ones - never become famous the way you're talking about. Even if they're "names," they're almost never recognized publicly. (I could probably buy groceries next to Stephen King, and all I'd think is "Huh, that guy looks kind of like Stephen King.")

1. As readers of novels, would you be offended if a successful author: a) does not provide a press photo of himself (in the book, on a website, other) in any of his books; b) adds very little (of substantive value) to the "about author" section of any of his books; and c) does not participate in community events designed to get to know authors (such as conventions)?

2. What would you think of an author who declined every interview request (big and small)?

3. What is a minimum you would expect a successful author/creator (of children's entertainment) to be known, publicly?

As a reader, absolutely none of this would make a difference to me at all.

Your publisher may have different expectations.
 

cornflake

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I responded to another thread earlier today. In it, the OP asked why we wrote. One of my objectives is to be as anonymous as I can. I am not fan of fame/celebrity (if my projects do well). My projects may never be successful.

I have some questions....

1. As readers of novels, would you be offended if a successful author: a) does not provide a press photo of himself (in the book, on a website, other) in any of his books; b) adds very little (of substantive value) to the "about author" section of any of his books; and c) does not participate in community events designed to get to know authors (such as conventions)?

Offended?? I can't even imagine noticing. I don't recall ever looking at an author photo like, on purpose?

2. What would you think of an author who declined every interview request (big and small)?

How.. would I know they did that?

3. What is a minimum you would expect a successful author/creator (of children's entertainment) to be known, publicly?

Uh, none?
 

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Hello lizmonster.

Thank you for responding. I never thought of the publisher angle; great point!

If you enjoyed this author's first book - let's say it is very commercially successful - would you continue buying his subsequent books (as long as you enjoy them), without ever knowing who the author is (if the publisher permits it)?
 

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Uh, none?

As to your response to question 2, maybe authors you like point it out at some convention, or some journalist makes note of it and it goes public. These are hypotheticals. Improbable, but they can occur. If we focus on an author who is very commercially successful (let's pretend it happens) with their first book, don't you think people will do some digging to get to know who this person is, and share it with others? Maybe journalists, other authors, others?

Thanks for responding.
 

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You just described 90% of my reading before the 1990s. There was no internet, most books I read had maybe only a paragraph about the author in the back of the book, there were very few conventions, and most were way out of my travel range/price range.

Didn't stop me from reading their stuff.

However, actually, there are many times I wish I knew less about the authors. I prefer to let their writing speak for itself without someone dredging up every foible and holding it up for public comment like today. Honestly, I don't care what an author's political/sexual/monetary/religious/dietary preferences are and wish more people felt the same way.

Either I like your writing or I don't.

But then, I'm old and cranky. Now, get off my lawn with your damn digital communcations/24-hour news cycle/etc. (durn whippersnappers)
 

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Hello lizmonster.

Thank you for responding. I never thought of the publisher angle; great point!

If you enjoyed this author's first book - let's say it is very commercially successful - would you continue buying his subsequent books (as long as you enjoy them), without ever knowing who the author is (if the publisher permits it)?

Why wouldn't I? I grew up reading books by people about whom I knew absolutely nothing.

I'm curious - what it is that's making you worry about this?
 

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Let's morph the original post a bit. What if this author branched out to other things, such as: writing screenplays; writing books other than novels; story development; and creative consulting? Would this person, tackling multimedia and preferring to remain anonymous, leave any distaste in your mouths (say if you were a parent and wanted to know what kind of person your child was reading the work of)?
 

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If we focus on an author who is very commercially successful (let's pretend it happens) with their first book, don't you think people will do some digging to get to know who this person is, and share it with others? Maybe journalists, other authors, others?

1) Plenty of authors are successful with their first book.

2) Journalists et al may indeed contact the publisher's publicity department and try to ferret out details. Unless it's in your contract, "no" is a complete sentence.

Readers don't care who we are. (In fact, I can think of a few authors about whom I wish I knew far less.)
 

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As to your response to question 2, maybe authors you like point it out at some convention, or some journalist makes note of it and it goes public. These are hypotheticals. Improbable, but they can occur. If we focus on an author who is very commercially successful (let's pretend it happens) with their first book, don't you think people will do some digging to get to know who this person is, and share it with others? Maybe journalists, other authors, others?

Thanks for responding.

No.

Journalists digging to 'get to know who this person is?' When the person doesn't do interviews? Other AUTHORS? Why? Who would care? I mean if something is crazy successful people will ask, but you're talking about JKR-levels of success before people start writing supposition...
 

cornflake

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Let's morph the original post a bit. What if this author branched out to other things, such as: writing screenplays; writing books other than novels; story development; and creative consulting? Would this person, tackling multimedia and preferring to remain anonymous, leave any distaste in your mouths (say if you were a parent and wanted to know what kind of person your child was reading the work of)?

The latter isn't a thing in my world, but I'm not a Duggar.
 

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Why wouldn't I? I grew up reading books by people about whom I knew absolutely nothing.

I'm curious - what it is that's making you worry about this?

I'll give you an example.... Rowling did an interview with Oprah Winfrey. It is on YouTube. From memory, Rowling noted she never had a mentor. She gave an example of she did not know there would be paparazzi digging through her trash cans looking for the next chapters of Harry Potter.

For me, if possible (and if I do well), I would rather not be known and never deal with horrible people like these. There are other reasons for the anonymity; for example, I'd rather go to a Disney park with my family and not be followed by fans (I know, unlikely, but it could happen).

My projects do not stop with novels. My novels are a stepping stone to branch out to other media with my characters, plots, and settings.
 

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1) Plenty of authors are successful with their first book.

2) Journalists et al may indeed contact the publisher's publicity department and try to ferret out details. Unless it's in your contract, "no" is a complete sentence.

Readers don't care who we are. (In fact, I can think of a few authors about whom I wish I knew far less.)

The last line is great. :roll:

- - - Updated - - -

No.

Journalists digging to 'get to know who this person is?' When the person doesn't do interviews? Other AUTHORS? Why? Who would care? I mean if something is crazy successful people will ask, but you're talking about JKR-levels of success before people start writing supposition...

Please see my response about the Rowling/Winfrey interview (in this thread).
 

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Let's morph the original post a bit. What if this author branched out to other things, such as: writing screenplays; writing books other than novels; story development; and creative consulting? Would this person, tackling multimedia and preferring to remain anonymous, leave any distaste in your mouths (say if you were a parent and wanted to know what kind of person your child was reading the work of)?

This...seems like a weird way to phrase the question. I don't check out the authors of the books my kid reads. (People do that?) Having said that, I'm glad enough she never got into Asher or Alexie so I don't have to break her heart.

I'll give you an example.... Rowling did an interview with Oprah Winfrey. It is on YouTube. From memory, Rowling noted she never had a mentor. She gave an example of she did not know there would be paparazzi digging through her trash cans looking for the next chapters of Harry Potter.

For me, if possible (and if I do well), I would rather not be known and never deal with horrible people like these. There are other reasons for the anonymity; for example, I'd rather go to a Disney park with my family and not be followed by fans (I know, unlikely, but it could happen).

My projects do not stop with novels. My novels are a stepping stone to branch out to other media with my characters, plots, and settings.

This seems...very cart-before-the-horse. But if you become that famous, you'll be able to afford bodyguards.

Even very famous authors aren't generally Rowling-famous. She's also made the choice to be fairly public. Nobody's going to make you do that.
 

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I'll give you an example.... Rowling did an interview with Oprah Winfrey. It is on YouTube. From memory, Rowling noted she never had a mentor. She gave an example of she did not know there would be paparazzi digging through her trash cans looking for the next chapters of Harry Potter.

For me, if possible (and if I do well), I would rather not be known and never deal with horrible people like these. There are other reasons for the anonymity; for example, I'd rather go to a Disney park with my family and not be followed by fans (I know, unlikely, but it could happen).

My projects do not stop with novels. My novels are a stepping stone to branch out to other media with my characters, plots, and settings.

I'm pretty sure JKR can go to Disney without being followed. She and S. King are probably the most recognizable authors in the world, and yet they're still authors. Put a hat on 'em and voila, reduce the number of people who might recognize them by a good 90%.

Also, I don't think unlikely really covers it. Name authors you'd recognize on sight if they were just walking down a random street in your vicinity. I live in a town filled with famous people, am fairly attuned to my surroundings, and have noticed writers on the street, as well as actors, models, musicians, etc. I can think of a bare handful of instances in which I noticed someone else noticing the same people at the same time (and I don't mean following them or being ostentatious -- I mean I saw another head turn or saw someone else whose eyes were silently saying, 'that's .... right?'), and none were the writers, heh. I think for the majority of the population of the U.S. it's probably S. King and that's that, if it's anyone; for people of a particular age range JKR, but she also has a more generic look, so....
 
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This...seems like a weird way to phrase the question. I don't check out the authors of the books my kid reads. (People do that?) Having said that, I'm glad enough she never got into Asher or Alexie so I don't have to break her heart.



This seems...very cart-before-the-horse. But if you become that famous, you'll be able to afford bodyguards.

Even very famous authors aren't generally Rowling-famous. She's also made the choice to be fairly public. Nobody's going to make you do that.

All great points. Thank your for your on-going feedback! Very much appreciated.
 

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If you're worried you can write under a pseudonym...I mean, I didn't know Lemony Snicket's real name until I googled it 5 minutes ago. Didn't really care (still don't), my kids loved The Series of Unfortunate Events, I enjoyed reading it to/with them. Point is, unless you want to be out there being famous, or capture lightning in a bottle like Rowling, most people are going to let you be.
 

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I'm pretty sure JKR can go to Disney without being followed. She and S. King are probably the most recognizable authors in the world, and yet they're still authors. Put a hat on 'em and voila, reduce the number of people who might recognize them by a good 90%.

Also, I don't think unlikely really covers it. Name authors you'd recognize on sight if they were just walking down a random street in your vicinity. I live in a town filled with famous people, am fairly attuned to my surroundings, and have noticed writers on the street, as well as actors, models, musicians, etc. I can think of a bare handful of instances in which I noticed someone else noticing the same people at the same time (and I don't mean following them or being ostentatious -- I mean I saw another head turn or saw someone else whose eyes were silently saying, 'that's .... right?'), and none were the writers, heh. I think for the majority of the population of the U.S. it's probably S. King and that's that, if it's anyone; for people of a particular age range JKR, but she also has a more generic look, so....

You'd have to be a fan to notice most authors. I think Brandon Sanderson is easily recognizable (from his YouTube and WWW presence, conventions, other). I think John Grisham is easy to spot. THe more popular one's work becomes, the more people know of the author. There are people who do not read HP books, but watch the movies or maybe just watched the Oprah interview. These people know who Rowling is. Agreed, she chooses to have a public life.

On the flip side, the singer Enya. She had a public life and chose to buy an Irish castle and imprison herself there. I learned this from Wikipedia, so who knows how accurate it is. It is not that extreme, but maybe she does not want a public life in any way.

For me, I will start writing a public platform to help land an agent and sell some books. Part of this is for me to learn how much I can remain anonymous, and not offend potential agents, publishers, and readers. Long term, it is the items I mentioned earlier as well.
 

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If you're worried you can write under a pseudonym...I mean, I didn't know Lemony Snicket's real name until I googled it 5 minutes ago. Didn't really care (still don't), my kids loved The Series of Unfortunate Events, I enjoyed reading it to/with them. Point is, unless you want to be out there being famous, or capture lightning in a bottle like Rowling, most people are going to let you be.

Good points. Thank you.
 

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On the other hand, there are people like me who love going to conventions, doing interviews, and having a fairly active social media presence -- and I still keep a lot of my "personal" life personal.

I only reveal what I want to reveal and in the amounts I'm comfortable sharing with others. Want to talk about my time in the military? Sure. Want to talk about going to small colleges versus a major university? All for it. Want to talk politics? There's the door.

Just be conscious of the image you're projecting.
 

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Elena Ferrante. She's done pretty well remaining pseudonymous. And when someone dug out her real identity, most of the fans didn't care who she really was. The consensus seemed to be: she doesn't want the limelight, so leave her alone.
 
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cornflake

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You'd have to be a fan to notice most authors. I think Brandon Sanderson is easily recognizable (from his YouTube and WWW presence, conventions, other). I think John Grisham is easy to spot. THe more popular one's work becomes, the more people know of the author. There are people who do not read HP books, but watch the movies or maybe just watched the Oprah interview. These people know who Rowling is. Agreed, she chooses to have a public life.

On the flip side, the singer Enya. She had a public life and chose to buy an Irish castle and imprison herself there. I learned this from Wikipedia, so who knows how accurate it is. It is not that extreme, but maybe she does not want a public life in any way.

For me, I will start writing a public platform to help land an agent and sell some books. Part of this is for me to learn how much I can remain anonymous, and not offend potential agents, publishers, and readers. Long term, it is the items I mentioned earlier as well.

I have no idea who Brandon Sanderson even is, but if he's making youtube videos, he's clearly looking for publicity. Grisham I've seen pics of I suppose, but I'd be hard-pressed to pick him out of a lineup. I know what JKR looks like but I don't think I'd notice her on the street.

S. King I would recognize, or Fran Liebowitz.

I had a beer with Christopher Hitchens once (my literary brush with greatness), and I don't think anyone in the bar who didn't come in with him or with me noticed him or had any fucking clue who he was.

It's not about it being popular; it's about it being popular, the author choosing to be public, the public choosing to care. Even popular authors, again, are authors. I have seen more movie stars and major musicians than I can rightly count wander unmolested down the street, take the subway, shop for groceries, etc. It's just not a thing unless someone chooses to make it one, imo.
 

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On the other hand, there are people like me who love going to conventions, doing interviews, and having a fairly active social media presence -- and I still keep a lot of my "personal" life personal.

I only reveal what I want to reveal and in the amounts I'm comfortable sharing with others. Want to talk about my time in the military? Sure. Want to talk about going to small colleges versus a major university? All for it. Want to talk politics? There's the door.

Just be conscious of the image you're projecting.

Great information; thank you.
 

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Chuck Tingle has never been seen or interviewed in person, and may not even exist.

And is much more successful than most authors, as these things are considered.


I wouldn't be able to recognise Sanderson, btw. He looks like just another american white guy from what I remember.
 

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It's not about it being popular; it's about it being popular, the author choosing to be public, the public choosing to care. Even popular authors, again, are authors. I have seen more movie stars and major musicians than I can rightly count wander unmolested down the street, take the subway, shop for groceries, etc. It's just not a thing unless someone chooses to make it one, imo.

I absolutely agree. Ozzy did a Howard Stern radio show (broadcasted in Feb 1994 on the E! Network, America). He told Howard he goes to midnight showings of movies in the Bronx (NYC), or maybe it was Brooklyn. No one bothers him until they recognize him (depending on venue).

- - - Updated - - -

I wouldn't be able to recognise Sanderson, btw. He looks like just another american white guy from what I remember.

Maybe I watched too many of his videos. : )
 
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