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Topic: emails and comments
| Author | Message |
| Corinna | Posted – 2/27/2008 12:34:01 PM | show profile Do you answer unsolicited emails re: your writing? On the one hand, I'm somewhat of a misanthrope who became a writer at least partly to avoid dealing with people when not absolutely neccesary. On the other hand, I was raised to be polite and thank people when they compliment me. Also, while I am wary of starting email conversations with complete strangers, I realize that I am writing because I want to reach an audience, and that I put myself out there by having a website and email address that are easily Googled. It's not a time issue for me- I only get a few emails now and then- but I could see how it could become one for someone who writes frequently for major magazines, or who writes books. I'm wondering what other writers, especially those with more experience, do about this. Do you have a blanket policy, or look at each message individually? Do you see it differently if the emails are positive or negative? And what about reader comments on a magazine's website- do you read them for feedback, or just ignore them? |
| peyton | Posted – 2/27/2008 1:24:15 PM | show profile that's a great question. i have dealt with that question recently as i have written some "hot topic" articles dealing with religion and politics. i am always shocked when i get emails - because it means people went to fairly extreme means to find my email address. and i never know how to write back. some are writing to compliment me; others to attack me, etc. i generally write back a brief "thank you" when someone writes me a nice note and ignore the critical ones. as you point out, it's odd to have a conversation with a stranger. i do read the comments on my articles too. though not all of them. i just like to get a sense of what people are saying and how they respond to it. of course, it is annoying and frustrating to see people completely misinterpret your work - or to get something fundamentally wrong. it's tempting to correct them but i think that would be a completely inappropriate act on my part. |
| 1978 | Posted – 2/27/2008 1:40:06 PM | show profile i usually write back, even just a few lines to thank the person who wrote in. of course, i'm not writing about 'hot' topics, really, and the majority are positive comments -- but i greatly appreciate the feedback and want to let the writers know. this goes for people who write in via my paper, and which my editor forwards to me. comments on the website articles i've done i usually don't respond to. |
| write2rachel | Posted – 2/27/2008 3:06:41 PM | show profile It really depends. If someone is saying nice things, I write back. If someone is saying not-so-nice things, but they are "being nice" about it, I will usually write back. If they are downright nasty, they can bite me. Commenting back will possibly just fuel that fire. Of course, there have been times where I meant to write back and just never made it. Also, if the email exchange goes beyond two from each side, I usually try to end it. That doesn't happen a lot though. ------ www.rachelcericola.com |
| dribbledrive1 | Posted – 2/27/2008 4:13:20 PM | show profile I always respond and it rarely takes much time or effort. Mostly, it's just a quick thank you. Sometimes I get emails from students wanting a lot of additional info on some topic and I just tell them that I don't have anything to provide that wasn't in the article. |
| caitlinkelly | Posted – 2/27/2008 4:23:35 PM | show profile Who else reads our work *but* strangers? So when someone writes, rarely, to comment or respond, I'm delighted they read the piece or my book (which provokes more email) and took the time and energy to respond. I don't look to see if anyone responds on publication's websites. No time and not that much interest. But a NYT column of mine this summer prompted half a dozen emails from around the country, all of which I promptly replied to. |
| WritingEd | Posted – 2/27/2008 4:38:14 PM | show profile dribbledrive, I've gotten quite a few emails from students requesting things like that. The latest was someone requesting that I send him a full annotated bibliography for a magazine article I wrote 10 years ago! |
| OC Jesse | Posted – 2/27/2008 8:48:53 PM | show profile I always try to write back, even if it's a brief reply. And if a commenter brings up something worthwhile, why is it inappropriate to respond? Get a good dialogue going in the comments section and you can really increase your page views. Hopefully there'll be a day when I'm too busy working to have time for that, but that day has not yet come. |
| candylilacs | Posted – 2/27/2008 11:21:23 PM | show profile I had a fairly useless editor once, but he did have some advice I followed. "If they took the time to e-mail you, then at least respond with 'Thanks for taking the time to write to me.'" So I do at least that. I get phone calls even. But I get phone calls where people ask me to help them get out of foreclosure/loans and more. I have empathy and help when I can. For better or worse, those people are your *fans.* Weird, yes, but kind of nice sometimes. ------ http://www.mswritesguide.blogspot.com |
| rozwrite55 | Posted – 3/1/2008 3:08:19 PM | show profile Corinna, I'm like you, for the most part I prefer to deal with people on my own terms. I make sure that my e-mail is not readily available on websites. I don't mind answering people who need guidance or info but there are a lot of crazed people who like to hunt down writers so that they can harass them. The one time a website put my e-mail up, I got slimy e-mails from a shock jock in Iowa trtying to get me to call into his show and an e-mail from an irate lawyer who didn't like what I wrote about cruises. I had them take my e-mail down. I don't have any problem with comment pages and letters to the editor about my work. I just don't have the energy to argue with lunatics. |
| JimmyG | Posted – 3/3/2008 3:52:28 PM | show profile Back in the pre-email era when I was the on-staff content expert at a magazine I would get phone calls from people asking my advice mostly, but also to rant. As an earlier poster said, if someone took the time to look up the magazine's phone number and find the car person to complain about their Dodge minivan's failing transmission, then I felt it my duty to spend a few minutes with them on the phone. I'd be a little more terse with the complainers, but sometimes you have to take the heat. The lunatics usually wrote letters. Sometimes I would get story ideas from interacting with readers, or at least get a feel for how people were interpreting our editorial message. A couple of times I even got calls from celebrities with questions or comments. |
| rhino writer | Posted – 3/3/2008 5:33:13 PM | show profile sheesh Okay, I'm not a rabid fan, but I've certainly e-mailed some writers about things they've written that's struck a chord with me. Isn't that the point of writing for the public, to affect how people think? I understand that there are wacky people out there, and also that negative comments are unwelcome, but I had never realized that a nice e-mail or letter would put someone's back up. FWIW, when I've contacted writers, I haven't wanted to start a long conversation or friendship. Their e-mail addys have been accessible from their websites. I assume you all have work e-mail addresses that are separate from your personal ones. I realize I may sound defensive, but if you don't want people reacting to what you write, maybe you should reconsider being a writer. |
| nika | Posted – 3/4/2008 11:43:57 AM | show profile I'd say I agree with rhino. I always try to take the time to answer any e-mails I get from readers. Isn't that the whole reason you get into journalism? To connect with and start a conversation with people? Unless you're in this only for self-satisfaction and gratification. candy lilacs made a good point, readers are our equivalent of fans. Just like Brad Pitt takes a few seconds to sign autographs, I take a few seconds to at least say 'thanks for taking the time to contact me'. However, if they're emailing with a rant or anything negative I just ignore them. Or if they're looking for additional info on a subject, honestly 98% of the time I won't know much more than what I wrote in the article. But anything else, I'll usually reply with a quick thank you email. |
