Models,Copyrights, and Other Oddities

A few years ago, I started reading Sherrilyn Kenyon's Dark Hunter Series. I like her.  She has a web site where one can go and look at the characters from her books in stock photos she's (or perhaps one of her helpers) found that looks like she pictures them.

In the interest of doing something similar for those who read my books, I used my new favorite play space, Facebook, and made a fan page for "Night of the Tiger".

I'm still kind of learning as I go about such things.

I started off with random pictures of men who looked like one aspect or another of my character, then came across Greek model Theo Theordoridis, who, even though I found him two decades after the tall, muscular, green-eyed, dark haired truck driver started haunting me, he's definitely the way I picture Kyle Benton:

Now - about copyrights. I found this photo on www.fanpop.com (http://www.fanpop.com/clubs/theo-theodoridis/images/29072244/title/theo-theodoridis-photo).  Now, as long as I tell you that, I haven't broken any copyright laws and I can use this picture.  It helps to talk to the model and get permission from them to tie them to your book - and maybe get them a little extra traffic to the sites that have photos, which can sometimes result in offers to do shoots.....

Theo was an interesting person to chat with.

For Teresanna, I haven't managed to get a response from Jarah Mariano yet, but since I'm showing the Kyle I have on Facebook, how about the lovely Tiger Lady herself, Teresanna Montesallo, aka Tanya LaMonte, aka Teran Hodges.....among other names used over 7 years. It was actually a very vulnerable shot that brought Jarah Mariano to my attention on this web site: http://forums.thefashionspot.com/f52/jarah-mariano-41967-10.html

Like Theo, she looks so much like the image in my head, it's scary, like in this wallpaper: http://www.celebs101.com/wallpaper--2-2716--Jarah+Mariano+wallpaper+Wallpaper.html

Then came book two, more models to find, but with Chase Benton, I had the two above to look at, my "fan base" was getting more active, and we found Dylan Griner, Los Angeles model, who seems to fit the bill.  http://www.headshotsla.com/portfolio/male/httpwww-joshuamshelton-com-headshots-los-angeles-dylan-griner-5/

For anyone who wants to know, it was while talking with Dylan that I got my education about getting copyright to use the photo on your book. The lovely photos like this one by Joshua Shelton have set copyrights, usually put into place at the time of the photo shoot.

In short, unless I specifically hire the above people and pay for a shoot for the cover of my book(s), I can't use their images as the characters on my covers, BUT I can, with the right links, say "this is what I picture my character looking like" and, hopefully, drive a little money their way by those who actually have money.  Something tells me nobody wants my pocket lint as payment for a shoot.....

But Dylan and Joshua Shelton, the photographer, were both very interesting to talk to.

But for Aloriah, I knew a local model who needed the money....ANY amount of money at that point, as she was unemployed and having a rough time of it, so I paid her what I could for a photo shoot, and my first actual copyright photos for use came about, with the lovely Belle Louve portraying Aloriah Starbird. 

She even colored her hair for me!  I thought I'd been truly blessed with Belle Louve and the friend who helped with the cover for "The Tiger's Cub"

Then I started writing "A Wild Tiger's Heart".  And I asked for help finding an Italian looking model for Stefan Savoldi - and Damiel Sobieray's photo appeared 16 times in my news feed the next morning.  Again, I was approaching a Los Angeles model for permission to use his photo for a character, not expecting anything more.....but he's done covers before.  He knows people. I dug deep and was able to come up with a photo shoot.

And, armed with a description of Kelly Starbird, Daniel found Patrice Garza, He arranged the shoot with David Wagner, Los Angeles photographer. I have more photos that I don't need to ask permission for me to use...like this lovely pic, the second choice shot when choosing which photo to use on the cover: 

When I sat down at my ancient typewriter in my apartment in 1988 and started writing a short, steamy scene that I planned to submit to Playgirl Magazine just to prove to my mother-in-law that I could make money writing, did I expect to be sitting here in 2014, talking about how to avoid copyright issues with models to represent the characters of your book?  In 1988, the most I'd seen a computer do was some mildly entertaining game play after about 5 hours of typing in commands. I'm living in a science fiction world according to my 1988 self.

I want to thank all the beautiful people above whom I've spoken to and have gained permission to tie to the characters. The conversations we've had have been great fun.

As to the only one whose official permission I haven't gained yet to represent my character.....she's a brilliant, strong woman who happens to meet a sexy trucker with green eyes........

to be continued.........