When Authors Get Political: My Take

I have very much appreciated everyone's comments and great discussion on the survey results from Wednesday's post. As promised, here are my thoughts on the subject in general for those who are interested. You can also check out Maggie Stiefvater's post.

When I was a sophomore in high school, I was in concert band. Like many kids my age, I felt awkward, ugly, unsure of myself, and eager to prove myself. I had a teacher that didn't care a bit about actually teaching and rarely held structured class. During one of these such classes, a couple friends and I got into a heated discussion about some current events (this was during the invasion into Iraq, so I'll let you put together the pieces of when and how that discussion went). I had an opinion that was not in the mainstream, but that I felt very strongly about. My friends and I were having a civil discussion, when the teacher came out and joined a group of senior boys who were opposed to my position. What was a good, civil discussion quickly escalated to a argument about my gender, my age, and my intelligence. I ended up walking out of the class and didn't return. But to this day, I remember how humiliated I felt. And it was a very long time before I felt comfortable discussing political things with anyone except my very immediate family.

I share this story as an introduction to this post, because I think it's important to realize that as adults, we have a certain amount of authority and influence when it comes to teens, even though it may not seem like it. And words that may not mean anything to us mean a great deal to them. Because no teen should feel attacked or bullied by an adult because of their political or religious beliefs.

I am a very politically active person. My career is political in nature, and I work deep in the trenches of political stuff that would probably bore you to tears. I spend 40 hours a week with three TV's going tuned to different news channels and CSPAN. I talk on the phone all day long about health care, immigration, social security, gun control, and every political topic under the sun. However, I am very careful to keep my political beliefs off my twitter stream. And this is a personal decision on my part, because I try to keep my political life and my reading life separate. I don't expect anyone to be as guarded as I am.

This, for me is not a discussion about whether authors, public figures, or anyone really CAN post their political beliefs on twitter. Of course they can, and they have a right to. And they can be as inflammatory or as polite as they want. It's not even about whether they SHOULD. Because it's a personal decision.

What this is about is how it's received. When I first meet someone, I don't immediately begin talking about politics. Even when I meet someone for the first time, and they ask what I do, I usually give a very basic answer. Because I want them to get to know me first, and to understand who I am as a person beyond my politics.

When something is posted on twitter, so much of our ability to communicate is handicapped. I can't look into your eyes and see how you are receiving what I'm saying. Even now I feel at a disadvantage, because I don't know what you as the reader are taking away from what I'm writing, and you can't communicate back with me like we could if we were face to face. Words that I may not mean to be harsh or offensive may be taken that way. It's even worse when we're limited to 140 characters.

I know that many authors and public figures have strong political beliefs, just like I do. I expect them to. As smart, insightful, and compassionate people, I know that they have things that they are passionate about.

Do I unfollow people for posting political things on twitter? Absolutely. Because it's my twitter stream and I can do what I want with it. (sidenote: I have also unfollowed people for posting too many cat pictures, or overusing the word sexytimes) I get so much of it in my day job, that I don't think I should be judged for wanting to keep my reading life, which I keep separate, free from a discourse on twitter about politics. This doesn't stop me from reading books that have a political nature, or that deal with serious topics, because I love them and I think that they are important.

Have I not read a book by an author because of things that they have posted on twitter? Yes. I can think of a few instances where I couldn't connect with an author's work any more because I felt like I just couldn't relate to them on a personal level. Conversely, there is an author that I follow on twitter that posts political things that I disagree with pretty often. However, I've met them in person, and they were so lovely, kind, and just such a class act that I didn't care what their political beliefs were. I don't know that I would have ever read any of their books if I hadn't had such an incredibly positive interaction with them.

Ultimately, authors can choose to be whoever they want to be on Facebook and Twitter. And readers can choose how they will react. I will continue to manage my twitter feed the way that I choose, and authors will post what they feel like best represents them. Neither of us are better or more right than the other. But, in this age of instant communication and the wonderful opportunity to interact with our favorite authors, I think it's important to take a look at our online presence every now and again and decide, is this how I want people to see me? Make sure that you make it count.