The Fishnets Pose
There I was, working on the fundraiser and talking to donors about what pose to do next. When author Allison Pang pops up on Twitter and says that if I do the cover for her book A Brush of Darkness, she’ll send me the fishnets. She even offered to pre-tear them for me!
Around the same time, two different people requested that I do–you guessed it–A Brush of Darkness.
How could I refuse?
My thanks to Allison for bringing something truly special to this cover pose, and for just generally being a fun human being.
This wasn’t the most painful pose I’ve done, though it wasn’t entirely comfortable. But I think it highlights that we haven’t moved beyond the chainmail bikini mentality as much as we’d like to think; we’ve just modernized it.
Daniel J. Cassidy
January 6, 2013 @ 8:54 pm
This is hilarious!
This makes me want to read your books.
You have just become one of my new favorite authors.
Allison Pang
January 6, 2013 @ 9:12 pm
I cannot stop laughing at this! Kudos to you for being such a good sport and thank you to the lovely people who suggested my cover. 😀
Susan
January 6, 2013 @ 9:46 pm
More CLEAVAGE, man, more CLEAVAGE!
..if you can do that with a Hugo pin, I wonder what you’d do with a Skylark award….
Erin-Joi
January 6, 2013 @ 9:55 pm
She looks cross-eyed. You should have added that.
These are histerical. I have often wondered how the covers are made and if there are real models behind them. Thinking of Fabio as a romance novel cover model ….
Ell
January 6, 2013 @ 10:17 pm
re: SkyLark Award
Obviously, he’d put it where the sun doesn’t shine!
http://www.nesfa.org/History/JanesSkylark.html
sistercoyote
January 6, 2013 @ 10:58 pm
Daniel — you totally should.
Jim — Fishnets DO feel weird!
Stacie Scattergood
January 6, 2013 @ 11:04 pm
I’ve got some drag queens that can teach you how to do blusher boobs…and oh my gosh, your posts just always seem to show up when I need a spot of joy. Thank you.
cat_collector
January 6, 2013 @ 11:18 pm
What, no black fingernail polish?
I love these poses beyond words!
Having to post here instead of LJ because it’s being cranky again. I would mutter something rude, but it’s really not worth it.
ABE
January 7, 2013 @ 12:56 am
Worth every penny!
Almost makes me want to try the poses.
I commend you for not being shy.
Unfortunately, it begs the question: where do you go from here?
Denisetwin
January 7, 2013 @ 9:33 am
YAY! love this pose! Great charity work
Liz
January 7, 2013 @ 9:53 am
Hey, except for the fishnets, at least this one doesn’t seem to hurt!
Jim C. Hines
January 7, 2013 @ 10:18 am
I know! I totally should have had my daughter do my nails for this.
Jim C. Hines
January 7, 2013 @ 10:18 am
Well, there’s always the calendar for 2014! 🙂
Jim C. Hines
January 7, 2013 @ 10:19 am
It wasn’t comfortable, and the back muscles started to cramp up a little, but overall it wasn’t as bad as most.
Cover Shenanigans | Heart of the Dreaming
January 7, 2013 @ 12:21 pm
[…] And I love it! (I supplied the fishnets, in fact – you can read more about it here.) […]
Jo
January 7, 2013 @ 3:04 pm
Jim, I think this might be my new favorite pose of yours …..
KatG
January 8, 2013 @ 1:17 pm
I’m sure the fishnets will come in very handy for some of the other poses. (You get the feeling that all publisher art departments are run by people who loved Madonna in the 1980’s?)
For good sportsmanship, Ms. Pang and the other authors will be getting credits.
dorkarama
January 18, 2013 @ 4:23 am
That’s too funny! I just read about you on the BBC news website – great work!
Jim C. Hines
January 18, 2013 @ 8:12 am
Thank you! 🙂
Show me the money | N. E. White
January 18, 2013 @ 10:38 am
[…] may know him from his books or equally from his antics highlighting
Jason
January 18, 2013 @ 3:06 pm
I too came to your site through the BBC, and while I commend the idea behind combating sexism, what is really being proven here? Unlike the women whose poses you’re mocking, you’re not exactly fit, and when you couple that with wearing feminine attire while posing effeminately of course you’ll come off looking ridiculous — it’s an unfair comparison.
dkSFrptr
January 18, 2013 @ 5:22 pm
You rock. Thanks for being a real Action Hero and bringing some humor to a serious philosophical battle for womankind. In the words of that great umbrella’d ethical crime fighter Mary Poppins — “just a spoonful of sugar helps the medicine go down.” — dk in San Francisco
Chastity Chatterley
January 18, 2013 @ 11:43 pm
This is such a great project. I am so glad I stumbled upon it. I really appreciate that someone is doing something like this. I especially appreciate it is being headed by a man. The reason I say this is because a woman CAN’T do these poses since the characters with the contorted spines in suggestive poses are women.
It also makes me much more aware how many midriff’s are exposed on covers of fantasy and science fiction novels. . . .