Seeing what some people have to say about their experiences in various internet forums, it sometimes seems like they imagine they’ve been transported to ancient Rome. (I’m actually thinking of authors, but have heard that they’re people too.) In their imagination, these authors are (obviously) at The Forum in downtown Rome. But a pack of lions, alleged in myth to be Christian executioners, have wandered down the street from the Colosseum in search of a dietary change. Rumor has it that a surviving Christian told them that authors, regardless of religious beliefs, were much tastier.
To be fair, I’ve seen a few authors torn to bits in a virtual feeding frenzy that would make Roman lions look no worse than Tard, the grumpy cat, in comparison. At the risk of attracting a few hungry lions to my place, some of the time these authors deserved it. More often they were just in over their head. At least once or twice, contrary to the myth that only certain types of lions engage in such acts, in the ultimate act of literary cannibalism, I’ve witnessed author on author attacks. It doesn’t get much bloodier than two rival wordsmith gangs engaged in a war of words.
However, internet forums are also a great place for so many things. As an author you can interact with fans and potential readers in Goodreads discussions (which, regardless of what they call them are the same thing). KBoards.com and the Amazon forums provide the same opportunities. Looking for other writers to talk, get advice, or ask questions about writing and publishing, then there is the Writer’s Café sub-forum at KBoards, the KDP forum, and numerous others. If you’re researching almost any vocation or hobby to get the details right for your latest novel, there is an internet forum somewhere where people who know all about the subject and others who are just learning gather to discuss their common interest. Avoiding them is making a conscious decision to take one of the most powerful tools in your toolbox and throw it away. This seems silly when by taking a few relatively simple precautions you can turn those lions into pussycats. Continue reading “Be Careful of the Lions”