Authors of Erotic Romance

“No one looks good in HD”, an actor said on TV. I had to laugh at his remark, because it’s true. High definition resolution shows every flaw on an actor’s skin. Scars, pimples, lines and moles that make-up and filtered lenses used to hide are impossible to cover in high def.

Seemingly overnight, celebrities have transformed from impossibly perfect icons into regular people dressed in their Sunday best. We’re able to see them as they really are–flaws and all–and I find the change refreshing. It not only removes the impossible standards women, especially, are pressured to emulate, but also levels the playing field for us authors, who never had the benefit of filtered lenses, plastic surgery or make-up artists in the first place.

At book signings, I always wonder how readers see the people behind the stories. We authors aren’t celebrities like the actors on TV. We’re more like the man behind the curtain in Oz, who might intrigue us, but whose appearance might sometimes be better left a mystery. As long as there have been books, there have been ordinary people behind the scenes. Our imaginations, not our physical forms, are what inspire readers.

I like that high definition television has opened the wizard’s curtain and let us see actors a bit clearer. It makes life so much easier for the rest of us.