How many pictures did you take on your trip?
Chris took more than 5,000 and Jenny approximately 1,000. Only 1.7% made it into the book.
Were any of the images photoshopped?
Two. The front cover inserted a lioness from Masai Mara into the foreground of our horseback ride in Aberdare Country Club. The other was the termite mound, which was so tall it was hard to get the base and the top in one clean shot, so we stitched a couple shots together. Everything else was processed for contrast, brightness, saturation and other filter effects, but the subjects were all arranged as they appear in the book.
How did you come up with the She Said/He Said dueling perspectives device?
Part of what fascinated us was how we were in the same safari van seeing the same exotic things for the first time, but experiencing them and each other so differently. In addition to being funny to us, it got us thinking about what is objective reality and could we perhaps triangulate it between three perspectives; his, hers and the reader’s? As the project went on, it gave us freedom to lean into our individual strengths as writers. Jenny often waxed lyrically coming from the heart, whereas Chris analyzed, explained, and satirized.
You make fun of each other a lot. Why is that?
When you travel 24,000 miles with someone you’re bound to feel some friction. Humor allows you to vent steam playfully. Also, we just thought middle-class tourists, men and women, couples, and Americans in general were such rich targets for satire.
Were there any subjects you shied away from making jokes about?
Sure. Lots. It’s bad form in humor to punch down. Rather than clever, it can come across as mean. We wrote and removed some jokes that didn’t work because of that. Fortunately, it’s always fair game to makes jokes at one’s own expense, and we realized our reaction to what we were seeing was perhaps more relatable fodder for sending up. And then there were just some sad realities in that part of the world that felt tonally wrong to make light of.
What genre is this book?
Travel Humor, Animal Photography, Adventure and Relationships all seem like you could make a case for them. We kind of imagine it like you’re sitting at a table with this couple sharing the story of their grand trip, and they keep switching off whose narrating, correcting each other, filling in perspectives, and showing you pictures. Maybe you’re taking notes for your own forthcoming trip. Or maybe you just find it very human, ridiculous, and relatable.
Did you come away feeling better or worse about the world?
It was very individual. Chris saw the arduous journey as an accomplishment, and the discovery made the world a more interesting place. But he tends to be more upbeat in general. Jenny struggled with what she saw as the heavy price of materialism in western culture, compared to people living very simply, and on the surface joyously. There’s a lot of specific questions and nuance we explore in various scenes in the book.
Is this a book for couples to read together?
We think so. It might shed a lot of light on why your partner does things that baffle you on joint trips. There might be a lot of, “See! I’m not the only one who does that.” Also, we think it’s healthy to laugh at the relationship dynamics and stresses that come from classic differences between feminine and masculine partners.
What topics do you enjoy discussing with journalists or speaking on at events?
How to be better global citizens, the opportunities and pitfalls of collaborating with your romantic partner, writing outside the box, how to fit your writing project to your style and tendencies as a writer, important considerations for publishing and marketing books, and anything related to the content of Images of Africa.