We fiction writers are notorious for being reclusive dwellers of wilderness-isolated cabins, but these days, being a fiction writer necessitates engaging with people (ew, gross) online. Like any social setting, it takes a particular set of skills.
(I will not be posting a Liam Neeson meme at this time.)
The trouble for me is I don’t think I’ve ever had those skills, nor have I been able to develop them. Moreover, the state of the Internet and media these days is not just about finding ways to cut through the noise. It’s about being so noisy your noise overwhelms the other noise and, in what seems to me like a paradox, steals attention before some other noise muscles yours out or an algorithm decides you’re not worth anyone’s time because you’re not giving the tech bros enough engagement, or whatever.
I’ve written before about how I’ve found the need for fiction writers to be terminally online has had significant impacts on my mental health. Moreover, most of the people who own the media we have to use are now in the American oligarchy, so I can’t in good conscience continue to support that. To boot, I’m a real person (apologies if this comes as a shock), and some things have changed in my real life that have necessitated I re-evaluate the energy I’m putting into these things.
So, I’m altering how I tell the world about what I’m up to with my writing. If you want to keep following my fiction writing, keep reading. If not, you’ll probably miss out on news, blogs, reviews, bonus content, and more goodies, and I’m sure that will just cut you to the bone. (This is sarcasm because I know it won’t.)
Continue reading “Here Comes the Change-Up, or How to Keep Tabs on Me in a Time When Seemingly Every Information Source Is Bad and I’m Becoming More Reclusive”