[1] He has written more than a dozen books on topics ranging from the death penalty and movies to Ernest Hemingway and Elvis Presley.
Elder has worked for DNAinfo Chicago as its managing editor, Stop Smiling magazine as a contributing editor, Crain Communications as the director of Digital Production Development and Strategy, 1871 Chicago as a business mentor, Blockchain News as a publisher and president, the Garage Fellows program at Northwestern University's Startup Incubator, the Garage, on the board of advisors, and the Bulletin of the Atomic Scientists as the Chief Digital Officer.
In June 2006, Elder debunked the long-believed Chicago legend that Del Close had donated his skull for use as a stage prop to the Goodman Theatre.
The next year, he was named vice president of Digital Content, founding a guest editor program featuring people such as Billy Corgan of Smashing Pumpkins, Presumed Innocent author Scott Turow, and astronaut Jim Lovell.
[7] It recollects the moment that, "spurred a lifelong love of concert photography," and provoked Elder's journalism career.