I’ve often waxed lyrical on how much I admire author bloggers who are up-front and to the point, but never in a month of Sundays would I expect an author to go to these lengths.
Sandra Scoppetone, is a mystery writer who’s editor has decided to quit the business. Sandra is devastated by this fact, and wonders who her new editor will be, and whether or not, she’ll be offered a new contract. This is what she writes:
“This doesn’t put paid to my earlier anxieties as everything I worried about still applies and in fact adds to my worries. Who will my new editor be, if I’m going to have one?
Not to insult anyone, but this editor is the last of a certain breed…a gentleman and a man of experience. I don’t know for sure, but I’d say he’s in his early fifties. He mentioned the possibility of one editor and I asked how old the person was. Twenty-nine.
I know any editor is probably going to be younger than I, but twenty-nine? He/she could be even younger, not only at this publishing house but almost everywhere. I’m not saying an editor of that age has to be horrible, in fact I know that someone so young could be the best editor I’ve ever had. Still, it gives me pause.”
She’s just basically announced to the world that she hopes that her new editor wont be a young know-it-all twenty something.
Now what would happen if her future twenty-something editor should read this entry?
An anonymous commentator lets her know exactly what she/he thinks about her honesty.
“Sandra, I’m a first-time reader of your blog–arrived through a link of an old favorite, GalleyCat–and I have been looking through your archives with interest.
I thoroughly sympathize with your anxiety about whether or not your publishers will offer you a new contract. However, I wonder whether you realize how far you’ve gone in making sure that they do NOT do so. In one post or another, you’ve insulted the art department, the copyeditor, your own editor, and the company itself. You haven’t restrained yourself to making specific substantive complaints, either, but have gone on to imply nasty things about intelligence, general competence, and so on.
In other words, you’ve gone some distance towards making yourself look like what editors call a nightmare author, the kind of person who makes coming into work every day a burden rather than a pleasure.
Of course, if you’re John Grisham or Dan Brown, you can be as nightmarish as you like, and it won’t affect your contract. But if your numbers are only mediocre, then you’ve put yourself in a bit of a fix: you’re now in a position where your publishers are looking for an excuse to drop you, rather than fighting for the chance to keep you on. In other words, if your sales aren’t strong enough to overcome all the other negatives involved in dealing with you, then you may indeed be looking for a new publisher soon.”
Pow, take that beeotch!
This was the start of a bitchfest of sorts, go and have a look for yourself, it makes for interesting reading anyway.
That’s enough procrastinating for me, I’m working late tonight, and I want to go home sometime tonight. Anybody know any nice non-hotel meeting venues in Downtown/midtown New York?
Anonymous
November 30
8:46 pm
It was quite interesting and funny to see that in one blog posting, she managed to upset (piss off, insult, whatever) an unknown number of publishing professionals, including both editors and agents. I read about this on an agent’s blog and it looked as if at least two of the people responding on her blog were editors. Plus, there’s no telling how many others have seen or heard about this (I’d love to know how many). It’s amazing how fast word travels especially when you say something bad about someone in such a tight, close-knit community.
If I were her, I’d be very concerned.
Btw, I’d love to know (but will likely never find out) the final consequences of her comments and how it might affect her future. If she’s lucky, it won’t hurt her at all, but I wouldn’t hold my breath.
Michele
Anonymous
November 30
9:18 pm
You are so right Michele, the thing is, the blogosphere is a very small space, and if you’re in a position such as she’s in, you would think twice before writing inflammatory things about the people who are in a position to make your life a misery.
I think diplomacy on her part would have been a good idea.
Megan Frampton
December 1
1:54 am
My favorite guilty pleasure bar is Temple Bar on Lafayette St. It’s pricy, full of faux Euro-trash, and is decadent fun. Also very expensive. Their brandy alexanders are evil, as are their sidecars.
And you can’t walk near the East Village without hitting a bar, and usually a cool one.
Midtown is yukky, I’d steer clear.
(Not, of course, that I get to go out much anymore, but I do every so often. Sigh.)
Ann Wesley Hardin
December 1
12:04 pm
Well, she does have a legitimate concern with her editor leaving. I’ve seen popular authors cast aside when that happens, and it can take them years to get published again. No joke. This biz can be brutal.
However, if my editor were to leave EC, as heartbroken as I would be, I would have faith that they’d take care of me and match me with someone who loved my stuff as much as she does.
I’d also suffer in silence *gg*. Especially after witnessing this particular Internet circus!
Karen Scott
December 1
1:08 pm
Michele, I love it when authors are honest, I just don’t get it, when they choose to write stuff that can be potentially damaging to themselves, and alienate the people who can potentially help them.
Also, I don’t think the post itself was as bad as all that, it’s her response to the comments that got us all a buzzin.
Anonymous, I’m a nobody, so I can tell anybody I damn well like to fuck off on my own blog, however if I was an author, I would soon learn the art of diplomacy, and quitting whilst you’re ahead.
Megan, what’s up with mid-town? I’m looking for a venue like a museum or a theatre that hosts meetings as well.
Ann, I understand her beef, however, she’s a writer, she should know how the written word is subject to interpretation, when you don’t have the benefit of voice inflection, and facial gymnastics to underscore your point.
Ann Wesley Hardin
December 1
1:58 pm
Totally agree with ya there, Karen. That’s why I’d suffer in silence *gg*. Probably didn’t make myself clear on that point. Which reminds me of a few weeks ago when Jen thought I was lusting after her 6 year old grandson. LOL!
Words alone are definitely a difficult medium with which to communicate. I read somewhere that something like 80% of our “understanding” in conversations comes from body languages we aren’t even aware of scrutinizing. Pretty amazing.
Thank God for editors who say things like: Uh, Ann. I don’t get what you mean here. *gg*
Eve Vaughn
December 1
3:46 pm
I read her original post and didn’t think it was bad actually. To me she was just expressing her anxiety over her editor leaving. It’s understandable. The idea of starting over with a new editor is daunting, however, I did find it a little odd that she got kind of nasty with the anonymous responders. I’m all for speaking your mind, but even I know that there are times when you need to just bite your tongue.
Elizabeth Kerri Mahon
December 1
4:22 pm
Karen, there aren’t any museums/theatres in midtown that host meetings unless you count the Hudson Theatre at the Millenium Hotel. Most museums are uptown on the Upper East Side, unless you count the Museum of Sex or the Dahesh Museum which is on E. 57th Street and I think Madison Avenue.
Megan Frampton
December 1
7:00 pm
Karen:
Elizabeth is way better at knowing this stuff than I am–I think midtown is kind of stale and touristy, myself, there is the Museum of Television and Radio there, although I have no idea if they host anything beyond their own events. Everything, though, would be super-expensive. I misunderstood what you wanted; I do have friends in events planning, I could ask them, if you want.
Karen Scott
December 1
7:10 pm
Oh yes please Megan, that would be great. The most reasonable place I tried was the Millennium hotel in the UN building, but my clients want something different.
Are there any apartments hotels that host meetings do you know?
Karen Scott
December 1
7:36 pm
Elizabeth, somehow I can’t see my uptight clients going to The Museum of sex for their conference, although I’m sure the delegates would love it!!
Kate R
December 2
4:33 pm
It just didn’t strike me that the entry was that dreadful. It mostly about how much she’ll miss her editor. Maybe she went too far, but I don’t think she dooced herself.
I wonder if that means I have low (or high) standards, or I figure everyone complains.
I read lots of blogs in which people whine about their work–this seemed like one more. And actually from what I’ve seen, attitude isn’t even as vital to a writer as it is in other professions. One obvious reason: we don’t have to share cubicle space with coworkers so our snarking or pouting or whining is easier to ignore.
And anyway if your books sell, you can sneer and whinge all you want. If they don’t, doesn’t matter how lovely and upbeat you are, you won’t get another contract.
PS speaking of author’s lives and whining — Karen, (sniffle, sob) don’t abandon me even if you didn’t like my books. It’s okay if you did. really, you wouldn’t even be the first . . . I misssssssss you.
I asked an online friend to be a betareader for me and she couldn’t even stay awake through the first five pages of the first book I sent her. I had to go hunt her down and drag her back into my online life. It’s okay to hate my books! they aren’t meeeee……
Karen Scott
December 2
4:50 pm
Lol!!! Kate I haven’t abandoned you!! I read and laugh out loud at every single post that you put out! And actually I loved Somebody Wonderful, but Araminta pissed me off too much in Somebody To Love, I owe you a full review and I probably felt guilty for not reviewing it yet. I will get to it before the end of the year, I promise!!!
Kate R
December 2
5:54 pm
you do know that you don’t *have* to review the dang books, don’t you?
Karen Scott
December 2
6:00 pm
I know, but I want to, I said I would and I will, it may just take me a while is all *g*