Mark Gilroy

Bringing Books to Life!

I Have a Bad Case of PEFS – Presidential Election Fatigue Syndrome

My first year to vote in a presidential election was 1976 – Carter v. Ford. I was a freshman in college and stayed up most of the night – at least until coverage ended, which was probably two o’clock or so – back when there were three main channels and a couple fuzzy ones that required constant fiddling with the rabbit ears or that UHF loop in the middle.

I really enjoy presidential elections. In fact, Amy and I held watch parties for all three presidential candidate debates and the VP debate that was … uh … well … unusual. (I say that will all respect and a really big smile.)
I’m not a news junkie as a rule – unless its football season – but I scan a couple of subscriptions and read a blog or article or two most days of the week. But during a presidential election campaign I have one of the cable news channels on almost every night and read a couple articles every day. I love listening to the pundits parse every phrase and analyze poll updates. In detail.
The problem with this election, the 2012 Romney v. Obama election campaign, is that it has gone so long. The GOP nomination process was closely fought and lasted until June – a marathon contest that started in earnest more than a year ago with what seemed like a couple hundred debates. As long as the Republicans stayed in the news cycle, good or bad, the Democrats weren’t going to be left out of the conversation and were running political ads as early as late winter and early spring – basically long enough to have a baby.
I love this stuff and I even know who is going to win the election and why. But I’m finally there. I am tired of the campaign and am ready for next Tuesday to get here. I officially have PEFS – presidential election fatigue syndrome.
I’ll still watch coverage and stay up  too late tonight. And tomorrow night. The cure doesn’t arrive until November 6. Well, actually sometime around three or four a.m. on the seventh!

Self-Promotion: I Wanna Talk About Me

I wanna talk about me.

Look at me!

Self-promotion. How much is too little and how much is too much?

In his smash hit, “I Wanna Talk About Me,” Toby Keith makes a case both directions – some promote (or at least talk) too much and some too little. It’s a great reminder of what Dale Carnegie taught us in How to Win Friends and Influence People – everyone wants to get a word in edge-wise.

With Facebook, Instagram, Pinterest, LinkedIn, Twitter, and so many other social media to connect us with people we know, the question of self-promotion gets relational.  Now it’s not only a question of how much self-promotion is appropriate for the world at large – but with the people we know and call friends. Are we driving them crazy?

This is a personal question for me. As an author my publisher tells me I have to promote my books – if I don’t, no one else will either. As  a publisher, I tell my authors the same thing.

But no one wants to lose friends by being obnoxious.

So when promoting your activities – particularly with friends – particularly in the social media age we live in:

How much self-promotion is too much? not enough? just right?

Be aware that no matter what you do you will always get one of three responses:

  • Anything you say to promote yourself will be too much with some.
  • Others sincerely want to know what you’re doing – everything you’re doing – especially Mom.
  • Still more aren’t going to notice anything you say anyway – they’re too busy self-promoting – so who cares since you’re just talking to yourself?

So really … how much self-promotion is just right? Because it’s true, if you don’t believe in yourself and what you’re doing, who else should and will?

There is obviously no single answer. You can already read my mind on the topic. My typical response: the answer is yes and no, more and less.

Better go with your own comfort level, knowing you can’t control your intended responses no matter how careful or reckless you are. A few simple words of counsel – as much a reminder to myself as a word to anyone else – include:

  1. Keep a sense of perspective and humor – your project is not the center of the universe or a matter of life and death for others – even if what you are doing is life and death in your mind.
  2. Err on the side of caution – do not overdo it lest you become a nuisance to your friends. The rule of thumb for Facebook and other high relationship networks is keep your posts relational – don’t promote your products more than one, possibly two times a week from your personal account. Sell indirectly by being interesting and staying engaged. Trust they’ll find you. On Twitter you can promote about as much as you want – but beware, you still need to be interesting and interactive or people will tune you out.
  3. In general conversation, make sure you listen as much as you speak – do you know what others are up to? (Do you care?)
  4. If your purpose to be on social media, at least in part, is to promote what you are doing, be sure to return the favor to others who are likewise promoting and acknowledge what they are up to with Likes, RTs, Shares, comments or whatever else helps. Create some quid pro quo relationships.
  5. Keep your message “soft sell” – especially with friends – as most people don’t like to be pushed.

If none of what I wrote helped you on the topic, maybe you can pick up some more direction from the guy who just wanted to talk a little about himself!

Mark Gilroy is the author of the bestselling Kristen Conner Mystery Series and a veteran executive in the publishing industry.
Updated on March 5, 2015

Istanbul Passage: A Post WWII Spy Thriller

Istanbul Passage by Joseph Kanon

A Cold War thriller with rich insights into Istanbul politics during and after World War II.

 

Istanbul Passage by Joseph Kanon. Simon & Schuster.

Istanbul in World War II? Whose side were they on? Allies or Axis? No peeking!

I’ll admit, until I picked up Kanon’s post WWII novel I didn’t know either. As a city straddling two continents with competing histories from the East and West, no surprise they were neutral.

Their geography also made it not surprising that they were a shipping and smuggling center for both sides. I was surprised to learn that for much of WWII they were the safest transfer link in smuggling Jews from Europe to Palestine.

Leon, an ex-pat American businessman – he buys Turkish tobacco –  has run low level operations – errands might be the better word for it – for the Americans and Allies. With Germany’s surrender, he is asked to take on one more assignment. The more he is told how simple and safe it will be, the more he knows something big is afoot. He just needs to meet a small boat at the docks, take the passenger to a safe house, ask no questions, and deliver him to an airfield a few days later.

He escapes an ambush with the passenger alive – and quickly learns that the world political conflict has shifted between the US and Soviet Union. He has no one to trust – and both of the superpowers, along with his Turkish hosts suspect he knows more than he is letting on.

Leon visits his Jewish wife – who is tucked in a sanatorium – every day – she hasn’t spoken since a ship with children she was trying to save was sunk. Will he find answers in the silence?

Kanon is a great wordsmith – his almost drawl understated style ratchets up the internal highly reflective conflict of sorting through the shifting sands of friends and enemies on personal – and geopolitical – levels.