Saturday, November 24, 2007

Get a Grip, Woman

From PatriciaCornwell.com

We have reason to suspect that someone (or a group of someones) might be mobilizing people to attack me through Amazon and Barnes and Noble, etc., to hurt my sales and reputation...Over the past week there were about fifty bad reviews posted for a book that has gotten the highest reviews for any book I have ever written. If you see what I am saying. Interestingly, this all started right after a Pentagon high official tried to get me to make a pro Bush, pro war appearance on an aircraft carrier and I refused, politely, a photo opportunity to contradict what is in my novel! Not to mention my battle over Ruth Graham's burial. Suddenly, I am getting a barrage of reviews discouraging people from buying my book, though there are some good ones as of today because my supporters are chiming in.
Right now I need my supporters. I am not asking you to write anything you do not mean. But why should hateful people be the only ones heard?
You and your friends can help by reading the book, encouraging others to read it, and posting their feelings about it - honest feelings.With appreciation, Patricia


A few observations:

(1) I have not read Ms. Cornwell's latest book, so I will not comment on its quality. I will leave that to people who've actually read it.

(2) With all due respect, Ms. Cornwell, blaming bad Amazon reader reviews on the Bush Administration and/or the Billy Graham family is bloody insane. You really think the Bushistas looked at all their critics, including your Humble Blogger, and singled out a thriller novelist, however many NYT bestsellers they've had, to destroy, when there are so many juicier targets to go after, rather than, say, Glenn Greenwald or Larry Johnson? I guess paranoia really IS a form of narcissism.

(3) Amazon.com is a site on the Internet. It is open to the public and any old asshole can post there anonymously. Many of them use the cloak of said anonymity to post nasty and hurtful things that would get them punched in the mouth if they said them in person. This is known as "trolling." Troll swarms are an established fact of life on the Internet. If that bothers you, Ms. Cornwell, then may I respectfully suggest that you just unplug your modem, because the kind of screed you posted will only attract more of them, like hyenas gathering around a wounded oryx. Trolls sense weakness, and you just rolled over and showed them your jugular.

I say this in all love and respect Ms. Cornwell: get the fuck over yourself and get a fucking grip.

Yours in Christ,

Dusty

Update: Tess Gerritsen addresses this topic as well on her excellent blog. She is much nicer about it. This is because Tess is a much nicer person than I am.

6 comments:

Anonymous said...

The stalker thing is pretty scary:
http://www.boston.com/ae/books/articles/2007/06/07/crime_novelist_tries_to_ward_off_internet_attacker/

He's pretty obsessed. His websites about her are everywhere. One domain here:
http://www.patricia-cornwell-biography.net/

Jen Jordan said...

In fact, he just posted here!

C.L.J. said...

I see what you mean about Cornwell's stalker; what a loser!

But I'm with Dusty and Tess; wiser to ignore idiots than attempt to engage them on their own terms. It's like that old saying:
"Never wrestle a pig: it only get you covered in mud, and the pig enjoys it."

Anonymous said...

I think the Bush administration is trying to hurt my sales too. What other explanation could there be for why the only people who buy my books are twitchy, unstable misfits? Bush can't handle the truth I'm layin' down.

Plus I've been funneling money to the Viet Cong. They could still surprise ya!

Randy Johnson said...

Cornwell's post does come off a little whiny. Like most readers, I've read some of her books I liked and others I didn't. No book, no matter how well written, will please everyone. And, by extension, the more books a writer sells, the larger the number of folks who don't like it. She should just forget it.

JD Rhoades said...

I'm familiar with the work of the stalker. He occasionally "contributes" to several newsgroups and message boards that I read. Have you, or has anyone you know, ever even finished ONE of this person's posts? I don't recall ever getting more than a sentence or two into one of his rants, and that was before I could recognize him (or her) and skip or delete the post. He's just another of the many noisy idiots of the global electronic village.