Mundie Moms

Thursday, August 1, 2013

Thoughtful Thursdays: Gayle Forman on "ARCs and Spoilers and Early Reviews"


Gayle Forman wrote a post that Katie and I have discussed over the years and she wrote it as only she can -- straight to the point. Here's a brief quote from the post:

Unlike with If I Stay and Where She Went, Just One Day and Just One Year were conceived together. They are very much inter-connected and part of the challenge of writing them was twisting the threads that run between each book together so that two very distinct stories weave together, tell their own tales, and then, at last, tell a much larger one. This was the challenge of these two books, the reason I wanted to write them in the first place. Whether I succeeded or not, well, that part’s up to you.

But that is why I write

So much of what I hope Just One Day/Just One Year’s pleasure and satisfaction derive from is the discovery of that overlap, the discovery of that larger story that only comes after reading Willem’s story. It’s the kind of experience that is best had in ignorance. I know that’s impossible. And, really, I hope it’s impossible because I know that in the best of worlds, people talk about books they like. And I absolutely want you to do that.

So all I can ask now is that those of you who have early access to Just One Year recognize your position and, whether you hate the book, love the book, or somewhere in between, please don’t spoil the experience for everyone who won’t have the book for several more months. I’m not saying don’t review it early, but if you do, can you try to keep your reviews unspoilery, keep a bit of the book’s secrets? It can be done.
Here's my issue, I've had series-ending books spoiled for me. The spoilery people didn't mean to do it, not really. And it was my fault that I was on twitter/facebook and following all these individuals at once when they finished reading their ARCs. I meant to look away, but I didn't. I think some of you have experienced the same. So guess what happened? Yeah, I saw who died/ended up with whom/how the BIG issue was solved. But, I also didn't finish those series. I was at first mad, and then just plain tired of it all. I was simply too exhausted by the frenzy to care anymore. As a result, my kids' high school library got a nice donation of a few complete series.

I'm one of those readers who have fallen in love (understatement) with Gayle's writing (my reviews of If I Stay/Where She Went and Just One Day). I am dying to see how she will tell Willem's side of the story. But, please, please, please (with a macaron on top) if you've read an early copy of it, do not spoil it for other readers who will run out on October 15th with me and buy our copies of Just One Year. Please, no subtle tweets of "I just hate/love/am indifferent about...". Please, no facebook updates to fellow bookworms that start off with "I cannot believe Allyson ....". Or worse yet, "Willem did....! I knew it!" Because these kind of tweets/updates/tumblr posts start conversations with other early readers and then before you know it, BAM!, you've posted spoilers.

Instead after the release date, let a couple of weeks pass before chatting openly about it or use DM/email/other means where people can't see your spoilery thoughts. I know it's SOOOOOO hard to not talk about a book that makes you feel all those feels at once. And Gayle is THE BEST at doing just that -- encouraging bookish conversations/debates.

Let's remember to be kind to one another and let each other discover the ups and downs of a great series-ending book. This is a reminder for me and Katie, too, because while we're very careful about not spoiling books on the blog or for one another, on occasion we have slipped. Especially when the books have been out for years. Katie knows Dumbledore's fate and I know that Katniss ends up with...ugh, I think everyone knows which boy, but for the sake of this post, I won't say it here. Instead, let me go pick up Mockingjay and read it for myself.

I think we can all agree, series-ending books are hard not to spoil. Many thanks to Gayle for reminding all of us not to do just that.

6 comments:

  1. Replies
    1. Thanks sweetie. You know how I get when I'm passionate about something!

      Delete
  2. Replies
    1. Jessica - Thanks for stopping by and reading my plea. LOL! It really is heartfelt. I know ARC readers don't purposefully spoil series-ending books, but with so much anticipation over them, they get caught up in the excitement and just don't think about what they are revealing.

      Delete
  3. Great post Sophie! I agree with both Gayle and yourself. You know my feelings on spoilers since someone totally spoiled the end of Clockwork Princess for me, which put me on a huge rant about people posting and talking about spoilers on Twitter and Tumblr. Spoilers like that ruin my wanting to read a book.

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Thanks Katie! I generally stay away from social media when I'm reading a series-ending book. But, it's the spoilery comments from early readers (lucky enough to get that much coveted ARC) that drive me insane. As I confessed, I simply don't want to finish the series.

      Delete

Labels