We writers are all awash in social media. Some part of our involvement can be attributed to the isolation of our writing lives, another part is the need to network as writers and prepare for the day we launch our book babies.
There’s a fine line between marketing and overmarketing. I don’t want to be the person who one day posts for the fifth or twentieth time and, by doing so, causes everyone on my followers list to groan inwardly. That said, if we are published by a House, as I am, I owe it, by the letter of the contract, to promote my book and all that entails.
Returning to the title above, and the issue of responses, it’s my belief that the old axiom, “if you can’t say something nice don’t say anything at all” really should be adhered to. I get that we all write in a variety of genres, but to be a Negative Nelly is completely unnecessary. There is nothing wrong with the decision to let the post on your friends page go by. Saying nothing is an option that is often not chosen enough. Not everything we writers set on a page is golden, we get that.
I recently read a book by one of my favorite authors and it was ho-hum. I added it to my list of books I’ve finished for the Goodreads challenge and gave it fewer stars than other books, but I didn’t go into deep detail as to reasons why. The star system charts the way for us on Goodreads, no need to be cutting. Also, it behooves us to remember that a lot of blood, sweat, and tears goes into the writing of a novel. If we have not walked a mile in that writer’s footwear under the desk, we have no business being judgy. Okay, hopefully there is no blood beyond the occasional paper cut involved in book writing, still you get the drift.
Sometimes I do take the time to ponder why such a simple post will garner a feisty, or rude, response. Today, for example, I’ve been pondering. At other times I let the rude slide and chalk it up to me creating a dialogue where not everyone has to agree. I did find myself torn by the latest occurrence in the Neg. Nel. vein, however. I’ve decided slide is the only option, someone else’s unhappiness is not my problem to solve, is it