I read an author post yesterday concerning some issues with Dorchester (specifically, the complaints focused on receiving payments, author rights, etc). I won't pretend to know what's truly occurring between the publisher and the authors, nor will I claim that I've read every post, both good and bad, which discusses the publisher in question. That means don't turn around and bite my head off because I'm not 100% on top of this situation.
However, I would like to raise an important point since what I heard alarmed me. There was some encouragement on this author's blog to boycott Dorchester books. Now, I'm all for boycotting things to make a point, if it will make a point, but I think there's an important distinction that needs to be made here. Not all authors are unhappy with Dorchester. There are plenty who are willingly sticking with the publisher, and who wish to continue to advance their writing careers with the people there.
With that said, I think it is selfish for whoever agreed to participate in this boycott to refuse to buy all books associated with Dorchester. Who are you truly harming when you do this? I'll tell you who: it's the authors. Wonderful people like Leanna Renee Hieber--a woman I will shamelessly promote on this blog because she deserves the praise--suffer because you refuse to buy Dorchester books. If you've read anything by Leanna, then you've seen how the woman can beautifully weave a sentence together with such sophistication and grace, it could bring a tear to one's eye. If you've ever read her blog or twitter, then you know that she's incredibly kindhearted and supportive of all those around her. And if you've ever been blessed to meet her in person... Well, you'll just have to see for yourself how sweet she really is. Do you really want someone, with so much skill, kindness, positivity, and potential, to suffer from any boycott?
Think about it in a different way. If you were an author, and you heard other authors complaining about your publisher, would you want potential fans to refuse to buy your books because you were associated with that publishing house? I think most of us would say "hell no!" so why should these authors be forced to deal with the added stresses? Why should certain authors, who already spend so much of their precious time writing, revising, imagining new and inventive ways to execute ideas to impress us readers, sweating, crying, and self-promoting suffer?
This post is going to sound self-righteous to some, but I do not think other authors on twitter should be supporting any boycotts of books (unless, of course, the support is for abstaining from buying anything Dorchester sells written by the authors who complain). Of course the authors in question may want to support those who were wronged... but they're also potentially harming those who weren't wronged. Sometimes it's better to simply keep quiet and let things play out the way they should, instead of adding more negativity and drama to the situation.
Just remember that there's always consequences. Think about who you're truly hurting when you boycott a publisher's books.
Friday, March 25, 2011
Boycotting Books: Who does it REALLY hurt?
About the Author
Tori is a 23 year old college graduate with a bachelor's in English Literature. She enjoys reading, writing, baking, cooking, and has a strange addiction to chocolate, shoes, and coffee.
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I really appreciate your post Tori. I noticed the talk of boycott as well and it always concerns me for the same reasons you're covering.
ReplyDeleteBoycotting purchase of the work the author is not being paid for certainly because that makes absolute sense. But boycotting all authors associated with the publisher? I don't think that's helping anyone.
Great post!
Well, to clarify. No one is boycotting the authors, we're boycotting the publisher. Through countless testimonials and tirades from authors associated with Dorchester--both past and present--it is clear there is a systemic and pervasive vein of bile running through the company.
ReplyDeleteAuthors deserve to be paid for their work and also to not have their copyrights flagrantly and repeatedly violated by a publisher.
I'm not one to hop on boycott bandwagons, but as a reader and writer, this is one time when I make an exception.
Putting money in Dorchester's pockets will rarely result in authors getting their due, apparently. For the exceptions to that rule, they can consider themselves lucky, but they should also wonder if it is only inevitable that the practices used against other authors will be used on them.
Thank you Rhianna, I'm glad to hear I'm not the only one who feels this way.
ReplyDeleteRabid Fox: By boycotting Dorchester, wouldn't you agree that you're boycotting all the authors (who are either unhappy, or who are happy and want to remain with the company) associated with the company? Either way, you're not buying their books, which hurts the ones who have no issues with the publisher.
I agree, authors deserve to be paid. I do not approve of some of the things I've read about, but I also know that not all authors are suffering in this situation. It's extremely unfortunate for the ones who are, and my heart goes out to those people.
Instead of assuming that all authors are getting ripped off, I think boycotting the books by authors who AREN'T getting paid would be the best approach in this situation.
I'm also not one to jump on the boycotting bandwagons unless I feel very deeply about a subject. As an author this is one of them. It is a hard decision because it may unintentionally hurt other authors, but how do we know? Even those not speaking out against Dorchester may not be getting paid. If an author publicly posts that they are happy with the publisher and being paid for their books, then I will still purchase that author's books. However, I do not want a single penny of my money going to a publisher who isn't giving their authors the agreed upon royalties. We have enough trouble losing money due to piracy. We're supposed to be able to trust that our publishers have our best interests at heart.
ReplyDeleteIf an author is publishing exclusively with Dorchester, they certainly find themselves in an unfortunate situation with regards to the boycott. But, I still find it an untenable situation which DP has put themselves in. I certainly don't begrudge anyone who continues to buy DP books, as I really have no stake in it (only as a reader, really), especially books from those who are getting paid--I'm unsure who these authors are, though.
ReplyDeleteBut, if an author whose work I want to purchase is also publishing with another press, or even self-publishing, there is nothing about the boycott to dissuade me from buying those books.
One of the better, more articulate blog posts from a DP author I've read comes from Stacy Dittrich.
I always love how honest and upfront you are about everything!
ReplyDeleteI didn't even know about any of this, I'm off to google! Thanks!
Thanks for posting this. I'm sure many people who have decided to boycott didn't think it through entirely.
ReplyDeleteEven in my small circle of authors many of us have used the same publisher and some are happy, some are not. It's not necessarily across the board disatisfaction as I'm sure is the case here.
Ann