I've only just caught up a weeks worth of RTB. I discovered this quote from late last week:
“Authors who feel threatened by another author’s success will frequently begin campaigns to discredit the other author wherever possible…”
Frequently?? Paranoid, truth or somewhere in between?
My first reactions was This is just crazy talk!!
And then I remembered a blog post by Meljean about a toady little author reviewing over on Amazon.
I'm curious about how much of this actually goes on.
What's everyone elses thoughts??
5 comments:
I don't read too many author blogs, but based on human behavior I think this is plausible. I think it is more likely that this goes on behind the scenes instead of in the public eye, but I'd say it does go on.
Look at the fangirl flame wars on Amazon & AAR & other places. Authors aren't exempt from such behavior. I think perhaps authors realize they've more to lose if they are perceived as being spoil sports.
Via PBW, scroll down to the comments & Alison Kent references a commentary by Larissa Ione about how stupid & juvenile people in the blogosphere can be.
If these rumors sre actually true, it seems that humans cannot actually evolve above 6th grade popularity contest.
I feel fortunate that I've not run across this sort of professional sabotage from authors. However, I have friends who know that as soon as a new book comes out, people who have it in for them will immediate run to online booksellers like Amazon or B&N and post horrible reviews -- even though they've not read the book.
Unfortunately, whatever is said about an author and his/her books on the Internet -- whether positive or negative -- lives virtually forever. So nasty comments are always around and can negatively impact an author's career.
Amanda & Mary--On one level you know this crap goes on, but on an adult, rational level, it's absolutely dumbfounding that adults can be this juvenile and childish.
I've come across some of this behavior, and it ticks me off when I see it happen, but I also recognize it for what it is: Human Nature.
My husband was a professional polo player - I can't begin to tell you how many of his professional 'friends' stabbed him in the back over the years - even going so far once as to sabatage one of his horses and kill it. (Just to show why I think that silly authors bitching about other authors or their books strikes me as immature but basically harmless.)
Anyway, it's hard to escape professional jealousy.
I think if an author reasons about it, he or she will take it in the spirit of "They are jealous of my success, which only goes to show that I HAVE success, more power to me and I will get too worried about the reviews on Amazon which mean nothing." - what do you think?
I know this stuff happens, but honestly, I wonder just how bored or just plain lame those people are to engage in this kind of stuff. I have heard of it from other authors, though, and it's just so weird.
Post a Comment