Welcome to another BlogHop, with #OpenBook. Here’s this week’s prompt.
Do you Google yourself?
Before we begin, I’m afraid that this will only be a short post; I’m currently engaged in the annual novel writing challenge that is NaNoWriMo. More about that at the end of this post.
Back to the prompt.
Apart from entering the name of my website into a Google search to make sure that it was showing up, I have never Googled myself. To be honest, I don’t ever intend to. While the internet is a great invention, it has a downside. Anyone can say whatever they like online. I have no control over whatever might be said about me, it’s often been said that eavesdroppers never hear any good of themselves. And as the bard said,
That being the case, I’d rather not know. If I have a Wikipedia page, you can rest assured that it’s not been written by me.
I’m of the age that grew up before the mobile phone (with full HD video recording) was a fixture in every pocket. I guess that we were fortunate because what we did was invisible to anyone that wasn’t actually there. I (and many others) have a lot to be thankful for, some of the things that I did back then are best left unsaid. Mind you, others would look great on YouTube!!!
Moving to the present, as someone who produces a form of art; part of putting your work out into the public domain requires a certain amount of bravery. There needs to be an acceptance that things will be written about you, some might even be true, ultimately you need to remember that you have no control over peoples opinions.
What good would it do to read it all and fume? The last thing you should do is get online to complain, justify yourself or try to change whatever has been said. Acting in a positive way, never being rude or unkind is a great way to try and ensure that you acquire and keep a good reputation online. Sadly, it may not be enough. If you attract unwelcome attention, I’ve found that silence is the best defence; ignorance is truly bliss.
While I don’t concern myself with what might be; I do however admit to looking at reviews of my work on Amazon or Goodreads. I enjoy the good ones and accept the bad, you can learn a lot about your writing from a bad review, it can help you to do better next time.
Finally, a word of warning. If you Google me; or anyone else for that matter, don’t believe all that you might find. And please don’t tell me about it.
You’ll have to excuse me, NaNoWriMo is calling. I’m needed back on Gallix, where my hero finds himself in a spot of bother. Here’s a taste of this year’s project.
I’ll be back on Thursday with another guest on the Indie Showcase.
Please leave a comment below, then check out all the other great blogs on the hop.
Lela Markham
Great Shakespeare quote. And, yes, most of my teenager years — it was good there were no camera phones. I warned my kids they couldn’t afford to be as stupid as their father and I were (separately) in high school. And in my WIP (which I’m focusing on for November (kind of for NaNo) — I have my protagonist in trouble because of his stupid antics ending up on social media.
Richard Dee
Although it’s nice to keep in touch so easily, Sometimes I think that there is “too much information” available. The book idea sounds interesting.
P.J. MacLayne
Was that a dare, Richard? That we shouldn’t google you? You know I’m going to have to do it, now.
Richard Dee
HaHa, reading everyone else’s comments is making me wonder whether I should change my mind!