Thank you for this post Yasmin, it is very interesting to me to hear your thoughts on this subject. It is one of those subjects I take for granted, but if I dwell on it longer then I realise I have a lot of thoughts about it. By and large I prefer prose in narrative non-fiction place writing to stand alone. I prefer to build the images for myself through the writers words. Building worlds in my mind is one of the reasons I read and I don’t want to have that pursuit taken from me. That said I do sometimes quite like the eerie, arty end of the spectrum where images are abstract and without caption. That can add something interesting I think. Erling Kagge does this in his small book ‘Silence’ to curious affect. Having taken a very ‘placed’ book on tour this last fortnight to other areas of the country I wonder why for the first time in my life I chose to give talks etc without images on e.g. a PowerPoint. It would have been the perfect opportunity to do a slideshow as it were, but something in me resisted, so I didn’t. I think I felt like words were enough, and I gave effort to the descriptions and so wanted them to have the space to breathe without the obvious play of photos.
I don’t like photos in paper books so much. I want the story—not an image. But I’ve enjoyed observing and posting them online. They seem to hold the reader, somehow. Not just their attention. I do add captions, but with brevity (most of the time). The photo should make us wonder/wander more deeply about the subject. I give enough detail to start my readers on this contemplative tract.
I like photos in posts. I use them in my own and feel they give the reader a better view into the story. Also they can break up the prose. I've heard this can be good Or bad, depending on who's teaching. Some say it breaks the concentration of the reader. I prefer though to give them an image of what I'm writing about, often locale or travel related.
Fascinating question Yasmin! I wrote my first published book without images because, like you, I wanted the writing to stand on its own merits. But I enjoy the varied visual tools we have to play with here on Substack, and as a visual artist living in a rather photogenic place it feels natural to use images to add another dimension. Like line breaks in poetry, I think images can serve to slow the reader, invite a pause for reflection, and suggest a less linear way of reading a text. But they need to do something other than 'illustrate' what's written, and ideally come from the author, or at least a collaborator. Generic Unsplash images do nothing for me.
I’ve enjoyed dipping into this conversation and reading the responses Yasmin. I came to Substack as a visual artist wanting to develop a regular writing habit; the latter has grown legs and I now consider it an essential part of my creative process. I work locally and so place is at the heart of what I do; I find it both roots me and makes me think of new ways to interpret what I see. Inevitably my Substack publication mixes the two; it might be interesting to try a words only post to see what the reaction is from an often ‘visual’ audience.
I think it depends on the context. I’m not sure I’d enjoy photos scattered through a novel, but might in a memoir. I generally don’t like blocks of photos in the middle of a book - I find myself looking through them to see whether there’s one of the event I’m reading about, which tears me away from the flow of the writing - I prefer them next to the relevant prose.
I write outdoor books. The more narrative ones don’t have photos, although I have wondered about producing special editions with photos in. The walking guidebooks and books about exploring a place have plenty of photos.
This is a great question that has set me thinking - thank you!
As a keen writer and photographer (though neither to a very professional level) I feel these two creative mediums sit well together. Have used some of my own photos to illustrate the odd travel article and I also have a Flickr page for pics only. I have never dabbled with B&W, though I agree with you that if often suggests a more classy/arty approach - I'm a big fan of colour however so I tend to stick with that. Photos are a huge bonus in aiding understanding of a situation/story, not to mention reminding ourselves of a place or something of interest. Some of my favourite photos tend to be those less-polished ones which reinforce a fond memory.
I really enjoy pictures in posts, whether photographs or art.
And on Substack, I've decided to use my own paintings with my posts. I was too shy to show them before, but that's fallen away, maybe with age.
Thank you for this post Yasmin, it is very interesting to me to hear your thoughts on this subject. It is one of those subjects I take for granted, but if I dwell on it longer then I realise I have a lot of thoughts about it. By and large I prefer prose in narrative non-fiction place writing to stand alone. I prefer to build the images for myself through the writers words. Building worlds in my mind is one of the reasons I read and I don’t want to have that pursuit taken from me. That said I do sometimes quite like the eerie, arty end of the spectrum where images are abstract and without caption. That can add something interesting I think. Erling Kagge does this in his small book ‘Silence’ to curious affect. Having taken a very ‘placed’ book on tour this last fortnight to other areas of the country I wonder why for the first time in my life I chose to give talks etc without images on e.g. a PowerPoint. It would have been the perfect opportunity to do a slideshow as it were, but something in me resisted, so I didn’t. I think I felt like words were enough, and I gave effort to the descriptions and so wanted them to have the space to breathe without the obvious play of photos.
I don’t like photos in paper books so much. I want the story—not an image. But I’ve enjoyed observing and posting them online. They seem to hold the reader, somehow. Not just their attention. I do add captions, but with brevity (most of the time). The photo should make us wonder/wander more deeply about the subject. I give enough detail to start my readers on this contemplative tract.
I like photos in posts. I use them in my own and feel they give the reader a better view into the story. Also they can break up the prose. I've heard this can be good Or bad, depending on who's teaching. Some say it breaks the concentration of the reader. I prefer though to give them an image of what I'm writing about, often locale or travel related.
Hi good post. I wrote a post about photography in place writing you might find interesting. https://richlyevocative.net/2017/03/20/digital-photography-and-the-flattening-of-landscape/
Fascinating question Yasmin! I wrote my first published book without images because, like you, I wanted the writing to stand on its own merits. But I enjoy the varied visual tools we have to play with here on Substack, and as a visual artist living in a rather photogenic place it feels natural to use images to add another dimension. Like line breaks in poetry, I think images can serve to slow the reader, invite a pause for reflection, and suggest a less linear way of reading a text. But they need to do something other than 'illustrate' what's written, and ideally come from the author, or at least a collaborator. Generic Unsplash images do nothing for me.
I’ve enjoyed dipping into this conversation and reading the responses Yasmin. I came to Substack as a visual artist wanting to develop a regular writing habit; the latter has grown legs and I now consider it an essential part of my creative process. I work locally and so place is at the heart of what I do; I find it both roots me and makes me think of new ways to interpret what I see. Inevitably my Substack publication mixes the two; it might be interesting to try a words only post to see what the reaction is from an often ‘visual’ audience.
I think it depends on the context. I’m not sure I’d enjoy photos scattered through a novel, but might in a memoir. I generally don’t like blocks of photos in the middle of a book - I find myself looking through them to see whether there’s one of the event I’m reading about, which tears me away from the flow of the writing - I prefer them next to the relevant prose.
I write outdoor books. The more narrative ones don’t have photos, although I have wondered about producing special editions with photos in. The walking guidebooks and books about exploring a place have plenty of photos.
This is a great question that has set me thinking - thank you!
As a keen writer and photographer (though neither to a very professional level) I feel these two creative mediums sit well together. Have used some of my own photos to illustrate the odd travel article and I also have a Flickr page for pics only. I have never dabbled with B&W, though I agree with you that if often suggests a more classy/arty approach - I'm a big fan of colour however so I tend to stick with that. Photos are a huge bonus in aiding understanding of a situation/story, not to mention reminding ourselves of a place or something of interest. Some of my favourite photos tend to be those less-polished ones which reinforce a fond memory.