In light of recent events and news articles (the specifics are not something i’m going to be going in to in this post), i wanted to talk a little about about the separation between an author and their books. If we should have that divide, if it’s morally right or if anyone even wants to.
There are a lot of authors out there, especially in the last few years that have been outed for doing something wrong. There have been violence cases, abuse cases, a whole host of things that would make us not want to support someone. It’s the age-old question in media, ‘can i still support this person?’
We see it all the time with music stars and actors, someone does something illegal, or morally incorrect, it hits the news papers and people choose their sides whether to still support that person or not. I would never judge someone for their stand on these matters, and i cannot stress that enough right now.
My own views in fact on these matters are honestly a little lapse. There are some people in the public eye that i will not support for things they have done, and there are some that, although i don’t have a love for anymore, will still watch their movies because i think they’re a good actor, or listen to their albums. I do think it’s a case by case topic most of the time, and there are times when i do question myself about why i’m seeing a movie with this bad person in, but i still really love it and like the way they’ve acted. It’s a difficult one.
I found it quite hard to support authors with these kind of histories though. In the last few years there have been some big cases against some pretty popular authors, ones that have supported and would have continued to support if these things hadn’t have happened. I honestly spend quite a bit of my time as a blogger just hoping that none of my favourites turn out to be bad eggs.
There are some authors that i have found unforgivable. I’ve stopped reading in the middle of a series because i just can’t pick up the book anymore, i’ve chosen to never mention their names again on the blog. I think it’s a hard situation to deal with when you’re a blogger and reader about choosing whether to keep supporting that author.
Is it supporting them if you already own the book before all this happens? Is it supporting them to blog about it? Where’s the limit?
The case that i stumbled upon that i’m writing this post because of, happened to be an author that we were very involved with. It was someone we’ve promoted a lot and i actually loved their books. That past tense seems strange to me. I still love their books, one in particular, but would i go out and buy another of their books? Absolutely not. It’s that fine line i struggle with, can i still like the book i’ve already read?
That’s why i dread one of my favourite authors being in the press. I don’t know if i could separate that love i have for the book from what that person had done. Would i still support one of my friends if they’d done something horrific? Probably not, so why should i support a stranger that may write a book that i’d give four stars on Goodreads.
I’d like to know your opinions on this. If you walk that line constantly, and are deciding case by case what’s okay and what’s not. Or as soon as something is reported do you throw away their books and never speak of them again.
I know i wouldn’t personally actively support an author that has been in the press for something i strongly disagree with. I wouldn’t even pick their books up from the library, but where does this kind of thing end? What can we excuse and what can we not?
There are certain named on the blog you will never hear again from me or Sophie, however there are some you might question. We might not agree with a persons actions, but what they write could be incredibly useful to someone, could strike a chord with someone and change their life in some way. I feel like putting damaging content in to the world is very different from being a damaging person.
Again, i’d like to know your opinions on my ramble. I’m sorry this post is a little all over the place, i just as i said, am not sure on my own opinions. I think i’d like to separate the works from the author, but again i wouldn’t expect that for myself. It’s a hard topic, and i think it’s going to be the cause for debate for a long time.
The Little Contemporary Corner 