How Not to Be a Writer

Oh lordy. I hesitated posting this since the comments thread of the original review is currently in pile-on mode, but there’s a good lesson to be learned on how not to behave if you’re an emerging writer, trying to get traction. Yes, Virginia, there is such a thing as bad publicity.

Read this review of a self-published ebook, then read the comments. At least until about half-way down the comment thread.

Here’s one of my favorite useful comments, and one I think we all would do well to heed. Substitute “publishing industry” with “theatre,” and I think you’ll see my point:

This is definitely a master class on how to burn bridges in the publishing industry.
For any newer authors who may not be aware of this, many editors and agents will Google your name before they contract you to see what sort of person you are. My agent often asks me about new authors who submit to her before taking them on. She won’t work with a ‘difficult’ author, nor will many of her fellow agents. They have an email loop, and they tell each other everything. One of my editors admitted that a number of them do the same. I know of several reviewers who eventually became editors, so the person you slam today could be the editor who holds your future in their hands tomorrow. This sort of behavior really can be career suicide.
We all get bad reviews. Grow a thick skin or get out of this business. And no matter what happens, always be calm and polite. Always.
[comment by Eden Bradley]

One Comment

philschroeder posted on March 30, 2011 at 5:53 am

Wow! Thanks for sharing.

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