In light of various image-related issues where a number of
authors have been forced to step out and defend their rights to earn an income,
I must say, it's time to address a few industry-wide issues. It's been a few years so here we go...
Stealing is NOT okay. Hooking one’s books to a talented
author’s name when your books are straight-up porn with no story is NOT okay. Using an author's personal picture and/or combining them with degrading captions is NOT okay. It's not
funny or cute. More importantly, if someone is spending time trying to figure
out how to make someone else look bad, perhaps that person should seek professional
help and pause to ask the question: “What does that say about me as a person?”
Let me help with this one—It has pathetic written all over it.
Some ‘trolls’ have taken immature to a whole new level and
while authors try to ignore some of this nonsense--and it's highly recommended
that we do--it's also impossible when there are direct hits to someone’s
reputation or their right to earn an income for their families.
I’ll never understand why someone would waste precious time
and try to figure out how to best ruin someone else's business reputation. I
mean, come on. Grow a pair. More importantly, grow up.
Perhaps this comes from one's need for attention. These are
the folks who are content with the negative attention if they can’t earn the
positive attention they crave.
Food for thought for those ripping an author to shreds: Rather than try to destroy someone’s image or hurt
them financially, why not walk in an author's shoes for a moment? Perhaps then
it may be possible to behave in an adult manner before berating another or publicly
judging them.
Why not try to solve a problem privately before going public?
Most of us are pretty nice people but most of us are VERY busy. Me? I have
absolutely no freakin' clue if someone is mad or upset because I don't think
that way. Others don’t lock in on problems either. We’re all too busy.
I write
under so many pen names that the last thing I notice is when someone is in dire
need of attention or if I’ve upset
someone or hurt their fragile feelings. However, in light of recent industry
related issues, I’m asking the general question: How can problems be handled if
the person offended hides behind false pretenses or trolls for trouble rather
than resolutions?
The reason for this post is because I have a dear friend who
recently took an unwarranted and inexcusable hit from one of these troubled trolls.
This author is extraordinary and truly talented but more importantly she is a real
person with a supportive family and circle of friends who believe in her. She is
the kind of person anyone would be fortunate to call out as a friend. In fact, I
recently teased her and told her she’s my sister from another mother because
she is so kind, so sweet, and very supportive of her friends. She is every
woman’s ‘sister from another mother’ and those who know her, love her.
I’m angry someone would go after her because she has a
bright future ahead of her and because of that future some jealous insecure
little bitty struck below the belt. I can only hope Karma is oh so tremendously
kind when giving it back ten-fold. The
problem in this business is that most of our hits are thrown from our blindside
and sometimes—but not always—it’s impossible to defend ourselves.
Most of the time,
I have no intentions of defending myself and stopped doing it a long time ago.
I won’t apologize or explain myself to anyone when it comes to my right to earn a living. I work for
it. Others work just as hard.
Still, it’s disappointing when we see a young and talented
author shot down by a jealous entity, a faceless name who might be a success if
they would simply dig in and try to be successful on their own. Instead, they
deliberately try to tarnish someone else’s well earned and deserved reputation.
Over the last ten plus years, I’ve seen more than a dozen extraordinary
authors stop writing altogether because they simply could not get their careers
off the ground. The troubled trolls with their perceived power berated these
authors at every turn, sometimes in a form of a review but not always.
In any event, in light of so many issues that remain
unresolved, here’s a shout out to the trolls out there—if you want to strike
someone, be bold and ‘powerful’--because obviously there are some narcissistic
tendencies there and apparently perceived power is already in existence—sign your real name and show your face. Don’t waste an author’s
time by dancing. We rarely pay attention
to the faceless so if you want to be heard, sign that real name. What’s the
worst thing that could happen? Hmm? We call you out as we see you? Well isn’t that
what you’re doing when you go after
another author’s career with a gleam in your jealous eye and a smirk upon your
face?
A lot of us work sixteen and seventeen hour days. And while
some might say, it’s a luxurious job, it is not. Authors do what they are
driven to do—write—but it’s not the only part of the business. More goes on
behind the scenes than one could ever know unless they’re in the business
themselves.
In short, we work hard and have the right to earn our living
just like others do but we most certainly work
for royalties. We are paid based on
sales which means we aren’t paid today for the work we do today or this
week or even next month. Those checks come much later which makes it incredibly
difficult for the new authors out there.
Another topic at hand is in regards to
authors’ images and something I hadn’t meant to address but will all the same. Our images are our own. No one—not a
so-called friend or anyone else—should be able to tamper with them but if
you’re one of the little trolls out there doing just that, then I call you out
as I see you—jealous and miserable. Perhaps you’re looking for a shortcut and
use your friends to gain that leg-up you so desperately desire. Here’s a tip—inspirational
authors DO NOT want to be linked to porn authors and believe it or not, erotic
romance authors aren’t interested in being linked to porn either. What’s the difference? Come on now. We can
figure this one out together.
Don’t post my pictures with captions unless you want me to
come back fighting. In my case, I know who’s behind my recent public embarrassment
but I was lucky. When it’s time to strike back, it will be with enough force to
knock someone down a notch or two by being forthright about what has been done to tarnish the images of authors by the dozens. Besides, it’s senseless to waste time and do it any other
way. I, and many others like me, were
bullied, literally backed into a corner by someone we know well. Now we have no
other choice but to fight back but when we do, we’ll go straight to the core of
the problem and say, “Here it is, the time-wasting war you wanted and called
out by name.” We're adults prepared to scold a child and won't do it publicly.
Then again, maybe that’s what it will take to put these
trolls to bed. Maybe that’s what they want is an official public war as we all
send them to sleep chanting praise and heartfelt lullabies.
My point is these ‘games’ are childish and in fact often
hurt children, something the trolls haven’t thought about. A lot of these
authors are single moms with school-aged children. They need their incomes.
Something the troubled trolls should consider—authors often
have many friends, all over the world and from all walks of life.
More than fifty percent of the time, we can figure out who’s behind the ill will
if we want to waste the time to prove something. On occasion, we’ll even return the favor by
writing other authors, showing the proof, and dishing our warnings. In my case, I’ve been known to cc the person
responsible when they've attacked several authors with one swing.
Yes, put ‘em on and stick ‘em up. The older gals often punch
back.
Believe it or not, the publishing industry even in its
exponential growth is still a tight-knit community. Some of us have been
fortunate enough to have friends at one or two third party retail sites and on
occasion—particularly when it is important—some have shared valuable
information. That stated, most of us don't ask for or call in favors anymore because age has a way
of settling folks down and we're too busy with real life problems to worry about foolishness. Still, for those of you out there bringing down the wrath of the
publishing gods, you should know—some authors DO care enough to dig for
information. They'll even pay for it. If they have enough of a reach, they can grab hold of whatever information
they want. Again, it’s a tight community
and one where back-scratches are scored and returned. All they need to do is ask for the
information they need and it generally falls right in their laps. Remember, reviews are NOT confidential. Oh and
of course there’s that little known secret that sometimes the authors being
reviewed actually own the sites where they’re slammed. Just sayin’.
Today’s blog post isn’t about reviews, however, and I am sad
because my friend had maybe two or three books out and caught the attention of an envious individual. To the troll out there, if you must pick on someone,
pick out someone who has been around a while and has enough books out there
that they don’t mind to take one blow right after another.
In fact, here I am. Take
your best shot. I’m not going anywhere and
ninety-nine percent of the time, I don’t even know it when someone takes that shot. I'm not being arrogant here but instead trying to shine a light on truths. Authors are real people. We have real issues--kids home from school sick, health problems, death and illness in the family, and the list goes on. We don't always notice what is posted online or pretend to predict how someone will 'take' something we've said or done. Is it too much to ask for the chance to rectify a 'perceived' problem before it's out of hand and vindictiveness sets in?
In any event, my hope is that my friend who was sabotaged—and
all other new and seasoned authors like her—will THRIVE in spite of any
senseless attack on their reputations and careers. In my friend’s case, she will. She’s THAT good. More
importantly, she’s determined and when someone is determined, they are
unbeatable in life and in this business.
When you think about it, the only thing the troll
accomplished was something they never paused to think about let alone expect—progressive
GREATNESS—and this time? The greatness comes in the form of a young and
talented new author who will most definitely stand the test of time.
4 comments:
I live in my own wonderful world, where nothing like this happens, indeed, until I read this, I had no idea that it did happen! You are right, they must be very sad individuals with too much time on their hands, I cannot think of an logical reason why someone would want to do this? Over the years as a reader, I've read some real bummers. I don't write bad reviews (it's someone's pride and joy) I just put it down to experience and not leave a review. Does this help? I don't know? Does an author want to know why I didn't like the book? Again, I don't know but if I review a book that I've rated 4*, I usually say why I did'n't rate it 5*. I'm glad you are coming out fighting, if you need a second in your corner, let me know!
Lorraine, You're very helpful and your advice/comments are treasured. You brought up a good point. So often a book is an author's pride and joy. They put a lot of effort in the work before releasing it and I think it's so important to remember that before striking the first key to send off a review. Actually I learned a lot from you where reviews are concerned. You're one of a kind.
Great post, Destiny and obviously heartfelt. You're absolutely correct. These trolls have run many promising authors right out of the4 business.
Hi, Shannon,
Thank you for stopping by, lady.
Hugs,
Destiny
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