Industry
I revived my social media "presence" but still don't know what to do with it. Although being on Bsky and Instagram theoretically improves my author site's search engine ranking, the site has been live for so long that anyone who wants to find me can do so. Now Shirker is out as an ebook nearly all of my back catalogue is available online. So what are we doing? Building a brand? Don't kid yourself.
Early-aughts muscle memory provokes me to list things I've been reading or listening to.
I still don't like talking about my writing here... If I'm writing about it, I'm not making it. I'll never be into the participatory criticism young authors have to contend with. I don't know how a writer can be that online and still be productive. I can't write with other people's voices in my head.
There's also the question of time. I have less of it. I'm working on a new novel that won't be published while I'm alive. There's a point in an author's career where death is the best move they can make. A line gets drawn under it, someone snaps up the rights, and a bulk re-issue is presented for critical reappraisal, typically a decade down the line. Or not – it doesn't matter.
I used to think I wrote for posterity but really it's because I like writing.
Things I've been reading:
- Weimar Germany by Eric D Weitz
- Losing The Signal by Jacquie McNish and Sean Silcoff
- Plunder by Brendan Ballou
- The Habsburg Empire by Martyn Rady
Things I've been listening to:
- Magdalena Bay - Imaginal Disk
- Cowboy Junkies - The Trinity Session
- Kilig - You Are Everywhere
- Holy Fuck - Free Gloss
- Dazz Band - Greatest Hits
- Yellow Magic Orchestra - Naughty Boys
- Pharoah Sanders - Pharoah