Minding the Masses

     I've been reading like a fiend this week, finishing a novel about every other day. I read every night usually, as a way to quiet my mind as part of my routine. For as long as I can remember, I've loved books and the pleasure of reading. I'm not loyal to one particular genre, but can more readily tell you what I prefer not to read than anything. For example, romance is not one of the genres I would choose to read. However, even though I'm not a romance fan, I feel for writer E.L. James this week. She was roasted online during a love twitter chat where people could tweet her questions with a specific hashtag. Unfortunately, the chat turned into a prolonged criticism of her work, devolving into outright insulting her writing. I'm wondering if the relative anonymity of the internet emboldened the people participating, as they lashed out with vitriol. I appreciate not enjoying a writer's work, but I don't think I've ever felt the need to send hate mail or tweets to an author whom I didn't believe was effective. When I consider how I provide feedback for students, I suppose that is why I find the twitter hysteria so surprising. I suppose the fact that the tweeters (twits?) were driving home a point without the intent to actually provide constructive feedback means I can't compare the online chat to what teachers and peers provide in class. It does serve as a lesson in digital citizenship, in terms of how anonymity encourages groupthink. I also am curious about whether the fact that society generally holds celebrities, authors included, to different standards impacts how the famous are treated. It seems to me that celebrity engenders a feeling that being famous invites not only criticism, but that the spotlight inherently comes with a certain price. In any case, if I'm reading a book and not enjoying the writing, characterization or any other part of the experience, I simply put the book down, rather than sending a cruel message to the author. Hopefully there are still more people who think as I do.