R.J. Ellory, Sockpuppetry, and Despair

I am sad, frustrated, and feeling a whisper of despair. Bestselling author R.J. Ellory has been caught out writing glowing reviews for himself, while lambasting other authors. I just don’t understand the point behind doing this. Readers read books from multiple authors within a genre. So why do this? Why? To what end?I just don’t get it. Does he really believe that by writing a negative review of another author’s book, then writing a glowing review of his own, that a reader will buy his book over the other author’s? I just don’t get it.

What hope does a writer like me ever have of getting anywhere in the world of publishing, when those that have made it, make such a concerted effort to bring down the competition?

I work like a hooker that needs to get the rent paid trying to get people to download my free book as it is without trying to sabotage the efforts of other writers. What chance do I have in a world of publishing dominated by best selling authors that can’t be satisfied enough in their own success to find contentment, that they have to undermine others to bolster themselves up? I’m doomed. I’m absolutely, positively, categorically doomed if this is the way this world works. I have neither the temperament nor the desire to slash and burn my way to the top.

I do take a great deal of comfort from the community of writers that I’ve found through my push to market myself. Maybe it’s because we are all in the same boat that we tend to treat each other with kindness.  Drifting like a bunch of refugees trying to find a port as we attempt to gain a toehold in the publishing world is the sort of thing that brings people together.

After this week, I question if it’s possible to make it in the writing world without having the soul of a mercenary and ice-water running through the veins. I’m sure it is. I’m just being moody and a bit peevish. If I achieved the same level of success as R.J. Ellory, I’d probably spend my spare time generating positive mojo mentoring struggling writers rather than racking up the negative karma by being a tool. Actually… that’s probably a good idea. Sort of like community service for an author gone bad. I’ll think I’ll send R.J. Ellory an email.