# Edwardian Picture Time!



## Stormcat (Mar 23, 2016)

For some reason, I decided that photographs of long dead people will provide the "Faces" for my characters. Maybe it's because they are all public domain. Maybe it's because I'm writing a gaslamp fantasy. Or maybe it's because I like the smell of musty old antique store.

Photography wasn't really made useable until the late victorian/early edwardian eras, so I figured since my story takes place around the same time, this would be a good area to search. But without a name to attach to the subject of the photo, the pictures are nigh impossible to track down. I have plenty of sources for old, moldy, pre-Great War photographs, But I need names to search, otherwise I'll end up with yet another british royal. (There are only so many british royals in this time period you know)

I can use lesser-known royalty, actors and actresses of the day, Presidents and First ladies, the Robber barons and their families, infamous soiled doves, even middle-class families with names. I'm primarily looking for young-ish adults, but I could also use some older men and women. I also need a girl of about 12 and a boy of about 6.

It may also be noteworthy to say that I am based in the US. If there are any stinky old photos languishing in vaults in some corner of the world I can't readily access, I'd like to know about them! But remember, I can only find them if the subject has a name. The internet is not omnipotent... yet.

So far, I have used the Belgian King Albert I, and stage actress Grace Rowlinson as "Faces" for my characters. I need some more, relatively attractive people to add to my cast of characters! I already have the characters, I just don't have a face for them.


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## Bishop (Mar 23, 2016)

Stormcat said:


> I already have the characters, I just don't have a face for them.



Why does this matter? Each reader is going to imagine character appearances much differently, no matter how minutely you write the descriptions. The real question is how much time will be spent matching old-timey photos to your mental image of your characters compared to actually writing the characters.

Unless you're literally inserting these photos into the book (which you SHOULDN'T especially if they're real people, no matter how public the domain is), there's no reason to do this at all. It's hindering your actual writing.


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## Stormcat (Mar 23, 2016)

Bishop said:


> Why does this matter? Each reader is going to imagine character appearances much differently, no matter how minutely you write the descriptions. The real question is how much time will be spent matching old-timey photos to your mental image of your characters compared to actually writing the characters.
> 
> Unless you're literally inserting these photos into the book (which you SHOULDN'T especially if they're real people, no matter how public the domain is), there's no reason to do this at all. It's hindering your actual writing.



This is all for my benefit. If I can see a face, I can write a face. These people will help me add more detail to my writing. I know the audience will see something different, but the more detail I can provide the more wildcards the reader can rule out.

Right now my characters lack description other than "Blond and giant" and "Stern-looking black doctor".


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## Bishop (Mar 23, 2016)

Stormcat said:


> This is all for my benefit. If I can see a face, I can write a face. These people will help me add more detail to my writing. I know the audience will see something different, but the more detail I can provide the more wildcards the reader can rule out.



My concern is that it's NOT a benefit. How much time have you spent searching for images versus actually writing the novel? Is the plot and/or story impacted even a little bit by NOT having in-depth face descriptions? Really think about that: does the shape of your character's nose really impact the story? Because if the answer is "no", even in the smallest degree, you're letting this monopolize your valuable time over the actual writing.

Research and planning have their places, but if you're not making serious, regular progress on the literal word count of your novel, it's a detriment.


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