Ok, there’s no way in hell I’m going to get anywhere close to the feedback as Lynn’s phenomenal and eye-opening post from yesterday got, but it’s something I wanted to touch on. Politics. No, this ain’t about McCain vs. Obama, Bush vs. Kerry, or Paula vs. Simon Anyone out there who’s ever held a job, ever been a part of a club or society, or done any sort of organizational effort has had to deal with politics. The kind of day-to-day fighting and arguments that have 100% to do with personality and 0% to do with the actual organization.
This weekend, I’m at the Murder 203 conference in Connecticut. I went to school in CT, so it meant a lot to me to meet readers from the area. Last night was my first night here, and I met a few author friends in the bar for a drink (no, we do not live in bars. At least not most of us). One of my friends started talking about another conference he was booked for over the summer. He said the conference was struggling mightily, in large part due to two writers organizations that were supposed to be co-sponsoring the event, but were butting heads over which organization received more prominent billing. Because of the infighting, many authors had dropped out, and the conference wasn’t getting the attendance it was hoping for. Fewer authors drew fewer fans, ad everybody was suffering. So this got me thinking…
I’ve been a member of three writers organizations. Two of which I’ve joined, one of which I’ve co-founded. In each of these groups, I’ve either been witness to, victim to, part of, or heard some of the nastiest, back-stabbing unprofessional behavior imaginable. People spreading rumors, talking behind theirs ‘friends’ backs, all in the name of either jealously, immaturity, or any one of a dozen other things that don’t seem to belong. Put a bunch of people in charge of something, and it becomes high school all over again. And you know what’s forgotten?
Ladies and gentlemen, the WRITING. And you know who cares not one iota about any of this?Who doesn’t give a hoot about politics or sponsorship? Readers. Readers don’t care who gets higher billing. Readers don’t care which organization gets credit. Readers don’t care which imprint sponsors which event. All they care about is the book and the author. Which is why all of this political maneuvering and posturing always bugs the hell out of me. Who the heck are we trying to impress? It seems to much negativity is put into things these days, and if only a fraction of that energy was put into positive outlets imagine the good we could do. Take, for instance, the massive “Amazonfail” movement over Easter. This was wholly worthy effort, but I couldn’t help but think that if half the effort went into promoting independent bookstores that was put into bashing Amazon, that whole sector would have gotten a lot more business.
I try to stay out of writing and publishing politics, but I’d be lying if I said I’d achieved that goal completely. Trust me, though, I’d much rather sit at the bar with my friends and talk about great stories from past conference than talk about which authors said what behind whose back, and what organization is having a hissy fit over such and such. I’ll let you guess which one gets most of our breath, though. To be fair, my positive experiences in organizations far outweigh the negatives. But the negatives are so pretty and unfruitful that it angers me that they’re present at all.
Lynn’s post got me thinking, in how she hasn’t been to a conference in years and tries not to get involved in issues like this. Negativity gets people talking. It’s more fun to talk smack about someone when they leave the room than it is to sing their praises. But when it comes to writing and publishing, we’re doing ourselves a disservice. We should be spending out energy and resources bringing readers into the fold, not alienating them by forcing authors to drop out over pettiness. We should be talking up independent bookstores and the service they provide us, and not only as a tangent to bashing another retailer. It takes effort to be positive. It’s a whole lot harder to build than it is to destroy. But let me ask you this: which one is more beneficial in the long run?
Related posts:
Comment
How right you are Jason. I’ve found in my local chapter if you aren’t a part of the politics you’re excluded in little ways. We should be supporting not tearing down. Especially when someone just wants to concentrate on the craft not the politics.
Great Post!
Comment
I couldn’t help but think that if half the effort went into promoting independent bookstores that was put into bashing Amazon, that whole sector would have gotten a lot more business.
Or ending world hunger or one of a million other (sorry) worthier causes. I was an officer in my local chapter for 2 years and the whole experience left a bitter taste in my mouth. I won’t do that again, not to mention volunteer for stuff that isn’t (truly) important to me. I’ve never been a “cool kid” and never will be and I’m fine with that.
Comment
Go Jason!
This is why I rarely if ever volunteer for and/or participate in organizations. I have to care deeply to even consider it since there’s so much anger and politicking.
Comment
Hear Hear!
I agree 100% that there is so much negativity and passive-aggressiveness out there, and half the time we don’t even know we’re absorbing it until one day our own bitterness hits us between the eyes. Or has that only happened to me? *blush*
It’s one of the reasons I love this group so much. We talk about the reality of this life and career, but it’s not gloom and doom, or all negative. It’s honest and, hopefully, encouraging to others.
Comment
Readers don’t care who gets higher billing. Readers don’t care which organization gets credit. Readers don’t care which imprint sponsors which event. All they care about is the book and the author.
True. Although they often don’t seem to care about the author all that much, either. I for one have enjoyed any number of very satisfying novels by shadowy authors whose names have escaped me.
Comment
If you think politics in the writing world are bad, just try being president of your kid’s PTO!
I joined RWA last year. I won’t be going to any conventions, meetings or anything else though. I did the business politics too, for many years, one woman in a man’s profession. Um…no thanks. All I want is to read good authors and write well enough to garner some interest in my stories. I have no desire to get more involved than that. I’m just too old for it.
Comment
Been lurking here for awhile but thought I’d pop in to give an ‘Amen’.
Comment
I hope that some of the people who found Lynn’s post check out GenReality as a whole as it’s one of my favorite group blogs, and posts like this keep it there. Very needed message, Jason.
Comment
You are totally correct. Bravo.
Comment
Great discussion. I joined a large writing organization a few years ago, its local chapter and online ones. I had hoped to connect with like minded writers, people who were passionate about it. Wrong! Although I connected with writers via the online groups, the live meetings consisted of infighting, member ouster and other negativity. And when the same type of thing began happening with the online groups…well, let’s just say it wasn’t a “good fit” and the money I now save on dues allows me to expand my shoe wardrobe.
Great blog. Glad I found it – I’m putting it in my rotation.
Comment
Group dynamics are a strange thing. It’s amusing (not in a good way) that they can end up being less than the sum of the parts. And you’re right Jason, a lot of that likely has to do with it being a lot harder to work together to do good things than it is to bicker and snipe and knitpick over the details. Very easy to do that, though the rewards garnered are fleeting and transitory. Being proven right does little if you fail in the long run. It also requires work, not just to do good things as a group, but to be a good group as well. It requires focus, dedication, and often setting egos aside and sacrificing self-interest for the greater group interests. People don’t often want to do this kind of work, which is sad. Really, folks shouldn’t be getting into groups like these without understanding what it takes and being able to dedicate themselves to it, because if you can’t, more likely than not, you’ll end up detracting from the group as a whole.