Speaking Out

Marketing books and "author brands" (read: authors themselves) really can be a tricky business. You have a platform, and you have fans, which means people pay attention to what you say. You are, to a greater or lesser extent depending on the size of your audience, under a microscope. Whatever you say and wherever you say it, you can rest assured that it is recorded for posterity and will likely be shared at some point.

Yikes.

Many authors--most of them, even--tend to stay away from controversy. They don't talk politics, art, or religion. They keep their opinions to themselves because they don't want to alienate a single reader. They want to be judged on their books, not on their personal views.

And that's fine.

There are notable exceptions, though. Stephen King makes no secret of his political views. Hell, he named his kid Joe Hill. I get the impression that his opinions on social issues haven't changed much since he was a wee lad, and he expresses them with admirable eloquence. Has this ever hurt his book sales? I doubt it. By the time we lived in this media-everywhere world, his books were well familiar to readers, his brand firmly established. It certainly strengthened my King faniness. Would the Tea Party take him on? Well, they have yet to do so (to the best of my knowledge), so probably not.

There's another author whose political views are so repugnant to me that I will never purchase a book he's so much as breathed near. I've gone so far as to rearrange store shelves to make his books less visible. My opinions aside, though, his books sell. Still, I wouldn't like to try to market them.

When Allendegate broke (you knew I was going to mention it, right?) some authors, including Charlaine Harris, Mark Billingham, and Val McDermid, jumped in quite publicly. Others were vocal about it in social media venues. We found a wonderful spokesperson and advocate in McKenna Jordan of Murder By the Book. Most authors, though, stayed mum. Given some of the backlash I experienced for expressing strong opinions on the matter, it's hard to blame them.

Still other celebrity authors use their personal politics as some kind of bizarre performance art. James Ellroy is the best example. Whatever he's doing doesn't appeal to me personally, and makes me glad I don't like his books (I know, I know, shut up), but it seems to get him attention among the devoted particularly.

I was pleased a couple of weeks ago to see Margaret Maron supporting Clay Aiken's congressional campaign. Pleased, because I agree with her political views, and she obviously cares a great deal about her home state. Did she offend some (potential) readers? Maybe. But it was obviously a risk she was willing to take. It made this reader more likely to seek out her next book, though.

So where does this leave us? Should authors express opinions on controversial issues? On art and politics? As with most things, there's no one right answer. Most crime fiction includes some element of right vs. wrong, of good and evil, and as such, chances are good that your sense of justice and morality are already on view. Because reading is an intensely personal experience, we tend to feel like we know authors through your fiction. If you choose to talk about this stuff, you're inviting readers to agree or disagree with you personally, and possibly shattering their construct of you, which is a risky proposition.

On the other hand, if you feel strongly about something and you speak about in a way that's as unlikely as possible to incite offense, you might just find your loyalty quotient with readers rising. 

Comments

[Jeff Cohen]

I have no problem with authors (or actors, or anybody else) expressing political opinions, or opinions on anything else. But it will sometimes change my view of the person's work, and I will, on some occasions, choose not to send any of my hard-earned funds that person's way if I disagree strongly enough. Luckily, I was never a fan of Ted Nugent, so that hasn't been an issue.

I am sometimes tempted to blurt out my opinions on politics, religion, sports (more sensitive than either one in some circles) or art, and generally decide against, due to a combination of worry that I'll alienate that last person whose purchase might have put me on a bestseller list, and a deeply held belief that no one could possibly care less what my opinions on politics, religion, sports, or art might be.

[Thomas Pluck]

With the increasingly divisive American politics
bleeding into the culture- Apparently Republicans and Democrats view very few TV shows in common-
You can lose half your possible audience by speaking your mind.
I don't care. I am not here to please everybody. You can express yourself in a professional and polite manner. I am friends with several writers who are utterly opposite me on the political spectrum. For every reader who refuses to read your work because they disagree with you, the ones who AGREE with you will love you all the more. Look at those Duck people.

[Erin Mitchell]

You make an excellent point, Jeff...but I think probably more people care about you opinions than you think ;)

[Pop Culture Nerd]

I think authors can say whatever they want if they feel strongly about something and can accept that there might be backlash or lost sales. Even if I find someone's comments appalling, I can say, "Well, s/he's entitled to his/her opinion," as long as that person owns it.

What I don't like is when someone says something blatantly offensive and then offers a non-apology saying their comments were taking out of context or the person is sorry if some people were offended. That smacks of, "I meant what I said but am releasing this statement because I still want you to buy my book."

[Pop Culture Nerd]

Ugh. *Taken* out of context.

[Kristopher]

I agree with Pop Culture Nerd here. As long as you stand behind your beliefs, I am more likely to respect you (even if I disagree). It's when someone gets wishy-washy that I start to have a problem.

Because I view "celebrities" as just other regular folks (after all, they are just like you and I), their views do not matter *more* to me that my neighbors do. I hate when they think more highly of themselves because of their talent or career or bank account.

We are all in this together and mutual respect is the name of the game. Everyone is entitled to an opinion and everyone can decide where to spend their money. I suspect that the folks whose work I choose not to support would rather not have my support in any case, so it's a win-win.

[Erin Mitchell]

Totally agree, PCN. If you're going to express an opinion, it best be one you come by honestly and are prepared to explain and, if necessary, defend.

I know I don't agree about all things with all the authors I read (or movie stars whose movies I watch or musicians whose music I listen to), and most of the time, it doesn't make a difference, but there is that one case where his opinions are just SO far from what I see as humane, I can't even.

And Kris, you made me think of something else: There are authors, if I'm honest, whose books I don't love, but I stick with them and *try* to like their books because they're lovely people.

[Holly West]

After reading the comments, I don't feel I have anything to add because everyone has already expressed my own thoughts so well. But I will say that in the end, I "grew out of" being outspoken. By this I mean that I was A) usually not informed enough (passion doesn't always equate to being well-informed) about a particular topic to argue the point effectively and B) Ill prepared for the consequences of speaking out. My own need to speak out often came from a "Hey, look at me" place rather than a "this issue needs light shed upon it." Now, if I don't feel I can add (and rationally defend my position when required) anything to the conversation, I usually stay quiet. Usually. Sometimes I can't help speaking up.

[Kevin]

I say far less than I used to because some folks take differing opinions so personally and feel the need to lash out--often repeatedly. It just is not worth the grief.