Well, this is a very vague and open topic… but of course I’m going to limit it to the romance community. I think we all know that what you do online can come back to haunt you- right or wrong.
Authors sometimes go a little… er, crazy? Over reviews. There are numerous examples. Authors have created socks (fake profiles) and reviewed their own books in glowing terms. Bloggers or readers have had comments they’ve made bite them in the ass. Or you know, other stuff you do.
Every so often I see an author post “what to do?” asking the question, because someone who doesn’t like his or her books keeps entering contests on the author’s blog or website. Either for, or not, the author’s books. I don’t know what the answer is. Maybe this is just a very cautionary post with open ended everything. In fact, I like that. (The open ended-ness.)
There are of course some authors whose books I enjoy more than others. I love to pimp out books. I love for people to read the same books I do, because then I can dish with them. We can discuss the book and squee and talk about what we loved and how wonderful it is. If I like the author based on his/her online presence, that’s just a bonus. I want good things for good people, so I might push harder.
If I don’t like a book, I won’t push it. I might like the author very much as a person, but I might think one of his or her books was… not that great. Possibly even sub par. Won’t push that. Or, maybe I like the books, but the author less. Unless the author has done something “bad” or to elicit a bad memory or reaction, I won’t mind pushing his or her books based on what someone is looking for. I’m always happy to give book recommendations.
I’m also honest – I’ll say a number of people like whatever book, but me? Not so much. Every so often I have people say “OMG UR SO RONG!” But… whatever. I didn’t like it. Said person can’t crawl into my brain and change my thoughts or what I think. Or fix grammatical errors, or misuse of words, or plot holes either. :X Yeah, I notice those things.
On the other hand… I won’t push the books of an author if she or he does something I term as “shitty” – or something that rubs me the wrong way. That’s a danger of social media.
I’ve talked books with a number of readers and authors… and have exchanged “shit lists” with some people. I’ve decided to avoid a few authors based on his or her actions. A friend had an author tell her off – when the author didn’t even read her comment on the blog. Diva behavior, embarrassing someone in a very public forum, is in bad taste. Worse when the author doesn’t even actually read the comment. I’ve decided to no longer buy that author’s books. Said author has never done anything to me… and likely won’t miss my, or my friend’s money… but neither of us see any reason to support him/her.
Authors that start ignoring a reader, or blogger after a less than glowing review. (Wake up call- a number of sites out there only post good reviews. Doesn’t mean your book is awesome. Maybe… but not necessarily.) Unfollowing someone. Be it on twitter, facebook, a blog, etc. There are ways for people to tell, and they do notice. I admit, I’m crazy and excessively sensitive and think-y, so that last one bothers me. A lot. I’m trying to get over it. But can I prevent it from affecting me? Not at this point. Subsequently, I don’t plan to buy X author’s books in the foreseeable future. I’m already drowning in books and other things to do anyway.
Something else I’ve noticed. Being subscribed to author’s newsletters. I visit a lot of random sites periodically, so I’m not 100% sure what I signed on for or not. I do save all the notification emails, but truly I’m too lazy to check. And too busy at this point. However, there are some authors I swear somehow got my email address from something or other – maybe a blog post? A comment? I don’t know – and subscribed me to his or her newsletter. This makes me unhappy.
Also, when newsletters don’t have a way for you to unsubscribe. I don’t know if it’s bad for an author’s newletter to be marked as spam, but I might do that. Some newsletters won’t die – and I know I’ve unsubscribed from them a number of times, yet they keep coming back.
Then there’s facebook. I don’t want to become a fan of you, dear author. If I did, I would do so proactively. I don’t do much with my facebook. I’m on twitter much more. Too much. I’ll cut back for a while, I think. Maybe.
This is also why I’m not on good reads. Not enough time, no interest, and all I hear about it is “WHY IS THIS ST00PID AUTHOR RECOMMENDING HIS/HER OWN BOOKS TO ME?!?!”
Does not want.
Anyway, those are just the negatives. Because I’ve been online blog hopping, on twitter etc, I discovered a number of great authors. Contests are also fantastic. In fact, I won one of Nalini Singh’s books, which led me to buy her entire Psy/Changeling series – and read her Silhouette Desire categories. The same with Kresley Cole. (Sans you know, the non-existent harlequin books.) JR Ward as well – though maybe I’m less grateful for that one. 😛 Jaci Burton, Lauren Dane, Megan Hart. Anya Bast. Sydney Croft – and thus Larissa Ione and Stephanie Tyler. Susan Lyons. Dee Tenorio. Elizabeth Hoyt. I’d never have discovered those authors if I hadn’t been online. And many more terrific authors as well. And they’ve written some of my favorite books.
(And I am not mentioning Lisa Kleypas, Erin McCarthy, HelenKay Dimon, Christina Dodd, Eloisa James, Deirdre Martin, Leanne Banks, Emilie Rose, Katherine Garbera, Nancy Warren, Jennifer Crusie, Susan Elizabeth Phillips, Julia Quinn, Sarah Mayberry, Rachel Gibson, Nicole Jordan, etc, because I’d already read their books. Oh wait.) 😉
So there you go. Being online has good and bad things. Does this mean stay off line? No. Does this mean you should be a robot? No. Do you always have to be Mary Sue? I’d like to hope not. Civility and basic human courtesy would always be nice… but differences in opinion are also good too.
Just some thoughts.
Very interesting post. I’ve been blogging pretty steadily for about a year now and one thing I’ve learned is that I can only be myself. Adopting some kind of “author persona” would just be silly. I figure the main reason a reader stumbles onto my blog is because they’re curious about who I am. Now this does not mean I can’t be the nicest me I can be because I believe fervently that every time you say something bad about someone it’s a prayer to the devil. And if it’s splatted all over the internet, the devil always answers. So if someone visits my blog, they won’t get a rant. Their comments will get a respectful response, but they will find out what I think about things.
And oh, no, I can’t review my own work! Someone urged me to do that on GoodReads once and all I could do was quote other reviews!
Hi Emily, I definitely agree. You’re probably nicer than I am, because sometimes I find it impossible to be “the nicest me” possible. :X
Also, I think it’s just general good practice for authors not to rant at people in blog comments 😉 – especially when it’s clear the author didn’t even read the comment.
It’s so odd to me that people would review their own work. HOw? I think that’s just … I don’t know…weird? I never know what to say about my own work because 1) it’s old by the time it comes out and I can’t recall what I was thinking while writing it 2) reviewers have stunned me with the things they pick up on and I could never see a story the way they do 3) I don’t lie about who I am so even bothering to create some other identity for the purpose of reviewing my own work would stink up my office and I’d have to leave it to my dog 4) (jeeze I had # 4 but my last answer was so long I can’t recall what it was…OH, yeah, I’m too lazy to bother to create another i.d. for nefarious purposes and 5) I’m a slug when it comes to promo…A SLUG.
Hell, I don’t do much promo under my own name let alone another one…(see # 4 re: laziness)
As for signing onto newletters…I hate visiting a site and suddenly being stuck on a newsletter list w/o signing up.
This is where I admit that I have a list myself now and have sent out 1 newsletter…I guess if I blogged on my own blog instead of doing scatter shot guest spots I’d have way more people on the mailing list (I’m up to heh heh 63 now)
Did I mention how lazy I am with promo? Did SLUG get mentioned? It’s been ages since I’ve wandered over here…but as always, I love this place. Sybil rox…that is all.
Hi Bonnie! Lol I know what you mean. I always have these lofty ideas of being super productive but… yeah. No. As for creating supah sekrit identities to do self promo… Seems like it’s hard enough to do it “as yourself” as you said.
And… Sybil does rock, doesn’t she? [Thanks for inserting the pics into my pondering, Sybs!] But I’ll also tell you that she scares me sometimes :X *angelface*
What she said. When I started to review here, Syb warned me that I couldn’t coast along with good reviews only, and she was right. If I wanted to put great reviews up all the time I’d make good friends in the writing community, but that wasn’t why I wanted to do it. I’m a reader, too, and I’m always conscious that I’m doing it for them, for my fellow readers, not for the writer. I know that some people in the writing community take a dim view of this, but well, when I started this caper I decided I’d do it on my own terms this time. But I buy most of the books I review and just like any other reader, if I don’t like a book, I feel I’ve wasted my money.
Anyway, I find it hard to read and enjoy the books of someone I don’t like, but if it’s just a prickly thing, just not getting on, then I’ll go on. If it’s a serious problem, then I’ll avoid them, but I won’t make a big thing of it because it’s personal, nothing to do with anyone else.
On the other hand, I’ve gone out of my way to find books by authors I’ve met at conferences who I’ve liked a lot. Sometimes it’s a disappointment, but mostly it’s been sheer delight. I met Cathy Maxwell at a convention and she is one of the funniest people I have ever known. Her stories are scurrilous, unrepeatable, and well, just Cathy. I bought her books and enjoyed them, because I thought someone that great just had to write good books!
Hey Lime…Look I even came back today. What I’m really at my computer for is to get some website changes & updates to my webmistress…but, you know…it’s a pain and I’d rather be playing here.
I just told the dh that this will be fun b/c I’ll get to re-read the reviews I’ve had recently and tell myself to believe them. And not a one of ’em writ by me.
Have a happy happy 2010.
And Lynne, you sound like most readers : happy to try new books by new writers…unsure of others…and living with impressions of everyone you’ve met. I know there are some writers I’ve never wanted to read b/c of the person they are. Then there are others I’m so impressed by I could cry when I read the work. And then some whose work I skim … or don’ t finish. I’m sure lots of people feel that way about my work…I don’t write so everyone will like every book…I write b/c I kinda have to. Now, seriously, I must go do those updates or I’ll be picked on for being “one of those authors who let their sites go stale”…heaven forbid!
Lynne – yes, I almost think Sybil is happier with less than glowing reviews O_o :X
And I totally get it. Recently I’ve been falling “victim” to promo- then getting annoyed with myself/in general when I read the book and think this?! this is what everyone is gushing about?
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Bonnie – Hello again! 😀 I love repeat visitors. Gold star and a cookie to you. 🙂 And shhh I should be writing reviews right now but… uh… heh – and good on you for updating your site! I’m about to revisit that topic some day…
And yes – I think we all agree- secretly or not… no matter how lofty, or open minded people say they are or want to be… they can’t help but be affected by what they know (or think they know) about another person/place/thing.
very interesting and nice post . there s very few articles including this that explains dis advantages of sociail media also and make people aware for excessive use of socail media because that can turn them into spam.
Hi limecello, and happy New Year! Here’s hoping 2010 brings us all lots of wonderful books to read. Thanks for mentioning my name in your post. I don’t think I”d realized that you “discovered me” (wow, I sound like a waitress wannabe movie star being discovered working in a coffee shop – LOL) online. Where do you mostly find new authors? There are so many, many websites, blogs, review sites, etc., not to mention MySpace, Facebook, Twitter, all those library places like Goodreads… It’s kind of a zoo out there! And it makes it really hard for an author to figure out what to do. Like, I have crushing deadlines and books to write, and I want those books to be as good as they can be (not complaining – definitely not complaining about having contracts!). And I have a tiny bit of a personal life (not much these days!) and I’m trying to stay in decent health so spending all those hours at the computer doesn’t cause major pain, and of course I do actually (because I’m addicted) have to spend some time reading. If I didn’t read, I’d go insane. So, if an author can only free up a pitiful few hours a week to be online, what’s the best way to make use of that time? I’d love to hear your opinion, and other readers’ opinions too. (And no, it seems to me that doing fake reviews of your own books, or blowing off readers or potential readers seems like a pretty dumb way to spend time. LOL.) You have to be genuine but you have to be professional, too, not just for the sake of common human decency but also because it’ll come back and bite you in the butt!
Hi Susan! 😀 You need to get on twitter so I can squee at you and stuff 😀 I used to find authors based on their covers – from the library/bookstore 😛 didn’t want to be embarrassed by them. Then, it was authors who gave blurbs – though that wasn’t such a good plan. Then, reviews, word of mouth etc once I got online. And like I said – contests were and are awesome for introducing me to new authors.
And – agreed. Common human decency is so important, and yet so difficult for pretty much all of us :X
I like your reviews and comments.. You and others know what is a good read so why not let us poor undecided readers know in which direction to go, or which book to start with. LOL I just found you and really like what you have to say. Thanks..
Hi Brenda! Thank you so much! Is it too arrogant or jerkish of me to say I like what you have to say?
🙂 Compliments make me happy, and your comment definitely put a smile on my face. :X Whether you meant for it to or not.
Haha – I’m just a poor undecided reader too. But one who likes to impose her opinions on others O;-)
Personally, I tend to be nice in reviews. This is mostly because I avoid reading stuff I think I won’t like. If I don’t like something, I’m honest, but I try my hardest to make it clear that I didn’t like *the book*. I also try to make it clear that I didn’t like it for X and Y, so if X and Y are your thing you can pick it up. I try to never say something bad about *the author*.
As for social media . . . I’m bad at finding new authors, though I will follow people’s links to interesting posts and discover people that way. I try not to pay attention to the scandals and such and base my opinion of someone’s character only on what they’re like in person. It’s so easy to say something rashly on the net and have someone screencap it/pull up the cache. What affects me more is if the bad behaviour is persistant and unapologetic. But I’m a total optimist. Instead of having a list of authors to ignore, I have a list of authors I think are classy. Classiness is a big plus in my book.
Love this post! Here’s a new one for me: I just got contacted by (people who say they are) a bunch of students who are researching fake accounts on goodreads. They contacted me because they found 18 ratings–all posted on the same day–all one star–given by one user. One of those ratings was of my book, so they thought I might have seen this. I hadn’t, but I went and looked once they wrote to me. And it’s true. 18 ratings made last week, all one star. That same user only has one other rating. A five star rating on a book that doesn’t fit with the genre of the one star ratings. To make it all the more fun, all 18 ratings happen to occupy the 18 top book cover slots of 2009. And yes, the author has recently put his book on that list of best book covers.
And THAT book, the one that got 5 stars from the one-star-bandit, only had five star ratings. Better yet, those five star ratings were mostly given by brand new users, were given in the last 4 days, and those users had not rated any other books.
Sad to see it goes both ways. I figure it’s one thing to make fake accounts and rate your own book 5 stars. I think it’s entirely another to randomly pick 18 books and give them all one stars. Very interesting world we live in. Makes me very grateful for all the real reviewers out there–no matter what they think of my books!
Amy, um, wow. Thanks for sharing. I have no intelligent response to that. I feel like… that’s pretty much a whole new level of psycho to me. I definitely don’t see the point, or purpose of that. Sheer vindictiveness – that doesn’t even… argh. No words.
As for the group that contacted you – how very interesting. Heh. I thought you were going to say they were asking you for money to help support their “research.” And… no… no I’m not cynical. Why do you ask? O_o 😉
Yeah–I found it pretty hysterical. I mean, we can’t be sure it’s the author of the 5 star book, but if it is, then that’s an interesting chain of events to put out IN PUBLIC when in your bio, you are talking yourself up as a really positive guy. 🙂
I’m not sure if it is vindictive or just crazy. Registers as crazy for me.
The whole thing made me google “fake reviews” and it led me here–so I’m even more grateful for the heads up.
I can’t tell if the students are kosher. They asked nothing of me except to forward them any other suspicious-seeming account info. I don’t look at Goodreads enough to know one way or the other. But I’m sure you have NO reason to be cynical in this business. 🙂
Oh snap. I mean 25 one star reviews. I have no idea why I typed 18.
25 x loon = still shrugging.
Amy. O_o 25 times? And right- no idea if it’s the actual author or not, but effing with other people’s ratings just seems pointless and cruel. Heh. Gotta say I’m amused that a fake reviews search brought you here, but YAY! Welcome 😀
I’m always happy to talk the ear off anyone new. Or anyone. And everyone. :X
There’s always something going on – and especially in the publishing word, huh. No escape.