Spreading IT Too Thin

by Gwynne Forster

             I joined RAWSISTAZ@YahooGroups.com five, or was it ten, years ago when Martina Royal organized one of  the first major on-line readers and writers group mainly for African Americans. I met many authors and readers on the group, and some of them have become personal friends. It’s been fun and often really heartwarming to meet them at conferences and book signings around the country. I then joined Fiction Folks and met some of the same people, and also quite a few new ones.

            Next, I put my name of the membership list of Black Writers Unite, Divas Incorporated, ProlificWriters, and BlackExpressions2005. As if I wasn’t content to participate in the deliberations of those loops, I created Voices For the Written Word and Gwynne Forster Book club of Fans and Readers. I also have a blog, Gwynne’s Sanctum. All of these are on Yahoo.com. In addition, I drop in on internet radio programs and, of course, there is the constant flow of e-mail. And did I mention that I have a web site – www.gwynneforster.com.

            You’d think I’d have my fill of internet correspondence, but don’t be so logical. I needed more, didn’t I? Somebody invited me to join Shelfari. I did. One of my publishers said that every author should be on MySpace. Donna Hill took pity on me at set me up on MySpace. It took her an hour, but it would probably have taken me years. I thanked her.

            Was that enough? No. Tom, Dick, Harry, Mary and Ann began to send me invitations to be their friend on FaceBook. I ignored them. But then, The New York Times began to mention FaceBook, and I thought, maybe I’m missing something. I accepted the next invitation to be a friend of somebody—I have no idea who, and now after two months, I have 600 “friends.” Fortunately, I’m a people person, and I really love friends.

            All was well and good until I discovered that President Obama likes to leak stuff on Twitter. Twitter? What the heck was that?” Well, if it works for the prez, it works for me. So a week after I hooked up with FaceBook, I accepted somebody’s suggestion that I join Twitter. Fortunately for me, who can be loquacious once I get started, Twitter allows you only 140 characters per post.  Already, I’m following 148 people and 61 are following me.

            Is it any wonder that this novel I’m writing is moving more slowly than any of my previous 40 titles. I pride myself in ignoring Link and five or six other loops and social links, but I’m a writer, and when I sit down to this  computer, it isn’t for the purpose of learning what Gregory Townes said about his fictional sister-in-law, reading about “Maxine’s” latest antics, or finding out what people on the loops are reading or gossiping about. I’m supposed to work. O yes, did I mention Z-Authors, KimaniPress authors and e-Harlequin? They’re internet loops, all, and I belong to them.

            This is distracting and sometimes maddening, because I can’t resist them. . My curiosity won’t let me click them off without a quick glance. I can therefore sit at this computer for a full hour before I begin work. It is  too much. I am definitely going to turn over a new leaf. I’m going to discipline myself and read the loops after I’m too tired to continue writing. I hope!

Gwynne Forster

Author of A DIFFERENT KIND OF BLUES and A CHANGE HAD TO COME (October 2009)