My mother always used to say whenever I had a piece to spout: "Amy, the world spins on opinions." It was an obscure caveat, reminding me that having an opinion is nothing special.
My mother wanted a daughter who could look at things objectively yet not lose the natural human instinct of subjectivity. She wanted a daughter who could be critical but not in an ad hominem way, more so in a logical manner. And finally she wanted a daughter who wouldn't be afraid to take on something bigger than herself and have the balls (well, in essence) to tell it: screw you, I have something to say. Listen or bugger off.
Clearly, I make Mama Hausen quite proud.
And so I want my blog to be a blog that isn't afraid to "go there." Although, I wish I had more time to blog, to write about my issues and likes and dislike, but between keeping Nigel happy, writing a novel, and work, it can be a little hard to update daily.
I tell you, I envy bloggers who are able to write three or four entries a day; I have a certain respect for these bloggers. I respect them because I know they love doing it -- blogging can become addictive to the point where every little thought that rears its process makes it on the blog.
I aspire to reach that form of blog nirvana.
Meanwhile, I wish there were more sassy book blogs out there; book blogs that aren't afraid to say so-and-so sucks, his books are trifling, overwrought, dopey duds.
With that in mind, I think there's a huge fear of karma in the book world. I believe authors think if they say something not favorable about a "respected author" then it's going to come back to bite them in the (argh...must avoid the cliché) tooti-taati.
But being a sassy blogger doesn't have to be mean-spirited. As long as one doesn't make it personal and stick to the author's work, then being an objectively critical book blogger would be a breath of fresh air in the book blog universe.
Or maybe I haven't blog-shopped enough. Maybe there are quite a few book blogs spinning on opinions; I just have to look.
3 comments:
I think it's definitely a case of being diplomatic. If they bad mouth other authors, then it could affect them professionally. But I'm sure there are sites with opinions written by readers who have no aspirations of writing fiction.
That's the thing, mj: I want authors to speak their minds. But there is a need to be objective when doing so. Like I said, it doesn't have to be mean spirited nor does it have to hurt an author's career if he or she sticks to the issue at hand and not make it personal.
Of course, some authors -- despite all efforts to be objective -- will take it personally. But then again, calling someone's book a "trifling, overwrought, dopey dud" er, may ruffle a few feathers.
Hey, give me juice...and make it sweet.
You might try Alison Kent's blog for sassy, snarky, rants. Also, Lydia Joyce is known to NEVER hold back. One of her recent rants is quite funny, though not so funny as the responses. The addresses are:
www.alisonkent.com/diary
www.lydiajoyce.com/blog
Enjoy!
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