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| Image by TheCreativePenn via Flickr |
I saw this Guardian article, noted on Facebook by my friend Dana of Readaholics Anonymous:
Amanda Hocking, the writer who made millions by self-publishing online
People were upset by Amanda's success for three reasons I think:
- She was successful. They imagined she "swanned" about and her books magically jumped onto people's Kindles. No, she spent hours and days, possibly week, self-marketing by talking to bloggers. Oh, and her books were good.
- Then, she signed a contract with a publisher. People responded, "A ha! I knew it, she was a fake all along! She sold out. " Huh? I never got this. After writing and successfully marketing four-plus books she wanted to take more time writing and less time selling. Go figure.
- Finally, people were upset because she succeeded. Her books had achieved the double whammy of both selling and attracting the notice of a publisher.
There is nothing we hate more than people who are a success and smart and who work hard. You can do one of those things and be okay, two is putting you on thin ice and three, well three will send you right to Hell in the proverbial hand-basket. When, like the song says, you get money for nothing and the chicks (checks, chicks?) for free, we are consumed by fear and jealousy. We do not really value artists or any creative, mental work because deep inside we each think, "I could do that, it's easy."
I have noticed this in politics, in business and elsewhere. Not SO much on a personal level, but that gang-up and beat on the smart guy mindset is more a function of a clannish mentality that must somehow go back to the cave. You know, That guy is a hard working, smart success and our partners might like him or her more than they do us. Let's beat him up before he gets the chicks or guys and the better cave. I think we need to evolve past this fear that someone else is going to be a success and leave us in the dust. We won't run out of mastodons and starve to death.
People seem to have calmed down about Amanda's success. Personally, I hope she does get the better cave and I think she already has a guy, but I wish her all the best. Hard work and talent as a recipe for success. Who'd a thunk it?
I am hoping today for no less than great success shoveling snow. But, I am not going to work that hard at it and would be thrilled were someone to surpass me in the field.
