Lindsey Williams's Blog: Random Nonsense - Posts Tagged "quality"
On Integrity and Quality
I hit a snag recently in working with one of my peers on a project and it got me thinking. I hope to take this snag and turn it into what you might call a teachable moment. A cautionary tale for indie authors, if you will.
Long story short, this peer made the decision to use me as some kind of example for why they couldn’t be involved, framing it as some sort of ‘last stand’ for integrity and quality. As if I, or my project, have neither.
So this person decided it would be a good idea/acceptable to passive-aggressively denounce the quality of my work, by telling people their integrity would not allow them to be involved in my project over 'quality concerns'. But was it really so hard to just stop at calling it a matter of creative differences? (Because that's what it was.) Why would they feel the need to do this? To go that step further and make it comparative? Why is this a thing for authors at all?
On some level, I get it. It may seem like an easy way to make yourself stand out among other indie authors. “Hey! Over here! Look at me! I’m more professional/serious/dedicated/talented/skillful/significant/insert adjective here than X, buy MY books!” But trust me - this way lies madness. DON’T DO IT. Don’t do it privately and definitely don’t do it publicly. It’s a trap. Just stop comparing yourself to anyone altogether, it’s all a monumental waste of time. You are not like anyone else and neither am I. That is the whole point. In the words of author/vlogger/beautiful human Jenna Moreci, “The key is to compare yourself, to yourself." Not to mention, there are so many better ways to stand out as a writer. (Hint: write good, share. Rinse, repeat.)
Writing is not a zero sum game, and I personally don’t think the path to success is to push other people down to make yourself look better. Aside from my recent situation, I’ve seen authors do this quite often, forgetting that the most obvious but overlooked parts of integrity and quality is that they are active. People can see it for themselves, if they’re looking for it. You don’t prove your integrity or quality by telling anyone who will listen that you have more of it than someone else. That’s not how it works. You can’t just talk the talk, you have to walk the walk. And it’s a brutal, long walk. Don’t make it harder for your peers by vaguely spouting off about how much better you are than them. Let your writing - and your actions - speak for themselves.
Long story short, this peer made the decision to use me as some kind of example for why they couldn’t be involved, framing it as some sort of ‘last stand’ for integrity and quality. As if I, or my project, have neither.
So this person decided it would be a good idea/acceptable to passive-aggressively denounce the quality of my work, by telling people their integrity would not allow them to be involved in my project over 'quality concerns'. But was it really so hard to just stop at calling it a matter of creative differences? (Because that's what it was.) Why would they feel the need to do this? To go that step further and make it comparative? Why is this a thing for authors at all?
On some level, I get it. It may seem like an easy way to make yourself stand out among other indie authors. “Hey! Over here! Look at me! I’m more professional/serious/dedicated/talented/skillful/significant/insert adjective here than X, buy MY books!” But trust me - this way lies madness. DON’T DO IT. Don’t do it privately and definitely don’t do it publicly. It’s a trap. Just stop comparing yourself to anyone altogether, it’s all a monumental waste of time. You are not like anyone else and neither am I. That is the whole point. In the words of author/vlogger/beautiful human Jenna Moreci, “The key is to compare yourself, to yourself." Not to mention, there are so many better ways to stand out as a writer. (Hint: write good, share. Rinse, repeat.)
Writing is not a zero sum game, and I personally don’t think the path to success is to push other people down to make yourself look better. Aside from my recent situation, I’ve seen authors do this quite often, forgetting that the most obvious but overlooked parts of integrity and quality is that they are active. People can see it for themselves, if they’re looking for it. You don’t prove your integrity or quality by telling anyone who will listen that you have more of it than someone else. That’s not how it works. You can’t just talk the talk, you have to walk the walk. And it’s a brutal, long walk. Don’t make it harder for your peers by vaguely spouting off about how much better you are than them. Let your writing - and your actions - speak for themselves.
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