I’ve just finished another chapter. \u00a0I’m feeling really good about my work so far, so I’ve decided to take a break and talk\u00a0about the relationship between authors and would-be tyrants.<\/p>\n
An author needs readers. \u00a0That’s a simple truth, easy to conceptualize. \u00a0Without readers, a book has no value. \u00a0It may as well be fuel for a fire. \u00a0Until a writer’s work is read, it essentially doesn’t exist.<\/p>\n
As a writer that is early in his career, I think about this problem all the time. \u00a0What will happen when I finish my book, and I’m unable to get people to read it? \u00a0Will it all be for nothing? \u00a0Do I have the personal strength to move on to the next book?<\/p>\n
If you want to hurt a writer, refuse to read their work. \u00a0Don’t talk about them. \u00a0Ignore their stories, and the writer will wither like a plant denied water and light. \u00a0Writer’s need readers to spread the word, so that others will become interested and check out their work.<\/p>\n
Not all word of mouth has to be about the quality of the work. \u00a0It can be about the content. \u00a0When people first started talking about Fifty Shades of Grey<\/em>, they weren’t talking about the quality of the writing. \u00a0They were talking about the content of the book. \u00a0It was naughty. \u00a0The taboo of the material piqued people’s interest, and the books sold.<\/p>\n If you like Fifty Shades<\/em>, great. \u00a0I’m not going to tell you that you’re wrong. \u00a0But I’ve looked at some of the writing, and in my opinion, it’s hideous. \u00a0And, honestly, it’s not all that raunchy.<\/p>\n Spectacle is what made\u00a0Fifty Shades<\/em>\u00a0taken off. \u00a0Without the spectacle, there would have\u00a0been no curiosity. \u00a0Without the curiosity, there would have been no audience. \u00a0Without the audience, the book would have faded into obscurity just like so many other stories published independently.<\/p>\n A politician shares this characteristic with writers. \u00a0Without an audience, they can scream and shout all the vitriol they can think of, and it won’t make a difference. \u00a0A politician needs to be heard in order to be a politician.<\/p>\n If you want to end a politician’s career, don’t show up for his rallies. \u00a0Don’t protest him. \u00a0Don’t write blog posts about him. \u00a0Don’t vote for him. \u00a0Ignore him, and encourage your friends and family to do the same.<\/p>\n Remember… the opposite of love isn’t hate. \u00a0It’s apathy. \u00a0Love and hate are both extremes of passion. \u00a0Love and hate inspire people to do things they may not normally do. \u00a0From an outsider’s perspective, without context, the actions of love and the actions of hate can look the same. \u00a0So don’t give a would-be tyrant your love, or your hate. \u00a0Give him nothing.<\/p>\n We currently have someone running for President that is inspiring hate. \u00a0People are showing up for his rallies, some to support, some to protest. \u00a0And this candidate is inciting violence, with his words and with his attitude.<\/p>\n He’s generating stories. \u00a0He’s in the news. \u00a0Every outrageous thing he says is picked up and talked about. \u00a0With that kind of interest, it doesn’t matter what he does. \u00a0In his own words, he could kill someone on the street, and it wouldn’t change the course of his campaign.<\/p>\n You may notice that I haven’t mentioned his name. \u00a0I don’t need to, and I’m not going to. \u00a0You already know who I’m talking about. \u00a0And you probably already know how dangerous his campaign is for our country.<\/p>\n If you want to end his campaign, and end the violence at his rallies, stop talking about him. \u00a0Stop adding fuel to his fire. \u00a0As long as the spotlight is on him, he’s in control of the show. \u00a0The stories he’s generating are too rich for the media networks to pass up. \u00a0So he gets to set the tone, and dictate the message, and we already know that his message is about divisiveness, intolerance, and hate.<\/p>\n You already know what he’s going to say, so quit clicking on the stories that feature him. \u00a0When stories about him stop generating views, there will no longer be financial incentive to keep making more stories about him. \u00a0His star will fade. \u00a0And he will go back to obscurity.<\/p>\n Focus on other candidates. \u00a0If you need a little hate and divisiveness, go read about Ted Cruz. \u00a0He’s a pretty terrible candidate, too, but he’s not actively trying to get people to beat each other up at his events.<\/p>\n Honestly, it would be better to focus on the positive. \u00a0Find the qualities about your favorite candidate that you like, and talk to other people about that.<\/p>\n Just quit giving the would-be tyrant air time.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":" I’ve just finished another chapter. \u00a0I’m feeling really good about my work so far, so I’ve decided to take a break and talk\u00a0about the relationship between authors and would-be tyrants. 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