Last night, I was tossing and turning in bed. My brain was racing with thoughts. Shocker, right? This morning was also full of tossing and turning and thoughts rattling around in my brain. All these thoughts were centered around ALA, conferences and book blogger behavior. And while I realize that I am probably not the best person to write a post on professionalism (come on, you all know me), I thought I would take a crack at it anyways because this is starting to become something I really care about.
Image is everything.
Look you guys, book blogging is a relatively new part of the book industry. We are changing the landscape. People in the industry perceive us in a variety of ways. Personally, I want to be perceived as a no-holds barred person who is passionate about books. I want to be taken seriously. Yet, when you act like an animal at an event, when you hoard books, when you treat librarians who pay hundreds compared to the pocket change of $25 to go to a professional event MEANT FOR THEM like second class citizens, when publishers refer to us as locusts, that reflects badly on me. That reflects badly on the whole community.
It is not fair. I get that. But people will judge our community based on the actions of one or a few bloggers. It’s why when you take multiple copies at an event like ALA when librarians are in PROFESSIONAL DEVELOPMENT meetings and committees people start to assume that bloggers are grabby. Look, this needs to be said — when one blogger pushes and shoves and fights for a copy – that reflects on all of us. People will look at that blogger and dismiss the rest of us. You can whine and complain about how that person does not affect your image until the cows come home, but the sad fact is some people will make judgements about our community based on the actions of some people.
Attending events like ALA and BEA are a privilege for bloggers. The conference organizers, at least for ALA, do not have to have those events open to the public. ALA does not have to charge only $25 for bloggers to get in. If enough librarians are concerned about blogger behavior or are vocal about it to the board — that could mean the closing of ALA to non-professionals, because those of us who are not librarians are not entitled to be there. Again, this is where you need to THINK about how your actions come across. When you are grabbing stacks and stacks and stacks of books, people are watching. People who actually have a stake in ALA. People who form opinion based on that one grabby person. And look, I know I am repeating myself over and over, but I want to drive that point home.
How can we be considered legitimate if we can’t even act professionally at events? If we don’t take the concerns of librarians and industry professionals running the event seriously? When there is concern about people taking extras for giveaway to promote their blog, I think we need to listen. I don’t think there’s a call to be dismissive. I think that we need to take a good, long hard look at ourselves in the mirror. I think we need to acknowledge those concerns. Maybe that means an apology. Maybe it means making reparations and donating books to the library. Maybe it means considering your actions at every conference you attend. Maybe it means you should know better if it isn’t your first conference.
Maybe I am not the best person to write this post because let’s face it, I have a flair for the dramatic. Yet, that does not stop me from caring about how I am perceived, about how my community is perceived to people outside of it. I spend ball park 20-30 hours a week on my blog. Yes, yes, I know I need a life outside of this. So, maybe that is why I feel so invested in this. Maybe that is why I feel so critical of our behavior. Because I don’t want my blood, sweat, and tears to be for nothing. I don’t want my entire community to be seen as ARC hungry hoards. Because yes, this does affect me, because it affects our image.
That stated, I want to make some reparations. My local library does not have a teen group and does not accept ARCs. I have a bag full (not from ALA, I did not go) that my boyfriend was supposed to drop off at the library near where he works, but it sounds like he will never do it. Librarians, if you are interested in some YA/MG arcs and a few finished copies for your teens and your teen programs please email me – I would like to send you a few. I know it does not completely diminish what you witnessed, but it is a start.
That said, friends, how can we be part of the solution?
If you’d like to learn more about professionalism, book blogging, networking, and publishing – might I recommend looking into Book Blogger Convention.
Via Pam’s suggestion – If you’d like to truly support ALA, you can buy a membership in ALA or YALSA. Here’s a link with more information on how to join.
I’ve been following this drama even though I haven’t said much about it. I cannot help it. It thrills me to keep up with the conflict from behind the scenes. I’ve never been to a huge event like this, so it’s hard for me to say what it’s like in person. But I do hear about a lot. I’m just going to use ALA as an example, since it’s most recent in memory. So many bloggers I’ve seen on Twitter have been gracious and humbled by the amount of publishers and librarians they got to hang with. They were GRATEFUL for the books they received. Then you have the bloggers here and there who tweeted about the amount of books they took home (triple digits, really?) and I heard about one blogger who shoved people out of the way to grab the last three or four copies of a book that was set out. Are you really going to read four different copies of the same book? Methinks you’re just being greedy.
The sad thing is, these huge events are not only a good opportunity to not only network and show appreciation for publishers and librarians alike, but also hang out with other bloggers. I was so jealous of everyone who got to go to BEA last year, but now? I have absolutely no desire to be in the mix. And I know it’s not ALL bloggers, but even that handful. Personalities like that are a hacking, phlegmy cough during a wedding ceremony. They get dirty looks and comments like “ugh, why didn’t they just stay home?”, people don’t want to be around that nasty shit, and they’re ruining many others’ good times.
Probably not the best metaphor, but just my thoughts.
I’m so glad you posted this because I completely agree! Like you said, book bloggers are a relatively new part of the book community so opinions are still being formed about our value. If we go to events and behave like the Veruca Salts of the book world or fight like vultures over ARCs, what kind of message does that send to the people who ALLOW us to be a part of this world? No matter how hard we work on our blogs or how much we invest (which is A LOT), we are still the new kids on the block and need to remember that being a part of the book community is a privilege, not an entitlement!
We are no longer just individuals, we are a team and we need to remember that our behaviors do reflect on us as a collective. We need to stop acting like brats and start behaving like professionals! That’s not to say that most of us don’t, but it’s true that some bad apples can spoil the bunch!
♥Isalys / Book Soulmates
Thank you for the glance into your world and for the tips.
The descriptions of some book bloggers getting grabby at conventions made me think of people on Black Friday. I went shopping on Black Friday this year and saw some interesting stuff. Yes, there were crazy people who were screaming and pushing and shoving and cursing, but I also talked to some very friendly people in line. The point is, while it can be hard to do at times, we can’t judge entire groups by the actions of a few individuals. At the same time, I think this is becoming more and more of a problem every year, but that’s probably because the book blogosphere is exploding, and when you throw more people into the mix, there’s a higher probability that some of those people might not care about how their actions affect the rest of us.
This was an extremely well-written post, April!
Thank you for writing this post! It’s sad that a group of people can ruin it for others. It’s gotten out of hand and I agree with what others have said-it’s like Black Friday craziness. It’s gotten out of control and it hurts those who are there trying to network, connect and are behaving nicely.
Thanks for this post. I think you have some really great points here. And you’re absolutely right – no one would have a problem with bloggers being at ALA if they all acted like professionals.
Apologies if someone else has already mentioned this, but do you know about #ARCsFloatOn? It’s a project to get ARCs and books into classroom libraries where teachers can use them with their students. More info here:
http://thereadingzone.wordpress.com/2010/11/04/arcs-float-on/
Hear, hear. Frustrating when bloggers feel the need to be pushy / demanding / grabby / etc, taking extra copies and taking advantage of the fact that we’re allowed to these things.
Nicely said!!!
Thoughtful post. It’s always good practice to be professional in whatever arena you’re exploring.
Definitely. I think being professional goes a long way towards getting what you want and making connections.