MALIGNANT SELF-LOVE?
Today the New York Times Book Review ran an essay by Pamela Paul about authors and their reactions to reading blog entries about their own work. The funny thing was the authors who thought it was narcissistic to research their own appearances on blogs. Several of them had others do it for them. Apparently in Famous Author Land it is less naricissitic to have (nay, pay) someone to find data about you than to do it yourself. Oh my.
Well, this blog has had two experiences with the sorts of people discussed in the essay. In April 2005, David Block, author of Baseball before We Knew It left a message on this blog about a comment about a review. This was particularly interesting, since the blog entry was about the review. I think it is fair to say that Mr. Block was spending a fair amount of his time to comment on a blog entry on an insignificant blog discussing a review. Seemed kind of narcissistic at the time.
In April 2003 this blog was contacted by Bob Skilnik, who had published a great book about the history of beer and brewing in the Chi. He just seemed to happy to have the mention, and I doubt he would have contacted the blog today, since he has really blown up as a person in the news. His e-mail did not seem to exhibit narcissism.
By the way, the title from this entry comes from result number one on a google of "narcissism." I have this sneaking suspicion that the people who run that page are the kind of people who will find this post.
Today the New York Times Book Review ran an essay by Pamela Paul about authors and their reactions to reading blog entries about their own work. The funny thing was the authors who thought it was narcissistic to research their own appearances on blogs. Several of them had others do it for them. Apparently in Famous Author Land it is less naricissitic to have (nay, pay) someone to find data about you than to do it yourself. Oh my.
Well, this blog has had two experiences with the sorts of people discussed in the essay. In April 2005, David Block, author of Baseball before We Knew It left a message on this blog about a comment about a review. This was particularly interesting, since the blog entry was about the review. I think it is fair to say that Mr. Block was spending a fair amount of his time to comment on a blog entry on an insignificant blog discussing a review. Seemed kind of narcissistic at the time.
In April 2003 this blog was contacted by Bob Skilnik, who had published a great book about the history of beer and brewing in the Chi. He just seemed to happy to have the mention, and I doubt he would have contacted the blog today, since he has really blown up as a person in the news. His e-mail did not seem to exhibit narcissism.
By the way, the title from this entry comes from result number one on a google of "narcissism." I have this sneaking suspicion that the people who run that page are the kind of people who will find this post.
posted by David at 4:45 PM
1 Comments:
"In April 2003 this blog was contacted by Bob Skilnik, who had published a great book about the history of beer and brewing in the Chi. He just seemed to happy to have the mention, and I doubt he would have contacted the blog today, since he has really blown up as a person in the news. His e-mail did not seem to exhibit narcissism."
Oh my! I've "blown up as a person in the news?" Is that good or bad?
As for authors searching for their names on blogs, etc...A good writer/author should always keep tabs on reactions to their writings. We write for our audiences, and if we're not connecting with them, we'd like to know about it.
O.K. Now for a plug (or two). Keep watch for my next two books. BEER: A History of Brewing in Chicago will be out this spring, published by Barricade Books. Jefferson Press will publish BEER & FOOD: An American History, this fall.
Posting about my newest books...now that's narcissism!
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