Spam, self-promotion, and the thin, jellyfish-covered line between.: seanan

Spam, self-promotion, and the thin, jellyfish-covered line between.

If you are a creative professional, it is a sad reality that self-promotion is a part of your job. Maybe that wasn't always true; maybe there was a time when you could emerge from your creative chambers, hand your latest piece of deathless art to your agent, and then retreat back into your office fastness to keep creating. But alas, we do not live in that possibly mythic world, and if you work in the arts, at all, you need to be willing to sell yourself to whatever degree, and in whatever manner, you are comfortable.

Maybe it's social media updates. Maybe it's occasional blog posts. Maybe it's setting up a mailing list. There are a lot of ways to do self-promotion, and since I consider sincerity to be the most important thing of all, there's really no wrong way. As long as you're comfortable and happy and not drowning in your update links, you're probably okay.

But here's the thing. There is a line between "self-promotion" and "spam," and while that line is usually pretty visible, it's also easy to cross, even without intending to. I schedule Current Projects posts; make Inchworm Girl posts once a week at max; and try to do sales announcements and convention announcements when it will have the greatest impact. It is thus possible—not likely, but possible—that all three of these things could happen on the same day. That would seem a little spammy, and take away from all three. It would also still be confined to my space, which you can read at your leisure, if you read it at all.

The same goes for Twitter. On and around book release day, I get very "OMG BOOK" for about, oh, 80% of my Tweets. I lose a few followers every time I have a book come out, since the rest of the time, my Twitter is very much "here are pictures of my cats and snarky comments about my doll collection." (Most of those followers come back again about a week later, when the book stuff dies down.) And that's fine! I am shouting and running around within my own space, they aren't interested, they go to the corner store for some milk and bread and come back when things are back to normal. This is all totally awesome.

The trouble, for me, comes when self-promotion begins going into other peoples' spaces without being invited. An example:

Last week I tweeted about how my sister is a nervous flier. Within twenty minutes I had received an unsolicited tweet from a retired commercial pilot who does not normally follow me, with a link to his book on calming fears of flying. Now, this may seem like he's just being helpful, but again, he does not follow me, and I did not ask for advice. This is a stranger who clearly has some standard searches coming across my comment and deciding that he can use it to profit.

I told him that what he was doing was spamming, and he asked why I was making such a fuss. The reason is simple: because he came into my space, without my asking him to, and tried to sell me something I had not asked for. He was spamming.

Something I see with much more frequency, although also on Twitter (and, in a modified form, on Facebook), is people @-checking random groups of authors/fans/whatever with "Hey, think about it, Soviet steampunk [link to book]." Again, this is not encouraging me to buy your book, or even to look at it. This is spamming.

It's different when you're doing it in your own space, or when you've been solicited. If I Tweet "What should I be reading?" and you give me a link to your awesome Shakespearean detective erotica, we're all good. If I click over to your feed and it's two-thirds self-promo, that's cool too. But once you come into my space, you'd best be sure you were invited. By the same token, if I'm coming into your space, I'd best be sure that I was invited.

Anything else is likely to turn my serious message into a piece of unwanted lunch meat.

gement

December 9 2014, 02:01:52 UTC 2 years ago

New comment

"give me a link to your awesome Shakespearean detective erotica"

SHARE.

Pretty please.

seanan_mcguire

December 9 2014, 02:27:40 UTC 2 years ago

Alas, I have none to give.

2 years ago

December 9 2014, 02:02:56 UTC 2 years ago

You've just explained why I'm not really on Twitter anymore. -_-

December 9 2014, 02:29:44 UTC 2 years ago

I like Twitter.

talekyn

December 9 2014, 02:15:51 UTC 2 years ago

I struggle with this. I have no problem, as you know, with promoting / signal-boosting for other people whose projects, fundraisers, etc, I believe in. But when it comes to my own stuff, I have a hard time knowing if I'm over-doing it. I'm still not sure I did it write or am doing it right, in terms of promoting my books/songs (two of which are fundraisers for the American Cancer Society). Hopefully this isn't overstepping -- but I'd love to hear more of your advice on this subject.

December 9 2014, 02:30:36 UTC 2 years ago

1) Do it in your own space, or when solicited.
2) If you possibly can, do a 3:1 ration. 3 "this is neat" or "this is by someone else" for everyone 1 "check out my awesome shit."
3) Be mindful of the mental landscape you're occupying.

Deleted comment

December 9 2014, 07:24:42 UTC 2 years ago

YES UGH GOD WHY.

If I am not in the picture/the picture is not immediately related to something YOU KNOW FOR A FACT I LIKE, do not tag me.

livejournal

December 9 2014, 03:40:44 UTC 2 years ago

Hello! Your entry got to top-25 of the most popular entries in LiveJournal!
Learn more about LiveJournal Ratings in FAQ.

lilisonna

December 9 2014, 21:26:01 UTC 2 years ago

The irony here is killing me.

archangelbeth

beccastareyes

December 9 2014, 03:43:40 UTC 2 years ago

Context matters. If your friend says 'hey, my sister's roommate's pet gerbil used to be terrified of even the second floor of the house and read "Fear Flying No More" and xe now is planning a 80-country world tour and trying to make sure xe doesn't violate import/export laws', then it comes with the 'you are a friend and I want to help*'. Heck, even if the gerbil wrote the book, it's still 'A Thing You'd Like! I Share Because I Love!'.

* Which can be problematic if you don't have the spoons to deal with your fear at the moment, and just want to know if buses or trains are a better way to see the West Coast, but isn't spam.

December 9 2014, 07:27:07 UTC 2 years ago

Context does matter, and even if it's problematic, I'll take it as "trying to help" from someone I know/has been following me for a while, rather than jumping immediately to "this is spam."

jamethiel_bane

December 9 2014, 04:31:42 UTC 2 years ago

But that's really good advice. Self-promotion being limited to the spaces that we control and not being given to others unless they ask

December 9 2014, 07:27:26 UTC 2 years ago

Thanks.

Spam

Virginia Llorca

tezmilleroz

December 9 2014, 05:08:40 UTC 2 years ago

THANK YOU! I've received THREE unsolicited book recommendations this week on Goodreads (three different people), and it's grinding my gears.

December 9 2014, 07:28:05 UTC 2 years ago

Ugh no.

If I sign up for your newsletter, that's one thing; I have chosen to invite you to advertise to me. But if you just start sending endorsements? Nope.

theidolhands

December 9 2014, 05:28:09 UTC 2 years ago

Fully agree, good point and thank you for making more people aware that something like this goes on, as well as managing to keep what little tact the internet allows at this point (I consider your techniques to be very professional). You had every right to "make a fuss" really and all he should've done was apology not belittle.

December 9 2014, 07:28:21 UTC 2 years ago

Thank you. :)

ankewehner

December 9 2014, 06:15:03 UTC 2 years ago

Yeah, that's pretty much the line I draw between advertising and spam.

Also, just because I took part in your kickstarter does not mean I want to receive updates about all of your future projects ever.

Also, if you come to my deviantart profile, and leave a comment with thumbnails of your stuff, or a "please visit my gallery", I consider that spam, even if I faved one of your images first.

December 9 2014, 07:28:34 UTC 2 years ago

Ugh yes agreed.

tibicina

mrbumblepants

December 9 2014, 07:48:50 UTC 2 years ago

I think also that having your own space to put stuff which other people can choose to follow - that does them a service, because they're the ones who really do want to know when you have a book out, or what the latest projects are that you're working on. I tend to follow people whose work I like that don't post too much, unless all the rest of the stuff they have to say is interesting to me too (I stick around for your kitty pictures and general geekery!)

It's nice too that Twitter makes it so easy to follow/unfollow people. Especially folks who participate in those big hashtag days.

December 10 2014, 21:45:06 UTC 2 years ago

True!

maladaptive

December 9 2014, 12:22:26 UTC 2 years ago

I once made a post complaining about the same old tropes in mermaid fiction (mostly YA) and included a checklist in my post that included [girl who doesn't fit in] [meets mysterious boy] [discovers she must save an undersea kingdom]*. There's so many things I want from a mermaid book and these are not it. Sure there's a lot of mermaid books out there, but the majority are crap so it's like there's only 4 mermaid books extant. I can say this because I know a lot of mermaid fans looking for mermaid fiction, and my checklist is all the stuff we don't want, either. More stuff like yours! /digression

Then I tweeted about the post. I got a response suggesting I read this random tweeter's book--that had those checklist options for a plot.

I face palmed. Like, awww nice you at least thought it was relevant, but you either didn't read the linked post, or your amazon description really doesn't do your book credit if you don't think it applies.....

*Tangentially, usually you have to save the kingdom for environmentalist reasons through the power of mystic woo. I would 120% read this book if the mermaids wanted to recruit her for their ecoterrorist collective. Alas, no one's done it possibly because it's too obvious a solution to a real problem/too hard compared to mystic woo/too morally complex compared to the "everyone but the bad guys can agree" factor of mystic woo, so I may have to write it myself. /grumble

December 9 2014, 22:12:09 UTC 2 years ago

I would be very tempted to read ecoterrorist mermaids!

(and, just in a "share the O_O" way, have you seen http://www.amazon.com/Mermaids-Ransom-Joey-W-Hill/dp/0425230686/ ? ...it's, ah, not YA... And at least I don't think it hits the checklist? *ducks and runs and hides*)

ironed_orchid

December 9 2014, 15:06:26 UTC 2 years ago Edited: December 9 2014, 15:07:51 UTC

When I joined twitter the first people I followed included a bunch of writers, mostly in sff. So I had a bunch of OTHER writers follow me or randomly reply to my tweets with stuff about their books... but the picture they couldn't see is that the writers I do follow, they're mostly people I know from lj. Some of them I knew before they got their first book deal. Others write neat essays on a range of things I find interesting. Whatever the connection, it's a bit more complicated than "I buy books, I might buy yours."

Which is a good thing, because there are a LOT of cat photos.

December 10 2014, 21:46:16 UTC 2 years ago

The connections are never completely clear from the outside, true. I mean, how can an outsider look at us and go "their connection involves a hotel room in Australia and a lot of mascara wands"?

mahariel

December 9 2014, 16:06:53 UTC 2 years ago

I've run into two situations repeatedly on Facebook. One is receiving a PM saying "Hey, I'll repost your business links on my page if you do the same on yours." The other is people posting their business link directly to my page wall. One is networking. The other is spam. The first usually gets a nice response and a thank you. The second gets deleted.

December 10 2014, 21:46:30 UTC 2 years ago

Precisely so.

listicath

December 9 2014, 19:51:57 UTC 2 years ago

I follow a few writers on twitter, and every now and again I'm followed by someone I've never heard of. Every time I check their feed, it's mainly book promotion.

Now, I know they're not actively pushing their books at me, since I don't have to follow them back, but it still feels a bit creepy.

Mind you, I was also once followed by a dry cleaner I'd never heard of, because I'd followed a pub nearby...

December 10 2014, 21:46:55 UTC 2 years ago

I sort of love local businesses with Twitter accounts. Especially the ones that get deeply, profoundly weird.

marziek

December 10 2014, 02:35:45 UTC 2 years ago Edited: December 10 2014, 02:36:14 UTC

This is why I have so much trouble with Twitter.

BTW, maybe Shakespeare detective erotica could be a side project?

December 10 2014, 21:47:07 UTC 2 years ago

I have so many of those already, though!

theo_rogers

December 10 2014, 14:40:30 UTC 2 years ago

Partly re this getting into the top 25, I found my way here because it made its way onto the Passive Voice blog:

www.thepassivevoice.com/12/2014/spam-self-promotion-and-the-thin-jellyfish-covered-line-between/

To be honest my own take-away lesson here is that different online communities have different standards as to what constitutes acceptable self promotion behavior. In the places I've spent the most time online over the past four or five years, what this pilot did would be fine. But then, I've never spent much time on twitter, and this is the very first time I've ever used live journal.

December 10 2014, 21:48:53 UTC 2 years ago

See, I have never been in a community where "HELLO TOTAL STRANGER LET ME SELL YOU SOMETHING BASED ON A RANDOM COMMENT" would be okay. That's spammy and intrusive and comes with no discussion at all; just a keyword search and a sudden interruption.

If he'd asked if she wanted help, gotten a positive response, and THEN said "I wrote a book about this," or even led off with something other than a link, it would have been different.

NaNo Extended: Plot Lines

December 11 2014, 02:02:39 UTC 2 years ago

User

raynos referenced to your post from NaNo Extended: Plot Lines saying: [...] "[girl who doesn't fit in] [meets mysterious boy] [discovers she must save an undersea kingdom] [...]