Storytellersunplugged

(or taking the high road, or; dirty politics and how easy it is to commit political suicide.)

Okay, so a while back, when I was an officer in a professional writing organization (do your research if you really care to know) I made a snide comment. I didn’t make the comment in public; I made it in an e-mail that was allegedly private. Said comment was about another writer, whom I considered a friend then and consider a friend now. The comment wasn’t overly rude, but it was rude.

In my defense, I was young, I was extremely stressed, and I was an undiagnosed diabetic at the time. None of which, for the record, is a good excuse. My mother raised me better than that.

I vented steam and thought nothing of it.

Until I got the package from the friend I’d made the comment about. A couple of years earlier, I’d been having fun with sculpting. I sent him a bust of a zombie, pretty much as a lark. He sent it back, along with a letter that carefully explained how he’d not only managed to do the impossible and break into a satellite system to retrieve my email, but also explaining that if I felt that way about him, he wouldn’t bother me any more with our friendship.

He lied about the satellite system because the internet was still new at the time and he wanted to make sure I wouldn’t know that someone we both knew had forwarded the letter to him.

In the interest of not causing him more trouble than it would have ever been worth, I decided to accept his lie. I knew who’d sent him the letter and I knew why the letter had been sent. It was a mutual friend who thought for some insane reason that I wanted to cause friend number one excess grief.

Nope. I was just venting steam.

Eventually, we worked it out. In the meantime, I felt like an ass, because a stupid off the cuff comment caused some seriously bruised feelings.

It’s a minor thing, really, the sort of crap that goes on in high school and lower grades. In the grander scheme of things, it’s barely worth mentioning. I remember it because it taught me two lessons: Know when to keep your opinions to yourself and make sure you can trust someone with a secret before you divulge it.

The entire point here is to make you understand that as big as the publishing industry is, it’s still a rather small community when you get into the whole genre aspect of it.

In the story mentioned above, no long term harm was caused. I’ve seen plenty of situations where that wasn’t the case. No, I won’t go into details because I don’t genuinely believe in airing anyone’s dirty laundry, but I will posit a few hypothetical situations for you.

Consider this a warning: your career is more tenuous than you might think.

Let’s look at a few examples, shall we?

Conventions are fun. Conventions are also places where business takes place. Not every minute of every day, but it does happen. I’ve sold anthologies, short stories and novels at conventions and most of the writers I know have managed the exact same thing.

So, let’s imagine a convention set up. Mr. Blue has had a bit too much to drink. He’s making comments about other writers and has clearly stated that his editor at Magnificent Stallion Press is “a loser, a poseur, a wannabe writer and needs to take a shower now and then.”

Most people use their common sense in that scenario and keep their mouths shut. A few might even decide that Mr. Blue should be escorted politely and calmly away from the party to sober his drunken fanny in peace and quiet where he can do no more harm to his career.

Mr. Green, in an effort to get more bang for his convention buck, decides to start telling everybody what Blue said and did. The reasons? 1) If Blue looks bad, it makes up for the fact that Blue is more successful. 2) Rampaging stupidity and the thought that the comments were humorous. 3) If Blue looks bad, maybe Mr. Editor will give Mr. Green the time of day regarding his manuscript. (And good luck with that!) 4) Mr. Blue has gotten too big for his britches and needs to be taken down a peg or two, or 5) Blue once dated Green’s second cousin and they didn’t part on good terms, so it’s a matter of family honor.

In the long run the reasons are almost completely inconsequential. Deliberately or not, the cobra has now spit venom.

Here’s what’s likely to happen in that sort of case.

Mr. Green looks like an idiot. Why? Green has just drawn a line in the sand and Mr. Blue has just gotten egg on the face. In the long run, Mr. Blue is already a known commodity, a seller who has continued to get good sales that have steadily increased over the last few books. Mr. Editor is annoyed by the comment, but not so annoyed that he feels the need to lose a proven moneymaker. He may or may not have a chat with Mr. Blue to see if there are issues brewing that could cause a problem when the next contract is negotiated, but knowing the nature of conventions and the fact that there are always a few people getting too drunk for their own good, the comments will probably be let go. Worst case scenario for Mr. Blue, he moves on to a different publisher and eats a few plates of crow for a while. Believe me, if a writer is a commodity (and all writers are commodities) the odds are good the issues will be overlooked or forgiven in time. I’ve seen it enough times to know it’s true.

Mr. Green on the other hand, has just made an enemy of Mr. Blue or at least proven to be an untrustworthy little snot. Mr. Blue has very little knowledge of Mr. Green to go on until that moment, but after hearing from Red, Black, Chartreuse, Indigo and Orange that Mr. Green was telling tales and maybe even exaggerating the comments made, (that both Orange and Indigo were there to hear, by the way) you can bet that Blue isn’t really going to think favorably about Green in the future.

Does that amount to political suicide? It depends on the situation. If Green mentioned it in passing, no. If Mr. Green decided to make it a point to ensure that EVERY person at the convention heard about the drunken diatribe, possibly.

Sure, Blue looks a little stupid, but Green looks positively unprofessional and believe me, most publishers would rather deal with stupid than unprofessional any day of the week. Stupid might not be smart enough to negotiate for enough money, but unprofessional might not turn in the manuscript corrections on time.

It’s all about perception, really.

Back to my wise, sainted mother for a moment for one of her favorite sayings: “The wisest person at a party is the one you never hear say anything.”

Translated: If you don’t open your mouth, you can’t shove your foot in it.

On to another scenario: Mr. Barely* Red is a crafty one. Red hangs on all of the right bulletin boards and goes to all the right conventions. Mr. Pink has managed through the course of a few years to piss off Mr. Red. Pink is on the boards too, and maybe they disagree a lot. Or maybe a snide comment about a book was all it took, because everyone KNOWS that Pink also writes reviews for Unbelievably Cool Critters Magazine and has been, well, rather brutal a few times in the course of reviews.

Man, that review of Red’s MURDER IN A REALLY DARK PLACE was scathing!

So, Mr. Red decides it’s time for a little payback.

It doesn’t take much to get a rumor started, now does it? Just think back to your junior high school days and I’m sure you’ll agree. A few veiled comments here and there, maybe a couple of “confidential” remarks to a loud mouth on Bulletin Board of The Dark, and suddenly the rumor mill is grinding away, spilling out a few juicy bits and pieces.

Just in case anyone misses the good stuff, Red has recruited his good buddy Ms. Purple to nod knowingly in all the right conversations.

Pink scoffs at the comments, of course, but the rumors persist. A week later, the newest scandal of Yellow, who is always getting into scandals, overshadows the legendary story of how Pink uses ghost writers.

Think it’s over? Nope. Not by a long shot. Red has and had no proof that Pink was doing anything wrong. Pink has learned from several other colors that Red was the one out to screw up his career. There’s even the possibility that they were friends before the scathing review, or at least they were friendly acquaintances.

Now, the kid gloves are off. Red started a nasty rumor.

Pink can do that too, and doesn’t hesitate. But it isn’t all about Red and Pink is it? Oh, no, there’s also Purple to consider. Purple is a freelance reviewer and graphics designer, as well as a webmaster and artist. Purple has been looking to get a regular gig at Unbelievably Cool Critters Magazine and maybe even do an overhaul of the magazine’s website, in addition to maybe doing a few covers.

Pink is on a first name basis with Ms. Editor of Unbelievably Cool Critters Magazine, and asks that Purple not work on any project Pink is already associated with.

Pink is a known commodity. Purple is not.

Pink wins by default. Purple does not land what could have been a sweet gig. Not necessarily because Purple did anything wrong, but there’s also the sin of silence to consider. Purple made a few knowing winks, but Purple never told the magazine about the rumors and Purple’s name has come up enough times for Ms. Editor to understand that Purple at least knew what was going down.

One more for the road, shall we?

Ms. Black is new in town and has decided to join in on the Ain’t It Neat Writer’s Guild Monthly meeting (held at Bully Boy’s BBQ on Route 19, on the 13th of every month!). Black decides to impress everyone by dropping a few names and slamming a few of the more public figures. She talks about knowing Pink and Lavender and Even Blue. She tells stories about all of them, most of which are completely made up or gleaned from somebody else’s experience in an effort to fit in and look as cool as possible for the cool cats at the table.

Black even goes so far as to talk about the horrible fight between Mr. Blue and Mr. Editor and how before it was done, Blue had Editor crying like a baby, because, let’s be honest here, a little exaggeration never hurt, right?

Damned shame that Black didn’t know Orange over in the corner is not only a friend of Blue but also the nephew of Mr. Editor.

Guess who just screwed up any chance of Mr. Editor ever bothering to read the manuscript (BLOODY RETRIBUTION AND THE HOMICIDAL MANIAC’S COOK BOOK: AN ACT OF MURDER IN SEVENTEEN PARTS, by Ms. Black) that has been sitting in the To Be Read pile at Mr. Editor’s office for the last month?

Are you getting the point? Rumors come and go, but slights do not. Offend the wrong people in the industry and you have a problem on your hands. Maybe not the first time you do it, maybe not even the third time, but sooner or later, people start noticing when you’re almost constantly in the middle of the latest scandals.

A good flame war on the proper way to write an outline? Not a problem. Opinions often vary.

A scathing review of that book everyone loves and you hate? Not really an issue, unless you’re the sort who posts on Amazon and states clearly that you didn’t bother to read the book first and even then, you just look like an idiot.

Telling tales out of school? Bad mistake.

Breaking confidences? Maybe not AS bad, but guess what? You just lost a friend or potential friend, a contact and a source of information. Of the three, by the way, the one that would bother me the most is the loss of a potential or current friend. I’m one of those crazy people who has trouble considering someone a friend if they break a confidence. Weird how that works, huh?

It’s easier and wiser to step back from the politics. I’ve seen people screw up their careers with a few simple acts. Some of them got drunk and stupid (remember, never, ever grope an editor, it’s not going to help your career). I’ve seen some decide that they could “ruin” the career of another writer or editor or even reviewer. I’ve seen relatively sane writers go into screaming fits (both in person and online) over negligible slights who are still the brunt of jokes months or years later. I’ve seen people decide that they simply do not like someone for no discernible reason and attack. Hell, I’ve even seen writers get drunk, sneak off with a complete stranger or even a friend’s paramour and then act surprised when their spouses suddenly decided it was time for a divorce. None of those methods are as sure to guarantee your ruination as a good case of proven plagiarism, but some of them are damned close.

It’s a small world out there and almost everyone knows everyone else. If I don’t know ‘em, the odds are I know of ‘em and the opinions I’ll trust are already in place. The examples given are strictly in the writing field, but the same sort of nonsense happens every day in office politics and of course, wherever teenagers gather.

You want to be a writer/editor/reviewer/artist in the field? Know when to keep your mouth shut. You want to work out careful machinations to destroy Mr. Olive who once looked at your kid funny? Go ahead if you must, but understand that every action you perform has consequences.

If you want to be known as a professional, act like a professional. Remember that the information highway and the rumor mill are two-way streets. Remember also that damned near everyone is connected in one way or another. Trying to find or air dirty laundry? The odds are good that the person you’re targeting will hear about it. The same goes with the rumors, the exposé’s and the bald faced lies.

It all comes back around in the long run and the person who will likely get bitten in the derriere when it’s all said in done?

Well, that would be the person who started talking trash in the first place.

James A. Moore

*When I initially wrote this, I shot it to my LiveJournal for feedback. I didn’t have colors for names, I had letters: the general consensus was that it looked too much like a long winded algebraic equation. Bev Vincent was wise enough to suggest using colors, which I did, and came up with the first name of Barely, for Mr. Red. A wise man, and funny to boot! Thanks, Bev!