What do writers wear?

A classmate found out that my first novel was being published, looked it up online and was taken aback.

Him : It looks so… racy. You just don’t seem like the kind of person who writes this kind of book.
Me : I don’t?
Him : No. You wear collared shirts.

I also wear cardigans and pressed slacks. For a moment there I wanted to whip off my glasses and let down my hair like the librarians in those old-style romances. That always made them instantly sexy. Unfortunately I have short hair and wear contact lenses, so that wasn’t an option.

Then I considered doing a Superman and pulling open my (collared) shirt to reveal my true colors, hopefully a black lace nothing which would show that I was indeed qualified to write racy novels. But all I had at the time was an old pink cotton set that, while not exactly grannyish, wasn’t too far from maiden aunt either.

Still, once my classmate had recovered from the surprise, he pointed out that other potential readers might be intrigued by the contrast of a nice, proper-looking girl writing a steamy romance. Hey, it’s always the quiet ones.