What is Brief Pose?

Brief Pose is my next novel, scheduled to be released on Aug. 9th.

Brief Pose is inspired by Abercrombie and Fitch’s “megalog” called the A&F Quarterly and the rise of sexual imagery in the 1990s and early 2000s by Calvin Kline and others in mainstream advertisement campaigns.

A & F Quarterly, Spring Break Issue 2001: XXX [Abercrombie and Fitch] by Weber, Bruce

When the economy prospers, and people feel safe and secure, advertising tends to become more sexually liberal. When a recession is in full swing, the general population feels threatened, and adverting tends to be more conservative. With the downturn in the economy, the Quarterly was discontinued.

The Quarterly caused many controversies during its run. A main cause of outrage was its sexual and homoerotic imagery. This was also what captured my imagination when I was in my twenties, coming to terms with my sexuality.

It was great seeing same-sex intimacy in an advertisement for a mainstream company, but there was an obvious darker side. The reality they depicted was exclusionary. The images and the Abercrombie brand instilled insecurities. The Quarterly purposefully manipulated consumers to feel inadequate so that they would buy A&F products.

In Brief Pose, I wanted to take that a step further. What if advertisements drove people to suicide and homicide? And how could people fight back?